NEW YORK, APRIL 4 – Italy ranks fifth among the donor countries and partners of the United Nations Mine Action Programme (UNMAS), the Italian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York “proudly” writes on Twitter, on the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, which the United Nations celebrates on 4 April. “These devices of death threaten lives every day, minute and second,” tweeted the Italian delegation.
67 States in the world are contaminated with landmines and cluster munitions. This year, Italy chairs the Mine Action Support Group and remains committed to protecting all people living under the shadow of this terrible threat from Cambodia to Colombia, from Syria to present-time Ukraine, with a strategy based on five “pillars” whose acronym is P.E.A.C.E: People, Education, Advocacy, Cooperation, Environment.
On the World Day against Mines, Italy at the UN participated in a day of confrontation attended by members of the political arena and civil society as well as representatives of the United Nations. The Permanent Representative to the UN Maurizio Massari took stock of the debate in which, among others, Democrat Senator Patrick Lehay, Former Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict Virginia Gamba de Potgieter intervened.
“The effects of mines are under everyone’s eyes”, said Massari: “Today, more than ever, we must bear in mind that mine action cannot wait”. In some countries like Cambodia, a lot has been done, with casualties dropping from 65,000 between 1979 and 2019 to merely 65 in 2020: “However, despite our common and most thoughtful efforts, there is still a long way to go”, added the Italian Ambassador before cutting the ribbon of a multimedia documentary exhibition on mine efforts involving the UN, governments and civil society organizations. (@OnuItalia)
