Key developments since May 2003: In fiscal year 2003/04, Australia
provided A$8.2 million (US$4.8 million) to mine action activities around the
world, a significant decrease from the record A$14.5 million last year, and the
smallest amount since 1996. Australia has served as co-chair of the Standing
Committee on Victim Assistance since September 2003.
Key developments since 1999: Australia has spent A$96.6 million
(US$60 million) on mine action over the past nine years, and is poised to exceed
its ten-year commitment of A$100 million next year. The Mine Ban Treaty entered
into force for Australia on 1 July 1999. Australia destroyed its stockpile of
128,161 antipersonnel mines in five days in September/October 1999, and another
6,460 previously unrecorded mines in October/November 2000. In May 2001,
Australia reported that it had decided to reduce the number of antipersonnel
mines retained for training purposes from a total of 10,000 to 7,845; by the end
of 2003, Australia had consumed 380 of those mines.
Australia has been a very active participant in the Mine Ban Treaty
intersessional work program. Australia served as co-rapporteur and then
co-chair of the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction from September 2000
to September 2002, and of the Standing Committee on Victim Assistance from
September 2002 to December 2004. Australia’s Ambassador was President of
the Review Conference of the CCW in 2001. Since 2000, the Australian government
and the Australian Network of the ICBL have had a collaborative program to
encourage universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty in the Southeast Asia region.
The last two Australian landmine casualties occurred in 2002 in Afghanistan.
Mine Ban Policy
Australia signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997 and ratified on 14
January 1999. It entered into force for Australia on 1 July 1999. Prior to
ratification, on 10 December 1998, Australia enacted the Antipersonnel Mines
Convention Act to implement the Mine Ban Treaty
domestically.[1] Responsibility
for treaty implementation and compliance is shared among the Department of
Foreign Affairs and Trade, Department of Defence, and the Australian Agency for
International Development (AusAID).
Australia’s non-governmental movement calling for a ban on
antipersonnel landmines, the Australian Network of ICBL, was initiated in 1991,
which makes it one of the oldest members of the International Campaign to Ban
Landmines. While the government endorsed the call for a global antipersonnel
mine ban in April 1996, Australia was a reluctant participant in the Ottawa
Process and described its November 1997 decision to sign the Mine Ban Treaty as
“difficult,” given its earlier hopes for negotiations on
restrictions on antipersonnel mines through the Conference on Disarmament.
Over the past five years, Australia has taken on a leadership position as one
of the most active proponents of the Mine Ban Treaty and a major donor to
humanitarian mine action activities. It has served as co-rapporteur and then
co-chair of the Standing Committees on stockpile destruction (September
2000-September 2002) and victim assistance (September 2002-December 2004).
Australia co-sponsored regional landmine conferences in Thailand in May 2002 and
August 2003. It has engaged in numerous initiatives and bilateral actions aimed
at universalizing the Mine Ban Treaty. It has held regular meetings on mine
action and is one of a handful of countries to have a high-level designated
contact on landmines, the Special Representative on Mine Action, a
representative normally chosen from the national
parliament.[2]
Australia has attended all of the annual meetings of States Parties,
including the Fifth Meeting of States Parties held in September 2003, and it has
participated fully in the intersessional process, including Standing Committee
meetings held in February and June 2004. Australia has voted in favor of every
pro-ban UN General Assembly resolution since 1996, including UNGA Resolution
58/53 in December 2003.
On 30 April 2004, Australia submitted its sixth Article 7 transparency report
for calendar year 2003.[3] It
utilized voluntary Form J to provide details on recent contributions to mine
action.
Pro-Ban Activities
Australia remains an active member of the Universalization Contact Group and
in 2003 raised the issue bilaterally with non-States Parties Brunei Darussalam,
Indonesia, Laos, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Vanuatu. Australia’s
United Nations delegation in New York also promotes Mine Ban Treaty
universalization.[4] The South
East Asia Program (SEAP), a collaboration between the government and the ICBL
Australian Network, supports coordinated regional efforts on landmines,
including universalization. In 2003 and 2004, SEAP-funded projects included
publication of a book of photographs by John Rodsted on the impact of mines and
unexploded ordnance in Laos, as well as an exhibition of the photos at the Fifth
Meeting of States Parties. In April 2004, the government supported the
Australian Network in its work to organize a regional workshop on landmines in
Kunming, China, the first-ever such meeting held in China.
Australia has also supported efforts to engage non-state actors in the
antipersonnel mine ban. It provided funds for a workshop on the issue held
prior to the Fifth Meeting of States Parties, and for participation by an ICBL
Australian Network representative in a June 2003 mission to Nepal aimed at
non-state actors. [5]
The ICBL Australian Network joined with Australians Caring for Refugees
(AUSTCARE) for the inaugural Landmine Action Week from 14-23 May 2004.
Representatives from over twenty diplomatic missions attended the Australian
release of Landmine Monitor Report 2003, held at Parliament House in
Canberra and hosted by the Hon. Chris Gallus MP, Australia's Special
Representative on Mine Action. Australia has supported the ICBL’s
Landmine Monitor initiative since the second report (2000), with a contribution
for 2004 of A$250,000 ($186,500).
ICBL Issues of Concern
Joint Military Operations and “Assist”
The Landmine Monitor Report 1999 reported in detail on
Australia’s National Declaration that was deposited with its instrument of
ratification, and on Part 2, clause 7(3) of the Anti-personnel Mine Convention
Bill.[6] Questions were raised
regarding the consistency of the Declaration and clause with the Mine Ban
Treaty’s Article 1 prohibition on assisting anyone in any way to engage in
any activity prohibited by the treaty.
A highly regarded new legal commentary on the Mine Ban Treaty examines
Australia’s National Declaration and a statement by Zimbabwe on the
prohibition on “assist,” and concludes that “it is not clear
how these interpretations can be legally sustained. Reservations are
prohibited by Article 19” of the
treaty.[7] The commentary draws
particular attention to Australia’s position that the treaty would allow
“indirect support such as the provision of security for the personnel of a
State not party to the Convention engaging in such [prohibited]
activities,” including presumably the laying of antipersonnel mines by the
non-State Party.
The participation of Australian soldiers in the Iraq conflict has heightened
interest in this issue. Australia’s position was elaborated in a document
provided by the Australian Embassy to the United States in April 2003:
“Australia will not participate in planning or implementation of
activities related to anti-personnel mine use in joint operations... Australia
would reject any orders to use anti-personnel mines and has placed limitations
on its forces so as not to violate treaty commitments during these joint
operations.... Those members serving with United States forces have received a
brief on their obligations under the Ottawa Convention and the Anti-Personnel
Mines Convention
Act.”[8]
In comments to Landmine Monitor in August 2004, Australia said, “The
Australian Defence Force’s activities in military coalitions conducted
with non-Ottawa States are governed by rules of engagement which comply, without
exception, with the terms of the Convention (including the Declaration made by
Australia when depositing its instrument of ratification) as incorporated into
domestic legislation by the Anti-Personnel Mines Convention Act
1998.”[9]
Antivehicle Mines with Sensitive Fuzes and Antihandling Devices
During the negotiations of the Mine Ban Treaty in Oslo in 1997, Australia
formally stated its view that antivehicle mines configured as antipersonnel
mines were covered by the treaty’s definition of an antipersonnel mine,
and therefore prohibited. This understanding was not challenged by any
delegation.[10] In January 2000,
Australia was one of nine States to endorse a Human Rights Watch summary of the
Mine Ban Treaty’s negotiating history, including the view that antivehicle
mines that function like antipersonnel mines are banned by the
treaty.[11] Australia’s
then-Special Representative on Demining, the Hon. Kathy Sullivan, in a February
2000 letter to the ICBL Coordinator stated, “It is also Australia’s
understanding that anti-vehicle mines which are configured to explode from an
unintentional or innocent act should be treated as anti-personnel landmines for
the purposes of the
Treaty.”[12]
More recently, Australia has shown a reluctance to address the issue of
antivehicle mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling devices in the context of
the Mine Ban Treaty. At the June 2004 intersessional meeting, Australia’s
representative said that antivehicle mines should be discussed in the Convention
on Conventional Weapons, not the Mine Ban Treaty. This view was repeated in a
July 2004 letter to Landmine Monitor from the Department of Defence, which
stated that the CCW is “the most productive and appropriate forum”
to address tighter restrictions on the use of antivehicle mines. The letter
further stated, “Australia considers that in terms of humanitarian impact,
anti-vehicle mines... with sensitive fuses may pose similar risks to civilian
populations as anti-personnel mines. The inadvertent actuation of AVMs by the
unintentional presence, proximity or contact with a person is an unintended
consequence of this munition.”[13]
According to Australia’s Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon. Robert
Hill, “The Australian Defence Force’s current stocks of anti-tank
mines are obsolete and will only be used for training purposes. Should it be
decided to acquire these mines in the future... the Government will comply with
its international
obligations.”[14]
Similarly, the Department of Defence has stated, “No replacement
capability has yet been identified for Australia’s anti-tank mines, but
any capability will comply with Australia’s international
obligations.”[15]
On 30 January 2004, Australia’s Labor Party (the opposition party)
passed a resolution to include in its policy platform support for a ban on
antivehicle mines with anti-handling devices. The resolution means that “a
Latham Labor Government will ensure that no antivehicle mines with anti-handling
devices are purchased by Defence in the future, and that any such mines
currently in stock are
destroyed.”[16]
CCW
On 8 October 2003, the Australian Senate passed a comprehensive motion on
cluster munitions, which called on the government to support Protocol V on
explosive remnants of war (ERW) of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW).
Ratification of the protocol is
underway.[17] Australia also
supports the proposal for a negotiating mandate on a new protocol on antivehicle
mines.[18] Australia participated
in the Fifth Annual Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II on
landmines in November 2003 and in other experts meetings in 2003 and 2004. It
submitted its annual report under Article 13 on 3 November 2003.
Australia’s Ambassador Les Luck served as the President of the
CCW’s Second Review Conference in December 2001.
Use, Production, Transfer, and Stockpiling
Australia formally halted operational use of antipersonnel landmines on 15
April 1996, but in fact had not used them since the Vietnam War.
In 2000, Australia told Landmine Monitor that antipersonnel mine production
at the St. Mary’s Ammunition factory ceased in the early
1980s.[19] Prior to this
clarification, Australia was not thought to have been involved in the
manufacturing of antipersonnel mines. According to the Department of Defence,
live and practice antipersonnel landmines, including the US M-14 mine, were
assembled at the factory.[20] Due
to “the passage of time and a change in ownership,” Australia has
not been able to determine whether the components for these mines were
manufactured in Australia or imported from
overseas.[21]
Australia never exported mines. Apparently all of its imported antipersonnel
mines came from the United States.
Australia destroyed its stockpile of 128,161 antipersonnel mines in a
five-day period in September and October
1999.[22] The destruction came
just three months after entry into force of the treaty for Australia and nearly
four years before the treaty deadline. In May 2001, Australia provided details
on an additional stockpile of 6,460 antipersonnel mines that were discovered
through an improved accounting system enacted in 2000. These mines were
subsequently destroyed in October and November
2000.[23]
In May 2001, Australia reported that it had decided to reduce the number of
antipersonnel mines retained for training purposes from a total of 10,000 to
7,845.[24] Subsequently,
Australia has consumed 380 of those mines in training activities, including 119
in 2001, 213 in 2002, and 48 (29 M14 and 19 M16) in
2003.[25] In its April 2004
Article 7 report, Australia listed 7,465 antipersonnel mines retained for
training purposes (3,792 M14 and 3,673 M16 mines). No detonator assemblies are
held for M14 mines, and 100 serviceable detonators are held for M16
mines.[26]
Since 2001, Australia has repeated each year that, “Stock levels will
be regularly reviewed and assessed. Only a realistic training quantity will be
held, and this will be depleted over time. Stocks in excess of this figure will
be destroyed on an ongoing basis.” It has also reported,
“Stocks are now centralized with small numbers in ammunition depots
throughout Australia to support regional training. Training is conducted by the
School of Military Engineering (Sydney, Australia).”[27]
The Australian Army continues to use and train with command-detonated
Claymore mines, and, according to the Department of Defence, has restrictions in
place on their use in other than command-detonated
mode.[28] ADF indicated to
Landmine Monitor that it views Claymore mines in tripwire mode as prohibited by
the Mine Ban Treaty so it has “no equipment or training to operate these
devices in other than command-detonated mode.” It also said a permanent
ban on their use in tripwire mode has been incorporated into Australian Army
doctrine.[29]
Mine Action Funding
In December 2005, Australia’s decade-long A$100 million commitment to
mine action will come to an end. In the first eight and a half years, between
January 1996 and June 2004, nearly A$97 million was spent by the governmental
aid agency, AusAID. The government expects to spend at least A$9 million in
fiscal year 2004-2005 (July 2004/June
2005).[30] Thus, it appears
Australia will exceed its ten-year commitment on mine action funding by a
substantial amount.
For the most recent five-year review period (1999/2000-2003/2004), Australia
spent A$60.6 million (US$34.4 million).
The ICBL Australian Network has initiated a postcard campaign and online
petition calling on the government to renew its support to mine action after
current funding ends in 2005, by providing A$150 million between 2005 and
2015.[31] In May 2004, Minister
of Foreign Affairs Alexander Downer reiterated that the government is
“committed” to continuing to provide mine action
assistance.[32] The amount and
form of assistance has not been determined yet.
Australian Funding of Mine Action: FY 95/96 – 03/04 (in
millions)[33]
Australia has primarily funded mine action activities in Cambodia and Laos,
but also in Afghanistan, Angola, Burma, Iraq, Lebanon, Mozambique, Sri Lanka,
Thailand and Vietnam.
In FY 2003/04, Australia provided A$8,237,854 to mine action activities
around the world, a decrease from the record A$14.5 million last year, and the
smallest amount since
FY1996/1997.[35] The FY 2003/04
funds supported mine action activities in the Asian region in Afghanistan (A$1.3
million for UN Mine Action Program Afghanistan), Cambodia (A$1.6 million to the
International Committee of the Red Cross and A$2.21 million in three-year
funding to NGOs), Laos (A$392,000 to UNICEF for unexploded ordnance risk
education), Sri Lanka (A$1 million to UN Development Programme mine action
activities), and Vietnam (A$1.2 million to Australian Volunteers International
for integrated mine action and A$136,000 to Quang Ngai Natural Disaster and
Mitigation, the landmine/unexploded ordnance component of a Natural Disaster and
Mitigation (NDM) program.[36]
The 2003/2004 funds were also spent on research and advocacy (A$250,000 to
ICBL for Landmine Monitor, A$30,000 to Standing Tall Australia for a victim
assistance study, and A$30,000 to ICBL for a youth conference during the Nairobi
Summit), and support for Mine Ban Treaty activities (A$50,000 for the
treaty’s Sponsorship Program and A$30,000 for the Implementation Support
Unit of the Geneva International Center for Humanitarian Demining).
In 2003, the Australian Defence Force provided a mine action team officer in
Afghanistan, as an in-kind
contribution.[37] Australia
reported in November 2003 that it had placed one Australian expert within the UN
Mine Action Service mine action coordination team for
Iraq.[38]
Australian Defence Force personnel have shared their destruction technology
with other countries and trained stockpile destruction project managers in
Perú in 2000 and Switzerland and Malaysia in
2001.[39]
Australian NGOs and commercial operators continued to act as key implementing
bodies of Australian mine action projects abroad. Australians Caring for
Refugees (AUSTCARE) spent about A$3 million on mine action projects in
Afghanistan (A$124,445, for March to December 2003), Angola (A$35,000, for July
2003 to January 2004), Cambodia (A$1,999,880, for April 2003 to December 2005),
and Mozambique (A$847,599, for May 2001 to June 2003). The Australian Youth
Against Landmines Association (TAYALA), formed in August 2003, is providing
funds to AUSTCARE’s mine action program in Cambodia. In July 2003,
AUSTCARE took steps to formally recognize its continued commitment to mine
action by including assistance to those affected by landmines in its mission
statement. In partnership with the ICBL Australian Network, AUSTCARE also
initiated Australia’s inaugural Landmine Action Week, held 14-23 May
2004.[40]
CARE Australia, in partnership with the Cambodian Mine Action Center, is
concluding the development aspects of an integrated demining project (2003-2005)
in Battambang province (A$811,742 for 2003-2005). In Laos, CARE Australia
implemented an emergency UXO community awareness project in Khammouane province
from November 2002 to August 2003. It started an integrated risk
education/demining project in March 2004 to raise mine awareness particularly
among children.[41]
In 2003 and 2004, the Mine Victims and Clearance Trust (MIVAC) provided funds
to support survivor assistance projects in Cambodia by Sunrise Children’s
Village and Jesuit Service Cambodia, including twelve wheelchairs distributed to
amputees in Siem Reap province. In Sri Lanka, MIVAC helped rebuild a school
after a demining project in the area
ended.[42]
A commercial Australian company, Milsearch Pty Ltd., is supporting mine/UXO
projects in Laos: 1) clearance of the Nam Theun two Hydropower project
(estimated completion date 2005); 2) clearance of 170 kilometers of power lines
in Khammouanne and Savannakhet Provinces (for the period from October 2003 to
April 2004); 3) clearance in ten provinces throughout the country for the
provision of clean drinking water and basic sanitation services (phase 1 started
December 2001 and will end December 2005). In Papua New Guinea, between July
2003 and March 2004 Milsearch conducted a survey of UXO contamination from World
War II as part of Rabaul-Kokopo road
repairs.[43]
World Vision Australia is in the second year of a three-year (April
2003-March 2005) integrated mine action project in Cambodia, working in
partnership with the Mines Advisory
Group.[44] ARMS–Reverse the
Curse, a project by Australian Relief & Mercy Services, is providing
survivor assistance in Cambodia in partnership with Reverse The Curse (RTC)
Cambodia with an annual budget of
A$300,000.[45]
UNICEF Australia is in the second year of a three-year (2002-2005) UXO safety
project for children in Laos
(A$500,000).[46]
In Vietnam, Australian Volunteers International (AVI) is in its second year
of a three-year integrated UXO clearance and development project in Thua Thien
Hue province (A$3.6 million for the period
2002-2005).[47]
During an unspecified period in 2003 and 2004, CSG Demining Consultants
(formerly Chirgwin Services) provided situation analysis and needs assessments
as well as monitoring and evaluation for various demining and rehabilitation
projects in Afghanistan, Mozambique, Sri Lanka, and
Vietnam.[48]
Caritas Australia supported the universalization efforts by the Australian
Network of ICBL.
Research and Development
The Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) has an active research
program in landmine countermeasures, including work on vehicle-based route and
area clearance, hand-held detection, individual personal and vehicle-mounted
personnel protection, and mine and ordnance disposal systems. DSTO’s
primary focus is on metal detection (in association with Minelab Electronics),
ground-probing radar (in association with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial
Research Organisation and Geocenters Boston), and electro-optical and thermal
imaging. The Australian Army is using DSTO’s vehicle retrofit protection
kits. This research is funded by DSTO with the exception of the Capability
Technology Demonstrator, which was funded by the Department of Defence with
in-kind contributions provided by Tenix Defence Industries and Minelab
Electronics.[49]
A number of universities are also engaged in research and development
activities, including in Wollongong, Sydney, Western Australia and
Melbourne.
From 9-11 February 2004, the third joint Australian-American conference on
Mine Countermeasures and Demining was held in Canberra. The annual meeting,
which is sponsored by DSTO and the United States, was last held in Australia
from 27-29 March 2001.[50]
Landmine Casualties
Australia is not mine-affected. The last Australian landmine casualties
occurred in 2002 in Afghanistan. On 18 January, an SAS soldier lost two toes
after stepping on a landmine and on 16 February, a soldier was killed when his
vehicle hit a landmine.[51]
Australian landmine survivors are cared for under the nation’s
healthcare system. Comprehensive national disability laws exist including the
Disability Discrimination Act 1992.
[1] See Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp.
348-350. [2] On 2 August 2004, the Hon.
Bruce Billson MP became the Special Representative on Mine Action, on the
retirement of the Hon. Chris Gallus MP as the Parliamentary Secretary to the
Minister for Foreign Affairs. [3]
Previous reports were submitted: 30 April 2003 (for calendar year 2002); 30
April 2002 (for calendar year 2001); 21 May 2001 (for calendar year 2000); 18
April 2000 (for calendar year 1999); 23 December 1999 (for 1 June-27 December
1999). [4] Landmine Monitor meeting with
AUSAID and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials, Canberra, 17
December 2003. [5] Email from Patricia
Pak Poy, Convenor, Australian Network of the ICBL, 31 March
2004. [6] Landmine Monitor Report 1999,
pp. 348-350. [7] Stuart Maslen,
Commentaries on Arms Control Treaties, Volume 1, The Convention on the
Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production, and Transfer of Anti-Personnel
Mines and on their Destruction (Oxford University Press, Oxford: 2004), pp.
92-95; hereafter cited as “Mine Ban Treaty
Commentary.” [8] “Land Mine
Use by Non-States Parties in Joint Operations.” Undated policy statement
provided by Peter Baxter, Deputy Chief of Mission, and Susan Deets, Chief
Council, Embassy of Australia to the US, in Washington DC, to the US Campaign to
Ban Landmines coordinator, Gina Coplon-Newfield, 8 April
2003. [9] Letter to Landmine Monitor
(HRW), from Peter Shannon, Assistant Secretary, Arms Control and
Counter-Proliferation Branch, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 11 August
2004. The letter included comments on the draft Landmine Monitor country report
which “represent the consolidated views of AusAID, the Department of
Defence and the Department of Foreign Affairs and
Trade.” [10] Stuart Maslen, Mine
Ban Treaty Commentary, p. 122. [11]
“Report of the Second Meeting of the Standing Committee of Experts on the
General Status and Operation of the Convention,” May 2000; ICBL,
“SCE Report on Committee 5,” 20 January 2000; ICRC, “Draft
“‘Anti-Vehicle’ mines with sensitive fuses: Positions and
relevant practice of States Parties on Article 2 of the Ottawa
Convention,” 17 September
2003. [12] Letter to Elizabeth
Bernstein, ICBL Coordinator, from Hon. Kathy Sullivan MP, Parliamentary
Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs 10 February
2000. [13] Letter to Landmine Monitor
from Australian Department of Defence, 8 July
2004. [14] Letter to John Ball, from
Senator Robert Hill, Minister of Defence, 10 June
2004. [15] Letter from Australian
Department of Defence, 8 July 2004. [16]
Media Release by Senator Chris Evans, Shadow Minister for Defence, 30 January
2004. [17] Australian Senate Motion at
the request of Senator Stott Despoja and Senator Bartlett, 8 October
2003. [18] Statement by Dr. Geoffrey
Shaw, Deputy Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament to Fifth
Annual Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II, 26 November
2003. [19] Letter to Landmine Monitor
(HRW), from Richard Maude, Assistant Secretary, Arms Control and Disarmament
Branch, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 7 September
2000. [20] Ibid; Email from Strategic
International Policy Division, UN Peace Keeping & Arms Control, Department
of Defence, 14 March 2002. [21] Letter
from Australian Department of Defence, 8 July 2004.
[22] A total of 90,371 M14 mines and
37,790 M14E1 mines were destroyed. For more details, see Landmine Monitor
Report 2000, p. 375. [23] Article 7
Report, Form G, 21 May 2001. [24] Ibid,
Form D. [25] The totals reflect the
changes in number of mines retained as reported in Article 7 reports, Form D,
for 2004, 2003, 2002, and 2001. [26]
Article 7 Report, Form D, 30 April
2004. [27] Ibid, 21 May 2001. This is
repeated in the 2002, 2003, and 2004
reports. [28] Letter from Stephanie
Foster, Assistant Secretary, Major Powers and Global Interests Branch,
Department of Defence, 23 January
2003. [29] Email response to Questions
from Landmine Monitor Australia by Department of Defence, 6 February 2002. ADF
refers to Claymore mines as “anti-personnel weapons system
Claymores,” in email from Department of Defence, 18 February 2002.
[30] These are anticipated funds, not
confirmed. Email to Landmine Monitor from AusAID, 2 September
2004. [31] Email from Patricia Pak Poy,
Convenor, Australian Network of the ICBL, 31 March
2004. [32] Ibid, 7 July
2004. [33] AUSAID funding only.
Australia’s financial year runs from July to
June. [34] Exchange rates for the US
dollar each year are taken from the annual US Federal Reserve publication,
“List of Exchange Rates (Annual).” The rates are $0.74 for 1995;
$0.78 for 1996; $0.74 for 1997; $0.62 for 1998; $0.64 for 1999; $0.58 for 2000;
$0.51 for 2001; $0.54 for 2002; and $0.65 for
2003. [35] Data provided to Landmine
Monitor by AusAID, 15 July 2004. [36]
Article 7 Report, Form J, 30 April
2004. [37] Letter from Australian
Department of Defence, 8 July 2004. [38]
CCW Amended Protocol II Article 13 National Annual Report, Form E, 3 November
2003. [39] Interview with Australian
Defence Force officers, Canberra, 5 November
2001. [40] Email from AUSTCARE, 20 April
2004. [41] Email from Lee Grant, Program
Officer, CARE Australia, 30 March
2004. [42] Telephone interview with Rob
Wooley, MIVAC, 20 April 2004. [43] Email
from David Halmarick, Managing Director, Milsearch Pty Ltd, 22 July 2004; email
from Ernie Moore, Senior Operations Officer, Milsearch Pty Ltd, 8 April
2004. [44] Fax from Cham Sokha, Mine
Awareness and Land Tenure Facilitator, WorldVision Australia, 29 January
2004. [45] Email from Marion From,
Director, RTC Cambodia, 3 February
2004. [46] Email from Sumithra Bala,
Project Officer, UNICEF Australia, 5 February
2004. [47] Email from Colin White, Asia
Projects Manager, AVI, 27 January
2004. [48] Telephone interview with Carl
Chirgwin, 20 April 2004. [49] Letter
from Stephanie Foster, Department of Defence, 8 March
2004. [50]
Ibid. [51] “Aussie soldier's toes
blown off. Inside Camp Cuba,” Herald Sun, 19 January 2002, p. 3; Christine
Jackman, “Digger Dies. Afghan mine kills new dad,” Herald Sun, 18
February 2002.
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