The fight to eliminate landmines | DW Documentary

The fight to eliminate landmines | DW Documentary

More than 160 countries have signed what’s known as the Ottawa Treaty. It prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines. Nevertheless, the number of civilian victims of landmines continues to rise.

Experts estimate that in Ukraine alone, a quarter of the country’s territory is now polluted by landmines or the remains of cluster bombs. And Ukraine is not alone. The film shows humanitarian workers in countries like Senegal and Colombia as they attempt to clear mines. It also hears from lobbyists and analysts and asks: What has been achieved by the Ottawa Treaty, signed on 18 September 1997, and enforced starting in 1999?

164 nations have ratified the treaty to date. Yet major military powers such as China, Russia and the US have not yet signed it. After 1999, the ban on mines did initially result in a drastic reduction in the number of victims. But that number has now started to increase again, particularly due to conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, along with the use of improvised explosive devices.

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