Nepal does not have a clear policy on the use of antipersonnel landmines although it voted for the ban on these killer devices in the UN General Assembly. Although the vote succeeded in sending a positive message across the global community that Nepal is committed to fighting this problem, casting a vote without a clear national policy on the use or disuse of such a lethal device might as well be viewed as acting on mere impulse. Even though a policy on the use of landmines would do precious little to those maimed or losing lives, yet it would provide a framework on open and standard use of these devices. Some 110 soldiers died in 177 mine blasts and the Nepal Campaign for Banning Landmines (NCBL) figures show that 313 civilians were killed in 720 explosions last year alone. Now that the Ministry of Defence has said that it will soon announce a policy on landmines, this will certainly clarify its position on the Ottawa Treaty on banning these deadly devices.

There is no denying that both the government and the Maoist rebels have been resorting to use of landmines or Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) extensively since 2002 as a security precaution around their bases. Although the army is said to have mapped the mines, the same cannot be said about the rebels. But even those mapped mines, far less others, are seldom disposed off. The result is ghastly: the unsuspecting common man often falls a victim. It is to prevent this eventuality that the policy on these devices is deemed necessary. The 10,000-odd mines the army has so far planted, as the NCBL claims, are not likely to be disposed off anytime soon. And the disposal mechanism of an unmapped mine is so risky and tedious that clearing a mine field is next to cleaning the Aegean stables. They pose a constant danger to the people and are a ticking time bomb. More than confining the danger to a paper policy, minimising its use to begin with, if not imposing a complete ban, in addition to clearing the mine fields would no doubt prove beneficial.

Policy aside, there is no alternative to banning landmines. In Nepal there are no disposal teams except perhaps a few in the army, nor the mine risk education programmes. This highlights the need for awareness campaigns and mechanism to deal with the “explosive” problem. Although the Terrorist and Destructive Activities (Control and Punishment) Act bans possession of landmines by the civilians, the rebel campaign against the security forces has meant that Nepali hinterlands are gradually turning into minefields. This is alarming by any reckoning. The Cambodian, Sri Lankan and Angolan experiences, for example, should deter both the parties from the use of this deadly device just as the Honorary President of Oxfam International, Mary Robinson, urged leaders last month in Mumbai.