I

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1876

To support proposals to implement the United States goal of the eventual

elimination of antipersonnel landmines, to impose a moratorium on the

use of antipersonnel landmines except in limited circumstances, to provide

for sanctions against foreign governments that export antipersonnel landmines, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 16, 1995

Mr. EVANS (for himself, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. FRANK of

Massachusetts, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. OLVER, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. GUTIERREZ,

Mr. DURBIN, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. LEWIS of

Georgia, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. VENTO, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. JOHNSTON

of Florida, Mr. MINGE, Mr. DEUTSCH, Mr. DELLUMS, Mr. BARRETT of

Wisconsin, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. TORRES, Mr. BROWN of California,

Mr. WYDEN, and Mr. CONYERS,) introduced the following bill; which was

referred to the Committee on International Relations, and in addition to

the Committee on National Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To support proposals to implement the United States goal

of the eventual elimination of antipersonnel landmines,

to impose a moratorium on the use of antipersonnel

landmines except in limited circumstances, to provide

for sanctions against foreign governments that export

antipersonnel landmines, and for other purposes.
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Landmine Use Morato5 rium Act of 1995’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress makes the following findings:

8 (1) On September 26, 1994, the President de9 clared it to be a goal of the United States to eventu10 ally eliminate antipersonnel landmines.

11 (2) On December 15, 1994, the United Nations

12 General Assembly adopted a resolution sponsored by

13 the United States which calls for international ef14 forts toward the eventual elimination of anti15 personnel landmines.

16 (3) According to the Department of State, there

17 are an estimated 80,000,000 to 110,000,000

18 unexploded landmines in 62 countries, and millions

19 of additional mines were laid in 1994.

20 (4) Antipersonnel landmines are routinely used

21 against civilian populations and kill and maim an es22 timated 26,000 people each year, or approximately

23 70 people each day.
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1 (5) The Secretary of State has noted that land2 mines have been called ‘‘slow-motion weapons of

3 mass destruction’’.

4 (6) There are hundreds of varieties of anti5 personnel landmines, ranging from the simple $2

6 type to the more complex self-destructing type, all of

7 which are incapable of distinguishing between civil8 ians and combatants.

9 SEC. 3. CONVENTIONAL WEAPONS CONVENTION REVIEW.

10 (a) IMPLEMENTATION OF UNITED STATES GOAL.—

11 The President shall, at the 1995 review conference, ac12 tively support proposals to modify Protocol II to the 1980

13 Conventional Weapons Convention to implement as rap14 idly as possible the goal of the United States of the even15 tual elimination of antipersonnel landmines.

16 (b) 1995 REVIEW CONFERENCE.—The 1995 review

17 conference referred to in subsection (a) is the international

18 conference sponsored by the United Nations to be held

19 from September 25, 1995, through October 13, 1995, to

20 review the 1980 Conventional Weapons Convention

21 (CWC), including Protocol II to that convention, relating

22 to landmines.

23 (c) 1980 CONVENTIONAL WEAPONS CONVENTION.—

24 For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘1980 Conventional

25 Weapons Convention’’ means the Convention on Prohibi-
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1 tions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional

2 Weapons Which May Be Deemed To Be Excessively Inju3 rious or To Have Indisciminate Effects, together with the

4 protocols relating thereto, done at Geneva on October 10,

5 1980.

6 SEC. 4. MORATORIUM ON USE OF ANTIPERSONNEL LAND7 MINES.

8 (a) UNITED STATES MORATORIUM.—(1) During the

9 one-year period beginning three years after the date of the

10 enactment of this Act, the United States Government shall

11 not use antipersonnel landmines.

12 (2) The moratorium under paragraph (1) does not

13 apply to the use of antipersonnel landmines along inter14 nationally recognized national borders within a perimeter

15 marked area that is monitored by military personnel and

16 protected by adequate means to ensure the exclusion of

17 civilians.

18 (3) If the President determines, before the end of

19 such one-year period, that the governments of other na20 tions are implementing moratoriums similar to the mora21 torium by the United States under paragraph (1), the

22 President may extend the period of that moratorium for

23 such additional period as the President considers appro24 priate.
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1 (b) OTHER NATIONS.—The President shall actively

2 encourage the governments of other nations to join the

3 United States in solving the global landmine crisis by im4 plementing, as an interim step toward the eventual elimi5 nation of antipersonnel landmines moratoriums on the use

6 of antipersonnel landmines similar to the United States

7 moratorium under subsection (a).

8 SEC. 5. ANTIPERSONNEL LANDMINE EXPORTS.

9 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to dis10 courage the proliferation of antipersonnel landmines.

11 (b) PROHIBITION.—The United States Government

12 shall not sell, license for export, or transfer any defense

13 article or service to any foreign government which the

14 President determines sells, exports, or transfers anti15 personnel landmines.

16 (c) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The President may waive

17 the applicability of the prohibition in subsection (b) to a

18 foreign government if the President determines that there

19 exists an emergency which makes it vital to the interest

20 of the United States for the President to waive such prohi21 bition. Any such waiver may not take effect until the

22 President transmits to Congress, in writing, notice of such

23 waiver and the reasons for the waiver.
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1 SEC. 6. DEFINITION.

2 For purposes of this Act, the term ‘‘antipersonnel

3 landmine’’ means any munition that—

4 (1) is placed under, on, or near the ground or

5 other surface area;

6 (2) is delivered by artillery, rocket, mortar, or

7 similar means or dropped from an aircraft; and

8 (3) is designed, constructed, or adapted to be

9 detonated or exploded by the presence, proximity, or

10 contact of a person.

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