History of the Youth Against War Treaty

During the December 1997 Ottawa Conference, Song Kosal and Canadian youth Lindsay Wilcox publicly launched the People’s Treaty. As governments were signing the Mine Ban Treaty, citizens were encouraged to sign the People’s Treaty, named after the huge swell of public support for a total ban on landmines. People who sign the People’s Treaty are invited to monitor government progress in areas of ratification,compliance, clearance and victim assistance, and they are encouraged to take part in advocacy campaigns to ensure that governments join the treaty. Citizens can still sign the People’s Treaty on the ICBL website.

Kosal participated in the 1998 Effects of War on Children Conference in Australia, where she decided it would be an excellent idea to have a youth version of the People’s Treaty. The Kids Against War Treaty was launched at the Australian conference, where Kosal collected petition signatures during school presentations.

During the 3 December 1998 treaty signing anniversary celebrations, the Kids Against War Treaty was renamed the Youth Against War Treaty in order for it to appeal to a wider age range. Mines Action Canada agreed to work with Kosal to promote the Youth Against War Treaty worldwide.

From the 1999 Hague Appeal for Peace Conference in the Netherlands to the 2000 War Affected Children’s Conference in Ghana, to classrooms, community groups, street corners and other places around the globe, Kosal and youth from 42 countries, including Thailand, Nepal, Mauritius, Afghanistan, Georgia, Brazil, Australia and Canada, collected Treaty signatures and worked to gather support for a mine-free world. The ICBL also collected thousands of signatures on the ICBL Youth Webpage. By 2001, because of this tremendous effort, more than a quarter of a million signatures had been collected. In March 2001, the petition signatures were delivered to the United States government, urging the United States to join the Mine Ban Treaty.

In late 2001, India and Pakistan planted mines along their shared border. Both countries are mine-affected, mine producers and neither has joined the Mine Ban Treaty. To support a peaceful resolution to the tensions between the countries and to encourage the mines issue to be included in peace negotiations, from 2001-2004, Kosal and youth around the world collected signatures to send to the governments of India and Pakistan. On 1 March 2004, Kosal participated in a ceremony in Ottawa, Canada, organized by Mines Action Canada, where over 20,000 signatures were symbolically handed over to the two countries.

Signing the Youth Against War Treaty is one way to show governments that youth are actively working for a peaceful, mine-free world.