The “Ethics and
Justice Working Group” (EJWG) was established at the General Meeting in
Maputo in May 1999 as an ad-hoc working
group.[1] It currently consists
of twenty-four members and is co-chaired by Alejandro Bendana of the Nicaraguan
Campaign and Nicoletta Dentico, coordinator of the Italian Campaign to Ban
Landmines.
Various issues have been debated in the group, including the question of the
cultural appropriateness of DC Comics’ “Superman” as a mine
awareness instrument; research over the environmental impact of landmines; and,
reparation and compensation to landmine victims. Several of its members met in
Berlin in June 1999 and contributed to the reviewing process of the Bad Honnef
Guidelines.
Activities
The Superman Mine Awareness Comic: The Superman mine awareness comic
is a highly visible tool endorsed by celebrities who, along with the UNICEF
logo, give the publication much credibility. The EJWG triggered discussion
about its cultural appropriateness, as seen from the perspective of campaigns in
many countries of the South and some in the
East.[2] The main objection to
the Superman mine awareness project is its impact on the everyday reality and
cultural context of the mine-affected communities. Some believe it can
undermine local development of mine awareness education; mine awareness tools
are more effective and empowering when developed with the involvement of the
affected communities themselves. Regular discussions have been carried out
between the Ethics and Justice and the Mine Action Working Groups on this issue.
The EJWG and MAWG drafted an ICBL letter sent to UNICEF in May 2000 formally
requesting that UNICEF “openly address the cultural and technical concerns
raised.”
The EJWG is (1) continuing to gather information on the impact of the
Superman comics in mine awareness programs, to provide interested parties with
background information and comments from NGOs and experts directly involved in
fieldwork; (2) preparing a letter to circulate among ICBL campaigns to foster
action at the domestic level with their UNICEF counterparts; and (3) promoting
the idea of UNICEF studies on the impact of the Superman comic as a mine
awareness tool.
The “Polluter Pays”
principle:[3] The EJWG
seeks to focus consistent attention on the issue, particularly as the
implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty compels governments to a renewed
humanitarian commitment, as they focus on national guidelines for mine action.
A recommended and accepted criterion for mine action should be that of avoiding
“double dipping” situations, where those involved in production and
export of landmines also profit from demining.
The working group is stimulating investigations that product liability
and actions based on the polluter pays principle may be two possible
legal avenues whereby affected populations might be able to claim their
clearance rights, as well as their compensation rights. The EJWG has been
coordinating with the VAWG, and with the ICRC, to identify the best approach
from the point of view of the victims, and possible areas for action. Contacts
have been made with individuals and legal groups in Italy, U.S., Canada and
Switzerland.
The EJWG will coordinate these individual efforts with a seminar in Brescia,
the former cradle of mine production in Italy, to develop a legal basis of a
"polluter pays" concept in relation to landmine use and production and create an
international pool of legal experts willing to pursue legal possibilities in
relation to the responsibility of landmine producers and user vis-a-vis civilian
populations.
Landmines and Environment: Landmines have been called a toxic
pollutant of global proportion, yet not much has been done to research their
environmental consequences. Toward this end, the Sub-Committee on Environmental
Aspects (SCEA) of the EJWG was created in May 1999, and it is working with a
number of national campaigns and organizations affiliated with the ICBL on the
issue.[4] The SCEA seeks to
continue efforts on the analysis of overall environmental aspects of the
landmine crisis and environmental norms as expressed in Article 7 of the 1997
Mine Ban Treaty. States are obligated to destroy stockpiled and planted
landmines, and in either process, environmental standards may or may not be
observed. A compilation of the information on Environmental Standards provided
by States under Article 7 is being analyzed, with particular reference to the
need for an international environmental standard for destruction of stockpiles.
Research on the environmental impact of landmines was carried out for Landmine
Monitor 2000. The SCEA has actively participated in various international
conferences studying the relations between armed conflict, sustainable
development and conservation strategies.
The Definition of AP Mines: One of the objectives of the EJWG is to
stimulate analysis of a definition of AP mines that more fully encompasses its
impact on the victim. Several members of the EJWG have focussed on the
impact-oriented definition of AP mine in the review process of the Bad Honnef
guidelines on mine action. After the NATO bombing in
Kosovo,[5] the EJWG began
discussions about the feasibility of including cluster bombs in the ICBL ban
call. The issue was raised at the ICBL Coordination Committee meeting in
September 1999, where it was decided that the sole focus of the ICBL would
remain the ban of AP mines, but that national campaigns and/or member
organizations could individually look at ways of addressing the issue of cluster
bombs.[6]
The EJWG also calls upon organizations to work on the issue of antihandling
devices on antivehicle mines, and to develop sustained debate on a review of the
definition of AP mines contained in the Mine Ban Treaty.
Ethical reflections on compliance of the Mine Ban Treaty: After the
entry into force of the Mine Ban Treaty, many sought sound ethical thinking
regarding compliance. When this working group was still called that of
“legal and moral responsibility,” JRS AsiaPacific-Cambodia had
already begun some work regarding the ethical arguments for compliance with the
treaty (which is nearing completion). The EJWG wants to further develop such
arguments. Contacts have been made by Misereor and the Italian Campaign to Ban
Landmines, the focal points for this EJWG subcommittee, with various Buddhist
groups and with the Pontificial Commission for Justice and Peace. The religious
groups so far involved have expressed their interest in joining efforts to
stimulate some discussion on ethical themes vis-a-vis landmines and the Mine Ban
Treaty.
[1] It is the revived and renamed version
of a previous working group on legal and moral responsibility formed in
Frankfurt in February 1998. [2]
Following a period of consultations and correspondence among ICBL members,
including specialists in mine awareness, technical and cultural objections were
raised by campaigns and NGOs particularly in Mozambique, Sudan, Afghanistan,
Pakistan, Philippines, Bosnia, Kosovo, Nicaragua and
Colombia. [3] The first
“Call” of the ICBL included a broad call urging states that had
contributed to the proliferation of landmines to commit financially for their
eradication; members of the ICBL, now particularly in the EJWG, have focused
more specifically on the “polluter pays” principle, with a mind to
how it was applied in the environmental
movement. [4] From May 1999, Mr.
Claudio Torres Nachón of the SCEA has conducted research on the
environmental aspects of landmines. Some of the sub-committee’s main
findings and other research papers can be found in a dedicated web page hosted
by the Centro de Derecho Ambiental e Integración Económica del
Sur—DASSUR, at:
http://members.xoom.com/dassur/envir.html. [5]
Kosovo has demonstrated again what is already known from past experiences in
Laos and in Iraq: that the long-term effect of unexploded cluster munitions
(duds) on civilian populations is comparable to that of AP
mines. [6] Technical contributions on
cluster bombs have been carried out by Human Rights Watch, as well as the ICRC,
and another is about to be released by the UK Working Group on
Landmines.