Nairobi Summit on a Mine-Free World
29 November ‐ 3 December 2004
Highlights
・ At the Nairobi Summit, for the first time since 1997, the international community gathered at a
high political level to examine the humanitarian problems caused by anti-personnel mines and
what is being done to address these problems. Summit participants included: 5 Heads of States or
Heads of Government, 6 Vice Presidents or Deputy Heads of Government, and 20 Ministers:
States represented by a Head of State or Head of Government:
Canada
Kenya
Malawi
Rwanda
Somalia
(In addition, President Karzai of Afghanistan delivered a taped video message to the Summit.)
States represented by a Deputy Head of State or Deputy Head of Government:
Cambodia
Colombia
Dem. Rep. of the Congo
Swaziland
Tajikistan
Thailand
States represented by a Minister:
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Burkina Faso
Burundi Chad Congo Djibouti France
Guinea Bissau
Lesotho Mali Mozambique Namibia
New Zealand
Nigeria
Sierra Leone
Slovakia Slovenia Sudan Tanzania Zambia
・Other high level participants included the following:
o 1997 Nobel Peace Prize co-recipient, Jody Williams
o 2003 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Shirin Ebadi
o 2004 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Wangari Maathai
o Executive Director of UNICEF, Carol Bellamy
o President of the ICRC, Jakob Kellenberger
o Former President of the ICRC and current President of the Geneva International Centre
for Humanitarian Demining, Cornelio Sommaruga
o UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who addressed the Summit via live video link
・ 135 States participated in the Nairobi Summit, including 110 member States of the 1997 Ottawa
Convention banning anti-personnel mines and 25 States that have not yet joined the Convention
States not parties to the Convention that attended the Nairobi Summit:
Bahrain
Brunei Darussalam
Bhutan China Cuba Egypt Finland India Indonesia
Iraq Israel Kazakhstan Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lebanon Libya Mongolia Morocco
Poland
Saudia Arabia
Singapore Somalia
Sri Lanka
Ukraine Vanuatu
・ The Nairobi Summit featured the largest ever gathering of representatives of non-governmental
organizations concerned about the global landmine problem. Over 350 NGO representatives from
dozens of countries participated in the event.
・ On the first day of the Nairobi Summit Ethiopia announced that it had become the 144 th State to
join the Convention.
・ Positive signs of growing acceptance of the Convention were heard from other key States that
have not yet joined the Convention, including China, Indonesia and Somalia:
Excerpt from the statement by China:
Both China and States Parties to the Ottawa Convention share the same objective. China closely
follows the Ottawa process and has been enhancing exchanges and cooperation with States
Parties to the Convention (….) We stand ready to further expand our cooperation with the States
Parties to the Convention, in order to contribute to the early elimination of landmine problems.
Excerpt from the statement by Indonesia:
Having not ratified the Convention as yet in no way indicates our lack of commitment to the
principles and objectives of the Convention and our commitment towards the universalization of
this Convention. Despite not having ratified the Convention, we have actively promoted the
eradication of these horrendous weapons.
Excerpt from the statement by the Prime Minister of the Transitional Government of Somalia:
My government will pursue the ratification of the Treaty, but please bear in mind we have a
country to re-establish so it may not be immediate. We will aim however that before the next
Meeting of the States Parties Somalia will be in a position to accede to the treaty.
・ The conference examined an 80+ page review of the operation and status of the Convention since
it entered into force on 1 March 1999. The conference concluded that since it was adopted on 18
September 1997, the Convention’s unique spirit of cooperation has been sustained, ensuring the
Convention’s rapid entry into force and over five successful years of implementation. This
comprehensive review also contained a record of essential work that lies before the Convention’s
member States in ensuring that the Convention indeed lives up to its promise.
・ To overcome challenges that remain, the Convention’s member States adopted Ending the
suffering caused by anti-personnel mines: Nairobi Action Plan 2005-2009, concluding inter alia
that for the period 2005-2009:
o the pursuit of universal adherence to the Convention will remain an important object of
cooperation among States Parties;
o they would ensure the expeditious and timely destruction of all stockpiled anti-personnel
mines under their or jurisdiction or control;
o successfully meeting deadlines for clearing mined areas will be the most significant
challenge to be addressed during this period and will require intensive efforts by mine-affected
States Parties and those in a position to assist them;
o consistent with the Convention’s vital promise to mine victims, the States parties will
enhance care, rehabilitation and reintegration efforts;
o fulfilling their obligations will require substantial political, financial and material
commitments;
otransparency and the effective information exchange will be crucial to
fulfilling their obligations;
o they will continue to be guided by the knowledge that individually and collectively they
are responsible for ensuring compliance with the Convention; and,
o their implementation mechanisms will remain important, particularly as key means to
implement the Nairobi Action Plan.
・ The conference adopted Towards a mine-free world: the 2004 Nairobi Declaration, emphasizing
that this declaration contains the renewed commitment of the Convention’s member States to
achieving the goal of a world free of anti-personnel mines, in which there are no more new
victims.
・
A symbolic copy of the 2004 Nairobi Declaration was signed by States participating in the
Summit. The President of the Nairobi Summit, Ambassador Wolfgang Petritsch of Austria,
presented this copy of the declaration to two Cambodian landmine survivors ‐ Song Kosal and
Tun Channaret ‐ as representatives of the global public conscience. In making this presentation,
Ambassador Petritsch stated that the role of the public conscience remains as important as ever in
that civil society around the world must hold States true to the commitments that they have made
through the Nairobi Declaration.
・ The conference adopted a Programme of meetings and related matters to facilitate
implementation 2005-2009. In doing so, the conference took the following decisions:
(a) To hold annually until 2009 a Meeting of the States Parties to take place in the second half of
the year, in Geneva or, when possible or appropriate, in a mine-affected country.
(b) To convene annually, until 2009, informal intersessional meetings of the Standing Committees
to be held in Geneva in the first half of the year, for a duration of up to five days.
(c) As a general rule, however not excluding exceptions for specific reasons, to hold meetings of
the Standing Committees in February / March and Meetings of the States Parties in September.
(d) To hold the Second Review Conference in the second half of the year 2009.
(e) In keeping with the States Parties’ practice of being flexible and pragmatic in addressing
changing circumstances, to review decisions regarding the 2005-2009 programme of meetings at
each Meeting of the States Parties prior to the Second Review Conference.
・ With regard to the next meeting of the States Parties, the conference took the following decisions:
(a) The next Meeting of States Parties will be held in Croatia and take place 28 November to 2
December 2005.
(b) Meetings of the Standing Committees will take place during the week of 13-17 June 2005 with
the length of individual meetings and their sequencing, and duration of the entire period meetings
to be established by the Coordinating Committee.
(c) Consistent with the practice of past Meetings of the States Parties, the Coordinating
Committee shall be chaired by the President elected by the Review Conference until the States
Parties elect a subsequent President. The chair of the Coordinating Committee will continue the
practice of keeping the States Parties apprised of the Coordinating Committee’s functioning.
(d) The following States Parties shall serve as the Standing Committee Co-Chairs and
Co-Rapporteurs until the end of the next Meeting of the States Parties:
o Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies: Algeria and
Sweden (Co-Chairs), Jordan and Slovenia (Co-Rapporteurs);
o Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration: Nicaragua and Norway (Co-Chairs),
Afghanistan and Switzerland (Co-Rapporteurs);
o Stockpile Destruction: Bangladesh and Canada (Co-Chairs), Japan and the United
Republic of Tanzania (Co- Rapporteurs);
o The General Status and Operation of the Convention: New Zealand and South Africa
(Co-Chairs), Belgium and Guatemala (Co-Rapporteurs).