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Published on November 28, 2007

When Thailand ratified the Mine Ban Treaty in 1999 it agreed to destroy its stockpile of landmines and remove all mines from its soil within a decade. The Thai Army blew up its stockpile of 380,000 mines in a series of controlled explosions by mid 2003, but the country has woefully under-funded de-mining efforts, to the point where it has little chance of meeting the 2009 deadline to rid the country of its mines.

Bangkok-based activist Yeshua Moser Puangsuwan said: "Landmine activists in Thailand are very disappointed at the country not meeting its commitments. It looks like Thailand won't meet the 2009 deadline.

"All governments that sign the [Mine Ban] Treaty pledge to remove mines in territory under their control. The Thai government has the resources and economic and military capacity to remove the mines on its borders. If Thailand made the effort it could make that commitment.

"Some poor countries such as Afghanistan, Angola and Cambodia cannot afford to remove the huge number of mines on their territory, but Thailand is not in that league and doesn't have massive number of mines. It's unlike other countries that are impoverished. Thailand's not in that league."

Earlier this year the Surayud government boosted funding for de-mining, which received minuscule support from administrations headed by former premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

"Thailand's current military government has given far more funding to mine clearance efforts than the previous government, but it is still too little too late to allow for Thailand to meet its clearance deadline required by the treaty," Moser said.

"Thailand will be forced to apply for an extension. However the ICBL has lobbied hard that extensions not be granted automatically, and that states must submit a firm clearance plan that will be scrutinised by other governments before any extension is granted."

The main "losers" in this oversight are the half a million Thais living adjacent to the Cambodian and Burma borders, where the vast majority of mines are laid. About 100 people are killed or lose limbs each year because of mines, which are generally a legacy of conflicts in neighbouring countries.

"The majority of victims in the Thailand Landmine Monitor report are Burmese and Cambodians who are injured near the border and cross to receive medical care in Thai hospitals. Some Thais also receive injuries in neighbouring countries and are then treated in Thai hospitals. But due to a lack of details provided by Thai authorities we cannot give a firm figure for the number of Thais injured on Thai soil."

Moser, 54, from the US state of Ohio, but a resident of Bangkok since 1990, was one of the founders of the Thailand Campaign to Ban Landmines in 1995. He has been a researcher on the use of mines in Burma for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) and worked for the past three years for the Landmine Monitor as an editorial rep for its global reports.

Moser was part of an ICBL mission that recently met with Kashmiri insurgents, who have since agreed to publicly pledge not to use mines in their conflict with the Indian army for control of the disputed territory.

The agreement was a coup for the landmines body - neither India or Pakistan have signed the Mine Ban Treaty and there are a huge number of mines on both sides of the Line of Control in Kashmir.

"In India this was a major press item. Our movement welcomes all pledges to abide by the mine ban, both by governments to adhere to the Treaty and pledges to ban by rebels who may have used them."

Worldwide, 80 per cent of governments - some 155 states - have now signed the Mine Ban Treaty. And the ICBL is hoping that if the Democrats win the US election next year, a Clinton or Obama administration will ratify the treaty and give it further impetus.

Bill Clinton had agreed to sign the Treaty before leaving the White House but his decision was reversed by George W Bush. However, a large proportion of the Congress reportedly supports the Treaty. 

Moser agreed with the Thai Mine Action Centre's decision that clearing the Thai-Burma border was its last priority - as that's where mines have most recently been laid and possibly still are being laid. And he said a survey showed explosive hazards left on the Lao and Malay borders since the communist insurgency were "very minimal".

"Given that Cambodia is a party to the Mine Ban Treaty, cooperation on cross-border de-mining is possible," he said.

But Cambodia also has its problems. Earlier this month, Cambodian PM Hun Sen admitted his country, one of the world's most heavily mined, would need another decade to clear all mines and unexploded ordnance.

Hun Sen said his government expected to increase its mine-clearance budget, but projections made in 2000 were "over-optimistic".

"At the time, we said we'd be clear by 2010, but now Cambodia will take about 10 years more," he told an annual meeting on de-mining efforts.

Several hundred Cambodians are killed or maimed every year by millions of mines and other unexploded devices left over from decades of conflict. Several foreign de-mining groups have worked with the Cambodian Mine Action Centre since 1992 to clear minefields, but the work is slow, and roughly 2,900 square kilometres of land remains covered with mines.

In Thailand, work next year will focus on trying to scale down the 2,550 square kilometres where mines are believed to have been laid.

But local activists and the ICBL are hoping the government elected next month will take the issue seriously and boost funding so Army and private de-mining groups can really make some progress.

Jim Pollard

The Nation