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Azerbaijan
Casualties and Victim Assistance
Casualties Overview
|
All known casualties by end 2010 |
2,365 mine/ERW casualties (364 killed; 2,001 injured) |
|
Casualties in 2010 |
5 (2009: 22) |
|
2010 casualties by outcome |
1 killed; 4 injured (2009: 4 killed; 18 injured) |
|
2010 casualties by device type |
3 antipersonnel mines; 2 antivehicle mines |
In 2010 the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) registered five mine casualties in four incidents: two civilians injured by antivehicle mines and two soldiers injured and one soldier killed by antipersonnel mines. All casualties were male. No deminer casualties were identified for 2010.[1] The 2010 data represented a decrease from the 22 casualties identified by ANAMA in 2009.[2]
The Azerbaijan Campaign to Ban Landmines (AzCBL) identified 13 casualties in 2010, including the five recorded by ANAMA.[3] This also represented a decrease from the 34 casualties AzCBL reported for 2009. [4]
Variation in annual casualty data reported by key actors is due to differing collection methodologies. ANAMA collects casualty data through a network of district representatives and from media reports. Only incidents that occur in mine/ERW hazard areas and can be verified are recorded in the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA). AzCBL gathers information in all affected districts—except the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic—from its regional coordinators, civil and military hospitals, and rehabilitation centers as well as from the local media.[5]
Online media reported two additional unverified military mine casualties (one killed; one injured) on the Nagorno Karabakh cease-fire line.[6]
ANAMA reported a total of 2,365 mine/ERW casualties (364 killed; 2,001 injured) in Azerbaijan from the early 1990s to the end of 2010.[7]
Victim Assistance
In 2010, there were at least 1,843 mine/ERW survivors known to be living in Azerbaijan.[8] Chirag Humanitarian Development Public Union carried out a medical needs assessment for survivors during a seven-month period from the beginning of 2010. As a result, 110 mine/ERW survivors from 23 regions received medical services.[9] Survivors identified as needing wheelchairs received assistance from ANAMA.[10]
Victim assistance coordination[11]
|
Government coordinating body/focal point |
ANAMA |
|
Coordinating mechanism |
Mine Victim Assistance (MVA) Working Group, led by ANAMA including national NGOs, the Azerbaijan Red Crescent Society (AzRCS), and other relevant organizations |
|
Plan |
MVA Strategy of the Azerbaijan Mine Action Program |
The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of Population (MLSPP) and the Ministry of Health are responsible for protecting the rights of persons with disabilities more generally.[12]
Service accessibility and effectiveness
Victim assistance activities in 2010[13]
|
Name of organization |
Type of organization |
Type of activity |
Changes in quality/coverage of service in 2010 |
|
MLSPP |
Government |
Rehabilitation and prostheses |
Rehabilitation center in Ganja doubled prosthetics production for survivors from 2009, the other 2 centers which reported maintained similar output |
|
Rehabilitation Center of Invalids of the Republic in Baku/MLSPP |
Government |
Rehabilitation, diagnostic, and psychosocial support |
Decrease in the overall number of survivors assisted from 2009, but slightly more survivors received services for the first time |
|
AzRCS |
National NGO |
Social support to families of mine casualties in Aghstafa and Qazakh regions |
Increased beneficiaries from 1 family to 13 families receiving support in 2 districts |
|
AzCBL |
National NGO |
Economic inclusion: micro-finance projects; legal awareness for mine/ERW survivors and families in Terter and Fizuli regions |
Program continued and all micro-finance recipients had repaid loans by August 2010 |
|
ANAMA/Azerbaijan Mine Victim Association |
Government/National NGOs |
Provided services through national NGOs including micro-credit, wheelchairs, and equipment |
Additional wheelchairs distributed to survivors in need; surgery for prosthetic replacement
|
|
Chirag Humanitarian Development Public Union /International Organization for Migration /International/ANAMA Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF) |
National NGO/International organization |
Micro-credit and small business training in six districts; medical examination and treatment |
In a new project, 110 mine victims from 23 regions received full medical services; small business training and micro-credit project was extended |
In 2010, the availability of economic inclusion and education services for mine/ERW survivors increased through local NGO projects with donor support.[14] Most existing victim assistance programs continued from the previous year. However, no significant changes in the quality of services were reported.[15] The overall situation of persons with disabilities was said to be improving due to government efforts and the growing economy.[16]
The government reported in 2010 that medical and rehabilitation services are free for Nagorno-Karabakh war invalids and mine/ERW survivors.[17] Also in 2010, regional centers on rehabilitation of persons with disabilities were opened in Naftalan, Yevlakh, and Khachmaz, making 14 regional rehabilitation centers in total.[18] National legislation prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities, but there was discrimination in employment and most buildings were not accessible.[19]
Azerbaijan ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol on 28 January 2009.
[1] Email from Imran Safaraliyev, Mine Victim Assistance Officer, ANAMA, 7 February 2011; and ANAMA “Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action 2011,” Baku, 2011, p. 7.
[2] ICBL, Landmine Monitor 2010 (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, October 2010), www.the-monitor.org.
[3] Email from Hafiz Safikhanov, Director, AzCBL, 17 January 2011.
[4] ICBL, Landmine Monitor 2010 (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, October 2010), www.the-monitor.org.
[5] Ibid.
[6] See “More NKR cease-fire violations: At least two dead after latest fighting,” Armenia Now, 6 September 2011, www.armenianow.com. These casualties could not be verified and were not added to the annual total.
[7] ANAMA, “Monthly Report January 2011,” p. 3, www.anama.gov.az.
[8] ANAMA, “Mine Victim Assistance, one of the pillars of the Humanitarian Mine Action,” www.anama.gov.az. The total was calculated by ANAMA through victim assistance projects and cross checking of the casualty database, and includes the four survivors identified in 2010.
[9] Interviews with Imran Safaraliyev, ANAMA, 28 February 2011.
[10] ANAMA “Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action 2011,” Baku, 2011, p. 28.
[11] ANAMA, “Mine Victim Assistance, one of the pillars of the Humanitarian Mine Action,” www.anama.gov.az; and interview with Imran Safaraliyev, ANAMA, 28 February 2011.
[12] Interview with Hadi Rajabli, Chairperson, Milli Majlis (Parliament) Commission on Social Policy, Baku, 25 March 2011.
[13] Interview with Fuzuli Alakbarov, Minister of Labor and Social Protection of Population, AzTV, Baku, 21 January 2010; interview with Seadet Mahmudova, Head Physician, Rehabilitation Center of Invalids of the Republic, Baku, 16 March 2011, interview with Hadi Rajabli, Parliament Commission on Social Policy, Baku, 25 March 2011; interview with Shamsaddin Hudaverdiyev, Head Doctor, Prosthetic Orthopedic Rehabilitation Center, Baku, 30 March 2011; telephone interview with Mubariz Rustamli, Head of Center, Nakhchivan Prosthetic and Orthopedic Rehabilitation Center, 30 March 2011; interview with Ilham Bagirov, Director, Prosthetic Orthopedic Rehabilitation Center, Baku, 30 March 2011; “Ilham Aliyev attended the commissioning of a residential building for Karabakh war invalids and martyrs’ families,” 24 December 2010, president.az; telephone interviews with Imran Safaraliyev, ANAMA, 04 April 2011 and 28 February 2011; ANAMA “Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action 2011,” Baku, 2011, p. 28; ANAMA “Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action 2011,” Baku, 2011, p. 28; email to AzCBL from Bayram Valiyev, Weapon Contamination Advisor, AzRCS, 11 March 2011; and ITF, “Annual Report 2010,” Ljubljana, 2011.
[14] Telephone interviews with Imran Safaraliyev, ANAMA, 4 April 2011.
[15] Interviews with Seadet Mahmudova, Rehabilitation Center of Invalids of the Republic, Baku, 16 March 2011; and interviews with Shamsaddin Hudaverdiyev, Prosthetic Orthopedic Rehabilitation Center, Baku, 30 March 2011.
[16] Interview with Hadi Rajabli, Parliament Commission on Social Policy, Baku, 25 March 2011.
[17] Speech by Elnur Sultanov, Chief, International Cooperation Department, MLSPP, Khazar TV, 27 February 2010.
[18] “Ilham Aliyev attended the commissioning of a residential building for Karabakh war invalids and martyrs’ families,” 24 December 2010, president.az.
[19] US Department of State, “2010 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Azerbaijan,” Washington, DC, 8 April 2011.
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