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MONTHLY NEWS No More Landmines! | ||||||||||||
On February 8 and 9 the children's summit against landmines was held in the small town of Shin-Asahi in Shiga Prefecture, central Japan. February 8 was a special date because it was the day on which Japan's last remaining landmine was destroyed in accordance with the Ottawa Treaty. Of the 1 million landmines Japan used to possess, more than 650,000 were destroyed at a special facility in Shin-Asahi Town. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was joined by 289 elementary and junior-high school children at a ceremony that day to mark the destruction of the last landmine. "Final explosion, start!" called the Prime Minister to give the signal, and a big screen showed the last of the mines explode with a boom inside a sealed pool. Tatsuya Hagihara, then 14 years old, opened the No More Landmines! Nationwide Children's Summit, which was held to focus attention on the fact that landmines continue to injure and take people's lives long after war is over. "If you have the chance, please learn about landmines. I'm sure you'll feel something. And when you do, think about it seriously, and put it into action," Tatsuya said.
Tomomi Ooka, 14, gave the opening speech. Tomomi, who wants to help others by becoming a doctor, said "I want everyone to realize that landmines should not exist. Please spread the word. We'll do what we can to destroy landmines, so please give us a hand." Two of the guests at the summit came from Afghanistan, where more than half the victims of landmines are children. Sixteen-year-old Nadir Shah was playing with an unexploded mine ten years ago when it suddenly exploded, blowing off both his arms and blinding him in one eye. "I want the world to eradicate not only landmines but war itself," he said. Ten-year-old Mursil lost her left leg when a mine exploded right in front of her home. "I wish we could play outside freely," she said.
"Japan has destroyed all its landmines. But conflicts abound in the world, and about 50 million, or as many as 100 million landmines lay buried in the ground. We have a long road ahead of us," said the Prime Minister. Some major countries have not signed the Ottawa Treaty yet. Toki Kawabe, 14, closed the two-day meeting by reading the summit declaration, which vowed to "(1) make an effort to learn the facts about landmines; (2) collect donations to ban landmines and to support victims; and (3) call on those around us to spread the network against landmines." Toki, who served as the summit chairperson, wants to work as a nurse in war-torn regions of the world. "Having met Nadir and Mursil at this summit, I'm now absolutely resolved," she said. The children plan to hold another summit meeting in August 2004 in which children from around the world can participate. |
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