CAMPAIGN TO BAN LANDMINES
LWR Statement
March 3, 2004
LWR Urges U.S. Administration to Support, not Abandon, Life-Saving International Landmine Ban
[For more information, contact Jonathan Frerichs at 410-230-2802 for media inquiries and Adrienne Thompson at 202-626-7933 for LWR Office of Public Policy.]
Lutheran World Relief regrets the recent (February 2004) decision of the Bush administration to reject the Mine Ban Treaty, which the U.S. government had promised to sign by 2006, and to allow for the use of self-deactivating landmines in combat situations. These mines bring limited military advantages while putting innocent civilians and U.S. military personnel at risk.
The shift in U.S. landmine policy announced by the administration on February 27 calls for an end to the use of certain types of antipersonnel landmines by U.S. troops after 2010, but continues to allow the use of so-called "smart," or self-deactivating mines, indefinitely.
While LWR notes the much-needed increase in U.S. spending for demining and victim assistance programs by 50 percent over FY-03 levels to $70 million, we remain concerned that allowing the use of self-deactivating mines negates the otherwise excellent demining efforts of the U.S. government. So-called "smart" mines are often dropped from the air, making them difficult to mark and map. Also, since a certain percentage of self-deactivating mines fail to deactivate, deminers must approach these minefields with the same level of caution as they would with other minefields.
Landmines maim or kill 15,000-20,000 people a year. One-third of those casualties are children. In 1996, the United States promised to join the International Treaty to Ban Landmines by 2006, and commit to a ban on the use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of all types of antipersonnel landmines. To keep this promise is to uphold America’s commitment to universal humanitarian standards. To break it -- as the administration has signaled in announcing the new policy -- is not only to retreat from an historic humanitarian milestone but is also to provide cover to nations that live beyond the law.
With this policy the United States effectively abandons plans to join a hard-won international accord that has proven its capacity to save lives.
Lutheran World Relief continues to urge the United States to join the Mine Ban Treaty, which represents the most effective framework for solving the worldwide landmine problem. More than 150 nations have now joined the treaty, including all of NATO except the United States, and all nations in the Western Hemisphere except the United States and Cuba. In 1996-97, more than 100,000 Lutherans signed a petition calling for an end to the use of landmines worldwide. Their efforts helped to create the Mine Ban Treaty.
In Lebanon, Lutheran World Relief supports the non-profit Contact and Resource Center, which helps landmine victims and other people with disabilities through counseling, medical supplies and equipment, and skills training. Last year, LWR sent material aid to Afghanistan, Thailand, Liberia, and other mine-affected countries, and has a history of supporting mine awareness education programs and demining efforts.
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Two Action Ideas:
Action Alert 1: Please contact the White House now and let the President know that you are disappointed at this decision to abandon U.S. efforts to join the Mine Ban Treaty. Ask the President to reconsider.
White House Switchboard: 202-456-1111
White House Fax: 202-456-2461
White House Email: president@whitehouse.gov
Sample Message:
Dear Mr. President:
I am dismayed to hear of your recent decision to reject the International Treaty to Ban Landmines and to continue use of so-called “smart” mines in combat situations. While I applaud additional funding for demining efforts and victim assistance programs, overall this new landmine policy is a major step backward.
As an American citizen and a faithful Christian, I deplore the use of a weapon whose victims are usually innocent civilians. Former U.S. military commanders assert that landmines, like poison gas, are not essential to the safety or effectiveness of U.S. soldiers, and in fact may be a hindrance in combat situations. Landmines maim or kill 15,000-20,000 people a year, and one-third of those casualties are children.
The United States has been a world leader in demining efforts and victim assistance, but it must go further by keeping its pledge to join the Treaty and influencing other nations to do the same. The International Treaty to Ban Landmines offers the most effective framework for solving the worldwide landmine problem.
So that mothers and fathers around the world can ensure their family's safety, I ask you to reconsider your decision not to sign the treaty. I urge you to pledge your full commitment to ending the use of this outmoded, indiscriminate weapon.
Thank you for your time and attention. I would appreciate hearing back from you on this issue.
Sincerely,
Name
Address
Action Alert 2: Please submit a letter to the editor.
Most papers around the country, and around the world, have already published articles about this.
Many seem to inaccurately portray self-deactivating or self-destructing mines as "smart," though they cannot distinguish between the foot of a soldier and that of a child. Make your voice heard to policy-makers and the general public.
Sample Letter to the Editor:
To the Editor:
The recent coverage of President Bush's new U.S. landmine policy sugar-coats a major policy rollback. The 1997 Mine Ban Treaty has made a tremendous, life-saving impact throughout the world. More than 52 million mines have been destroyed from global stockpiles, trade of the stigmatized weapon has slowed to a trickle, hundreds of thousands of mines have been removed from the ground, most countries have given up use of the weapon, and casualty rates have declined dramatically. U.S. refusal to join this treaty gives political cover to countries such as Russia, India, and Pakistan, which have laid hundreds of thousands of mines in recent years with devastating consequences for innocent victims.
Though President Clinton failed to sign the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, he did create a policy that would put the U.S. on track to join the treaty by 2006. The new Bush policy rejects any notion that the U.S. will join the treaty, puts off the destruction of "persistent" landmines until 2010, and asserts that our military may use self-deactivating "smart" mines indefinitely. These so-called "smart" mines cannot discriminate between the footstep of a soldier and that of a child, tend to be scattered by air and are thus difficult to mark and map, pose tremendous challenges and costs for demining teams, and threaten the lives and limbs of innocent civilians and U.S. troops who step on the weapons soon after they've been planted.
Meanwhile, reportedly, the U.S. military hasn't used antipersonnel landmines since 1991. Let's join the majority of the world in giving up this cruel, outmoded, and indiscriminate weapon!
Sincerely,
Name
Address
Please visit the website of the U.S. Campaign to Ban Landmines for the latest news and action on landmines.
