MINE BAN TREATY

The Mine Ban Treaty is the international agreement that bans antipersonnel landmines. Sometimes referred to as the Ottawa Convention, it is officially titled: the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction.

The treaty is the most comprehensive international instrument for ridding the world of the scourge of mines and deals with everything from mine use, production and trade, to victim assistance, mine clearance and stockpile destruction.

In December 1997 a total of 122 governments signed the treaty in Ottawa, Canada. In September the following year, Burkina Faso was the 40th country to ratify, triggering entry into force six months later. Consequently, in March 1999 the treaty became binding under international law, and did so more quickly than any treaty of its kind in history. Today, the treaty is still open for ratification by signatories and for accession by those that did not sign before March 1999.

Today there are 156 member states and 39 states that remain outside the treaty including two signatories that have not yet ratified. States Not Party to the Mine Ban Treaty include: China, Egypt, Finland, India, Israel, Pakistan, Russia and the United States. Click here to read the full treaty text.

Treaty obligations fall under two broad headings:

• Prevention of future landmine use;
• Funding and regulation of clearance of mined areas, mine risk education and assistance for landmine survivors.

• Never use antipersonnel mines, nor to "develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile, retain or transfer" them;
• Destroy mines in their stockpiles within four years of signing the treaty;
• Clear mines in their territory within 10 years of signing the treaty; 
• Offer assistance to other States Parties, for example by providing for survivors or for 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.