Victim assistance commitments

Western Sahara has a significant number of landmine survivors, cluster munition victims, and survivors of other explosive remnants of war (ERW) who are in need. The Polisario authorities signed Geneva Call’s “Deed of Commitment” in 2005 which obliges them to support humanitarian mine action activities, such as victim assistance among other commitments.[1] In 2014, the Polisario authorities submitted a voluntary Article 7 report to the Convention on Cluster Munitions to “reaffirm its commitment to a total ban on cluster munitions as well as its willingness to accede to the [Convention] and to be bound by its provisions.”[2]

Casualties Overview

In 2013, the Monitor identified 23 mine/ERW casualties in Western Sahara.[3] Most (13) casualties were civilians; there were three casualties among security forces.[4] There was at least one child casualty; however, it is possible this number was much higher because the age and sex of the majority of the casualties recorded (19 of 23) were unknown. There were no confirmed female casualties.

The majority of casualties (19 or 83%) were in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara (west of the berm[5]) with the remainder occurring in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara, east of the berm. This was similar in percentage to 2012 when 35 of the 40 casualties identified occurred in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara.

The 23 casualties identified in 2013 represented a significant decrease from the 40 casualties reported in 2012, although an increase compared with the 11 casualties report in 2011.[6] Casualty data is not comprehensive, making it difficult to determine clear casualty trends over time. [7]

The total number of mine/ERW casualties in Western Sahara is not known, although it was estimated in 2011 that there had been some 2,500 since 1975.[8] Morocco reported a total of 2,536 mine/ERW casualties, 831 persons killed and 1,705 injured, from 1975 to the end of 2012; it was not known how many of these occurred in Morocco versus Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara.[9] As of August 2014, the Saharawi Association of Landmine Victims (ASAVIM) had collected detailed information on 1,006 victims of mines, cluster munitions, and other ERW who are living in and around the Rabouni refugee camps on the Algerian border with Western Sahara.[10] The Polisario authorities reported a total of 1,413 people killed and injured by mines/ERW through April 2014.[11]

Cluster munition casualties

A 14-year-old boy was injured by an unexploded submunition in September 2013.[12] As of July 2013, ASAVIM had identified 177 casualties of cluster munition remnants occurring between 1975 and 2012.[13]

Victim Assistance

As of August 2014, ASAVIM had collected data on 1,006 landmine and cluster munition victims (including some family members of persons killed) as well as 473 other war victims and persons with disabilities in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara.[14] From 1975 to the end of 2012, Morocco has reported a total of 1,705 mine/ERW survivors.[15] It is likely that most of these occurred in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara.[16]

Victim assistance since 1999

Victim assistance in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara, extremely limited since monitoring began in 1999, is worsened by the fact that most survivors live in extreme poverty in refugee camps. A lack of public transportation in the region made it very difficult for survivors to access the limited services available. With the start of the Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) mine/ERW clearance program in 2006, AOAV began providing emergency aid and transportation in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara to complement a similar service provided by the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara. However, given the vast and remote territory, emergency response and transportation remained inadequate.

The Chehid Cherif National Center for Mine and War Victims consistently provided basic medical care for war victims, including landmine survivors. The center also offered vocational training programs (when funding allowed), although demand for services consistently exceeded supply. All medical services in refugee camps were free but facilities lacked adequately trained staff and resources. Rehabilitation and prosthetics improved in 2008 and continued to be provided through 2013 with the start of an ICRC-supported program in the Rabouni rehabilitation center, serving Saharawi refugees from Polasario-controlled Western Sahara; before this, obtaining access to physical rehabilitation was virtually impossible as no services were available for those living in nearby refugee camps. International technical and financial assistance for physical rehabilitation decreased in 2011 as the ICRC Special Fund for the Disabled ceased providing support to the rehabilitation center in Laâyoune, in Morocco-controlled Western Sahara.

There was an acute lack of economic opportunities for survivors; psychological support in the camps was insufficient to address the needs of the population. ASAVIM was founded in 2005 to collect information about survivors and their needs, refer survivors to available services, and advocate on their behalf. There was no government coordination of victim assistance by Morocco during the period, but there was regular coordination between the Chehid Cherif Center and ASAVIM in the refugee camps and in Polasario-controlled Western Sahara.

Victim assistance in 2013

In August 2013, the Polisario authorities established the Sahrawi Mine Action Coordination Office (SMACO) to coordinate activities “related to landmines, demining and landmines victims.”[17] At the end of 2013, ASAVIM was awarded a grant by the ICBL-CMC’s Survivor Network Project (SNP) to provide peer support and referrals to survivors and other persons with disabilities and  to strengthen the network.

Assessing victim assistance needs

During 2013 and into 2014, ASAVIM continued to work in cooperation with the Polisario government to identify mine/ERW victims and other victims of armed conflict and to assess their needs. Collected data was added to the database established in 2012 by ASAVIM, with support from AOAV.[18] The Ministry of Defence shared their database on veterans with disabilities for inclusion in the survey.[19]

In order to improve victim assistance planning, coordination, and the provision of services, the results of the survey were shared with representatives of the Polisario government (including the ministries of social affairs, health, education, and cooperation), and also with survivors, the ICRC, and other international organizations such as the Spanish Red Cross, UNHCR, and MINURSO.[20] Data from the survey were included in the voluntary Article 7 report submitted by Polisario authorities to the Convention on Cluster Munitions.[21]

Victim assistance coordination

SMACO, established by presidential decree in July 2013, is the national authority responsible for the coordination of all activities related to landmines and cluster munitions (including victim assistance) and has been designated as the national victim assistance focal point. The Polisario authorities also named ASAVIM as “an institution that is in charge of all questions related to mine victims such [as] compiling data about them and assessing their needs as well as finding ways for financing, educating and supporting them in all aspects of life.”[22]

In 2013 and into 2014, SMACO, ASAVIM, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Public Recruitment and Vocational Training, representatives of the legislature, and representatives of international organizations met to promote the rights of mine and ERW victims and to consider the drafting of a national law to protect these rights. A draft law was under consideration as of February 2014.[23]

Survivor participation and inclusion

Survivors, through ASAVIM, coordinated regularly with the Chehid Cherif Center and relevant Polisario government institutions in order to refer survivors to available services.[24] ASAVIM’s Secretary General, Aziz Buchar Haidar, himself a landmine survivor, headed the delegation of the Sahrawi Republic to a workshop on victim assistance held jointly by the African Union and the ICRC in March 2014.[25]

ASAVIM was involved in the ongoing implementation of data collection and needs assessment. ASAVIM and its survivor members also implemented an economic inclusion program, provided peer support, and carried out advocacy activities.[26]

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities[27]

Emergency and ongoing medical care

MINURSO staff provided emergency response following mine incidents in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara, while AOAV provided the same service in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara.[28] UNHCR’s medical unit also provided emergency medical services and casualty evacuation.[29]

However, in 2013 as in previous years, it was reported that emergency response times for people involved in mine/ERW incidents in remote areas could be several hours or even days, resulting in some casualties dying from their wounds before receiving medical attention.[30] Morocco reported having modern medical facilities where survivors could access services for free.[31]

Ongoing healthcare remained very limited and treatment for complex injuries or chronic conditions is scarce and in some cases non-existent. The ASAVIM/AOAV needs assessment found that 71% of survivors were in need of some form of medical attention and at least a quarter could not access the assistance they needed where they lived.[32]

Physical rehabilitation, including prosthetics

In 2013, the ICRC-run Rabouni Rehabilitation Center within the Chehid Cherif Center was transferred to the Rabouni hospital to be closer to refugee populations which it was serving in Polisario-controlled Western Sahara. The ICRC maintained its referral network with area hospitals and its outreach visits to refugee camps.[33]

There were also reported to be rehabilitation centers in two hospitals as well as in medical centers in each of the five refugee camps near Rabouni.[34] Among the survivors who were surveyed in 2012, 57% indicated the need for prosthetics or other mobility aids.[35]

Economic inclusion

In 2013, ASAVIM provided support to survivor cooperatives to support income-generating projects through a grant program launched in August 2012. ASAVIM had established a national project commission to monitor the implementation of the project. The commission included representatives from among several victim assistance stakeholders, including the ministries of social affairs and women’s promotion; cooperation; education; and defence. Cooperatives received training in project and business planning. At least 27 cooperatives had received support for their business proposals in 2013.[36]

A limited number of vocational training and income-generating programs were available to refugees in the area of the Rabouni refugee camps through the Polisario government and international organizations, such as UNHCR, including some targeting persons with disabilities.[37] However, in general survivors based in refugee camps were not aware of such programs.[38]

Just 15% of survivors surveyed by ASAVIM received financial assistance (which was very limited) in the form of a small pension for persons with severe disabilities referred to as “the encouragement,” provided by the Polisario authorities.[39] Survivors in Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara were entitled to financial assistance from the Moroccan government; however, it was estimated in 2010 that about one in six survivors lacked the documentation needed to access this assistance, which was deemed insufficient to meet basic needs.[40] Morocco reported having government programs for the economic and social inclusion of these survivors.[41]

Psychological support

In 2013 and into 2014, ASAVIM increased the availability of psychological assistance by providing peer support, along with information on where to access services, while continuing to collect information on the needs of survivors. ASAVIM continued to provide such support on an ongoing basis through its office and during meetings of members.[42] Some psychological assistance was also available through the Rabouni hospital.[43] Many survivors did not know about psychological assistance services and have reported a complete absence of professional psychological support.[44]

Laws and policies

The Polisario constitution guarantees the rights of all Sahrawi citizens with special mention for the rights of “those wounded in war.”[45] In 2013, as a result of advocacy efforts by national associations including ASAVIM, discussions began among relevant government bodies to develop a draft law entitled the “National Law to Protect the Rights of Victims of Mines and Cluster Bombs.” As of February 2014, a complete draft was prepared and pending approval by the Polisario legislature.[46]

It was reported that medical care, rehabilitation, and economic inclusion programs that were relevant to mine/ERW survivors were implemented in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.[47]