Mine ban policy overview

Policy

Lebanon has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty, but it indicated in December 2009 that it intends to do so, saying that it “hopes to sign…in the future” and it “looks forward to joining the Mine Ban Treaty.”[1]

Lebanon had long said that it was unable to join the Mine Ban Treaty due to the continuing conflict with Israel and that the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah heightened concerns about the security of its southern border.[2] In August 2013, Lebanon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Adnan Mansour, reportedly stated that landmines “are protecting the border” with Israel.[3]

Lebanon attended, as an observer, the Twelfth Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty in Geneva in December 2012 and intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in May 2013. It did not make any statements at these meetings.

Lebanon abstained from voting on UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution 67/32 on antipersonnel mines on 3 December 2012, as it did for the previous annual resolution in 2011. In 2010, Lebanon voted in favor of the UNGA resolution, but subsequently informed the UN Secretariat that it had intended to abstain.

Lebanon is party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions and hosted its Second Meeting of States Parties in Beirut in September 2011.

Lebanon is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW), but it attended the 14^th annual conference of the CCW’s Amended Protocol II on landmines in November 2012.

Production, transfer, use, and stockpiling

In December 2009, Lebanon confirmed that it “has never produced or exported antipersonnel mines.”[4] There have been no allegations of new use by Lebanese forces of antipersonnel mines or antipersonnel mine-like devices in Lebanon since 2006.[5] In late 2011 and in 2012, the Syrian Army laid antipersonnel and antivehicle mines along its borders, including the border with Lebanon in al-Buni, Heet (PMN-2 and TMN-46 mines), and Masharih al-Qaa.[6]

In August 2011, Lebanon informed the Monitor that “The Lebanese Government doesn’t use or stockpile or produce or transport any anti-personnel mines, though the Lebanese army retains very few numbers for training purposes.”[7] Earlier, in March 2008, the director of the Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC) said that the stockpile consists of a small quantity of mines, which he described as being lower than the maximum number permitted by the Mine Ban Treaty for training purposes.[8]

 

Commitment to the Convention on Cluster Munitions

Policy

The Republic of Lebanon signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008 and ratified on 5 November 2010. The convention entered into force for Lebanon on 1 May 2011.

In September 2012, Lebanon announced that existing legislation would be amended in 2013 to enforce the provisions of the Convention on Cluster Munitions.[1] This followed a review of existing laws and regulations that was conducted in 2012. Lebanon also consulted with stakeholders and partners on national implementation measures for the convention and said in April 2013 that an action plan was being prepared to implement recommendations from these consultations.[2]

Lebanon provided its initial Article 7 report for the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 27 October 2011 and submitted annual updated reports in April 2012 and April 2013.[3]

Lebanon participated throughout the Oslo Process that created the Convention on Cluster Munitions and advocated strongly for humanitarian protection to be given first priority in the development of the convention’s provisions.[4] Israel’s large-scale use of cluster munitions in Lebanon during the 2006 conflict contributed greatly to the sense of humanitarian urgency that underpinned the Oslo Process.[5]

Lebanon hosted the convention’s Second Meeting of States Parties in Beirut on 12–16 September 2011 and Lebanon’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Adnan Mansour, served as president of the Second Meeting of States Parties until September 2012. In an address to the convention’s Third Meeting of States Parties, Mansour reminded states of the importance of the convention to protect civilians from harm and said that the widespread condemnations following recent allegations of cluster munition use have demonstrated the success of states’ efforts to stigmatize cluster munitions.[6]

Lebanon made several statements during the convention’s Third Meeting of States Parties in Oslo, Norway in September 2012, including on victim assistance, clearance and risk reduction, universalization, and transparency measures. Lebanon also participated in the convention’s intersessional meetings in Geneva in April 2013, where it made statements on transparency, national implementation measures, universalization, victim assistance, and clearance and risk reduction.

At the convention’s intersessional meetings, Lebanon said it “takes very seriously” its duty to promote the Convention on Cluster Munitions with states that have not joined and said it still hopes to hold a regional meeting on the convention’s universalization, which has been postponed by regional developments.[7]

To celebrate the second anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Lebanon hosted an iftar (evening meal held during Ramadan) on 1 August 2012 that was attended by ambassadors and representatives from Arab states, member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), donors states, other states active in the Convention of Cluster Munitions, as well as cluster munition victims and civil society representatives.[8]

Lebanon is not party to the Mine Ban Treaty. It is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Interpretive issues

Lebanon has provided interpretive statements on a number of the convention’s provisions. It has stated that the prohibition on the transfer of cluster munitions includes a prohibition on “transit,” that foreign stockpiling of cluster munitions is prohibited, that financing and investment in cluster munition production or transfer is prohibited, and that Article 1 of the convention takes precedence over Article 21 so that “States Parties must never undertake any act that could constitute deliberate assistance with a prohibited act.”[9]

In September 2011, Lebanon stated that it does not see any reason to retain cluster munitions or submunitions for training or research purposes, as permitted by Article 3 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, noting “detection of submunition remnants does not require a more sophisticated technology than what currently exists.”[10]

Use, production, transfer, and stockpiling

Lebanon has stated several times that it has never used, produced, or stockpiled cluster munitions.[11]

Israel used cluster munitions in Lebanon in 1978, 1982, and 2006.[12] The United States (US) dropped cluster bombs against Syrian air defense units near Beirut during an intervention in December 1983.[13] In 2006, Hezbollah fired cluster munitions from southern Lebanon into northern Israel.[14]

 

Contamination and Impact

The Republic of Lebanon is contaminated with mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) as a legacy of 15 years of civil conflict that ended in 1990 and also as a result of two Israeli invasions and occupations (1978, 1982) of south Lebanon that ended in May 2000 when Israeli forces withdrew from Lebanese territory. The July–August 2006 hostilities by Israel also resulted in heavy new contamination from cluster munition remnants in southern Lebanon.[1] Remaining landmine and cluster munition contamination is said to affect 565 towns and more than 900,000 people, or approximately one in five of the population.[2]

Mines

Mine contamination dates from prior to 1975 and affects both the north and south of the country. The Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC) identified 2,598 locations covering 191km² in the following affected areas: Batroun, Chouf, Jbeil, and Jezzine, north of the Litani River, in the Bekaa valley, and across Mount Lebanon. Non-technical survey (NTS) results have since reduced the number of areas needing clearance to 1,400 mined areas covering 15.66km²,including908 areas along the 118km-long Blue Line (the line of withdrawal of the Israel Defence Forces) bordering Israel.[3]

Landmine contamination as of May 2013

Cluster munition remnants

Cluster munition contamination originates primarily from the conflict with Israel in July–August 2006, although some contamination remains from conflict in the 1980s.[4] As of May 2013, 13.4km² were suspected to be contaminated by cluster munition remnants across 166 suspected hazardous areas (SHAs).[5]

Cluster Munition contamination as of May 2013

Impact and Priorities

Cluster munition remnants affect water supplies and power lines and impede the excavation of rubble, farming, and reconstruction efforts, especially housing.[6] LMAC, however, estimated that overall economic activity in south Lebanon in 2011 had improved since 2006 when it was estimated to have suffered more than US$100 million in economic losses.[7] Post-clearance surveys by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), and the Lebanon Demining Organization (LDO) show 97% of cleared land became to be in use within three months after clearance, and often almost immediately before the official handover, with housing and agriculture constituting the primary use of the land.[8]

Lebanon has three levels of priority. The first is to address infrastructure to ensure that displaced people from the 2006 conflict could return home, the second is to release agricultural land and housing, and the third priority is to release land used for activities other than agriculture. The first priority goals were met in 2009. Since then clearing agricultural and housing areas have been the priorities.[9]

Other explosive remnants of war

Isolated ERW, which can be found across the country, is the responsibility of the LAF to clear. LMAC has identified 343 locations covering approximately 15km² containing only unexploded ordnance (UXO) and ERW.[10] Lebanon plans to clear all remaining UXO by the end of 2016.[11]

Mine Action Program

Key institutions and operators

The mine action program in Lebanon is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defense. In 1998, the Council of Ministers established the Lebanese Mine Action Authority (LMAA. The Lebanon Mine Action Centre (LMAC), which is part of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), manages and implements mine action policy set by LMAA.[12] Since 2009, a regional base in Nabatiye oversees operations in the south of Lebanon.[13]LMAC also manages risk education and victim assistance while chairing the two respective national steering committees.[14]

From 2001 through 2010, UNDP provided its support through a Chief Technical Advisor. At the request of LMAC, the position was not renewed in 2011.[15] UNDP continues to support LMAC at the policy level, funds 11 LMAC staff—eight at the Regional Mine Action Center (RMAC) base in Nabatiye, three at LMAC—and promotes the development of national NGOs.[16]

In 2012 the government of Lebanon contributed $8.9 million per year for salaries of 90 LAF personnel, equipment, risk education, and running costs for the LMAC and RMAC.[17]

Clearance capacity

In 2012, two national NGOs and four international NGOs comprised the survey, landmine and cluster munition clearance capacity in Lebanon consisting of 28 battle area clearance (BAC) teams, six mine clearance teams, and one mechanical team at the end of 2012.[18] The number of teams in 2013 may change based on the availability of funding. Additionally, the LAF have two engineering companies for manual mine clearance teams, two mechanical teams, and seven mine detection dog teams to complement the NGO operators. Lebanon’s rapid response capacity is from the LAF mine clearance teams.[19]

At the end of 2012, funding from the United States (US) Department of State to LDO ended and LDO ceased operations.[20] In March 2013, FSD closed its operations due to a lack of funding.[21]

2011–2020 strategic plan[22]

In September 2011, LMAC adopted a strategic plan for 2011–2020. The national strategy, developed in partnership with NGOs and the ministries of education, health and social affairs, aims to contribute to Lebanon’s development objectives and to guide LMAC in implementing the Convention on Cluster Munitions and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The strategic plan includes five major aims over the 10-year period:

1.      The enabling of affected communities to better manage risk from landmines;

2.      Guaranteed rights for victims;

3.      Mine action contribution to the socio-economic development of Lebanon;

4.      Compliance with the Convention on Cluster Munitions and the promotion of the universalization of the Convention; and

5.      Establishment of sustainable residual capacity.

The plan calls for the complete clearance of cluster munition remnants by 2016 and the clearance of landmines (except for the Blue Line area) by 2020. Both targets are dependent on specific clearance capacity and both fell short in 2012.[23] The area bordering Israel is under the control of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and no humanitarian clearance occurs there, so the clearance of mined areas along the Blue Line is dependent on political developments that will allow the LAF to move forward and conduct technical surveys and clearance operations.[24]

UNIFIL

UNIFIL was established in 1978[25] to confirm the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon (which eventually occurred in 2000) and to assist the government of Lebanon in ensuring the return of its effective authority in the area.[26]

The primary task of UNIFIL mine clearance teams was to clear paths through minefields in order to place 470 markers on the 118km-long Blue Line. In October 2011, UNIFIL discontinued humanitarian demining on the Blue Line and only clears mines to facilitate the placement of markers.[27] The memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Lebanon and UNIFIL outlining responsibilities for humanitarian demining expired in December 2010; as of May 2013, a new MOU had not been signed.[28] Since October 2011, the UNIFIL has no longer been conducting humanitarian demining.[29]

In 2012, UNIFIL’s capacity consisted of 15 demining teams and five explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams from Belgium, Cambodia, China, France, Italy, and Spain, although the three demining teams from France and one EOD team left UNIFIL in March 2012, and Spain’s two demining teams and one EOD team left in July 2012.[30]

The UN Mine Action Coordination Center (UNMACC), a project of UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS), was established in 2000 to coordinate mine clearance operations with LMAC. In October 2011, it was renamed the UN Mine Action Support Team (UNMAST) and reduced its personnel significantly. It trains the UNIFIL demining units and monitors and validates that UNIFIL mine clearance on the Blue Line complies with International Mine Action Standards.[31] It also provides resource mobilization assistance to the LMAC where required. In 2012, UNMAS facilitated a US$1 million contribution from Saudi Arabia through the International Trust Fund (ITF) Enhancing Human Security (formerly known as ITF for Demining and Mine Victim Assistance) for DCA and NPA clearing mines and cluster munitions.[32] UNMAST operating funds are from the assessed peacekeeping budget for UNIFIL.[33]

Regional initiatives[34]

LMAC has become a regional leader in database management and training. In September 2012, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining and LMAC co-hosted a 5-day regional workshop in Cedars, Lebanon to build capacity on the reporting capabilities with Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), a standard software used in mine action. Iraq, Sudan, Egypt, Libya and Mauritania attended the workshop.

Also in 2012, LMAC participated in the Arabic Outreach Conference in Dubai along with Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine and Sudan; where it was decided that there was a need to translate support and training documents for IMSMA into Arabic and that LMAC had developed a level of technical expertise with IMSMA. As follow-up, LMAC was  planning to host another regional conference on information management in December 2013. In February 2013, representatives from the Libya Mine Action Center visited LMAC for a series of workshops on lessons learned in mine action in Lebanon over 25 years.[35]

Land Release

Priorities for land release focus on infrastructure, housing, and agriculture.[36] In 2012, 0.99km² of mined areas and 2.98km² of land containing cluster munition remnants were cleared, compared to 0.08km² of mined areas and 2.5km² of land containing cluster munition remnants in 2011.

Five-year summary of landmine and cluster munition clearance[37]

Survey

In 2011, the LAF completed the National Non-Technical Survey project that began in 2005 and as a result released 1,007 SHAs covering 139km².[38] SHAs were canceled if the land was in use and had been cleared prior to the Landmine Impact Survey. Before releasing the land, leaders of the municipalities and the landowner were interviewed. As part of the survey, landowners were shown photographs of landmines and ERW and then asked whether they had seen such objects on their land. At the end of the interview, they were asked to sign an affidavit stating the land they own does not contain mines and ERW.[39]

After the completion of the NTS project at the end of 2011, LMAC tasked the LDO survey teams to conduct post-clearance surveys on land cleared of submunitions using a short questionnaire designed by RMAC. In February 2012, LDO added a third survey team to pilot a post clearance survey questionnaire developed by NPA.[40] At the end of 2012, the US Department of State terminated funding to LDO.[41]

Mine clearance in 2012

In 2012, the LAF and eight demining teams from DCA, HI, MAG, and POD cleared 59 mined areas covering 993,649m² (0.99km²). The LAF Rapid Response teams cleared 488,066m².

Clearance of landmines in 2012[42]

Clearance of cluster munition contaminated areas in 2012

All clearance of cluster munition remnants is both subsurface and surface.[43] In 2012, LMAC reported that five NGO operators cleared 50 confirmed hazardous areas covering 2.83km², approximately 300,000m² (0.3km²) more than in 2011, while destroying 4,362 unexploded submunitions as well as 1,259 UXO. According to LMAC the actual area cleared was more than 2.83km². In the immediate aftermath of the hostilities with Israel in 2006, the emergency response required a very rapid clearance rate because people were returning home.[44] Since 2009, as a result of a focus on subsurface clearance which is a slower process than surface clearance (and often is conducted in areas that had already undergone surface clearance), there has been a drop in both clearance rates and the number of cluster munitions found.[45] Nevertheless, as reported above, Lebanon has 13.42km² remaining as of May 2013, down from approximately 55km² in 2006.[46] The pace of clearance for the next few years is unclear because subsurface clearance will include re-clearing areas that were only surfaced-cleared in 2006–2008 and many of the remaining contaminated areas are in remote locations and in difficult terrain such as steep hills.[47]

Clearance of cluster munition remnants in 2008–2012

Compliance with Article 4 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions

Under Article 4 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Lebanon is required to complete clearance of all areas affected by cluster munition remnants under its jurisdiction or control by 1 May 2021.

Lebanon plans to clear all cluster munitions by 2016, more than four years before its Article 4 deadline. A key element ensuring the targets of the strategic plan are met is maintaining 30 BAC teams in 2012–2016. If not, the 2016 target may be missed.[48] During a Cluster Munition Monitor field mission to Lebanon in May 2012, all stakeholders believed the 2016 target date was reasonable if funding and the number of teams stabilized or increased and if the contamination estimates prove accurate. In 2012, the NGOs deployed only 28 teams. At the end of 2012, LMAC revised its annual BAC team needs to 34 BAC teams starting in 2013.[49] However, Brigadier General Imad Odiemi, the director of LMAC, told the Monitor in April 2013 that Lebanon would not be able to clear all cluster munition sites by 2016 due to anticipated funding shortfalls in the coming years as a result of the increasing competition for funds in the expanding peace and security sectors.[50]

Quality management

LMAC re-accredits all operators each January and LMAC reports that it conducts quality assurance (QA) on all clearance by checking each ongoing task during weekly unannounced visits. It does so using its three QA teams based at the RMAC to cover the south, and two teams in LMAC to cover demining in the north and Mount Lebanon. In 2012, LMAC issued 1,498 operational accreditations on 13 functions, including organizational structure, impact surveys, clearance, and post-clearance QA.[51] AusAid, in its review of the Lebanon mine action program, found LMAC’s monitoring and QA system to be “excellent.”[52] UNMAST conducts QA of clearance by UNIFIL teams on the Blue Line.[53]

Safety of demining personnel

On 23 October 2012, a 27-year-old field supervisor of NPA was killed while preparing a demolition of cluster munitions recently found during clearance operations.[54]

 

Summary action points based on 2012 findings

·         The survey of survivors’ needs planned for 2013 should be supported to ensure an effective revision of the existing victim assistance action plan.

·         A sustainable funding strategy is needed for the physical rehabilitation sector, which relies on international funding and donations.

·         The availability of healthcare cards for survivors in the Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC) casualty database requires review; some survivors have not yet received a card, limiting their access to ongoing health care.

Victim assistance commitments

The Lebanese Republic is responsible for significant numbers of cluster munition victims and survivors of other explosive remnants of war (ERW), as well as landmine survivors, who are in need. Lebanon has victim assistance obligations under the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

Casualties

Casualties Overview

In 2012, LMAC identified nine mine/ERW casualties.[1]

The nine casualties identified in 2012, and the six casualties in 2011, were both a significant decrease from the 24 casualties reported by LMAC in 2010.[2] Annual mine/ERW casualty rates have declined steadily from the 98 casualties in the year 2000, except for a spike in casualties between August and December 2006 immediately following the July 2006 bombing of southern Lebanon.[3]

The total number of mine/ERW casualties in Lebanon recorded from 1975 to December 2012 was 3,683 (903 killed; 2,780 injured). The total number of recorded mine/ERW casualties was reduced following a database review, which removed duplicate entries of survivors.[4]

Cluster munition casualties

As of December 2012, the LMAC data indicated 663 casualties (154 killed; 509 injured) from unexploded submunitions, of which 18% (120) were children at the time of the incident.[5] The Monitor has identified 712 cluster munition casualties for the same time period, including those recorded by LMAC. Little data is available on casualties that occurred during cluster munition strikes; only 16 (three people killed; 13 injured) were identified.[6]

Victim Assistance

There were at least 2,780 mine/ERW survivors in Lebanon as of December 2012.[7]

Victim assistance since 1999

Since Monitor reporting began in 1999, the number of national and international actors involved in providing a range of victim assistance services to mine/ERW survivors throughout the country has grown, most especially following the bombing in 2006. Medical care was provided through public health facilities with other victim assistance services made available through national and international organizations dependent on international funding sources. NGO members of the national victim assistance steering committee (approximately 12) implemented programs for physical rehabilitation and for economic and social inclusion, including sports programs and some peer support. Almost no psychological support was available to survivors during this period. Barriers to accessing victim assistance services, particularly for those living in southern Lebanon, included the cost of services, the lack of affordable transportation, and/or a lack of awareness of availability. A decline in funding, which reportedly began in 2008, forced some service providers to reduce their numbers of beneficiaries; however, most reported continuing activities at similar levels despite declining funding.

Since 2001, victim assistance was coordinated through regular meetings of the national victim assistance steering committee hosted by the national mine action center. Throughout most of the period, Lebanon lacked a comprehensive victim assistance plan; coordination mainly consisted of information sharing among service providers. While LMAC was mostly seen to be effective in coordinating victim assistance activities, NGO service providers found that reduced funding affected the quality of coordination and fewer coordination meetings were held. A national victim assistance strategy began being developed for the first time in 2011.

Victim assistance in 2012

Lebanon’s first national victim assistance strategy established targets for comprehensive victim assistance by 2020. An overall ongoing decrease in the availability of victim assistance services was identified in 2012, exacerbated by the crisis in Syria and diversion of healthcare resources to assist incoming refugees from that country. Services available through national NGOs continued to decrease due to a lack of funding.

Assessing victim assistance needs

No needs assessments were reported in 2012. In 2013, the victim assistance steering committee was awaiting the results of the victim assistance survey planned by LMAC, supported by both Austria and South Korea, which was to be finalized by the end of 2013. This survey was intended to help better understand the needs of survivors and for LMAC to revise its action plan to respond to those needs accordingly.[8]

Following Israel’s large-scale use of cluster munitions in Lebanon during 2006, various government agencies and NGOs collected data on the needs of mine/ERW survivors and cluster munition victims, their family members, and on communities impacted by cluster submunitions and other ERW. However, as of 2012, this data had not been consolidated within a single national database.[9]

Victim assistance coordination[10]

LMAC manages and coordinates the implementation of victim assistance in Lebanon, through the National Steering Committee on Victim Assistance. The national steering committee includes representatives of the following organizations:

·         The Injured and Victims of War association

·         The Islamic Al Rissala Scouts Association

·         The Islamic Health Council

·         The Landmines Resource Center

·         The Lebanese Association for Health and Social Care

·         The Lebanese Welfare Association for the Handicapped

·         The Ministry of Social Affairs

·         The National Rehabilitation and Development Center

·         Norwegian Peoples Aid (NPA)

·         The Philanthropic Association for the Handicapped in Nabatiyeh

·         The Vision Association for Development, Rehabilitation and Care

·         The World Rehabilitation Fund

The committee is responsible for implementing the victim assistance strategy in addition to ensuring coordination between the different stakeholders. In 2012, the committee met infrequently due to the major decrease in funds for victim assistance activities overall. However, in 2013, it was beginning to return to previous levels of activity.[11]

The Ministry of Social Affairs increased its participation in victim assistance coordination. In the 2011 National Social Development Strategy of Lebanon, the ministry committed to “Establishing and implementing the National Program for Cluster-bomb Victims.”[12]

In September 2011, LMAC released the Lebanon Mine Action Strategy 2011–2020, which included a strategic objective on an action plan for victim assistance detailing a commitment to the “full realization of the rights of mine victims guaranteed” where “all victims are provided with medical, social, psychological, and economic support as part of the fulfillment of their full legal rights as stated in the law 220/2000”—and to enhance the access and rights of persons with disabilities. The victim assistance objective was articulated with specific reference to Article 5 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions obligations and “in the spirit of the Mine Ban Treaty… and in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of People with Disability (CRPD).”[13]

The Victim Assistance Strategy was developed with input from governmental and NGO members of the National Steering Committee on Victim Assistance, including survivors.[14] The strategy’s main objectives are to ensure that mine/ERW victims have rights-based access to all services and to include victims in socio-economic rehabilitation initiatives. The strategy seeks to achieve these objectives for all victims by 2020.[15] The Victim Assistance Strategy includes a budget for victim assistance activities.[16]

Lebanon provided an update on its progress and challenges in implementing victim assistance at the Third Meeting of States Parties held in Oslo in September 2012, at the Convention on Cluster Munitions intersessional meetings in Geneva in April 2013, and through its Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 report.[17]

Survivor inclusion and participation

Survivors were included in the National Steering Committee on Victim Assistance as representatives of NGO service providers.[18] The majority of victim assistance activities were implemented by local NGOs, some of which had survivors in management positions while many involved survivors in planning activities.[19]

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities[20]

Health care in Lebanon is among the most expensive in the region. Many people rely on the assistance of the Ministry of Health, because not every citizen can qualify for the National Social Security Fund or afford to have private health insurance.[21]

In 2012, the ICRC funded the renovation of seven emergency medical care stations of the Lebanese Red Cross, supported training sessions for emergency care volunteers all over Lebanon, and carried out an evaluation of its five-year emergency medical services strategy in preparation to the design of a follow-on strategy. The ICRC also supported the maintenance of ambulances  as well as ambulance service centers across Lebanon, mainly in response to the arrival of wounded from Syria as well as violence in Tripoli. It provided medicines and medical material to health facilities, including hospitals, clinics and dispensaries.  From the onset of the crisis in Syria in 2011, the ICRC provided support to the Lebanese Red Cross emergency medical services for the transfer to hospitals of wounded persons crossing into Lebanon.[22] In July 2012, it was reported that Lebanon’s relief agency suspended funding for treatment of wounded Syrians who entered the country, due to rising costs.[23]

Physical rehabilitation remained largely dependent on funding from external donors and national charities.[24] Reduced international funding resulted in a decreased number of survivors benefiting from NGO-implemented physical rehabilitation programs. The prolonged decrease in funding over a four-year period froze many victim assistance operations and activities.[25] In 2012, China donated medical and rehabilitation equipment such as wheelchairs, stretchers, oxygen bottles, and electrocardiographs to LMAC. The equipment was distributed to the members of the National Steering Committee on Victim Assistance in order to assist mine/ERW survivors.[26]

No significant changes were identified in the availability of economic inclusion projects or social support, both of which were very limited compared with the level of need. Psychological support was the least developed area of assistance in Lebanon.

Information campaigns informed victims of their rights and encouraged them to apply for a disability card making them eligible for some free health services. In 2012, further efforts were reported to ensure eligible survivors were provided with a disability card. In 2013, Lebanon was reviewing the eligibility requirements to receive disability cards set by the Ministry of Social Affairs to compare with the characteristics of survivors registered within the LMAC casualty database to find out why some survivors had not received a card.[27]

Discrimination against persons with disabilities is prohibited by law, but continued to exist. The National Disability Law stipulates a 3% quota to hire persons with disabilities for all employers. However, there was no evidence the law was enforced and there was little to no impact. The law required that buildings be made accessible to persons with disabilities, but changes to the building code that would have made the law operable had not been made by the end of 2012.[28]

Lebanon reported increased efforts to implement Law 220/2000 on the rights of persons with disabilities in 2012.[29] The law addresses the rights of persons with disabilities to have access to adequate education, rehabilitation services, employment, medical services, sports, and access to public transport and other facilities. However, it also reported that the law had yet to be comprehensively put into practice, due in part to a lack of sufficient resource allocation within the national budget.[30]

Lebanon signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 14 June 2007.

 

In 2012, contributions from 15 international donors for clearance and victim assistance, risk education (RE), and advocacy activities in Lebanon totaled US$17.3 million.[1] Norway, the European Union (EU), Iran (through the Iranian organization Immen Sazan Omran Pars, ISOP), the United States (US), and the Netherlands all provided over $2 million.[2] With 15 donors, Lebanon ranked second after Afghanistan (19) in 2012 for the number of donors supporting mine action in one country.

In September 2012, the EU in Lebanon issued a tender valued at €10 million ($12.9 million) for 2013–2015 covering landmine and cluster munition clearance as well as victim assistance and RE.[3]

In 2012, the Ministry of Defense of Lebanon supported the Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC) with personnel, vehicles, communications, and medical care valued at $8.9 million.[4] Other government support has not been reported. The Ministry of Health provides medical care to survivors, the Ministry of Social Affairs provides rehabilitation services, and the Ministry of Education supports RE through its trained health and teaching personnel.[5]

In May 2010, LMAC entered into a strategic partnership with Blom Bank, the largest bank in Lebanon, whereby a percentage of the cardholders’ annual fees and retailers’ transaction fees related to the Blom Bank MasterCard goes to the Ministry of Defense for mine clearance. A committee within the Ministry of Defense is responsible for awarding contracts using the funds from Blom Bank. As of May 2012, more than $376,000 had been raised, including $209,000 in 2011 for clearance and equipment. Blom Bank also funded a $1 million nationwide RE campaign and produced television advertisements promoting the special credit card.[6]

International contributions: 2012[7]

Summary of contributions: 2008–2012[8]