States Parties 161 States Not Party 36
The ICBL was launched in October 1992 by a group of six non-governmental organizations: Handicap International, Human Rights Watch, medico international, Mines Advisory Group, Physicians for Human Rights and Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation. These founding organizations witnessed the horrendous affect of mines on the communities they were working with in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America and saw how mines hampered and even prevented their development efforts in these countries. They realised that a comprehensive solution was needed to address the crisis caused by landmines and that this was a complete ban. They also knew that coordination was required, and thus the ICBL was born!
As Jody Williams describes it in The ICBL - A Model for Disarmament Initiatives?, "[the NGO community] did not wait for anyone to appoint them leaders on the issue – they saw that a critical problem had to be addressed and they took it up.” The founding organisations brought to the international campaign a practical experience of the impact of landmines. They also brought the perspective of the different sectors they represented: human rights, children’s rights, development issues, refugee issues and medical and humanitarian relief. They also brought to the campaign their contacts with civil society groups in diverse parts of the world. The ICBL went on to organise conferences and campaigning events in different regions so the word spread and many new initiatives were born. From the beginning, the ICBL defined itself as a flexible network of organizations that share common objectives.
In recognition of its achievements the campaign was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997, together with its then coordinator, Jody Williams. The Norwegian Nobel Committee applauded the campaign for changing a ban from "a vision to a feasible reality" and recognized that it offers a model for disarmament and peace.
Throughout the years, the organisation’s structure and strategy has evolved with the changing circumstances.
In 2001, the General Meeting of representatives of all national campaigns and organizations, approved the ICBL 2004 Action Plan, challenging ourselves to increased activity to accomplish as many of our goals as possible by 2004. 2004 was a critical year as the First Review Conference of the Mine Ban Treaty was held in Nairobi, Kenya and this has shaped the next five years of work related to the Treaty and a mine-free world.
Thus, in 2003 the ICBL undertook extensive and comprehensive consultations regarding the future of the campaign. In September of 2003, the General Meeting of the ICBL reaffirmed its original goals, and agreed to continue to engage in the same types of activities as in the past, but in a gradually more decentralized fashion post-2004, with national campaigns, organizations and focal points playing an enhanced role where appropriate.
In December 2006, the ICBL decided to engage extensively in the global effort to prohibit cluster munitions. This marked the first time that the ICBL had become significantly engaged on an issue other than antipersonnel mines. The main reasons for the ICBL’s decision were that cluster munitions inevitably end up leaving behind large numbers of unexploded ‘duds’ which behave essentially like antipersonnel mines; that many ICBL members had been already working extensively on cluster munitions; and that international efforts to achieve a global ban on cluster munitions were at a crucial point, a point where the ICBL could have a meaningful impact. In February 2007, the ICBL formally joined the Steering Committee of the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) – the coalition of NGOs that is leading civil society’s campaign to ban cluster munitions. The ICBL actively participated in the Oslo Process that brought about the Convention on Cluster Munitions. From 1 January 2011, the CMC and ICBL will operate under one legal structure.
Keeping Up With the Times
The ICBL's internal structure has undergone several transformations over the years, adapting to the changing needs of the global network.
In 1993, the Campaign Steering Committee, consisting of the original six organizations, was formalized and the coordinator was recognized. As dozens of national campaigns formed and hundreds of organizations joined the Campaign, the Steering Committee was expanded in 1996 and 1997 to reflect the growth and diversity of the Campaign. New members included:
In 1998, the ten existing members of the Steering Committee, now renamed the Coordination Committee, were reconfirmed and the Committee was expanded to include:
In 2004, 13 organisations were represented on the Coordination Committee:
In 2005, a Management Committee was created and the Coordination Committee was replaced by the Advisory Board. As of late 2010, Advisory Board members included:
while Denise Coghlan of the Cambodia Campaign to Ban Landmines, Steve Goose of Human Rights Watch, Paul Hannon of Mines Action Canada and Ayman Sorour of Protection sat on the Management Committee.
From January 2011, the Cluster Munition Coalition and the International Campaign to Ban Landmines will operate under one legal structure with a Governance Board providing strategic, financial and human resources oversight. An Administrative Committee will provide more regular input to staff and the working of the campaigns.
See also the detailed chronology of the ICBL from its launch until the entry into force of the Mine Ban Treaty (1992-1999).
2012 marked the impressive 20th anniversary of the ICBL, which saw celebrations by ICBL campaigners around the world and reiterated our call to action - for civil society, governments and partners – to keep working together to make our shared achievable goal – a world without mines – a reality.
