'The George W. Bush administration may soon resume production of antipersonnel land mines in a move that is at odds with both the international community and previous U.S. policy on the weapons, says a leading human rights organisation.

In December of this year, the Pentagon will decide whether or not to begin producing a new type of antipersonnel land mine called a ”Spider”. The first of these mines would then be scheduled to roll out in early 2007.

According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the funds for Spider's production are already earmarked, as the Pentagon has requested 1.3 billion dollars for the mine system, as well as for another mine called the Intelligent Munitions System, which is expected to be fully running by 2008.

A new report by the HRW issued Wednesday notes these weapons that kill and maim an estimated 500 people, mostly civilians, each week. The group called on the Bush administration to halt all research and development on all types of these widely-banned weapons.

”With very few exceptions, nearly every nation has endorsed the goal of a global ban on all antipersonnel mines at some point in the future,” the HRW report says. ”Such acts (by the U.S.) would clearly be against the trend of the emerging international consensus against any possession or use of antipersonnel mines.”..

...Given the immensity of international support for the banning of antipersonnel land mines, if the Pentagon does resume production of the weapons, diplomatic problems are almost certain to ensue.

”If they go ahead and do this, they will really be breaking some new ground,” Mary Wareham, a senior advocate in HRW's arms division, told IPS. ”It will be a massive step backwards for the U.S. in terms of making any good will. If they did it, it would be bad news all around and I'm sure that there would be protests' www.ipsnews.net

The US has been and remains the number one producer of nuclear weapons, producing them even over and above the numbers permitted by the anti-proliferation treaty which we are currently castigating North Korea and Iran for (possibly) violating. We are also the number one producer of toxic and biological weapons, also in violation of treaty commitments. We are the only country not to reject the use of napalm and napalm-like weapons, whose use in Fallujah has given rise to international criticism.

Why should we expect better behavior with respect to land mines?

Alan Moore