INTER-AGENCY STANDING COMMITTEE EXPRESSES DISAPPOINTMENT WITH VIENNA REVIEW OF LAND-MINE CRISIS

Press Release
DC/2539
IHA/585

INTER-AGENCY STANDING COMMITTEE EXPRESSES DISAPPOINTMENT WITH VIENNA REVIEW OF LAND-MINE CRISIS

Following is the statement of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee issued today in New York by Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Peter Hansen, concerning the Review Conference of States Parties to the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (CCW), which met in Vienna from 25 September to 13 October 1995:

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee, having reviewed the preparations for and deliberations of the Review Conference on certain conventional weapons, particularly with regard to the question of land-mines, expresses its grave disappointment at the outcome of the Review Conference held in Vienna from 25 September to 13 October 1995.

The presence of an estimated 110 million land-mines around the world has caused a humanitarian crisis of enormous proportions, killing more than 800 people per month and maiming thousands more and leaving whole countries devastated and unable to resume normal life for a prolonged period of time in the aftermath of armed conflicts. Moreover, there is every indication that the number of land-mines is still rapidly increasing. The Committee notes with great concern that the discussions at the Review Conference centred on the military and economic aspects of the land-mine issue and failed to take adequately into account the humanitarian dimensions of the land-mine crisis and, in particular, the devastating social and economic impact arising from their indiscriminate use.

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee wishes to draw the attention of the United Nations General Assembly once again to the gravity of the land-mine crisis and to reiterate its strong support for the Secretary-General's position that the use of land-mines, their production and transfer must be banned and those which are stockpiled must be destroyed. A total ban on land- mines is the only effective measure to end the indiscriminate killing and maiming of innocent civilians and relief personnel.

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee notes with appreciation that an increasing number of governments have agreed to a total ban on land-mines or

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are seriously considering similar measures to curb the proliferation of these weapons. It calls upon the States Parties to the Convention on certain conventional weapons to amplify their efforts in moving effectively towards the elimination of these insidious weapons.

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee further calls on the General Assembly to urge the international community to increase financial, material and technical support, including through the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Assistance in Mine Clearance and Consolidated Inter-Agency Appeals, for the efforts undertaken by organizations of the United Nations system, the International Committee of the Red Cross and non-governmental organizations in this field.

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