ACTION ALERT: prior to the 12th Non-Aligned Movement Heads of State Summit, Durban, South Africa 29 August - 2 September
ACTION ALERT #1
URGENT ACTION 11 Augustclick above
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), which represents 113 developing countries, will have its twelfth summit in Durban, South Africa at the end of August. This is an important occasion for the NAM Heads of State to consider a range of issues which developing countries have to confront, including, of course, their position regarding landmines, and an important lobbying opportunity for all campaigners.
As you know, in total 128 countries have now signed the Convention and 31 have so far ratified. Of the 113 Members of NAM 72 NAM members have signed the Convention and 12 NAM members have ratified the Convention. 42 NAM countries have not signed or ratified. 4 NAM members (Namibia, Mozambique, Guinea and Botswana) have passed domestic legislation (but not yet deposited at the UN). (Please see the list of countries at the bottom of this email).
As such it is imperative that we come out with a strong call to NAM countries to accept the challenge of a mine-free world and the Mine Ban Treaty as the best means of achieving this. In fact, the draft NAM Summit resolution on landmines as documented in the Communique of the Ministerial Meeting of the Co-ordinating bureau of the Non Aligned Movement, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia 19-20 May 1998, is of particular concern to the ICBL. It states that the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation "emphasized that elimination of landmines should take into account the legitimate national security concern of States as well as their legitimate rights to use appropriate measures for self defence". The intended position then, is particularly weak and contrary to the historic role of small and medium sized countries who, together with the 1,300 NGOs that comprise
the ICBL, took the lead in the movement to ban landmines.
We would thus like to appeal to all ICBL members, especially those in NAM member States to educate and lobby their government representatives in all possible ways NOW.
If your country is a member of NAM (if you are not sure, check the list at the end of this email) - please WRITE, CALL,VISIT your government representatives PRIOR to the NAM Summit to ensure that they call and work for a strong unanimous NAM position condemning landmines and supporting the Mine Ban Treaty. Following is a sample letter to NAM member states - feel free to adapt it according to your own country's position or write your own. Write and issue press releases, and encourage your media contacts to question your government
representatives on their positions regarding landmines for the NAM summit. If your country is NOT a member of NAM, urge them to encourage their partners who are members of NAM to maintain a strong stance regarding landmines, and issue your own press releases as well.
In addition, and for the first time in NAM's history, a parallel
non-governmental conference is being planned. The conference will take place in Durban from 19 - 21 August, 1998 and the South African Campaign, one of the hosts, anticipates that a cross-section of local and international organisations covering a broad spectrum of interests
will be represented at the conference.
For Further Information, contact:
Noel Stott, SACBL
FAX: 27 - 11 - 4031005
Phone: 27 - 11 - 4034204
email: noel-at-case-wn-apc-org
######
SAMPLE letter to NAM Member States Participating in the NAM Summit in Durban, South Africa
Date
Your Excellency, President / Minister of Foreign Affairs (name of the Heads of State / Ministers of Foreign Affairs)
Anti-Personnel Landmines and the Non-Aligned Movement Summit in Durban, South Africa.
On behalf of the [name Campaign or NGO or IO], a member of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize winner, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), I send you warm greetings and best wishes for the forthcoming Non-Aligned Movement Summit to be held in Durban, South Africa in
August.
We are conscious of the fact that this Summit is an important occasion for the NAM Heads of State to consider a range of issues which developing countries have to confront in a globalising era, including the devastating humanitarian disaster caused by the production and use of anti-personnel landmines and the recently concluded Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction (Mine Ban Treaty).
The presence of anti-personnel landmines in the majority of NAM member States has created, and continues to create, a humanitarian crisis of massive proportions. Anti-personnel landmines are one of the main stumbling blocks to reconstruction and sustainable development, and
foreign debt and poverty (all of which you will also be discussing) are exacerbated by the presence of these deadly weapons in our soil.
The international community now accepts that anti-personnel landmines are no longer a security issue, but are weapons that have caused a humanitarian crisis of global proportions. The international community is thus united to ban these weapons through the implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.
As of the 26 July 1998, a total of 127 countries had signed the
Convention and 28 have so far ratified. 72 NAM members have signed the Convention and 12 NAM members have ratified the Convention out of the 113 NAM member States. 4 additional NAM members have passed domestic legislation but not yet deposited at the UN.
The decision by those NAM governments that have signed and/or already ratified the Treaty required political courage. Many of the countries supporting the Mine Ban Treaty have recently been at war and may return to war. Others have insecure borders and face high security risks. Others have been producers and exporters of anti-personnel mines. But all have come to see the humanitarian consequences of
landmine production, use, and transfer and have resolved to stop it, and all have added their political and diplomatic resources towardsthe rapid implementation of an international legal norm that stigmatizes the weapon and its users.
The Mine Ban Treaty has been hailed as a success of small and medium sized governments, together with civil society, in addressing a humanitarian crisis through a new type of international diplomacy. As Jody Williams noted in her speech at the signing ceremony in Ottawa last December, it demonstrates that such a partnership is a new kind of 'superpower' in the post-Cold War world. Yet our work is far from over, indeed it is just beginning. It is imperative the shapers of this treaty, and this new kind of 'superpower', continue to demonstrate committment, political will and leadership to truly rid the world of landmines.
[As a NAM country that has signed the Treaty, we urge you [our
government] to make a similar determination and ratify as soon as possible. With a current total of 28 ratifications, the treaty is on track to enter into force more quickly than any other treaty in history. Only after 40 ratifications, and a six month waiting period, do the crucial deadlines for destruction of stockpiled mines within four years and of mines already in the ground within ten years go into effect. We urge you to turn words into action, ensuring rapid entry into force and thus helping to truly rid the world of landmines.]
[As a NAM country that has not yet signed the Treaty, we urge you [our government] to join the international consensus to end the production and use of this weapon everywhere, to destroy all stockpiles, and to abolish anti-personnel landmines forever from the earth. We must put an end to the disastrous humanitarian consequences of landmines. With a current total of 28 ratifications, the treaty is on track to enter into force more quickly than any other treaty in history. We urge you to join the tide of history and sign and ratify the Convention as
soon as possible, thus helping to truly rid the world of landmines.]
[As a country that has both signed and ratified the Convention, we appeal to you [our government] to use [its] your influence in the Summit discussions to persuade those NAM members to join the international consensus to end the production and use of this weapon everywhere, to destroy all stockpiles, and to abolish anti-personnel landmines forever from the earth. With a current total of 28 ratifications, the treaty is on track to enter into force more quickly than any other treaty in history. Only after 40 ratifications, and a six month waiting period, do the crucial deadlines for destruction of stockpiled mines within four years and of mines already in the ground within ten years go into effect. We urge you to do all you can to ensure rapid entry into force, thus helping to truly rid the world of landmines.]
As you deliberate at the Summit on the many issues facing a changing world whether it be the new global economy, the new security challenges, or the movement of peoples, we call on you to be unanimous in your condemnation and revulsion of anti-personnel landmines, which pose a major obstacle for sustainable development and agricultural activity, especially in NAM member States. We urge you and all NAM members to support the Mine Ban Treaty and pledge increased resources
for demining and victim assistance.
Once again we wish you every success with the NAM Summit.
Yours sincerely
XXXXXXXXXX
PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE NAM COUNTRIES HAVE SIGNED THE TREATY:
1. Algeria
2. Angola
3. Bahamas
4. Bangladesh
5. Barbados
6. Belize
7. Benin
8. Bolivia
9. Botswana
10. Brunei Darussalam
11. Burkina Faso
12. Burundi
13. Cambodia
14. Cameroon
15. Cape Verde
16. Chad
17. Chile
18. Colombia
19. Cote d'Ivoire
20. Cyprus
21. Djibouti
22. Ecuador
23. Ethiopia
24. Gabon
25. Gambia
26. Ghana
27. Grenada
28. Guatemala
29. Guinea
30. Guinea-Bissau
31. Guyana
32. Honduras
33. Indonesia
34. Jamaica
35. Jordan (soon )
36. Kenya
37. Lesotho
38. Madagascar
39. Malawi
40. Malaysia
41. Mali
42. Malta
43. Mauritania
44. Mauritius
45. Nicaragua
46. Niger
47. Panama
48. Peru
49. Philippines
50. Qatar
51. Rwanda
52. Saint Lucia
53. Sao Tome and Principe
54. Senegal
55. Seychelles
56. South Africa
57. Sudan
58. Suriname
59. Swaziland
60. Thailand
61. Togo
62. Trinidad and Tobago
63. Tunisia
64. Turkmenistan
65. Uganda
66. United Arab Emirates
67. United Republic of Tanzania
68. Vanuatu
69. Venezuela
70. Yemen
71. Zambia
72. Zimbabwe
Observers:
73. Antigua and Barbuda
74. Brazil
75. Costa Rica
76. Croatia
77. El Salvador
78. Mexico
79. Uruguay
PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE NAM COUNTRIES HAVE RATIFIED THE TREATY:
1. Belize
2. Bolivia
3. Djibouti
4. Jamaica
5. Mali
6. Mauritius
7. Peru
8. South Africa
9. Trinidad and Tobago
10. Turkmenistan
11. Yemen
12. Zimbabwe
PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE NAM COUNTRIES HAVE NIETHER SIGNED NOR RATIFIED
THE TREATY:
1. Afghanistan
2. Central African Republic
3. Comoros
4. Congo (Brazzaville)
5. Cuba
6. Dem. Rep. of Korea
7. Dem. Rep. of Congo
8. Egypt
9. Equitorial Guinea
10. Eritrea
11. India
12. Iran, Islam Rep
13. Iraq
14. Kuwait
15. Lao People's Dem Rep
16. Lebanon
17. Liberia
18. Libya
19. Maldives
20. Mongolia
21. Morocco
22. Nepal
23. Nigeria
24. Oman
25. Pakistan
26. Palestine
27. Papua New Guinea
28. Saudi Arabia
29. Sierra Leone
30. Singapore
31. Somalia
32. Sri Lanka
33. Syrian Arab Rep
34. Uzbekistan
35. Vietnam
36. Yugoslavia
Observers:
37. Armenia
38. Azerbaijan
39. Belarus
40. Peoples' Republic of China
41. Kazakstan
42. Kyrgyzstan
Noel Stott
Community Agency for Social Enquiry
PO BOX 32882
Braamfontein
2017
South Africa
FAX: 27 - 11 - 4031005
Phone: 27 - 11 - 4034204
URGENT ACTION August 11
I am writing again about the upcoming NAM summit. we
require your urgent action NOW. as i said last time,
the draft resolution regarding AP mines is a huge step backwards,
with language like "They emphasized that elimination of landmines
should take into account the legitimate national security concern of
States as well as their legitimate rights to use appropriate measures
for self-defence." This continues now in discussions on the
next draft. After standing up to the likes of the US, countries are
now beholden to the nay-sayers (as it is on consensus), the likes of
india, libya, iran, egypt, pakistan, cuba, korea etc which are
against any reference, let alone support, of the treaty. PLEASE write
your ministers, call, visit, write press releases NOW and urge that
the NAM resolution drop all references to national security and
welcome the mine ban treaty. the international community has
accepted that this is a humanitarian, not a security, issue.
highlight how this fora is moving backwards, thwarting the
international momentum and 'new' international diplomacy.
publicize it! WRITE NOW, particularly campaigners in NAM countries:
afghanistan, bangladesh, botswana, burkina faso, cambodia, colombia,
egypt, ghana, india, jordan, kenya, korea, lebanon, laos, malaysia,
malawi, mauritius, mozambique, namibia, nepal, pakistan, philippines,
senegal, south africa, sri lanka, sudan, thailand, uganda, yemen,
zambia, zimbabwe ACT NOW!!! others can press the governments to urge
their NAM partners to speak up.
below you will find a sample letter we sent the South African Foreign
Minister (as chair) - please use and adapt your own letters to your
OWN leaders (don't all write him!)
THANK YOU.
liz
####
7 August 1998
Mr Alfred Nzo
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Pretoria
South Africa
Dear Minister Nzo,
I am writing on behalf of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines
on the occasion of the forthcoming Non Aligned Movement Summit to be
held in Durban at the end of August. We understand that this Summit
is a particularly important occasion for South Africa, which will
assume the presidency, and indeed for all NAM Heads of State. They
must consider a range of issues confronting developing countries in a
globalising era. This includes the devastating humanitarian disaster
caused by the production and use of anti-personnel landmines and the
recently concluded Convention on the Prohibition of the Use,
Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on
Their Destruction (Mine Ban Treaty).
Thanks to the dedicated leadership of South Africa throughout this
unprecedented process, including skillful chairing during the treaty
negotiations, the treaty is indeed an unambiguous one and the best
framework for addressing this humanitarian crisis. We urge you to
continue this able leadership by urging South Africa as president and
indeed all NAM partners to express unequivocal and unanimous support
for this Treaty.
As for the points which were agreed regarding landmines (115 - 118) of
the Communiqué of the Ministerial Meeting of the Coordinating bureau
of the Non Aligned Movement issued in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia
19-20 May 1998, point 115 reads:
115. The Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation noted
the opening for signature in Ottawa during December 1997 of the
Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and
Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their destruction. They
emphasized that elimination of landmines should take into account the
legitimate national security concern of States as well as their
legitimate rights to use appropriate measures for self-defence.
We are disappointed by the restraint in this language. We hope that
the Durban NAM Summit would move beyond "noting" to "welcoming" the Ottawa treaty, and that it would further call upon States in a
position to do so to become states parties as soon as possible.
We are also extremely concerned about the last sentence in the
Cartagena communiqué paragraph 115 which emphasizes "that elimination of landmines should take into account the legitimate national security concern of States as well as their legitimate rights to use
appropriate measures for self defence". We strongly urge that this
sentence be deleted from any text agreed in Durban, as we are
concerned that the shift in emphasis of this sentence from
"anti-personnel landmines" to "landmines" in general is ambiguous and
misleading. If the word "landmines" does not include anti-personnel
landmines that should be stated. If it can be interpreted so as to
include APMs then it in fact is counter to both the letter and spirit
of the Ottawa Convention and presents a grave contradiction for those
73 states of the NAM which have signed the Ottawa convention. We
believe that the best way of dealing with this potential discrepancy
would be to simply delete this and all references to national
security.
As you know, as of 7 August, a total of 128 countries have signed the
Convention and 31 have ratified. Out of the 113 NAM Member States 73 NAM members have signed the Convention and 13 NAM members have ratified it. Hence, the great majority of NAM members have indeed
committed themselves to the Treaty, which any agreed-upon language
should reflect.
South Africa, through your leadership efforts, has played a major role
in the international movement to ban these coward's weapons, and we
count on you to ensure that it continues to do so. As NAM president,
we appeal to you to use your influence in the Summit discussions to
urge all NAM members to join the international consensus to end the
production and use of this weapon and to destroy all stockpiles.
Please encourage all NAM partners to sign and ratify as soon as
possible, ensuring rapid entry into force, to pledge increased
resources for demining and victim assistance, and thus help create a
mine-free world.
Once again I wish you every success with the NAM Summit. Thank you
for your attention.
Yours sincerely,
Elizabeth Bernstein
Co-Coordinator
International Campaign to Ban Landmines
