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Ban hails 'life-saving work' of eliminating landmines on International Day

Having witnessed first-hand the devastation

  • including grievous injuries and environmental damage - wrought by landmines, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called for a renewed commitment to rid the world of the scourge.

Conditions may differ in nations, such as Iraq, Sudan, Lebanon and Afghanistan, but "what doesn't change is the threat to life and limb," Mr. Ban said in a message marking the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, observed annually on 4 April.

Over the past 20 years, United Nations assistance in mine action, performing "life-saving work," has reached over 50 nations and territories. UN mine action specialists were among the first international workers to resume humanitarian activities in Gaza, where explosive remnants of war post significant threats, he noted.

"My fervent hope is that the world will one day be free from the threats caused by landmines and explosive remnants of war," the Secretary-General said, adding that this will require "concerted collective efforts on all fronts."

This year's International Day is focusing on the needs of the ever-growing number of landmine survivors and other victims, as well as to celebrate the strides made towards the UN's vision of a mine-free world.

Joint efforts by the UN and its partners to clear mines has reduced the annual number of casualties to some 5,500, down 75 per cent from a high of 26,000 in 1997.

"Our urgent work continues day in and day out as we head toward our ultimate goal of zero new victims," said Max Kerley, Director of the UN Mine Action Service.

More must be done to assist the rehabilitation and reintegration services for the almost 500,000 people who have survived accidents with landmines and explosive remnants of war, he added.

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned of the threat to children posed by the weapons, which they often mistake for toys.

Children, especially boys, are most like to be harmed, with nearly two-thirds of the casualties in 2007 of explosive remnants of war being children.

Injuries - including loss of limbs, sight or hearing - can cause lifelong disabilities, leaving victims in need of urgent care and long-term support. But minimal medical care and rehabilitation capacity in some countries means that children are unable to attend school, limiting their prospects in life.

As of August 2008, one decade after the Mine Ban Treaty entered into force, more than 70 countries are still believed to be affected by mines, with over 25 States contaminated by unexploded cluster bombs and submunitions.

More than three decades after they were first laid, landmines continue to jeopardize lives and livelihoods in Cyprus, the top UN envoy to Mediterranean island said, on the occasion of the International Day.

Taye-Brook Zerihoun, the Secretary-General's Special Representative, called for a vigorous drive to achieve a mine-free buffer zone in the country by 2011.

"Recent incidents have served as tragic reminders of the dangers of these devices still represent," he said yesterday. "Landmines can kill and maim, and they prevent Cypriots from enjoying the beauty and the potential abundance of large areas of their country."

Continued funding and political will are essential in the "difficult" job of removing the weapons from the buffer zone, but "the people of Cyprus deserve no less," the official stressed.