News

Miss Landmine: Friend or Foe?

Amid the glamour, camera flashes, anticipation and nerves typical of beauty pageants, the first “Miss Landmine” was crowned in the Angolan capital, Luanda, on 2 April 2008.

News in Brief

Mine-related news from around the world.

Poland: Why Not?

While government officials continue to repeat that Poland’s ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty is conditional upon the emplacement of “alternative means of defence”, for which a deadline is set in 2015, the ICBL believes that accession is possible even before the set date.

Article 5 Deadline Extension Process: Clearance Obligation’s Credibility at Stake

Interview with Tamar Gabelnick, ICBL Treaty Implementation Director

Mine Ban Treaty: Failure is Not an Option

As the world welcomes the adoption of a new convention banning cluster munitions, the Mine Ban Treaty enters a critical phase that will test the real determination of States Parties to continue to turn the words of the treaty into real change for affected communities.

Statement of the Third General Meeting of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines

(07/03/2001, last updated: 05/06/2008) Read more »

ICBL Activities at the Eighth Meeting of the States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty

(28/09/2007, last updated: 05/06/2008) Read more »

Over 100 countries adopt groundbreaking treaty to ban cluster bombs - Campaigners launch People's Treaty to hold governments to their word

Dublin, May 30th, 2008: Cluster bomb survivors and campaigners today welcomed the formal adoption of the Cluster Munitions Convention by over 100 countries. This historic treaty bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of all existing and future cluster bombs.

Groundbreaking treaty banning cluster bombs agreed. Cluster bomb survivors and campaigners rejoice

Dublin, May 28th, 2008: Cluster bomb suvivors and campaigners are tonight rejoicing over the groundbreaking and comprehensive new treaty to ban cluster bombs that has just been provisionally agreed in Dublin. After ten days of intense negotiation under Irish leadership, 110 countries negotiating at the conference and hundreds of campaigners and survivors within the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) welcomed the treaty.

Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions, 19-30 May 2008

Make History, Ban Cluster Munitions!

Negotiations for a new treaty banning cluster munitions are underway in Dublin. How can YOU help? Visit the Cluster Munition Coalition website to take part in the action and get the latest updates.

LAUNCH OF REPORT ON GENDER AND MINE ACTION

The Swiss Campaign to Ban Landmines is delighted to announce the launch of the report, “Gender and Landmines – From Concept to Practice”, which studies the significance of gender in the impact and the effectiveness of mine action. It gives the reader an overview, together with concrete examples, on how gender can be mainstreamed in mine action.

CMC PRESS RELEASE - Campaigners Call for Comprehensive Ban on Cluster Bombs

Some states seek to keep stocks and to weaken treaty, but survivors are hopeful

(Dublin, Ireland, May 19th, 2008) Civil society representatives and cluster bomb survivors from around the world today called on governments to support a comprehensive ban on cluster bombs, without exceptions. The call came as more than 100 governments began two weeks of final negotiations in Dublin, Ireland, on a new international treaty to ban cluster bombs. Certain states seek to weaken the treaty. Civil society representatives and survivors expect this to be the most significant humanitarian and disarmament treaty since the ban on antipersonnel landmines over a decade ago.

CMC Media Advisory: Over 100 Governments Meet in Dublin to Seal Global Ban on Cluster Bombs

The final negotiations of the Oslo Process to ban the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster bombs worldwide and ensure support for affected communities including clearance of contaminated land will take place in Dublin, Ireland, from 19 to 30 May 2008.

ICBL Urges All Countries to Join the UN Disability Rights Convention - Convention enters into force on 3 May 2008

Landmine survivors and all people with disabilities can now count on a powerful tool to ensure their rights are respected and their needs met, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) said today, hailing the entry into force of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Disability Rights Convention). The Convention, considered the first major human rights treaty of this century, was signed in December 2006. It will enter into force tomorrow, 30 days after the deposit of the 20th ratification (by Ecuador, on 3 April 2008).

International Campaign to Ban Landmines, 2007 Annual Report

As the 10th anniversary of the year the Mine Ban Treaty (MBT) was adopted and signed, 2007

provided several key opportunities for renewing energy around and interest in the treaty and

the issue. Throughout the year, the ICBL created and distributed 10th anniversary-related

materials, encouraged campaigners to organize special media or advocacy events, and

participated in 10th anniversary celebrations in Austria, Belgium, Norway, and Canada. The

ICBL’s slogan for marking this milestone was “The Mine Ban Treaty: A Success in

Progress”, a message that resonated with all the stakeholders in this journey to a mine-free

world.