The government began legislative procedures Thursday to ratify an international treaty banning the production, stockpiling and use of antipersonnel land mines.
The Cabinet gave its approval, sending the treaty and a bill to the Lower House for deliberation, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka told a news conference, adding that procedures may be completed by the end of this month. The treaty, signed by 130 countries at a landmark meeting in Ottawa, is aimed at eliminating all mines from their territories within 10 years and is set to take effect in March.
The bill, which is to establish laws in line with the treaty, calls for prohibiting, without exception, the production of land mines within the nation. Only those with government permission would be allowed to possess them. Violators will be fined up to 3 million yen or detained for up to seven years, according to the bill.