Key developments
since March 1999: The Czech Republic ratified the Mine Ban Treaty on 26
October 1999 and it entered into force on 1 April 2000. National implementation
legislation was passed on 18 November 1999 and entered into force on 3 December
1999. The original timeline of 20 June 2001 to complete mine/UXO clearance will
likely slip to the end of 2001. By the end of 1999, a total of 9,972 hectares
of land and 2,022 buildings had been cleared in and around the two main former
Soviet bases.
Mine Ban Policy
The Czech Republic signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3
December 1997, and ratified it on 26 October 1999. The treaty entered into
force for the Czech Republic on 1 April 2000.
National implementation legislation was passed on 18 November 1999 and
entered into force on 3
December.[1] Additionally, the
criminal code was amended to impose imprisonment of one to five years for
violations of the law.[2]
Relevant sections of the treaty have been incorporated in military regulations
with a view to preventing possible violations, and are taught at military
colleges and
universities.[3]
The government participated in the First Meeting of State Parties in
Mozambique in May 1999, with a delegation headed by the Deputy Minister of
Foreign Affairs Martin
Palous.[4] The government has
participated in all the intersessional meetings of the Mine Ban Treaty.
In a statement at the General Assembly on 22 September 1999, the Minister of
Foreign Affairs Jan Kavan stated, "We support all efforts towards achieving a
universal applicability to this
Convention."[5] The government
voted in favor of UN General Assembly resolutions supporting a ban on landmines
in 1996, 1997, 1998 and in December 1999.
The country is a party to Amended Protocol II of the Convention on
Conventional Weapons (CCW), and submitted its national annual report required
under Article 13 on 25 October
1999.[6] The Czech Republic
attended the First Conference of State Parties to Amended Protocol II in
December 1999. At the Conference, the Secretary-General at the Czech Ministry
of Foreign Affairs Zdenek Matejka noted that, among the steps taken to ensure
national implementation, the CCW and Amended Protocol II have been incorporated
in national legislation, and “the relevant provisions are integrated in
military instructions and operating
procedures.”[7]
In his comments at the CCW Conference, Secretary-General Matejka also noted
that the Czech Republic continues to support all other fora, in particular the
Conference on Disarmament, aiming toward a universalization of Protocol II and
the Mine Ban Treaty.[8]
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Martin Palous, head of the Czech
Delegation, had also stated this view at the FMSP in Maputo, where he said that
“the Czech Republic has given lasting support to all other fora, in
particular the Geneva Conference on Disarmament, that strive to involve all
mine-producing States in the efforts to eliminate these lethal weapons. We are
aware that such states may be able to cite sensible reasons for non-compliance;
however, we are firm believers in the ability of the political process to
overcome these obstacles in the near future, so that the Convention may become
truly universal.”[9]
Declaration on Joint Operations with Non-Signatories of the MBT
With its ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty, the government deposited a
declaration with which it seeks to protect its troops from prosecution for the
“mere participation in the planning or execution of operations, exercises
or other military activity,” where non-signatories use AP
mines.[10] There is concern
that the language of the declaration is so broad as to be inconsistent with the
Mine Ban Treaty.[11]
Production
The former Czechoslovakia was a significant
producer and exporter of antipersonnel mines, and the Czech Republic inherited
the AP mine production facilities when the country divided into the Czech and
Slovak Republics. According to the Czech government, production of
antipersonnel mines was halted in 1990. The types of AP mines produced by
Czechoslovak state factories and some of the countries to which they were
exported are noted in the Landmine Monitor Report
1999.[12]
Two former producers of antipersonnel mines, POS Policka and Zeveta
Bojkovice, both located in the province of Moravia, have now been converted to
other types of production. POS Policka, near Uhersky Brod in southern Moravia,
produced AP mines until 1989. About forty percent of its military production
capacity has been converted to non-military programs (handles for petrol pumps),
but it continues the production of antitank mines. Zeveta Bojkovice, near Usti
nad Orlici in eastern Bohemia, also ceased production of antipersonnel mines in
1989. Sixty per cent of its military production capacity has been converted to
non-military programs (spare parts for cars and other engineering production)
while the rest of its capacity has been retained for the production of
ammunition for small arms and light
weapons.[13]
Regarding production of antivehicle mines with antihandling devices and other
munitions that might function like antipersonnel mines, the Czech Foreign
Ministry has made the following statement: "Under the terms of Article 2 of the
Convention, Czech manufacturers produce and supply to the Army of the Czech
Republic cargo projectiles with remotely-delivered antitank mines equipped with
electronic anti-disturbance devices. There is no production of any other
anti-handling devices or mines delivered by cargo
projectiles."[14] Despite the
above disclaimer, Czech stockpiles contain antivehicle mines of concern to the
ICBL. (See below).
Transfer
The former Czechoslovakia was a significant
exporter of AP mines. The Czech Republic imposed a moratorium on exports in
October 1994, which was made indefinite in November
1997,[15] then was superseded by
the Mine Ban Treaty.
Asked to clarify its position on the legality of another country transiting
AP mines across Czech territory, officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
said that the ban on transfers would apply also in the case of joint operations
with countries which are not party to the Mine Ban Treaty, for example within
NATO. However, it was noted by Mr Tuma that the Czech Republic also has to meet
its obligations to the Washington Treaty as a member of
NATO.[16] There appears to be
ambiguity in the government's position.
Stockpiling and Destruction
By December 1997 the Czech Republic had destroyed
all 44,353 non-detectable AP mines in its stocks that did not comply with
Amended Protocol II.[17] These
type PP-Mi-Na mines were destroyed at Týniste nad Orlicí.
On 23 May 1998, the Minister of Defense approved a stockpile elimination plan
calling for completion of destruction by 30 June
2001.[18] Between January 1998
and May 2000 a total of 1,222 PP-Mi-Sr II APMs were destroyed, including 18
mines destroyed during testing of new equipment, 1,150 mines destroyed during
testing of the AP mine dismantling facility and 54 mines destroyed during bomb
disposal training courses. Due to technical and financial problems with the
mine dismantling line the original timeline of 20 June 2001 to destroy the
remaining 329,100 AP mines will be reconsidered, though not beyond the deadline
of 1 April 2004 as required by Article 4 of the
MBT.[19]
Due to the technical problems, AP mine destruction has been transferred to a
small military facility in Bohuslavice nad Vlàrí near
Slavicín in southern Moravia. The destruction of 329,000 PP-Mi-Sr and
PP-Mi-Sr II metallic cased fragmentation mines started on 2 May 2000, with an
anticipated rate of 600 mines per day. The mines are destroyed by disassembling
and recycling some materials, such as scrap metal and TNT
components.[20]
The Ministry of Defense plans to retain 4,900 antipersonnel mines for testing
new demining technologies and for training bomb disposal experts of the Czech
Army, as permitted under the
treaty.[21] These mines are two
types of metallic fragmentation mines: PP-Mi-Sr (1,400 to be retained) and
PP-Mi-Sr II (3,500).
Regarding antivehicle mines, the Czech Army has PD-Mi-PK, PT-Mi-PK, PT-Mi-Ba
III, PT-Mi-U, PT-Mi with tilt-rod fuse, PT-Mi-K, and PT-Mi-P mines in
stock.[22]
The Mine Ban Treaty prohibits antivehicle mines with antihandling devices
that will explode as the result of an unintentional act of a person, and
antivehicle mines with sensitive fuse mechanisms that cause them to function as
antipersonnel mines. Tilt rod fuses cause an antivehicle mine to function as an
antipersonnel mine.[23] While
some Czech authorities state that only the PT-Mi is used with a tilt-rod fuse,
independent sources indicate that the PT-Mi-P and PT-Mi-U mines are also used
with a tilt rod fuse.[24]
Other Czech authorities have stated that none of the antivehicle and antitank
mines listed above are fitted with any antihandling
device,[25] and that: "[t]he
only mechanical anti-handling device ever produced in the Czech Republic was the
anti-handling fuse Ro-10. The production was discontinued in
1990.”[26]
There is similar uncertainty on the question of whether any of these mines
could be victim-activated by tripwire, a mode that is prohibited under the MBT.
The Czech authorities interviewed could not assure that steps have been taken so
that the listed mines cannot be used with a
tripwire.[27] According to the
U.S. Department of Defense, the PD-Mi-PK antivehicle mine can be fired
"electro-mechanically by a contact cable, by command detonation or mechanically
by a tripwire."[28] The Czech
Ministry of Foreign Affairs states: "The mine (PD-Mi-PK)...is actuated by
pressure of vehicles - by a contact cable, by a tripwire or command detonated.
Like anti-tank mines, PD-Mi-PK is a directional mine designed to attack vehicle
body, usually from the side. The Czech Republic does not classify PD-Mi-PK as
an APM under Article 2 of the
Convention."[29] From this
information it is not clear that these mines would not be tripwire activated by
“the presence, proximity or contact of a person” and therefore
illegal under the MBT if used with a tripwire.
Landmine Problem
The country has long borders that were lines of
confrontation between the Warsaw Pact and NATO during the Cold War. The
present-day Czech authorities state that during the Cold War the former
Czechoslovakian Socialist Republic did not deploy live mines on its borders with
former Federal Republic of Germany and Austria. There were only inert mines,
arranged to look like live mines in order to deter intruders. These inert
mines, together with booby traps and tetrahedrons, were removed after the
‘Velvet Revolution’ in
1989.[30]
The government reported in 1995 that troops from the former Soviet Union had
left approximately two tons of mines in waste dumps, in weapons pits, and in the
ground near the Ralsko and Mladá military bases which were occupied by
Soviet troops from 1968 to 1991. Army demining units have been clearing these
bases of mines and UXO. The original plan to complete clearance by the end of
1999 could not be achieved.
Czech Army demining units will complete clearing mines and unexploded
ordnance at Mladá by 30 June 2000, while clearing of the Ralsko base will
take until the end of 2001.[31]
By the end of 1999 at Mladá, some 1,301 buildings and 4,600 hectares of
land had been cleared. At Ralsko, 721 buildings and 5,372 hectares of land had
been cleared by the end of
1999.[32]
Mine Action
The Czech Republic has contributed to humanitarian
mine action. In 1998, $22,500 was donated to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund for
Assistance in Mine Clearance and $3,500 to the ICRC to help mine victims. In
1999, $107,000 was donated to the Slovenian International Trust Fund (ITF) for
Demining, Mine Clearance and Assistance to Mine Victims, mainly for mine victim
assistance. The Czech Ambassador to Slovenia Jana Hybaskova chaired the ITF
Board of Advisors in 1999.[33]
Czech SFOR (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and KFOR (FRY-Kosovo) units are engaged in
mine clearance in their areas of responsibility.
In 1998 the Czech government said that "health facilities in the Czech
Republic are ready to admit for paid medical treatment a limited number of
landmine victims, in particular children, and to ensure the supply of all
necessary prostheses.”[34]
This plan has now been altered: “In the light of the excellent results
achieved by the Rehabilitation Institute in Llubljana which, inter alia,
produces prostheses, the Czech Republic abandoned its original intention to
admit mine victims to Czech medical facilities or to supply prostheses, and pay
the costs from its ITF contribution.” The donation to the ITF ($107,000)
was used “to cover the costs associated with the short stay of Mr Jiri
Hrabák, senior consultant at the prosthetic ward of the Teaching hospital
in Plzen and Chairman of the Prosthetic Society, at the rehabilitation centres
in Fojnica and Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in September/October
1999.”[35]
[1] Act 305/1999 on the Prohibition of the
Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-personnel Mines and their
Destruction, 18 November 1999. [2]
Amendment to Act 140/1961, Criminal Code, section 185a on the Development,
Production and Possession of Prohibited Combat Equipment. Sanctions include
imprisonment for one to five years for development, production, possession,
stockpiling or import of any weapons or explosives prohibited by law or by an
international treaty approved by Parliament; and imprisonment for one to five
years for designing, constructing or using facilities for the development,
production or storage of such
weapons. [3] JUDr Alexander Slaby,
Director of the United Nations Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Prague, Letter No: 111558/2000-OSN, 31 March
2000. [4] Declaration of Markku Reimaa
on behalf of the European Union, 11 October 1999, in the Conference on
Disarmament, General Debate within the First Committee, General
Assembly/DIS/3140. [5] Statement by Jan
Kavan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, at the Fifty-fourth
Session of the United Nations General Assembly, 22 September
1999. [6] National annual report from
the Czech Republic, CCW/AP.II/CONF.1/NAR.8, 25 October
1999. [7] Statement by Zdenek Matejka,
Secretary-General at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, to
the First Conference of State Parties to the Amended Protocol II of the CCW,
Geneva, 15-17 December 1999. [8]
Ibid. [9] Statement by Martin Palous,
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Head of the Czech Delegation at the First
Meeting of State Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, Maputo, Mozambique, 4 May
1999. [10] Text of declaration provided
to Landmine Monitor by JUDr. Alexander Slaby, Letter No: 104237/2000-OSN, 7
February 2000. [11] This issue of
concern to the ICBL was described at length in Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp.
676-678. [12] Landmine Monitor Report
1999, pp. 707-708. [13] Letter from JUDr
Miroslav Tuma, Deputy Director of the United Nations Department at the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs, Prague, No. 116684/2000-OMO, 11 May
2000. [14] JUDr Alexander Slaby, Letter
No: 111558/2000-OSN, 31 March 2000. [15]
Statement by JUDr Miroslav Tuma, Deputy Director of the United Nations
Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the Regional Conference on
Landmines, Budapest, 26-28 March
1998. [16] Interview with Miroslav Tuma,
Jaroslav Zouzal, and Lt. Col. Josef Trabalik, Prague, 26 April
2000. [17] Statement by JUDr Miroslav
Tuma, Budapest, 26-28 March 1998. [18]
JUDr Alexander Slaby, Letter No: 111558/2000-OSN, 31 March
2000. [19]
Ibid. [20] JUDr Miroslav Tuma, Letter
No. 116684/2000-OMO, 11 May 2000. [21]
JUDr Alexander Slaby, Letter No: 111558/2000-OSN, 31 March
2000. [22]
Ibid. [23] Several MBT States Parties
have destroyed antivehicle mines with tilt rods because they were judged to
violate the treaty. [24] Human Rights
Watch Fact Sheet, “Antivehicle Mines with Antihandling Devices,”
prepared for the Standing Committee of Experts on the General Status and
Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 10-11 January
2000. [25] Jaroslav Zouzal during
interview with Miroslav Tuma, Jaroslav Zouzal, and Lt.Col. Josef Trabalik,
Prague, 26 April 2000. [26] JUDr.
Miroslav Tuma, Letter No. 116684/2000-OMO, 11 May
2000. [27] Interview with Miroslav Tuma,
Jaroslav Zouzal and Lt. Col. Josef Trabalik, Prague, 26 April
2000. [28] U.S. Department of Defense,
"ORDATA II, Version 1.0," CD-ROM. [29]
JUDr Miroslav Tuma, Letter No. 116684/2000-OMO, 11 May
2000. [30]
Ibid. [31] JUDr Alexander Slaby, Letter
No: 111558/2000-OSN, 31 March 2000. [32]
Ibid. [33] Interview with Miroslav Tuma,
Jaroslav Zouzal, and Lt. Col. Josef Trabalik, Prague, 26 April
2000. [34] Statement by JUDr Miroslav
Tuma, Budapest, 26-28 March 1998. [35]
JUDr. Miroslav Tuma, Prague, Letter No: 116684/2000-OMO, 11 May
2000.
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