Weekly Report: 2011-04-03 to 04-08 - CCW, ERWs & IEDs / GDAVD / BWC / FilCom

Argghhh !  Falling behind on my reports !  

CCW: Well, it was another week of CCW activity.  I presented two reports, one on Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) (the IED issue is coordinated by my good friend Reto Wollenmann of Switzerland) and another on Explosive Remnants of War (ERWs) (this is coordinated by another good friend James O'Shea of Ireland).  Regarding IEDs in the Philippines, I noted the following trends -on their use by Armed Non-State Actors (ANSAs) in the Philippines: (1) growing sophistication of IED design, (2) evidetnt commonalities of IED design and execution showing an expanding network of ANSA training, (3) the increasingly difficult access to landmines cause ANSAs to develop and use IEDs, (4) IEDs are favored weapons by ANSAs due to the ready availability of explosives and materials and (5) UXOs from Philippine military artillery firing are a major component of ANSA IEDs.  On ERWs, PH is not yet a party to CCW Protocol V on ERWs, but we already have some activity on ERW clearance. PH ERWs come from two sources - WWII munitions, and those from the recent conflicts in Mindanao.  The US had recently assisted us in clearance of WWII ERWs coming from Caballo Island, which were transported to and destroyed at Crow Valley in Tarlac.  We have joint training and education programs in Mindanao conducted by the PCBL and the Fondation Suisse de Demanage (FSD), and by the US Government. 

GDAVD: PH is a member of the Core Group for the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development (GDAVD), Core Group meetings are held several times a year, such as on April 5 .  It was noted that the PH Office of the Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process (OPAPP) is engaging closely with the issue of AV reduction, and will probably represent the Philippines in the 2011 GDAVD Summit to be held in Geneva this October.  There is still interest in holding the 2nd Asia-Pacific GDAVD Regional Workshop in Manila in 2012.

BWC: Ambassador Garcia and I particpated in a weekend seminar / workshop (April 8-10) on the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) 7th Review Conference, co-sponsored by Indonesia, Norway and the UN BWC-Implementation Support Unit (ISU), and was held in beautiful Montreaux.  The Philippines and Indonesia will serve as Vice-Presidents in the 7th RevCom to be held this December.

FilCom: On April 6, we held a meeting with the Filipino Community in Geneva / Vaud (FilCom) to begin planning for our June 12 (Independence Day) celebrations.  It was decided to hold a traditional "Kermesse" or picnic affair, on June 11. There will also be other events in the lead up to June 12, including the OF Basketball League finals, and a "Gandang Ina" beauty contest.