Uganda

Last Updated: 30 July 2010

Mine Ban Policy

Commitment to the Mine Ban Treaty

Mine Ban Treaty status

State Party

National implementation measures

Legislation reported under development since 2004

Transparency reporting

Covering the period April 2009–April 2010

 

Policy

The Republic of Uganda signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997 and ratified it on 25 February 1999, becoming a State Party on 1 August 1999. National implementation legislation has reportedly been under development since 2004, but had still not been enacted as of July 2010.[1]

In 2010, Uganda submitted an undated Article 7 transparency report covering the period from April 2009 to April 2010. Uganda has provided seven previous reports.[2]

Uganda participated in the Second Review Conference of the Mine Ban Treaty in Cartagena, Colombia in November–December 2009, represented by the Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees.  At the Summit, Uganda was named co-rapporteur of the Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, a role it will fulfill for the next year before becoming the co-chair.

Uganda also participated in the Third Continental Conference of African Experts on Landmines held 9–11 September 2009 in Pretoria, South Africa, where it made a presentation on victim assistance. It also attended the intersessional Standing Committee meetings held June 2010 in Geneva, where it gave statements on mine clearance, victim assistance, and cooperation and assistance.

Uganda is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons and its original Protocol II on landmines, but not Amended Protocol II or Protocol V on explosive remnants of war.

 Production, transfer, use, stockpiling, and retention

Uganda produced antipersonnel mines until 1995 when the state-run facility was decommissioned. Uganda has stated that it has never exported antipersonnel mines.[3] In 2000 and 2001, there were serious and credible allegations indicating the strong possibility of Ugandan use of antipersonnel mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), particularly in the June 2000 battle for Kisangani. The government denied any use, but pledged to investigate; the results were never made known.[4]

The government consistently accused Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) rebels of using antipersonnel mines in Uganda until 2004, and regularly reported the seizure or recovery of stockpiled antipersonnel mines from the LRA until 2005.

In July 2003, Uganda completed destruction of its stockpile of 6,383 antipersonnel mines. This figure was considerably higher than Uganda initially indicated would be destroyed, apparently because of additional mines captured from rebel forces and a decrease in the number of mines kept for training purposes.[5]

Uganda has discovered or seized and destroyed additional antipersonnel mines in recent years.[6] In its Article 7 report submitted in 2009, Uganda reported destroying 120 Type 72 mines, but it did not note where the mines came from or who had possession of them before their destruction.[7]

In its Article 7 report submitted in 2010, no additional antipersonnel mines were reported destroyed but the same mines noted in the 2009 report are included together with this description: “These items had not however been stockpiled, they had been abandoned by non state actors, this is the same information presented in the last year’s report.” [8]

In every transparency report since 2004, Uganda has reported retaining 1,764 Type 72 antipersonnel mines for training purposes.[9] Uganda has never reported in any detail on the intended purposes and actual uses of its retained mines, a measure agreed by States Parties at the review conferences held in 2004 and 2009.



[1] The draft law is titled “1997 Mine Ban Implementation Bill 2002.” In May 2002, Uganda reported the act was before parliament. In May 2004, officials told Landmine Monitor that a revised draft was due to be presented to the cabinet for approval before going to parliament. In May 2005, Uganda reported, “An implementation act is ready to be presented before Parliament.” In December 2005, Uganda reported that national implementation legislation was “ready for parliamentary debate.” In May 2007, an official told Landmine Monitor that the bill still had to be approved by the cabinet before being sent to parliament. No further update has been provided.

[2] Uganda submitted undated reports covering the periods from 2 April 2008 to 2 April 2009, 2 April 2007 to 1 April 2008, and from 1 May 2006 to 1 April 2007. Previous reports were submitted on 5 December 2005, 11 May 2005, 24 July 2003, and 24 May 2002. The initial report was due in January 2000. Uganda did not submit annual reports in 2004 or 2006.

[3] In January 2005, a UN report said that landmines had been supplied from a Uganda People’s Defence Force camp to a rebel group in the DRC in violation of a UN embargo. The report did not specify if the mines were antipersonnel or antivehicle. Uganda strongly denied the allegation as “patently false and inflammatory.” See Landmine Monitor Report 2005, p. 596.

[4] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 834–835.

[5] Article 7 Report, Form G, 5 December 2005. See also Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 746.

[6] See Landmine Monitor Report 2008, p. 711, for details on destruction in 2007.

[7] Article 7 Report (for the period 2 April 2008 to 2 April 2009), Form G.

[8] Article 7 Report (for the period April 2009 to April 2010), Form G.

[9] Ibid, Form D. At the Seventh Meeting of States Parties in September 2006, Uganda said it was retaining 1,798 mines of seven types for training purposes, but reported the destruction of 202 mines in training during the previous year. Statement of Uganda, Seventh Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 19 September 2006. See also Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 700.


Last Updated: 21 October 2010

Cluster Munition Ban Policy

Commitment to the Convention on Cluster Munitions

Convention on Cluster Munitions status

Signatory

Participation in Convention on Cluster Munitions meetings

Attended global conferences in Berlin in June 2009 and Santiago in June 2010, as well as a regional meeting in Pretoria in March 2010

Key developments

Ratification process underway; Uganda claims to have no stocks of cluster munitions

Policy

The Republic of Uganda signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008.

In March 2010, Uganda stated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had prepared the ratification instrument, and that consultations were underway, following which the ratification would be sent to parliament for approval. It indicated that ratification should be completed by the time of the First Meeting of States Parties in November 2010.[1] In June 2009, Uganda said that it had “completed the legal aspects of the ratification instruments” and “there is light at the end of the tunnel that we will ratify the treaty quickly.”[2]

Uganda participated extensively in the Oslo Process that produced the convention in 2007 and 2008. During the formal negotiations in Dublin in May 2008, Uganda worked hard to achieve a strong treaty text, particularly on victim assistance. Uganda hosted the Kampala Conference on the Convention on Cluster Munitions in September 2008 which resulted in the Kampala Action Plan, calling on states to sign and “take all necessary measures to ratify the convention as soon as possible.”[3]

Uganda continued to engage in the work of the convention in 2009 and 2010 through July. It attended the Berlin Conference on the Destruction of Cluster Munitions in June 2009, where it made an extensive presentation on many aspects of the cluster munition issue. Uganda participated in the Africa Regional Conference on the Universalization and Implementation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Pretoria, South Africa in March 2010, where it chaired a session on “Understanding the Convention on Cluster Munitions.”[4] Uganda also attended the International Conference on the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Santiago, Chile in June 2010, but did not make a statement. ICBL Ambassador Margaret Arach Orech of the Uganda Landmine Survivors Association represented civil society at these meetings.

Uganda is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW), but has not ratified Protocol V on explosive remnants of war. It has not been an active participant in the CCW discussions on cluster munitions in recent years.

Use, production, transfer, and stockpiling

Cluster munitions were apparently used in the fighting in northern Uganda between the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces. It is uncertain who used the cluster munitions, precisely when, or how many. On several occasions, Uganda has denied that its armed forces have used cluster munitions and said the LRA was responsible.[5] This message was reiterated by a senior official in June 2009.[6]

Uganda is not known to have produced or exported cluster munitions.

Uganda now claims that it does not have a stockpile of cluster munitions.[7] In October 2007, a Foreign Ministry official said that Uganda had a stockpile of cluster bombs and pledged to destroy it.[8] However, in June 2009, a senior official said that in 2007 Uganda had pledged to “check and destroy all its stockpiles.”[9] He then stated that Uganda does not have any stockpiles,[10] noting that “Uganda wants to be known as ‘The Pearl of Africa’ and not a country of stockpile of cluster munitions.”[11]

Cluster Munition Remnants

Uganda had a problem with cluster munition remnants in the past.[12] According to the International Service Volunteers Association (AVSI), cluster munitions were responsible for approximately 40 civilian casualties in Uganda between 1986 and 2006.[13]

In June 2009, the Director of Uganda’s National Emergency Coordination and Operations Center claimed that Uganda is not currently contaminated by cluster munitions.[14] In April 2010, the Ugandan Mine Action Center (UMAC) told Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor that no unexploded submunitions remained.[15] It said all known unexploded submunitions had been cleared.[16]

Clearance of cluster munition remnants

No unexploded submunitions were reported to have been destroyed during battle area clearance in 2009.[17]

In June 2009, the Director of Uganda’s National Emergency Coordination and Operations Center stated that on 15 March 2007 “a heap of 90 cluster bombs type AOSCH-1” with Arabic inscriptions were recovered in villages in Cwero parish in Aswa county and in Awach sub-county, all near Gulu. He said that “in total 121 cluster munitions were recovered in Uganda and all were destroyed.” Additionally, the official noted that two “pieces of M42 type of cluster munitions were recovered from Mt. Rwenzori.”[18]



[1] Statement of Uganda, Africa Regional Conference on the Universalization and Implementation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Pretoria, 25 March 2010. Notes by AOAV.

[2] Presentation by Maj.-Gen. J. F. Oketta, Director, National Emergency Coordination and Operations Center, Office of the Prime Minister, Berlin Conference on the Destruction of Cluster Munitions, 25 June 2009, slide 27.

[3] For details on Uganda’s policy and practice regarding cluster munitions through early 2009, see Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), pp. 171–173.

[4] The session was chaired by Oscar J. Edule, Second Secretary, Permanent Mission of Uganda to the UN in Geneva, who also made a detailed presentation on the convention.

[5] Article 7 Report (for the period 2 April 2008 to 2 April 2009), Form J; “Uganda: Landmine Survivors Welcome Ban On Cluster Bombs,” IRIN (Gulu), 4 June 2008, allafrica.com; and Paul Amoru, “Cluster bombs conference on,” Daily Monitor, 29 September 2008, www.monitor.co.ug.

[6] Interview with Maj.-Gen. J. F. Oketta, Office of the Prime Minister, in Berlin, 25 June 2009.

[7] Human Rights Watch and the CMC have listed Uganda as a stockpiler of cluster munitions, based on an October 2007 Foreign Ministry statement and the cluster bombs, submunitions, and remnants discovered by deminers. In addition to possible stocks of cluster bombs, Uganda possesses Grad 122mm surface-to-surface rocket launchers, which have the capability to deliver rockets with submunitions. See, International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance 2005–2006, (London: Routledge, 2005), p. 403; and Colin King, ed., Jane’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal 2008, CD-edition, 15 January 2008 (Surrey, UK: Jane’s Information Group Limited, 2008).

[8] Statement by Amb. Cissy Taliwaku, Deputy Head of Mission, Permanent Mission of Uganda to the UN in Geneva, Belgrade Conference for States Affected by Cluster Munitions, 4 October 2007. Notes by the CMC.

[9] Presentation by Maj.-Gen. J. F. Oketta, Office of the Prime Minister, Berlin Conference on the Destruction of Cluster Munitions, 25 June 2009, slide 2.

[10] Ibid, slide 22.

[11] Ibid, slide 26.

[12] Human Rights Watch has previously reported that deminers in the northern district of Gulu have found RBK-250/275 cluster bombs and AO-1SCh submunitions. These cluster bombs and submunitions are likely of Soviet/Russian origin. Photographs and information provided to Human Rights Watch by UNDP. See also, CMC, “Africa and the Oslo Process the Ban Cluster Munitions,” prepared by Human Rights Watch, September 2008; and Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), p. 173.

[13] AVSI, “Gulu District Landmine/ERW Victims Survey Report,” May 2006, pp. 13–22, www.avsi.org.  

[14] Presentation by Maj.-Gen. J. F. Oketta, Office of the Prime Minister, Berlin Conference on the Destruction of Cluster Munitions, 25 June 2009, slide 4.

[15] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, Director, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[16] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 April 2010.

[17] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[18] Presentation by Maj.-Gen. J. F. Oketta, Office of the Prime Minister, Berlin Conference on the Destruction of Cluster Munitions, 25 June 2009, slide 15.


Last Updated: 08 November 2010

Mine Action

Contamination and Impact

Landmine and explosive remnants of war (ERW) contamination in Uganda is the result of armed conflict and civil strife, especially over the past two decades with the non-state armed group (NSAG), the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).[1]

Mines

In April 2010, the director of the Uganda Mine Action Center (UMAC) reported that Uganda had one remaining mined area, in Agoro sub-county, which contained four separate suspected hazardous areas (SHAs) covering approximately 100,000m2.[2] The last known casualty in Agoro, a hilly and densely vegetated area, was in 1999, and the last mine incident occurred on 24 November 2008, when an animal strayed into the mined area on Mica hill.[3] Danish Demining Group (DDG) has reported that all of the SHAs are partially fenced.[4]

Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) reported in May 2010 their belief, based on their demining activities in the areas, that there may be other mined areas in Kajo, Keji, Koboko, Moyo, and Nimule districts near the border between Sudan and Uganda. NPA believes these areas should be surveyed if they have not been already.[5] UMAC said after the quality control teams complete their work on the Ngomoromo minefield in August the teams will move to the northwest part of the country where NPA believes there might be mines and determine if the area is clear of mined areas. UMAC’s director, Vicent Woboya, is confident there are no remaining mined areas but he confirmed mines are found during explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) as in 2009 when 31 antipersonnel and nine antivehicle mines were found.[6]

 Kasese district in western Uganda has never been systematically surveyed but UMAC believes that any antipersonnel mines in the province are so-called nuisance mines,[7] that is, individual mines scattered about without any easily discernible perimeters. UMAC did not receive any reports of mines in Kasese in 2009. UMAC expects that any mine contamination will be reported as a result of Handicap International’s (HI) mine/ERW risk education (RE) program in the province.[8]

Even after clearance of the four SHAs is completed, Uganda faces a potential residual threat in other areas as small numbers of mines are believed to have been laid in a number of separate locations and EOD operations in 2008 and 2009 continued to find occasional mines in Amuru, Gulu, Kasese, Kitgum, Koboko, Masaka, and Pader districts.[9]

Cluster munition remnants

Uganda has had a problem with cluster munition remnants in the past, but UMAC has claimed to Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor that none remained as of April 2010.[10] The Minister of Defence claimed it was NSAGs such as the LRA and the Allied Democratic Forces that had used cluster munitions and not the Ugandan army.[11] Deminers in Gulu found RBK-250/275 cluster bombs and AO-1SCh submunitions although Uganda could not provide the year they were found.[12] All known unexploded submunitions have been cleared.[13]

Other explosive remnants of war

SHAs in Uganda are said to be “littered” with ERW.[14] A 2007 survey identified 428 such SHAs. Uganda reported that as of April 2010 they had cleared 329 SHAs containing UXO, cancelled 35 others, and that 64 remained to be cleared.[15] By the end of February 2010, UMAC had cleared 1,327 villages of mines and UXO through EOD call-out response and battle area clearance, resulting in total clearance of 165,945m2. This included the area cleared at Ngomoromo and clearance of one of the smaller mined areas at Agoro hills with the MineWolf machine borrowed from NPA’s program in Sudan.[16]

Mine Action Program

Key institutions and operators

Body

Situation on 1 January 2010

National Mine Action Authority

National Mine Action Steering Committee

Mine action center

UMAC

International demining operators

DDG; technical advisors to UMAC

National demining operators

Ugandan army and police seconded to and supervised by UMAC

International risk education operators

International Service Volunteers Association (Associazione Volontari per il Servizio Internazionale, AVSI), World Vision International, DDG, Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief, HI

 National risk education operators

Anti Mine Network-Rwenzori (AMNET-R)

Uganda’s national mine action authority is its National Mine Action Steering Committee (NMASC), which is located at the Office of the Prime Minister in Kampala.[17]

The Office of the Prime Minister, through UMAC, is responsible for the management and coordination of mine action in the country, with the exception of victim assistance, which falls under the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and the Ministry of Health. UMAC, which was set up in Kampala in 2006, is responsible for quality management of demining operations, RE, and accreditation of mine action operators. A regional mine action center was established in Gulu in 2008.[18]

The government of Uganda established the mine action program in 2005 through a UNDP project supported by international funding and technical advisors. As of May 2010, the transition of the project to a nationally executed program under the auspices of the Department for Disaster Preparedness and Refugees of the Office of the Prime Minister had not been finalized.[19] DDG provides technical assistance to UMAC. UNDP has re-tendered a contract for technical assistance to the program and as of May 2010 the government of Uganda and UNDP were evaluating bids from international NGOs.[20]

Mine action is integrated in the government of Uganda’s Peace, Recovery, and Development Plan one of the aims of which is to facilitate the return and resettlement of internally displaced persons (IDPs).[21] As of the end of 2009, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees reported 437,000 IDPs in Uganda.[22]

The main challenges in 2010 to the demining program included:

  • Clearing the remaining four mined areas within Agoro hills in Kitgum district;
  • Conducting quality assurance and quality control in the Ngomoromo mined area; and
  • Continuing to carry out EOD activities throughout northern Uganda.[23]

Land Release

In 2009, UMAC cleared two mined areas and 85 other SHAs containing ERW, compared to 244 SHAs cleared in 2008.[24] The decline in the number of SHAs cleared of ERW was offset by the doubling of the results of battle area clearance (see Mine clearance in 2009 section below).

Survey in 2009

A November 2008 General Mine Action Assessment conducted by UMAC with assistance from the Ugandan People’s Defence Force and DDG had confirmed the Agoro Mountains in Kitgum district and Ngomoromo on the border with Sudan as mined areas. UMAC followed up with technical surveys in 2009. As a result of the technical survey in Agoro, the mined area was further divided into five SHAs with an estimated total size of 130,000m2. The Ngomoromo area is approximately 140,000m2.[25] In 2009, all 270,000m2 of SHA were covered by technical survey.[26]

Mine clearance in 2009

From January 2009 through 31 March 2010 UMAC cleared two of the six remaining mined areas covering more than 170,000m2, destroying 260 antipersonnel mines.[27] As of the end of 2009, mine clearance capacity consisted of six teams comprising a total of 37 deminers.[28] Uganda planned to add 40 deminers by August 2010 through support from Australia.[29]

 

Mine clearance in 2009–31 March 2010

District

Mined area cleared (m2)

No. of SHAs cleared

No. of antipersonnel mines destroyed

No. of antivehicle mines destroyed

No. of UXO destroyed during mine clearance

Agoro

24,077

1

37

0

0

Ngomoromo

149,693

1

223

0

0

Total

173,770

2

260

0

0

Compliance with Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty, and in accordance with the three-year extension to its deadline granted by the Second Review Conference in 2009,[30] Uganda is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 August 2012.

In July 2009, Uganda declared that it had underestimated the complexity of clearing its known remaining mined areas and the time required to clear them. As a result, it would not meet the 1 August 2009 deadline and applied for a three-year extension.[31] In its Article 7 report for April 2009 to April 2010, Uganda stated that it was unable to meet the deadline “due to the late commencement of demining operations and poor weather conditions.”[32]

An essential element in Uganda’s three-year plan is the use of a MineWolf vegetation cutting machine belonging to NPA in Sudan. The MineWolf significantly speeds up clearance by quickly preparing the densely covered land for manual clearance. The use of the machine may also allow some land to be released without manual clearance, as happened to a large extent in Rwanda in 2008.[33] The extension was approved at the Second Review Conference. In March 2010, UMAC reported to Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor that NPA had brought the MineWolf into Uganda and that it had helped to clear the Ngomoromo area by the middle of that month, several months ahead of schedule, lending optimism that Uganda might be in a position to complete its Article 5 obligations before 2012.[34]

At the Second Review Conference, Uganda said it would be free of landmines by August 2012 if sufficient funding was available.[35] The Minister of Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, called on donors to expedite the commitment and release of funds in order that Article 5 deadlines can be met as scheduled.[36] In June 2010, at the intersessional Standing Committee meetings, Uganda stated that it believed it had identified all mined areas in Uganda.[37]

Since 2008, UMAC has cleared 159,116m2 of mined areas, leaving 111,000m2 of mined areas to be released as of 1 January 2010.[38]

Battle area clearance in 2009

In 2009, clearance teams completed 820 EOD tasks in 772 villages compared to 434 tasks and 442 villages in 2008, despite reducing the number of EOD teams from 12 to four. During operations in 2009, 31 antipersonnel mines, nine antivehicle mines, and 1,802 items of UXO were found, as well as 6,634 pieces of small arms ammunition.[39] No unexploded submunitions were found in 2009.[40]

As of the end of 2009, there were three EOD teams comprising a total of 47 clearance personnel.[41]

Battle area clearance and EOD in 2009[42]

Year

No. of antipersonnel mines destroyed

No. of antivehicle mines destroyed

No. of UXO destroyed

No. of small arms ammunition destroyed

Villages covered

Completed tasks

2009

31

9

1,802

6,634

772

820

Community liaison

UMAC teams meet with communities to sensitize them to the level of risk and train them how to report the presence of ERW and landmines for clearance.[43]

Quality management

National Mine Action Standards were passed and approved in December 2008.[44] A five-person quality assurance team conducted quality control and quality assurance in Kaberamaido district in Teso sub-region where UMAC had cleared 55,208m2.[45] As of April 2010, UMAC was conducting quality control and quality assurance on the 140,000m2 Ngomoromo mined area NPA cleared using the MineWolf machine. UMAC expected to complete the work in August 2010.[46]

Other Risk Reduction Measures

In coordination with UMAC, DDG and HI, in partnership with the local NGO, AMNET-R, have conducted RE in the two known mine-affected regions of Uganda. RE supports the government’s IDP return and resettlement program.[47]

In December 2009, HI launched a 12-month RE and victim support project, based in Kasese district, in western Uganda.[48]



[1] Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 17 August 2009, p. 3.

[2] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, Director, UMAC, 1 April 2010; and Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 1 December 2009.

[3] UMAC, “Planning Document for Technical Survey of Kitgum Agoro Hills at Uganda-Sudan Border,” 2 December 2008, p. 1; and response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 29 March 2009.

[4] UMAC, “Planning Document for Technical Survey of Kitgum Agoro Hills at Uganda-Sudan Border,” 2 December 2008, p. 2; and UMAC, “Planning Document for Technical Survey of Ngomoromo, Kitgum,” 14 March 2009, p. 2.

[5] Email from Hans Eric Haug, Deputy Director, Mine Action Department, NPA, 27 May 2010.

[6] Interview with Vicent Woboya, UMAC, in Geneva, 22 June 2010.

[7] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 April 2010.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 27 May 2009; and response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[10] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[11] Article 7 Report (for the period 2 April 2008 to 2 April 2009), Form J.

[12] Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), p. 173; and Human Rights Watch, “Timeline of Cluster Munition Use,” www.stopclustermunitions.org.

[13] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 April 2010.

[14] Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 1 December 2009.

[15] Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), p. 173; and Human Rights Watch, “Timeline of Cluster Munition Use,” www.stopclustermunitions.org.

[16] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[17] Uganda’s Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 17 August 2009, pp. 12–13.

[18] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 29 March 2009.

[19] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 12 June 2008; and response to Monitor questionnaire, 29 March 2009.

[20] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 May 2010.

[21] Government of Uganda, “Report Presented by the Office of the Prime Minister, Republic of Uganda to the Second Review Conference of the AP Mine Ban Convention,” May 2009, p. 1.

[22] Global Statistics, Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC), www.internal-displacement.org.

[23] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[24] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 April 2010

[25] Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 17 August 2009, p. 7.

[26] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 29 March 2009.

[27] Email from Afedra Robert Iga, Information Management System for Mine Action Officer, Uganda Mine Action Office, 20 June 2010; and statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2010. Uganda’s Article 7 report covering April 2009–April 2010 states 204 antipersonnel mines and nine antivehicle mines were destroyed during this period. Article 7 report (for the period April 2009–April 2010), Form G.

[28] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[29] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2010.

[30] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 9 July 2009; and letter to Jurg Streuli, President of the Ninth Meeting of States Parties, from Pius Bigirimana, Permanent Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister, 2 July 2009.

[31] Ibid.

[32] Article 7 report (for the period April 2009–April 2010), Form J.

[33] NPA, “Rwanda Project Report,” 12 December 2008, pp. 6–8.

[34] Interview with Vicent Woboya, UMAC, in Geneva, 15 March 2010; and ICBL, “Critique of Uganda’s Article 5 deadline Extension Request,” www.icbl.org.

[35]Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 1 December 2009.

[36] Ibid, 3 December 2009.

[37] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2010.

[38] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[39] Ibid, 29 March 2009; and see Article 7 Report (for the period 2 April 2008 to 2 April 2009), Form G.

[40] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 1 April 2010.

[41] Ibid.

[42] Ibid

[43] Ibid.

[44]Response to Monitor questionnaire by Elina Dibirova, Risk Education/ Victim Assistance Specialist, DDG, 27 February 2009.

[45] Email from Vicent Woboya, UMAC, 8 April 2010.

[46] Article 7 Report (for the period April 2009–April 2010), Form I.

[47] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2010.

[48] HI, “Uganda: Our Actions,” www.handicap-international.fr.


Last Updated: 03 August 2010

Casualties and Victim Assistance

Casualties

Casualties in 2009

Casualties in 2009

9 (2008: 16)

Casualties by outcome

8 killed; 1 injured (2008: 6 killed; 10 injured)

Casualties by device type

8 other ERW; 1 unknown

 

In 2009, Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor identified nine casualties of explosive devices in four separate incidents, three of which occurred in northern and one in central Uganda. Seven of the casualties were children, all of whom were killed. The remaining two were adult men. Three incidents were caused by explosive remnants of war (ERW); in one incident, the type of explosive device was unknown.[1]

This represented a decrease from the 16 casualties reported in 2008.[2] However, given the lack of a central data collection mechanism, it is likely that some casualties were not identified.[3]

The total number of casualties in Uganda is not known but there have been at least 1,419 recorded between 1986 and the end of 2009 (542 killed, 865 injured, and 12 unknown). Based on available casualty data, most casualties occurred between 1995 and 1997 with a steep decline in annual figures starting in 2002.[4] The last confirmed casualties from landmines occurred in 2005.[5]

A 2006 survey of landmine and UXO casualties in Gulu district determined that 3% of recorded casualties (1,387 at the time) were caused by cluster munition remnants.  Five other suspected unexploded submunition casualties were reported in 2006.[6]

Victim Assistance

There are at least 865 mine/ERW survivors in Uganda.[7]

Survivor needs

In 2009, the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development (MoGLSD) carried out a “baseline survey” in four districts of northern Uganda to identify mine/ERW survivors, their needs, and gaps in services. Two hundred survivors were interviewed and data collected was used to develop a victim assistance project for the region.[8] Survivors interviewed were referred for medical attention and physical rehabilitation services as needed.[9] There remained a need for a comprehensive survey at the national level. A casualty surveillance system was designed by the Ministry of Health (MoH) but had not been put into operation due to lack of funds.[10]

Rwenzori Empowerment Centre (RECKAS), together with other local organizations, carried out an assessment of survivors in Kasese district to determine their satisfaction with available physical rehabilitation services.[11]

Victim assistance coordination[12]

Government coordinating body/ focal point

MoGLSD

Coordinating mechanism

Forum on Victim Assistance led by MoGLSD and including the ministries of health, education and sports, the Office of the Prime Minister, and NGOs

Plan

Comprehensive Plan of Action on Victim Assistance 2008–2012

 

In 2009, the MoGLSD established a coordination mechanism, the Forum on Victim Assistance, to bring together relevant ministries and NGOs.[13] However, this forum held just one meeting during the year, in May.[14] The MoGLSD collaborated with the Uganda Landmine Survivors’ Association (ULSA) in launching some economic reintegration programs.[15]

The formal establishment of ULSA in July 2009, which had been stalled since 2007, allowed ULSA to increase its coordination with 13 local survivors’ associations, including support for the establishment of new associations.[16]

In 2009, Uganda made some progress in the implementation of its Comprehensive Plan of Action on Victim Assistance, particularly in the areas of data collection, psychosocial support, and community-based rehabilitation.[17] No progress was reported on objectives related to integrating physiotherapy services, developing physical rehabilitation outreach services or in decreasing stigma related to disability.

Survivor inclusion

The Forum on Victim Assistance included representatives of NGOs that implement programs for survivors and other persons with disabilities, some of whom were persons with disabilities.[18] Survivors’ associations in western Uganda, in Gulu and Kasese districts, stated that they were not involved in coordinating victim assistance or in implementing the victim assistance plan.[19] ULSA included survivors in the implementation of initiatives for survivors.[20]

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities in 2009[21]

Name of organization

Type of organization

Type of activity

Changes in quality/coverage of service in 2009

MoGLSD

Government

Needs assessment, service referral; training manual for psychosocial support for survivors published; community-based rehabilitation training

Increased victim assistance activity

MoH

Government

Referrals for medical and psychological attention for 521 survivors in four northern districts

No change

RECKAS

National NGO

Referrals; transportation and accommodation support for survivors while receiving rehabilitation services; psychological assistance; advocacy

No change

ULSA

National NGO

Advocacy, socio-economic reintegration

Supported the formation of new local survivors’ associations

Anti Mine Network-Rwenzori (AMNET-R)

National NGO

Advocacy, referrals for victim assistance

No change

AVSI

International NGO

Housing assistance for resettling persons with disabilities; referrals for victim assistance

No change

Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief

International NGO

Support to access comprehensive victim assistance

Ceased operations

World Vision International

International NGO

Support to access comprehensive victim assistance

Ceased operations

Handicap International (HI)

International NGO

Carried out assessment mission for integrated victim assistance and risk education program in western Uganda

No change

ICRC

International organization

Materials and training for two orthopedic centers; support to the MoH

Increased support from one to two centers

 

In 2009, there was considerable flux among service providers for victim assistance as the MoGLSD and the MoH increased their level of activity in northern Uganda, two international organizations ceased operations, a third conducted an assessment mission to launch a new program in western Uganda at the start of 2010, and the ICRC expanded its support for physical rehabilitation.[22] Three new local survivors’ associations were formed, all in northern Uganda, bringing the total throughout the country to 13.[23] Overall, it seems that there was an increase in beneficiaries of victim assistance services in northern Uganda in 2009, though precise figures were not available, making yearly comparisons difficult.  However, most programs were only accessible for survivors living in towns, while many survivors with great need were based in rural areas.[24]

In 2009, the MoGLSD published a training manual for psychosocial support on landmine survivors and other persons with disabilities, and the MoH provided referrals for mine/ERW survivors needing psychological attention in four northern districts. The training manual was designed to be used by community development officers since there remained a lack of trained psychologists or professional counselors.[25]

The increased number of local survivors’ associations under the ULSA umbrella improved opportunities for social inclusion, peer-to-peer counseling and advocacy by survivors.[26]

Working in collaboration, the MoGLSD and ULSA trained 40 leaders of survivors’ associations on livelihood activities; other planned vocational training activities were postponed until 2010 due to a delay in the availability of funds.[27] The government of Uganda increased its national financial contribution to economic reintegration activities for mine/ERW survivors and other persons with disabilities, allocating US$746,000 in its 2009/2010 national budget.[28]

While the law prohibited discrimination against persons with disabilities, it was not enforced and discrimination was common. There was no law requiring buildings to be accessible for persons with disabilities.[29]

On 28 September 2008, Uganda ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.



[1] Casualty data for the northern region provided by email from Max Wennbo, Senior Technical Advisor, UMAC, 14 April 2010; AVSI casualty data 1986–2009, provided by email from Femke Bannink, Project Coordinator, AVSI, 5, 18, and 26 June 2009; and Williams Kenyi and Warom Okello, “Explosive kills three children in Adjumani,” New Vision (Adjumani), 17 February 2009.

[2] AVSI casualty data 1986–2009, provided by email from Femke Bannink, AVSI, 5, 18, and 26 June 2009; and Landmine Monitor media monitoring from 1 January 2008 to 25 June 2009.

[3] Email from Max Wennbo, UMAC, 14 April 2010. Despite plans for the MoGLSD to take over casualty data collection for 2009, this had not occurred as of April 2010 nor had the Information Management System for Mine Action been updated to include casualty data. In addition, AVSI, a major source of casualty data for the Gulu and Amuru districts in previous years, provided no casualty data for the second half of 2009.

[4] AVSI casualty data 1986–2009, provided by email from Femke Bannink, AVSI, 5, 18, and 26 June 2009; and casualty data for the northern region provided by email from Max Wennbo, UMAC, 14 April 2010.

[5] Interview with Dr. Alex Layoo, Surgical Officer, Kitgum Hospital, and review of hospital records, 12 March 2005; and interview with Canon Benson Baguma, Director, and Muhindo Davide, Orthopedic Officer and landmine survivor, Kagando Hospital, Kasese, 13 January 2006.

[6] AVSI, “Gulu District Landmine/ERW Victims Survey Report,” May 2006, p. 20; and HI, Circle of Impact: The Fatal Footprint of Cluster Munitions on People and Communities (Brussels: HI: May 2007), p. 147.

[7] AVSI casualty data 1986–2009, provided by email from Femke Bannink, AVSI, 5, 18, and 26 June 2009; and casualty data for the northern region provided by email from Max Wennbo,  UMAC, 14 April 2010.

[8] Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, p. 11.

[9] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 21 June 2010.

[10] Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, p. 14.

[11] Interview with Muhindo Aaron, Coordinator, RECKAS, Kasese, 19 March 2010.

[12] Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 30 November 2009.

[13] Ibid.

[14] Interview with Beatrice Kaggya, Community-Based Rehabilitation Focal Person, MoGLSD, Kampala, 19 March 2010.

[15] Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 30 November 2009.

[16] Aneeza Pasha and Xavier Lemire, “Assessment Mission for Integrated Mine Action (MRE / MVA) In Western Uganda,” HI, May 2009; and interview with Margaret Arach Orech, Director, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010.

[17] Statement of Uganda, Second Review Conference, Cartagena, 30 November 2009.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Interview with Ojok Simon, Project Officer, Gulu Disabled Persons Union, 11 March 2010; and interview with Irene Laker, Treasurer, Gulu Amuru Landmine Survivors’ Group (GALMSG)  13 March 2010.

[20] Interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010.

[21] There are several local survivor associations in Uganda that have not been listed here as they now form part of ULSA. Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, pp. 11–14; Aneeza Pasha and Xavier Lemire, “Assessment Mission for Integrated Mine Action (MRE / MVA) In Western Uganda,” HI, May 2009; interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010; interview with Muhindo Aaron, RECKAS, Kasese, 19 March 2010; interview with Adong Christine, Protection Officer, AVSI, 11 March 2010; and ICRC, “Physical Rehabilitation Programme: Annual Report 2009,” Geneva, June 2009, p. 30.

[22] Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, pp. 11–14; Aneeza Pasha and Xavier Lemire, “Assessment Mission For Integrated Mine Action (MRE / MVA) In Western Uganda,” HI, May 2009; interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010; and ICRC, “Physical Rehabilitation Programme: Annual Report 2009,” Geneva, June 2009, p. 30.

[23] Aneeza Pasha and Xavier Lemire, “Assessment Mission For Integrated Mine Action (MRE / MVA) In Western Uganda,” HI, May 2009; and interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010.

[24] Interview with Ojok Simon, Gulu Disabled Persons Union, 11 March 2010; and interview with Irene Laker, GALMSG, 13 March 2010.

[25] Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, pp. 11–14; and Aneeza Pasha and Xavier Lemire, “Assessment Mission For Integrated Mine Action (MRE / MVA) In Western Uganda,” HI, May 2009, p. 13.

[26] Interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010.

[27] Office of the Prime Minister, “Annual Mine Action Programme Report 2009/2010,” Kampala, pp. 11–14; and interview with Margaret Arach Orech, ULSA, Kampala, 22 March 2010.

[28] Statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 21 June 2010.

[29] United States Department of State, “2009 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Uganda,” Washington, DC, 11 March 2010.


Last Updated: 03 August 2010

Support for Mine Action

Uganda did report any national contributions to mine action in 2009. Denmark contributed DKK3,100,000 (US$578,646) through Danish Demining Group for mine clearance operations. In 2008, Uganda’s landmine problem was defined as two remaining mined areas to clear.[1] As a result, annual contributions to Uganda have decreased substantially since 2007.

International government contributions: 2009[2]

Donor

Sector

Amount

(national currency)

Amount

($)

Denmark

Clearance

DKK3,100,000

578,646

Total

 

 DKK3,100,000

578,646

 

Summary of contributions: 2005–2009

Year

Amount ($)

2009

578,646

2008

783,506

2007

1,841,052

2006

1,666,251

2005

1,763,449

Total

6,632,904

 



[1] Email from Vicent Woboya, Director, Uganda Mine Action Center, 7 July 2009; and see statement of Uganda, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 27 May 2009.

[2] Average exchange rate for 2009: DKK1=US$0.18666. US Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 4 January 2010.