SUGAR PALM CREEK KIDS CELEBRATE OTTAWA TREATY LEGACY

FIRST MARCH 2000
Last Thursday 400 children from Sugar Palm Creek marched into Chikreng to celebrate what the Mine Ban Treaty, demining and development of mine affected communities means to their small mine infested village. ICBL Ambassador, Tun Channareth addressed the crowd along with representatives of MAG, CMAC the Military and the District Governor. Balloons soared into the air to symbolize the hope now present in an area victimized for year by mines. Some of the children marched across a 1000-year-old bridge a legacy of their ancestors.

"The Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty is a legacy that we land-mine victims give to Cambodia. For it to be truly effective we need every country to join and implement the treaty". "Leave it as your legacy", says Tun Channareth, as he writes to President Clinton of the United States and the leaders of Asean countries who have not yet joined the treaty namely Singapore, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar. Channareth, in Anlong Veng on Sunday, visiting mine victims there declared he would not stop until the world was free from mines, and victims had a better life.

To date, 137 countries have signed the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty and 91 have ratified, an increase of four signatures and twenty-six ratifications during the last year. Recent ratifications include the Philippines, Liberia, Czech Republic and Tajikistan. ICBL events commemorating the one-year anniversary since the ban took effect are taking place in dozens of countries around the world; most focus on the need for universal adherence to the ban treaty.

"While use of antipersonnel mines appears to have decreased globally, we are extremely alarmed at incidents of new use by both the Government of Angola, which has signed but not ratified the ban treaty, and by opposition UNITA forces," said Christian Ruge of Norwegian People Aid, a major international humanitarian mine action organization.

ICBL country campaigns are organizing an international conference in Geneva later in March to engage non-state actors to endorse and adhere to the total ban on antipersonnel landmines." During two days, in the framework of international humanitarian law that recognizes both states and non-states ass parties to armed conflicts, we will be discussing the mine problem, responsibility and frankly, not only with experts but also with a selection of non state actors from all continents "explains Myriam Ferrer of the Philippines Campaign to Ban Landmines.

The Cambodia Campaign welcomes the news that the Canadian Government will continue to fund the surveys of the minefields in the northwest, "To stop demining in this country would be a tragedy." The work of community marking, emergency ordinance disposal integrated with mine awareness is essential in the Anlong Veng, Samrong, Banteay Meanchey areas which campaigners visited last week." News of funding for mine clearance from Australia, Japan, Sweden, Germany, Denmark is indeed good news for the people who live with land mines near their vegetable gardens and playing fields of their children."

The Cambodia Campaign will produce Land Mine Monitor 2000 for the next meeting of States Parties in September. Along with the Cambodia Report will be reports from 80 other countries. The monitor will look at treaty implementation, victim assistance, mine clearance and surveys and use of demined land.

29 February 2000

More info contact CCBL: Ny NHAR / Sr. Denise Coghlan:8 23 880 139 / 455 E-mail: jrscam@forum.org.kh or camban@bigpond.com.kh