The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) is a coalition of

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...

s whose stated objective is a world free of

anti-personnel mine Anti-personnel mines are a form of mine designed for use against humans, as opposed to anti-tank mines, which are designed for use against vehicles. Anti-personnel mines may be classified into blast mines or fragmentation mines; the latter may ...

s and cluster munitions, where mine and cluster munitions survivors see their rights respected and can lead fulfilling lives. The coalition was formed in 1992 when six organisations with similar interests (France-based

Handicap International Humanity & Inclusion (formerly Handicap InternationalOn January 24th 2018, the global Handicap International network changed its name and became Humanity & Inclusion. This was done "to communicate more effectively on the diversity of its activiti ...

, Germany-based

Medico International Medico International is a human rights organization based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Its declared aim is to achieve the human right to health globally. The organization is committed to the global realization of the human right to health. The ...

, UK-based

Mines Advisory Group The Mines Advisory Group (MAG) is a non-governmental organization that assists people affected by landmines, unexploded ordnance, and small arms and light weapons. MAG takes a humanitarian approach to landmine action. They focus on the impact ...

, and US-based

Physicians for Human Rights Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is a US-based not-for-profit human rights NGO that uses medicine and science to document and advocate against mass atrocities and severe human rights violations around the world. PHR headquarters are in New ...

and Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation) agreed to cooperate on their common goal. The campaign has since grown and spread to become a network with active members in some 100 countries—including groups working on women, children, veterans, religious groups, the environment, human rights, arms control, peace and development—working locally, nationally and internationally to eradicate antipersonnel landmines. A prominent supporter was Diana, Princess of Wales. The organization and its founding coordinator,

Jody Williams Jody Williams (born October 9, 1950) is an American political activist known for her work in banning anti-personnel landmines, her defense of human rights (especially those of women), and her efforts to promote new understandings of security i ...

, jointly received the 1997

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

for their efforts to bring about the

Mine Ban Treaty The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction of 1997, known informally as the Ottawa Treaty, the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, or often simply the Mine ...

(Ottawa Treaty). The signature of this treaty (which bans the use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of anti-personnel mines) is seen as the campaign's greatest success. The prize was received on the organisation's behalf by its co-founder, Rae McGrath of the Mines Advisory Group and by Tunn Channareth, a Cambodian mine victim and ICBL activist. The ICBL monitors the global mine and cluster munition situation (through Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor, its research and monitoring arm), and conducts advocacy activities, lobbying for implementation and universalization of the Mine Ban Treaty, humanitarian mine action programs geared toward the needs of mine-affected communities, support for landmine survivors, their families and their communities, and a stop to the production, use and transfer of landmines, including by non-State armed groups. The ICBL participates in the periodical meetings of the Mine Ban Treaty process, urges states not parties to the treaty to join and non-state armed groups to respect the mine ban norm, condemns mine use and promotes public awareness and debate on the mine issue, organizing events and generating media attention.

Organizational structure

In 2011, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) and Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) merged into one unified structure, now known as the ICBL-CMC, in order to realize operational efficiencies and reinforce complementary work. The ICBL and the CMC campaigns remain separate and continue to remind governments of their commitments to implement and promote both treaties. Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor continues its unique civil society monitoring program on the humanitarian and developmental consequences of landmines, cluster munitions, and explosive remnants of war. The activities of the ICBL-CMC are supported by a Governance Board representative of various elements of the ICBL that provides strategic, financial and human resources oversight. An Advisory Committee provides more regular input to staff and the working of the campaign. Four ambassadors serve as campaign representatives at speaking events and other conferences worldwide. They include

, Tun Channareth (Cambodian landmine survivor), Song Kosal (Cambodian landmine survivor), and Margaret Arech Orech (Ugandan landmine survivor and founder of Ugandan Landmine Survivors Association). Currently, the ICBL has 14 staff members based in Geneva (the central office), Lyon, Paris, and Ottawa. Additionally, the ICBL-CMC hosts several interns each year.

Mine Ban Treaty

The Mine Ban Treaty, or the

Ottawa Treaty The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction of 1997, known informally as the Ottawa Treaty, the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, or often simply the Mine ...

, is the international agreement that bans

s. Officially entitled ''The Convention on the Prohibition, Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Antipersonnel Mines and on Their Destruction'', the treaty is sometimes referred to as the Ottawa Convention. The Mine Ban Treaty was adopted in Oslo, Norway, in September 1997 and signed by 122 States in Ottawa, Canada, on 3 December 1997. As of March 2018, there were 164 States Parties to the Ottawa Treaty. The mine ban treaty suggest several agendas to member states: # Never use antipersonnel mines, nor to "develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile, retain or transfer" them # Destroy mines in their stockpiles within four years # Clear mined areas in their territory within 10 years # In mine-affected countries, conduct mine risk education and ensure that mine survivors, their families and communities receive comprehensive assistance # Offer assistance to other States Parties, for example in providing for survivors or contributing to clearance programs # Adopt national implementation measures (such as national legislation) in order to ensure that the terms of the treaty are upheld in their territory

Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor

Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor is the ICBL-CMC's research and monitoring arm. It is the ''de facto'' monitoring regime for the Mine Ban Treaty and the

Convention on Cluster Munitions The Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) is an international treaty that prohibits all use, transfer, production, and stockpiling of cluster bombs, a type of explosive weapon which scatters submunitions ("bomblets") over an area. Additionally, ...

of 2008. It monitors and reports on States Parties' implementation of and compliance with the Mine Ban Treaty and the Convention on Cluster Munitions, and more generally, it assesses the problems caused by landmines, cluster munitions, and other explosive remnants of war (ERW). The Monitor represents the first time that NGOs have come together in a coordinated, systematic, and sustained way to monitor humanitarian law or disarmament treaties, and to regularly document progress and problems, thereby successfully putting into practice the concept of civil society-based verification. Since its creation in 1998, Monitor research has been carried out by a global network of primarily in-country researchers, most of them ICBL-CMC campaigners, and all content undergoes rigorous editing by the Monitor's Editorial Team prior to publication.

References

UN Mine ban treaty text

External links

International Campaign to Ban Landmines
(official website)
Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor

Mines Advisory Group
* {{Authority control Organizations awarded Nobel Peace Prizes Mine action organizations Organizations established in 1992 Swiss Nobel laureates

Organizational structure

Mine Ban Treaty

Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor

See also

Further reading

References

External links