US Bishops join call on US to stop using landmines

(April 23, 2012) The Catholic Church of the United States has joined 76 nongovernmental organizations in urging US President Barack Obama to relinquish antipersonnel landmines and join the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty without further delay. 159 nations have acceded to the treaty, and the US is one of only 37 countries in the world that have not joined the Mine Ban Treaty. Bishop Richard Pates of Des Moines, chairman of the Committee of International Justice and Peace of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) signed the joint letter that read: “This is a crucial humanitarian decision that should not be put off any longer, or postponed during a busy election year.” “We urge you to submit the treaty to the Senate this year for its advice and consent next year,” the NGO’s wrote. The letter comes as the Obama administration concludes the comprehensive interagency review of its landmine policy, initiated in December 2009, and enters the decision-making stage. Among those who have signed the letter to the US president are representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the United Methodist Church, Presbyterian Church (USA), Human Rights Watch, the Islamic Society of North America, Jesuit Refugee Services/USA and Pax Christi USA.