Mercosur denounces US spying at UN

Colombia: On 1 August the US government of President Barack Obama renewed its support for the Organization of American States (OAS)’s anti-personnel mine eradication programme in Colombia with a US$950,000 pledge. As a result of Colombia’s internal armed conflict it is estimated that land mines and other explosive devices have been planted in 31 of the country’s 32 departments. There are no exact figures as to the number of anti-personnel mines currently active in Colombia’s territory, but government figures show that between 1990 and June 2013 anti-personnel mines have killed and wounded over 10,000 people, 4,000 of whom were civilians. The OAS, which launched a regional landmine eradication programme in 1991, has been working with Colombia to tackle the issue in the country since 2003. In an official statement OAS secretary-general, José Miguel Insulza, thanked the US government for its contribution to the programme highlighting that landmine eradication is one of the most important activities carried out by the OAS in the region in support of peace. According to Insulza, the contribution would be used to “micro-fund six projects that would allow communities affected by landmines to re-establish productive working conditions”. Insulza said that the projects will not only involve the disposal of mines but also the rehabilitation of victims as well as an education programme for people living in areas with landmines that will help them learn how to avoid fatal accidents”. Pointing out that “landmine eradication activities have a profound humanitarian sense”, Insulza added that “it requires sophisticated technology, which implies large budgets… [but] they are efforts to save innocent people from death or mutilation”.

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