by Noel Stott
International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL)
Presentation to the Seminar on the
Universalisation and Implementation of the Ottawa Convention in Africa
15th - 16th February 2001
Bamako
Mali
Thank you for this opportunity to be both here at this important Seminar and to be in Bamako, Mali. I note that my President - President Mbeki of South Africa - will be coming to Mali next week on an official State visit. It is thus opportune that I speak to this important topic given that his Party, the African National Congress (ANC) is the only former liberation movement (Non-State Actor) and now ruling political party to have publicly apologised for the use of anti-personnel landmines and to express sincere regret at the loss of civilian life as a result of this use.
What I would like to do, in the limited time allocated, is to briefly outline why it is important for us to engage with Non-State Actors (we have chosen this neutral term to cover "rebels", "guerrillas" etc) and to outline some of the ways that the ICBL has attempted to do this. In this way, I hope to reflect on an issue which is regarded by some as sensitive and even controversial but which the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) believes to be crucial in our endeavour to truly universalise the Ottawa Convention - to truly establish the non-use of anti-personnel landmines as the international norm.
For this (the establishment of the non-use of anti-personnel landmines as the international norm) is the main aim of the ICBL and why we want:
And that is why we believe that the success of a total ban on anti-personnel landmines and their eradication from the earth depends ALSO on Non-State Actors feeling obliged to adhere to the terms of the Mine Ban Treaty.
There are a number of important reasons why it is imperative that a concerted and co-ordinated effort be made to educate Non-State Actors about the Treaty and indeed about the indiscriminate effects of anti-personnel landmines and why it is desirable to develop a strategy to ensure that Non-State Actors act in accordance with the ban treaty.
It is thus crucial that as a complementary initiative to the Ottawa process we include the education of non-state actors on the Geneva Conventions - international humanitarian law - the principles of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the work of the ICBL.
It is important to point out that this work does not mean sympathy with the aims of armed opposition groups. On the contrary, the global campaign against anti-personnel landmines is a single-issue campaign, albeit located in the context of peace-building and sustainable development. And it is located within an open, transparent and humanitarian agenda. In this respect, I would argue that the use of anti-personnel landmines by Non-State Actors does NOT justify the use of anti-personnel landmines by governments. In other words, governments can NOT justify their use of anti-personnel landmines by saying that they will continue using them until Non-State Actors give them up. After all, the use of anti-personnel landmines affects the most fundamental rights of everyone: The right to Life, the right to Food, the right to access to Land, and the right to live in a peaceful and secure environment. Whoever uses anti-personnel landmines denies people these fundamental rights.
With this in mind, the ICBL has established a Working Group on Non-State Actors and in March last year (2000) a number of ICBL members organisations hosted a pioneering conference in Geneva on "Engaging Non-State Actors in a Landmine Ban". Together with mine ban activists, mine-clearance specialists, and experts on international humanitarian law, a range of Non-State Actors from all over the world met for an exchange of views and to draw up ethical guidelines for engaging Non-State Actors.
The Declaration adopted at the end of the meeting indicates encouraging signs that some armed groups would be willing to enter into either Unilateral declarations or bilateral agreements with respective governments on the non-use of anti-personnel landmines. Some Non-State Actors appear open to supporting mine-clearance and victim assistance programmes in territories under their control. Some have even issued public statements in this regard.
These specific undertakings and indeed Non-State Actors generally, of course, will have to be monitored. Landmine Monitor 2000, has already identified a number of Non-State Actors in Africa who have recently used mines:
The work of monitoring and educating these groups is of course a huge challenge - a challenge that should not be under-estimated. In this regard, an independent, international non-governmental mechanism, the "Geneva Call" has been established for Non-State Actors to commit themselves to a ban and to serve as a basis for their accountability. We hope that you, as governments, will support us in meeting this challenge. We are committed to engaging Non-State Actors through a persuasive and inclusive process of dialogue and education and appealing to appropriate legal and moral reference points. So that, the ban on anti-personnel landmines does indeed become the norm, so that landmines (whoever uses them) no longer serve as the weapon against the poor, and no longer exacerbates poverty and under-development as they now do. With your help we can achieve this - by engaging both governments and Non-State Actors, we can truly establish the non-use of anti-personnel landmines as the international norm.
Thank you.
15 February 2001