LANDMINES OVERVIEW

The Landmine Crisis is a Global One. There are between 70 and 80 million landmines in the ground in one-third of the world's nations. Landmines are indiscriminate weapons that maim or kill 15,000 to 20,000 civilians every year. They cost as little as $3 to produce, but as much as $1000 to remove.

The presence of landmines threatens people’s lives, and also prevents much-needed ecomonic growth and development. Long after wars are over, landmines make land unusable for farming, schools or living, preventing people from rebuilding lives torn apart by conflict.

What are Landmines?

Landmines are explosive material contained in casings of metal, plastic or wood that detonate from the pressure of a footstep (anti-personnel mine) or a passing vehicle (anti-tank mine). Landmines are indiscriminate − a child is just as likely to step on one as a soldier.

Landmines are popular weapons of war because they cost as little as $3 to make and can be easily deployed in a variety of locations.

Landmines are an ancient invention. In Northern China, archeologists have discovered forms of landmines dating back 600 years. Precursors of conventional landmines appeared in the 15th century at the Battle of Agincourt in England and in the 18th century during the American Civil War. After his troops encountered these devices, the commander of the Union Army, General William T. Sherman, said that the use of landmines “was not war, but murder.”

In the 20th century, landmines were developed to meet new threats. Anti-tank mines, devised on the Western front during World War I to counter tanks, were used extensively during both world wars. More than 300 million anti-tank mines were used during World War II alone. WWII also saw an increase in the use of anti-personnel mines. Since anti-tank mines could be removed by the enemy, anti-personnel mines were placed around them as guards. One of the most effective anti-personnel types was the German-made “bouncing betty,” designed to jump from the ground to hip height when activated, propelling hundreds of steel fragments over a wide range. Noting their effectivness, militaries began to use anti-personnel mines as weapons in their own right.

The Current Crisis

Use of landmines in wars of liberation, civil wars, and local conflicts, has had devastating impact on economic and political reconstruction in countries around the globe.

Since 1945, landmines have been used throughout the world in wars of liberation, civil wars, and local conflicts, with a devastating impact on economic and political reconstruction. Landmines demoralize survivors as well as their families and communities, impeding the process of peace and reconciliation. Because they lurk undetectably in the ground, population movement is restricted, land cannot be cultivated, roads and bridges cannot be rebuilt and refugees cannot return to their homes. Survivors of landmine accidents often cannot work at their previous jobs and require retraining. Without a strong workforce, the pace of reconstruction slows.

For poor countries, clearing landmines places an additional burden on already meager resources. It costs from $300 to $1,000 to locate and destroy a single landmine. This is not the only expense. It costs $100 to $3,000 to provide an artificial limb to a landmine survivor. An adult must replace a prosthesis every two to three years and a child must have a new one every six months to a year.

The international community is making a concerted effort to eradicate landmines. The Mine Ban Treaty came into force on March 1, 1999, faster than any international treaty in history. International, nongovernmental and private-sector organizations are working with affected countries to establish mine action campaigns.

Landmine Facts

The Bad News

• Landmines are indiscriminate killers that target civilians long after a conflict has ended.
• At the beginning of the 20th century, nearly 80 per cent of landmine victims were military personnel. Today, 90 per cent of landmine victims are civilians.
• Most kinds of landmines last forever. Mines laid during WWII are still killing and maiming civilians.
• There are 82 mine-affected countries around the world. No mine clearance was recorded in 16 of the affected countries and no mine risk education activities were recorded in 25 countries.
• From 2002 through to June 2003, there were new landmine casualties reported in 65 countries. Forty-one of these countries were not at war.
• UNICEF estimates that 30-40 % of all landmine victims are children under the age of 15. Mines kill and mutilate 8,000 to 10,000 children each year.
• Landmines affect both men and women but studies show that women suffer more when they become victims of landmines. Fewer women receive mobility aids, such as artificial limbs, and they may receive less attention right after the landmine blast. As a result, the fatality rate is higher for females (43%) than for males (29%).
• Landmines set in motion a series of events that leads to environmental damage in the forms of soil degradation, deforestation, pollution of water resources with heavy metals and altering entire species’ populations through degrading habitats and altering food chains.
• Landmines affect every aspect of human life including the ability for refugees to return to their homes. A report from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees published in 1997 stated that 13.2 million refugees, 4.9 million internally displaced people and 3.3 million returnees were at risk from landmines.

 The Better News

• After a decade of concerted, concentrated humanitarian mine action, the international community is seeing once mine-infested countries declare themselves mine-safe, while other mine-affected countries have developed an indigenous demining capability, which will allow them to become mine-safe in the near future.
• As of 2004, Costa Rica, Djibouti, El Salvador, Kosovo and Moldovahave all been declared mine safe.
• The number of active mines in the world is decreasing. As of February 2004, a total of 68 signators of the Mine Ban Treaty have destroyed nearly 30.5 million antipersonnel landmines. Fifty-five of these countries have completed stockpile destruction while 13 are in the process of destruction.
• Global trade in antipersonnel mines has dwindled to a very low level of illicit trafficking. There were no confirmed instances of trade in antipersonnel mines in 2003. Several countries outside the Mine Ban Treaty extended or reconfirmed their moratoria on exports of these mines.
• The international community, including Adopt-A-Minefield, is solving the problem of landmines. By raising awareness of the problem and getting involved in fundraising efforts to clear mines and help survivors, you too can be part of the solution.