Ten years after Princess Diana’s death, The Big Issue in the North assesses her effect on the worldwide campaign against landmines. Read an extract below.
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© The Big Issue in the North
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“Ten years on (…) the problem is far from solved. While 156 countries have signed up to the Ottawa Treaty, four of the world’s biggest countries have not: India, Russia, China and the United States (...)
“The problem is no longer just landmines but cluster bombs… A prime example of the cluster bomb is the CBU 5B, an American device which, when dropped, releases 60 bomblets that should detonate when they hit the ground.
“However, estimates say that up to 40 per cent of these munitions do not detonate on impact but remain deadly, becoming de facto landmines lying in wait for an innocent victim. According to Handicap International, 98 per cent of cluster bomb casualties are civilians. (...)
“MAG works in Lebanon to remove landmines and cluster munitions. Although it does not actively promote Diana’s involvment with the cause, the link still exists in the public’s mind.
“Asked how long it takes for people to make the connection between his job and Diana, Adam Komorowski, MAG’s Head of Operations, responds: ‘A matter of seconds.’
“’She was very passionate about the issue,’ he insists. ‘She was able to champion the cause in ways no one else could, sitting at a table with world statesmen. Any hook that gets people interested is good, anything that opens the door.’
“MAG has continued to work with celebrities, including Angelina Jolie, Sir Bobby Charlton and BBC news producer Stuart Hughes, who lost part of his leg to a landmine while covering the Iraq war in 2003. But as Komorowski puts it: ‘The mother in Lebanon doesn’t care how the money was raised, as long as her child can walk without fear of being blown up.’”
Read the full article, “Back to mine”, in this week’s edition of The Big Issue in the North (17-23 September 2007)
Views expressed in extracts from external publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of MAG.
