The Hague, 05 December 2007 - The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan has signed teh Deed of Commitment, a document that symbolises their opposition to landmines and commits them to undertake mine removal and awareness programmes.

Representatives of The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI), Geneva Call, and the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) were all present in Geneva on 04 December 2007 to witness the PDKI officially sign Geneva Call’s Deed of Commitment.

The Deed of Commitment is an important document as it provides a means for Non-State Actors (NSA) to be included in the campaign against landmines. Currently, only internationally recognized states are permitted to sign the Mine Ban Treaty (Ottawa Convention), leaving NSAs and De Facto States unable to demonstrate their opposition to this form of weaponry that indiscriminately targets civilian populations and continues to affect people long after the conflict has ended.

The signature of the PDKI to the Deed of Commitment is an important event that expresses the Iranian Kurdish community’s opposition to the placement of landmines in their region and places pressure on the Iranian Government to make similar commitments through the Mine Ban Treaty.  

As many UNPO Members suffer extensively from the threat of landmines, UNPO strongly supports this landmine ban campaign and works to highlight the devastating and indiscriminate effects anti-personal mines have on entire communities. Several other UNPO Members have already signed the Deed of Commitment, including Chin State, Nagalim, and Iraqi Kursdistan. The addition of Iranian Kurdistan to this list reflects UNPO’s commitment on the eradication of landmines, as expressed in the 2006 UNPO General Assembly Joint Resolution Concerning Antipersonnel Landmines.

Speaking on the signature of Iranian Kurdistan, the UNPO General Secretary Mr. Marino Busdachin stated that “it is with great honour that I would like to communicate to Mr. Hijri [Secretary-General of the PDKI] how pleased I am to learn that the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan has committed itself to renouncing the use of anti-personnel mines and has signed the Deed of Commitment against their use. I wish the PDKI and the Iranian Kurdish community all the best on their valuable commitment”.