By Jean Christou
UNFICYP yesterday welcomed Cyprus’ signing of the treaty for the global ban on landmines. Senior Adviser Peter Schmitz told the Cyprus Mail it was a “positive development”.
“The secretary-general himself has made it clear in his statement that it (the treaty) is a ground-breaking development,” Schmitz said.
Cyprus is being represented in Ottawa by Alecos Shiambos, director-general of the Foreign Ministry.
He told the ceremony the country’s decision to sign the convention was “clear evidence of our sincere efforts to reduce tension and promote mutual confidence”.
“It is directly linked to the proposal for the complete demilitarisation of Cyprus, that President Clerides put forward in the framework of achieving an overall solution to the Cyprus problem,” Shiambos said. It should be seen as a gesture of goodwill, he added.
Schmitz said that Unficyp is aware that there are some 38 minefields and booby-trapped areas in the buffer zone and a further 73 minefields located within 500 metres of it.
In all it is estimated there are more than 16,000 landmines buried on the island.
“The Security Council in a resolution in 1996 called on the two sides to assist the UN in identifying the scale of the problem and to see what arrangements can be made to have the mines removed,” Schmitz said.
So far Unficyp has had no success in this area but efforts are continuing.
It is believed the problem of mines is being discussed in the ongoing military dialogue between the Turkish Forces Command and the National Guard under the auspices of the UN.
Three months ago a 37-year-old father of three became the latest victim of the island’s 1974 landmines legacy after following his dog into a minefield in a government-controlled area near to, but not inside, the buffer zone.
Under the treaty being signed by 125 countries in Ottawa in Canada signatories are obliged to ban the use, stockpiling, production, import and export of anti-personnel landmines.
Signatories must also destroy their existing stockpiles within four years and clear all their minefields unless they can justify an extension.
The treaty will take effect six months after the 40th signatory nation ratifies it in its legislature.
Compliance will be overseen by the UN, a provision that could also include fact-finding missions.
A source at the Foreign Ministry said Cyprus is keen to abide by the treaty but pointed out it will be a long and difficult process.
“There are a lot of mines in the buffer zone and we may even need expert assistance,” the source said. “Not all the mines are clearly marked and not all are accessible.”
The source said the government does not have to wait for progress on the Cyprus problem to begin work on the treaty provisions, but added that the whole issue was complicated by the fact that Turkey has not signed the Ottawa treaty.
“Then again this is not Turkish territory,” the source added.
