29 June 1995

Doc. 7343

WRITTEN DECLARATION No. 242

on landmines and blinding laser weapons

This written declaration commits only the members who have signed it

      The undersigned, members of the Assembly, are deeply concerned about the continued widespread use of landmines and the recent development of blinding laser weapons.

      There are an estimated 110 million landmines laid in 65 countries, killing or maiming 26.000 people every year, mainly civilians. Casualties persist for years after hostilities have ended.

      The development of permanently blinding laser weapons will dramatically increase suffering caused by warfare. If widely manufactured, they will probably cost no more than a normal rifle.

      These issues will be addressed during the Review Conference of the 1980 United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (Vienna, 25 September-13 October 1995). Considering this Conference a unique occasion for strengthening the Convention,

      We declare our support for the total ban of anti-personnel landmines.

      We urge the member states:

i.       to strengthen Protocol II on landmines to be amended at the Vienna Conference;

ii.       to support the adoption at the Vienna Conference of draft Protocol IV on blinding laser weapons;

iii.       to support the extension of the Convention to non-international armed conflicts and the inclusion in it of an effective verification mechanism and a regular review procedure;

iv.       if not yet parties, to ratify the Convention.

      Signed:

Schreiner, France, EDG

Cucó, Spain, SOC

Robert, Switzerland, LDR

Ruffy, Switzerland, SOC

Kalus, Czech Republic, EDG

Panteļējevs, Latvia, LDR

Gross, Switzerland, SOC

Hunt, United Kingdom, EDG

Baarveld-Schlaman, Netherlands, SOC

Novák, Czech Republic, EDG

Trojan, Czech Republic, SOC

Iwiński, Poland, SOC

Billing, Sweden, EDG

Brennan, Ireland, LDR

Aguiar, Portugal, LDR

Woltjer, Netherlands, SOC

Andnor, Sweden, SOC

Bársony, Hungary, SOC

Kelchtermans, Belgium, PPE

Laakso, Finland, UEL

Fischer, Germany, PPE

Johnston, United Kingdom, LDR

Akselsen, Norway, SOC

Trojan, Czech Republic, SOC

Fuhrmann, Austria, SOC

Total = 25

*       SOC : Socialist Group

      EPP : Group of the European People's Party

      EDG : European Democratic Group

      LDR : Liberal, Democratic and Reformers Group

      UEL : Group of the Unified European Left