Your Excellency Mr. Minister of Environment and Housing

Distinguished delegates and members of the Diplomatic Corps

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I have the confidence that through the diligence of your guidance this historic forum will be steered towards results with the desired impact on the future generation of this continent and world at large. Mr. Chairman, a lot has been said since the convening of this august gathering by several contributors concerning the catastrophic effects of landmines in the world. On the part of my delegation, however, I wish to assure everyone assembled here that I have with full confidence the mandate of my home government and people to convey the necessary inputs on the concise picture of the situation at home as it pertains both historically until now. Distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. You have witnessed with your own eyes and ears living testimony of a victim in Uganda of the very mines that we are talking about right now. This is precisely an example of the rural and urban terrorism, which Ugandans have time and again kept telling the world, which has bedeviled our motherland for more than a decade. Through such similar ghastly and senseless criminal activities, lives, properties and the total environment have been put to peril. These are the kind of repeated atrocities, which are up to now being committed by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), and Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), using some neighboring territories as springboard, planting mines as they retreat, blowing up buildings in cities and villages, destroying schools, hospitals, homes, vehicles and bridges. The above scenarios are a painful reflection of the double suffering, which Uganda has had to go through over the years. From the said rebel activities, innocent civilian lives are lost on one hand, and soldiers in their hot pursuit are also maimed or killed on the other. Ladies and gentlemen, there is ample evidence that in compliance with the 1997 convention on landmines, Uganda is not only a signatory, but has actually ratified it. Uganda signed the mine ban treaty on 3/12/97 and submitted her instrument of ratification to the UN on 25/2/99. The treaty thus entered into force for Uganda on 1/8/1999.

Fellow participants, what we are deliberating upon today should not end up into a mere message to the African people alone. Our voice should be heard by the whole world. Those responsible for the manufacture of mines must bear full responsibility for the reparation of their victims. Secondly, our appeal should go up to the United Nations and other relevant international organizations to stop lip service and punish the perpetrators accordingly. And turning to this very meeting, it is the considered views of the Ugandan delegation that a decisive resolution be arrived at to put a conclusive end to these conventions and treaties ending up on paper. I thank you Mr. Minister, for god and my country.