Libya
Support for Mine Action
Support for Mine Action
In response to the conflict in Libya that led to the overthrow of Libyan leader Muammar al-Qadhafi as well as to the discovery of large weapon and ammunition storage facilities that included antipersonnel and antivehicle landmines, the international community provided more than US$19 million in 2011 from 15 donors,[1] including South Korea and Romania. Of this amount, donors designated more than $16 million to address the presence of unexploded submunitions, though ultimately most of the funds were used to clear all types of ERW and landmines.
During the conflict, government forces loyal to Gaddafi used three different types of cluster munitions at locations including Ajabiya, Misrata, and in the Nafusa Mountains near Jadu and Zintan. NATO air strikes on a military depot at Mizdah created unexploded ordnance from munitions stored by Libya, including unexploded submunitions. Media reports and Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented finding cluster munition remnants in residential areas of the city of Misrata and in the desert 20 miles south of the city of Ajdabiya.[2] It was reported, however, that only 184 submunitions were found in 2011.[3]
The Libyan Ministry of Health contributed US$459,000 to the International Trust Fund (ITF) Enhancing Human Security to provide for rehabilitation of 25 amputees at the University Rehabilitation Institute (URI) in Ljubljana and for the URI to assess rehabilitation capacity in Tripoli and Benghazi.[4]
International contributions: 2011[5]
|
Donor |
Sector |
Amount |
Amount (US$) |
|
Australia |
Clearance/risk education |
A$3,500,000 |
3,616,200 |
|
US |
Clearance |
$3,000,000 |
3,000,000 |
|
Canada |
Clearance |
C$2,200,000 |
2,225,144 |
|
European Commission |
Clearance, risk education |
€ 1,470,000 |
2,047,857 |
|
Netherlands |
Clearance |
€ 1,420,000 |
1,978,202 |
|
Denmark |
Clearance |
DKK9,000,000 |
1,681,143 |
|
Italy |
Clearance |
€ 950,000 |
1,323,445 |
|
UK |
Clearance |
£548,269 |
879,588 |
|
Spain |
Clearance |
€ 550,000 |
766,205 |
|
Germany |
Clearance, risk education, stockpile |
€ 435,404 |
606,561 |
|
Austria |
Victim assistance |
€ 200,000 |
278,620 |
|
Switzerland |
Clearance |
CHF232,000 |
261,792 |
|
Sweden |
Clearance |
SEK1,020,000 |
157,218 |
|
Romania |
Clearance |
US$117,369 |
117,369 |
|
South Korea |
Clearance |
US$100,000 |
100,000 |
|
Total |
19,039,344 |
[1] Responses to Monitor questionnaire from Christine Pahlman, Mine Action Coordinator, AusAID, 24 April 2012;
and from Wolfgang Bányai, Unit for Arms Control and Disarmament in the framework of the UN, Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs, Austria, 1 March 2012; Canada Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report, Form J, 30 April 2012; Response to Monitor questionnaire from Katrine Joensen, Head of Section, Security Policy Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Denmark, 1 May 2012; email from Carolin J. Thielking, Directorate for Non-Proliferation and Disarmament, European External Action Service, European Commission, 15 April 2012; Responses to Monitor questionnaire from Alessandro Pirrone, Emergency Response Desk Officer, Demining Advisor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Emergency Office, Italy, 21 March 2012; by Claudia Moser, Section for Multilateral Peace Policy, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Switzerland, 19 June 2012; and by Maria Linderyd Linder, Deputy Director, Head of Section, Department for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Sweden, 24 April 2012; email from Eugen Secareanu, Resource Mobilisation Assistant, Resource Mobilisation Unit, UN Mine Action Service, 30 May 2012; US Department of State, “To Walk the Earth in Safety 2011,” Washington, DC, July 2012; and Spain Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report, Form J, March 2012; ITF, “Donors: Korea.”
[2] See Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor, Libya: Cluster Munition Ban Policy, updated 31 July 2012.
[3] See Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor, “Libya: Mine Action.”
[4] ITF, “2011 Annual Report,” pp. 110–111, www.itf-fund.si/Documents/Info/Annual_Reports_53.aspx.
[5] Australia average exchange rate for 2011: A$1 = US$1.0332. Canada average exchange rate for 2011: C$1 = 0.9887. Denmark average exchange rate for 2011: DKK5.3535 = US$1. Euro average exchange rate for 2011: €1 = US$1.3931. Sweden average exchange rate for 2011: SEK6.4878 = US$1. Switzerland average exchange rate for 2011: CHF0.8862 = US$1. UK average exchange rate for 2011: £1 = US$1.6043. US Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 3 January 2012.