Mine-sniffing dogs must train, equipment must be protected from looting. Since fighting in Angola is localised, NPA favours relocation and concentration of its work in the southern provinces of Huila, Cunene and Namibe, affected by landmines but not by war. Then its local capacity built over the years would not disappear. The problem of penalisation arises so sharply because the ban on landmines treads on new ground. If there are no changes in behaviour after signing the treaty, the exercise is deeply flawed,'' says Alex Vines, a researcher with Human Rights Watch involved in the production of the Landmine Monitor.
Vines sees hope in the reaction of the Senegalese delegation to the meeting.
In spite of these violations, the Landmine Monitor documents substantial progress made in implementing the treaty. Mines are no longer used automatically and without consideration of their humanitarian effects. More than 12 million mines have been destroyed from the stockpiles of 30 nations. There is no evidence of significant exports in recent years. Iraq is the only known exporter that has not declared publicly a halt to its exports.