Mr. Speaker, on March 1, 1999, the Ottawa treaty, formally known as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, was ratified making it binding international law.
February 23 to March 1 marks the 10 year anniversary of the Ottawa treaty with Canadian Landmine Awareness Week.
Canadian advocacy groups and international organizations alike are taking action this week by once again drawing attention to the horrific effects posed by the indiscriminate use of landmines and cluster munitions.
Canada continues to recognize the grave effects of these inhumane weapons. As one of the original signatory states of the Oslo declaration and later the Convention on Cluster Munitions, I am pleased to say that Canada signed the treaty on December 3, 2008.
I would like to take this opportunity to applaud our government for its continued leadership on this file, as well as congratulate Mines Action Canada for its help in making the world a safer place, one minefield at a time.
May this year's Canadian Landmine Awareness Week be a success.