Singapore gahmen should stop indiscriminately blowing people's limbs off to get rich

The Straits Times; Published on Apr 09, 2015
Time for Singapore to get on board mine ban treaty
SINGAPORE has consistently stated its support for disarmament measures at the United Nations.
However, in 1997, when the Mine Ban Treaty came into existence, Singapore chose to remain outside it, despite consistently voting in favour of an annual General Assembly resolution urging nations to join the Mine Ban Treaty in subsequent years.
This key contemporary disarmament measure has saved thousands of lives, and 80 per cent of the world's governments are now part of the treaty.
The devastation caused by landmines may not touch the lives of the ordinary person in Singapore, which means there is little public pressure on the Government to review its policy.
This year, an advertising agency in Singapore has been placing chairs in school study halls in Singapore, where one leg is a crutch. The story of a landmine victim is available via a QR code on the accompanying table.
This noble effort will help increase young Singaporeans' understanding of the devastation caused by this weapon.
Landmines are a globally condemned and banned weapon due to their inherently indiscriminate nature. Once a landmine is laid, it does not choose between a combatant and a civilian.
Landmines usually remain active long after the fighting is over and become a deadly legacy of armed conflicts.
It makes little difference to nearby communities if one landmine or a thousand exist in their fields or roads, as the uncertainty regarding the presence of a landmine is debilitating; it terrorises communities and halts or limits mobility and access to productive resources.
Singapore remains one of the few manufacturers of anti-personnel landmines. These used to be manufactured by ST Kinetics under the licence of an Italian company. However, once Italy joined the Mine Ban Treaty, the licence was cancelled, and it is a question as to whether Singapore can still legally manufacture the landmines.
It is time for Singapore to rethink this policy and join 163 other nations around the globe that have concluded that anti-personnel landmines deserve to be consigned to the dustbin of history.
Yeshua Moser-Puangsuwan (Dr)
http://www.straitstimes.com/premium...-singapore-get-board-mine-ban-treaty-20150409

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