International Mine Awareness Day will be observed today with the theme “Needs driven, People Centred”.
On December 8, 2005, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly declared that April 4 of each year shall be observed as the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action.
“Peace without mine action is incomplete peace,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday said in a message on the eve of the day.
He urged all member states to keep the issue at the top of the international agenda when negotiating peace, seeking to prevent harm during conflicts and deploying emergency humanitarian responses in war zones.
“In the world, conflicts are multiplying and increasingly interlinked. Most disturbingly, many warring parties shamelessly target civilians and show a flagrant disregard for international humanitarian law,” he said.
The UN Secretary General said improvised explosive devices are killing and injuring thousands of civilians annually. These pernicious devices are hidden in homes and schools, terrorizing local populations, he added.
