States Parties 161 States Not Party 36
Statement given by Simon Conway, Landmine Action
Thank you Mr. President,
ICBL is pleased that no State Party at this review has found it necessary to seek an extension of their deadline for fulfillment of mine clearance obligations under Article 5. This is very good news. We have a busy time ahead of us. MAWG of the ICBL would like to draw attention to Action Point 17 of the Draft Action Plan.
The States Parties will therefore:
Action #17: Intensify and accelerate efforts to ensure the most effective and most expeditious possible fulfilment of Article 5 (1) mine clearance obligations in the period 2005-2009.
We look forward to celebrating the successful completion of the implementation of Article 5 for all 22 of the countries that face deadlines in 2009.
However, should this not be the case, we would like to emphasize that the Convention demands to clarify in detail in an extension request all steps taken to reach the initial deadline and to precisely indicate the time limit of any potential extension. Those requesting an extension must be able to convince other States Parties that they have done everything possible to meet the initial deadline and they should not automatically expect a full ten year extension.
But as the Convention is clear, let US also be clear: extending the deadline is not desired. So let us all WORK FOR CLEARING THE MINED AREAS. Let us pay attention to the title of the Summit – Nairobi Summit on a MINE FREE WORLD.
Simon Conway
Landmine Action
30 November 2004
