Mine clearance an 'absolute necessity.' (land-mine hazards, includes a related article on banning blinding laser weapons)

In declaring mine clearance an "absolute necessity", Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali on 6 July called for the elimination of land-mines "once and for all". "We must ban their use. We must ban their production. We must destroy those that are stockpiled", he told the International Meeting on Mine Clearance, held from 5 to 7 July in Geneva.

In urging all States to contribute to the Voluntary Trust Fund for Assistance in Mine Clearance - established in November 1994 and administered by the UN Department of Humanitarian Affairs - the Secretary-General called the existence and proliferation of antipersonnel land-mines a "blatant violation of the principles" the world community was striving to uphold.

Land-mines - the "most widespread and pernicious" of all forms of debris left in the aftermath of conflict - were "real weapons of mass destruction", both "perverse and insidious", since they blindly struck civilian populations, "often long after conflicts have ended", he stated.

An estimated $87 million was raised for mine clearance activities during the three-day Geneva gathering, of which some $21.6 million was pledged for the Trust Fund and $7 million for the UN demining stand-by capacity, set up in 1994 to make better use of in-kind contributions. In addition, some $58 million more was expected through bilateral and multilateral programmes and additional provision of experts, equipment, facilities and services.

Called for by General Assembly resolution 49/215 of 23 December 1994, the Meeting brought together representatives of 97 Governments, 11 intergovernmental and 31 non-governmental organizations, as wed as 16 UN bodies.

In closing the Meeting, its President, Foreign Minister Erik Derycke of Belgium, said the event had been very significant" in the world community's efforts to address the global land-mine crisis. It had served to enhance international awareness of the problem and seek additional political and financial cooperation and support for UN mine-action activities.

Although the challenge remained "one of enormous proportions", Mr. Derycke stated that a great deal had already been done. Comprehensive mine-action programmes in Afghanistan and Cambodia had "cleared hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of high-priority areas which enabled the local people to regain their lives. Every mine cleared may have saved the life of one human being", he stressed.

More than 110 million land-mines were spread in 64 countries around the...