Key developments since May 2005: In May 2006, Palau expressed its hope to accede to the Mine Ban Treaty by the Seventh Meeting of States Parties in September 2006.
Micronesia completed a review of the Mine Ban Treaty and was drafting accession legislation to submit to congress. In December 2005, Micronesia for the first time voted in favor of the annual UN General Assembly resolution calling for universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty.
With the ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty by Vanuatu in September 2005 and by the Cook Islands in March 2006, five of the 16 Pacific Forum member states remain not-party to the Mine Ban Treaty.[1] This includes the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Tonga and Tuvalu, as well as the Marshall Islands, which has signed but has not yet ratified the Mine Ban Treaty.[2] Since 1997, the ICBL, States Parties, UN agencies and international organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross have provided these governments with information on the Mine Ban Treaty’s obligations—obligations that are described as minimal in terms of financial costs, administrative burden and participation in international meetings.
The Republic of Palau has not yet acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty, but has given indications that it intends to do so in the near future. Palau attended as an observer the Sixth Meeting of States Parties in Zagreb, Croatia in November-December 2005.[3] It informed States Parties of its intention to accede “in the months ahead.”[4]
Palau also attended the treaty’s intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in May 2006. It stated, “Since the Sixth Meeting of the States Parties, Palau has continued to investigate how it could proceed with acceding to, and hence, implementing the Ottawa Convention, given Palau’s unique security arrangements with the United States of America. ... It has come clear that Palau’s situation is not entirely dissimilar and that important examples that may be instructive to Palau exist amongst the existing States Parties. Using the examples provided by the States Parties that find themselves in similar situations, it appears that a case can be made for Palau to be able to fulfill its obligations, should it accede to the Convention. Palau hopes that there will be a positive outcome to this matter in time for the Seventh Meeting of the States Parties in September.”[5]
On 8 December 2005, Palau was one of just 17 nations to abstain from voting on UN General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 60/80, calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. It also abstained on this annual UNGA resolution in 2004. It was absent from the vote in previous years.
Palau has made occasional statements in the past about its desire to join the Mine Ban Treaty. In February 2004, a government official stated that Palau was “taking every step to make sure it will soon join” the treaty.[6] In July 2003, the Minister of State said that, “the impending accession to the Mine Ban Treaty is still under consideration by the current Palau Government’s administration” following a resolution by the senate to accede to the treaty in May 2000. He stated that because of the “danger to civilians posed by ordnance abandoned during World War II we share similar views as that of the International Campaign to Ban Land Mines.” However, he also noted that, “there are implications to our nationals serving in the US Armed Forces.”[7]
A foreign affairs official informed Landmine Monitor in April 2006 that the 1979 Constitution of Palau bans the production, transfer, stockpiling and use of antipersonnel mines.[8]
Palau told States Parties in November 2005 that there is unexploded ordnance still to be found in many of Palau’s 200 islands, and stated that the government will be seeking international expertise to find and neutralize these munitions.[9]
The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) has not yet acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. On 5 July 2005, a government official informed Landmine Monitor that the Executive Branch had completed a review of the treaty and expected to submit it to congress for “ratification” in its next session in September 2005.[10] The FSM had not previously expressed support for the treaty.
In November-December 2005, the FSM attended as an observer the Sixth Meeting of States Parties in Zagreb, Croatia; this was its first participation in a Mine Ban Treaty-related meeting. The FSM representative told the ICBL that the necessary accession legislation was being drafted. He also said that the United States had given the green light to accession.[11] The FSM has close military, political and economic relations with the US, as defined by the Compact of Free Association.
On 8 December 2005, the FSM voted in favor of UNGA Resolution 60/80, calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. This was the first time it voted for the annual pro-ban UNGA resolution; it had been one of the small number of states that abstained every year since 1997.
The FSM did not respond to repeated requests from Landmine Monitor in 2006 for updated information on progress toward accession.
The FSM has stated that it has never used, produced or stockpiled antipersonnel mines.[12]
The Kingdom of Tonga has yet to accede to the Mine Ban Treaty. On 8 December 2005, Tonga voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 60/80, calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. It has voted for similar annual pro-ban UNGA resolutions in the past.
Tonga has not responded to Landmine Monitor requests for updated information since 2003, including repeated requests in 2006. In March 2001, an official said the Prime Minister of Tonga had “initiated a process to accede to the treaty and fully supports the ban on antipersonnel mines.”[13] In June 2003, the Secretary for Foreign Affairs stated that, “consultations are still being held with relevant line departments” and that the Attorney General’s Office was considering the legal considerations.[14]
Tonga has stated that it has never produced, transferred or stockpiled antipersonnel mines.[15]
Tuvalu has not yet acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty, though it has stated on several occasions that it intends to accede at some point in time.[16] On 8 December 2005, Tuvalu voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 60/80, calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.[17]
Tuvalu has not responded to Landmine Monitor requests for updated information since 2004, including repeated requests in 2006. In 2004, in a meeting with NGOs, the Prime Minister agreed that the Attorney General would draft an accession bill to go to parliament.[18] In January 2004, the Secretary to Government said that the main obstacles to joining the Mine Ban Treaty were “limited manpower, and financial resources to meet other pressing needs on our budget.”[19]
Tuvalu has stated that it does not use, produce, import or stockpile antipersonnel mines.[20]
[1] Eleven Pacific Forum member states are States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty: Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The Forum’s three observer-member states are Timor Leste, a State Party to the treaty, and French Polynesia and New Caledonia (territories of France, which is a State Party).
[2] See separate report on Marshall Islands in this edition of Landmine Monitor.
[3] Palau was represented by Minister of State, Temmy L. Shmull, and Marvin T. Ngirutang, Senior Foreign Service Officer for Disarmament, Bureau of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of State.
[4] Statement by Palau, Sixth Meeting of States Parties, Zagreb, 29 November 2005.
[5] Statement by Palau, Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 8 May 2006. Palau has close military, political and economic ties with the United States, a non-signatory to the treaty, as defined in the Compact of Free Association.
[6] Statement by Palau, Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 9 February 2004.
[7] Letter from Temmy L. Shmull, Minister of State, 7 July 2003.
[8] Email from Marvin T. Ngirutang, Bureau of Foreign Affairs, 5 April 2006.
[9] Statement by Palau, Sixth Meeting of States Parties, Zagreb, 29 November 2005.
[10] Email from Jackson T. Soram, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs, Federated States of Micronesia, 5 July 2005.
[11] Email from Amb. Satnam Singh, ICBL Diplomatic Advisor, reporting on his meeting with Martin Zvachula, Second Secretary, Permanent Mission of the Federated States of Micronesia to the UN in New York, during the Sixth Meeting of States Parties, Zagreb, 28 November-2 December 2005.
[12] Letter from M. J. Mace, Assistant Attorney General, Federated States of Micronesia, 11 December 1998.
[13] Interview with Suka Mangisi, Legal Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tonga, Wellington (New Zealand), 27 March 2001.
[14] Fax from Suka Mangisi, for the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, 5 June 2003. The official indicated that the accession document would be sent to cabinet and then to the privy council for approval, but parliamentary approval was not required.
[15] Fax from Falekava Kupu, for the Acting Chief Secretary and Secretary for the Cabinet, Prime Minister’s Office, 14 August 2001.
[16] In April 2002, an official said that Tuvalu would accede “in the years to come as it is not a priority area.” Letter from Bill P. Teo, Secretary to Government, 15 April 2002. In September 2003, another official stated, “We do not see any obstacles in our final acceding to the said Convention.” Email from Annie Homasi, Director, Tuvalu Association of Non-Governmental Associations (TANGO), 7 February 2006.
[17] Tuvalu became a member of the UN in September 2000, but was absent from the votes on the annual pro-Mine Ban Treaty UNGA resolutions from 2000-2003. It voted in favor for the first time in December 2004.
[18] Email from Annie Homasi, Director, TANGO, 7 February 2006. TANGO met with the then-Prime Minister Saufatu Sopoaga, then-Deputy Secretary to the Government, Semeti Lopati, and the current Attorney General, Itale Lakopa.
[19] Letter from Panapasi Nelesone, Secretary to Government, 15 January 2004.
[20] Letter from Bill P. Teo, Secretary to Government, 15 April 2002.