Key developments
since May 2003: Legislation drafted in 2002 to implement the Mine Ban
Treaty domestically has still not been enacted. A contingent of 360 Salvadoran
soldiers deployed to Iraq in February 2004 included a team specially trained in
landmine and UXO disposal.
Key developments since 1999: El Salvador ratified the Mine Ban Treaty
on 27 January 1999, and the treaty entered into force on 1 July 1999. El
Salvador has not enacted national legislative measures to implement the treaty.
El Salvador submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report, due on 27
December 1999, on 31 August 2001. On 20 February 2003, El Salvador completed
destruction of its stockpiled antipersonnel mines, ahead of its treaty-mandated
deadline of 1 July 2003. In November 2001, an interagency committee on the Mine
Ban Treaty was established, with responsibility for liaising with national and
international organizations on demining and mine survivor rehabilitation.
Although El Salvador has declared itself mine-free, during field research in
September 2002, the International Demining Group identified 33 sites suspected
of being affected by unexploded ordnance.
Mine Ban Policy
El Salvador signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4
December 1997, ratified on 27 January 1999, and the treaty entered into force
for the country on 1 July 1999. In February 2002, the Foreign Minister reported
that the Interagency Committee on International Humanitarian Law (CIDIH-ES,
Comité Interinstitucional de Derecho Internacional Humanitario de El
Salvador), coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had developed draft
legislation that would penalize violations of the Mine Ban
Treaty.[1] More than a year
later, in May 2003, the Foreign Minister told the ICBL that CIDIH-ES had
prepared a proposal for reforms of national legal measures that would include
sanctions to prevent and suppress activities prohibited by the Mine Ban
Treaty.[2]
On 15 April 2004, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official told Landmine Monitor
that the draft legislation had not been passed by the Legislative Assembly and
there was no expected date for when this would take place. He stressed that El
Salvador is committed to meeting its responsibilities and promoting the goals of
the Mine Ban
Treaty.[3]
El Salvador’s support for the antipersonnel mine ban dates back to
September 1996, when its Foreign Minister endorsed a call to make Central
America mine-free. El Salvador actively participated in the Ottawa Process and
has subsequently attended every annual meeting of the States Parties, as well
most meetings of the intersessional Standing Committees, including in 2004. It
has voted in support of every annual pro-ban resolution by the United Nations
General Assembly since 1996.
El Salvador submitted its initial Article 7 report on 31 August 2001, more
than one and a half years after the treaty deadline of 27 December 1999. It has
submitted three annual updates, including on 20 April
2004.[4] In February 2002,
Landmine Monitor received an eight-page letter from the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs commenting on the El Salvador entry in Landmine Monitor Report
2001.[5]
El Salvador has not engaged in the extensive discussions that States Parties
have had on matters of interpretation and implementation related to Articles 1,
2, and 3. Thus, it has not made known its views on the issues of joint military
operations with non-States Parties, foreign stockpiling and transit of
antipersonnel mines, antivehicle mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling
devices, and the permissible number of mines retained for training.
While El Salvador is a State Party to Amended Protocol II (Landmines) of the
Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW), it did not attend the Fifth Annual
Conference of States Parties held in November 2003.
Production, Transfer and Use
El Salvador reports that it has not produced
antipersonnel mines and it has no production
facilities.[6]
El Salvador is not known to have exported antipersonnel mines, but in the past
it imported antipersonnel mines, including M-14 mines, M-26 mines, and M18A1
Claymore mines, all manufactured by the United
States.[7]
The guerrillas of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN)
made significant numbers of homemade antipersonnel mines or improvised explosive
devices during the 1980-1992 armed conflict. FMLN produced minas abanicos
[fan mines], similar to command-detonated Claymore mines; minas de
chuchitos [clothespin mines] and minas de pateos [foot remover
mines].[8]
Both the government and FMLN forces made extensive use of antipersonnel
landmines throughout the conflict. In the mid-1980s the FMLN began to heavily
rely on landmines in order to deter counterinsurgency sweeps through
guerrilla-held territory. It is estimated that at the end of the war in 1992,
there were 20,000 landmines in 425 mine fields that covered 436 square
kilometers.[9]
Stockpiling and Destruction
El Salvador completed destruction of its stockpile
of 6,539 antipersonnel mines on 20 February 2003, six months ahead of its
treaty-mandated deadline of 1 July 2003.
A total of 5,248 mines were destroyed on 20 February 2003 (4,759 M-14 mines
and 489 M-18 mines) in an event at La Hacienda El Ángel II, Tapalhuaca,
in the department of La
Paz.[10] General
Álvaro Rivera Alemán, the Vice-Minister of Defense, General
Héctor Gutiérrez of the Chiefs of Staff, and other high-ranking
officials and members of the media witnessed the
event.[11]
It appears that the stockpile destroyed consisted of mines that had been cleared
after the peace
accords.[12]
At the destruction ceremony, the Army reportedly stated that the mines were
obtained from mine clearance operations by the Belgian company International
Danger Disaster Assistance (IDAS) between March 1993 and January
1994.[13]
Another 1,291 antipersonnel mines were destroyed between June 2000 and August
2001, including 64 M-14 mines and a previously unreported 1,227 M-18 Claymore
mines.[14]
El Salvador had previously reported that in the period from March 1993
through 1994, the Division of Arms and Explosives (DAE, División de Armas
y Explosivos) of the National Civilian Police (PNC, Policía Nacional
Civil) had destroyed all remaining antipersonnel mines stockpiled by the Armed
Forces of El Salvador. It reported this destruction to the Secretary General of
the Organization of American States (OAS) in April 1997.
In May 2001, however, Landmine Monitor received a detailed response from the
Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Salvadoran Armed Forces which reported
that El Salvador had a stockpile of 5,657 antipersonnel landmines, including
4,937 M-14 and 720 M-26 antipersonnel mines, stockpiled in different parts of
the
country.[15]
In March 2003, El Salvador reported that it would retain 96 antipersonnel
mines (50 M-14 and 46 M-26 mines) for training and development, as permitted by
Article 3 of the
treaty.[16]
These mines were transferred from the Logistics Support Command to the Armed
Forces Engineer
Command.[17]
In the past concerns have been expressed that some stockpiled mines could
exist outside of government control, in the hands of bandits or in abandoned
weapons cachés, called
tatús.[18]
Following a May 2000 explosion at a munitions storage site at the Special
Brigade of Military Security (BESM) in a residential zone of the capital San
Salvador, military spokesmen told media that the arsenal at BESM included
landmines.
Landmine and UXO Problem
Since 1994, Salvadoran representatives have
repeatedly stated that the country is “mine-free.” At Standing
Committee meetings held in February 2003, El Salvador stated, “We
celebrate the news that Costa Rica has been declared mine-free, and thus joins
El Salvador as a mine-free country in the Central American region. I remind you
that my country was declared and certified as mine-free in 1994 by the UN,
following completion of the National Demining Plan carried out by the Armed
Forces, FMLN, ONUSAL, UNICEF, with the services of the Belgian company IDAS.
Though there have been some isolated accidents since 1994, these have involved
UXO, many of them
homemade.”[19]
At an OAS Special Security Conference in México in October 2003, the
Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs restated that El Salvador had both received OAS
certification for national demining and destroyed its stockpiles in accordance
with the Mine Ban
Treaty.[20]
In its Article 7 reports submitted in 2003 and 2004, El Salvador states that
it was declared “97 percent” mine-free following the completion of
the National Demining Plan in
1994.[21]
Questions about El Salvador’s mine free status arose in 2001, when a
UK-based mine clearance group, the International Demining Group (IDG), and its
Salvadoran NGO partner, the Foundation for Cooperation and Community Development
of El Salvador (CORDES, Fundación para la Cooperación y el
Desarrollo Comunal de El Salvador), identified approximately 150 square
kilometers of land for consideration for survey and/or demining operations in
the departments of Chalatenango, Cabañas, Cuscatlán and
Usulután. This included 53 previously unknown or unrecorded mine and
unexploded ordnance (UXO)
locations.[22]
In May 2001, a national media report on the issue noted that several departments
were still at risk from landmines and UXO, including San Salvador,
Cabañas, San Vicente, Usulatán, Morazán, and
Chalatenango.[23]
In May 2001, the Chief of the Arms and Explosives Division of the PNC,
Sub-Commissioner Hugo Salinas, told media that while he was convinced that the
country was mine-free, he accepted there were isolated cases of antipersonnel
mines and UXO found. The DAE kept a list of landmines and UXO reported and
destroyed. In 2000, reportedly 575 UXO were gathered, of which 177 were
destroyed and 298 deposited in stockpiles for future
destruction.[24]
The IDG described the UXO problem in rural areas as a significant
issue.[25]
IDG believes the March 1993-January 1994 clearance operation lacked accurate
information on the number and configuration of mined areas. In addition,
Hurricane Mitch in late 1998 and the severe earthquakes in January and February
2001 may have caused the dispersal and dislodgment of UXO and
landmines.[26]
IDG carried out further field research in September 2002, in cooperation with
local
authorities.[27]
It identified 33 suspected UXO-affected sites in the department of Chalatenango,
in the Guazapa Volcano area (department of San Salvador), and in the Cinquera
region (department of
Cabañas).[28]
The majority of UXO found were fragmentation hand grenades, 51mm and 88mm
grenades, and M79
grenades.[29]
Representatives of local NGOs and municipal government have told Landmine
Monitor that UXO contamination in rural areas remains a problem, but that the
civilian population is at relatively “low
risk.”[30] In May 2004,
Oscar Chavez Valiente, the Secretary General of the National Civilian Police
provided detailed information about some of the regions that are affected by UXO
and about recent UXO
accidents.[31]
A considerable and growing problem is related to gang members fabricating or
aquiring grenades and other explosive devices and using them in both
gang-related incidents and in crimes against the public. The increased use of
military weapons in gang warfare is creating new UXO problems in El
Salvador.[32]
Mine Action Coordination, Planning, and Clearance
In November 2001, an Interagency Committee on the Ottawa Convention
[Comité Nacional Intersectorial para el seguimiento de la
Convención de Ottawa] was established, with representatives of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense and the National Civilian
Police.[33] The Salvadoran
Institute for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled [ISRI, Instituto
Salvadoreño de Rehabilitación de Inválidos] was added to
the committee in
2002.[34]
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the committee is the official body
charged with liaising with national and international organizations on demining
and mine survivor
rehabilitation.[35]
The Ministry of Defense
and the Division of Arms and Explosives of the National Civilian Police are the
authorized national institutions responsible for clearance of any mines and
UXO.[36]
According to Oscar Chavez Valiente, the PNC has five teams, trained to respond
to calls from the public to clear UXO and other explosives, one for each
region.[37]
In November 2001 , an Army representative told Landmine Monitor that after
the war the Army had cleared all mines from around military bases and vital
economic centers, destroying a total of 8,590
mines.[38] In February 2002
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maria Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila provided
Landmine Monitor with detailed information on the March 1993-January 1994
clearance operation, information that had not been previously
available.[39]
In October 2001, the Army carried out clearance operations in
Cuscatlán following reports by Doctors Without Borders that local
inhabitants could not use the land because of the presence of mines. The Army
cleared an area of 30 blocks (manzanas) over a two-month period, but did not
find mines or UXO.[40]
Since 1997, El Salvador has contributed 20 military mine action supervisors
to the MARMINCA mine clearance efforts by the OAS in Central America, including
four supervisors in 2002, and four more in 2003, to Honduras and Nicaragua. El
Salvador also provided two military personnel to the UN mission in Kuwait
(UNIKOM).[41]
In December 2001, El Salvador presented a list of 21 mine clearance experts
from the Armed Forces to the UN Department of Disarmament Affairs in response to
a request from the UN Secretary General regarding Article 8 (9) of the Mine Ban
Treaty. These are individuals that could participate in any future fact-finding
mission carried out under Article 8 (Facilitation and Clarification of
Compliance).[42]
A contingent of 360 Salvadoran soldiers from the Cuscatlán Battalion
served with the Spanish-led “Plus Ultra” Brigade at Camp Baker in
Nayaf, in southern Iraq from August 2003 to February 2004. They were then
replaced by a second contingent of 380 troops. The first contingent had little
involvement with humanitarian demining, while the second contingent included a
team specially trained in landmines and UXO
disposal.[43]
Mine/UXO Risk Education
In 2003, the National Civilian Police and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
stated that there is no need for risk education campaigns in El Salvador because
the country is considered 97 percent free of
mines.[44]
In its 2003 Article 7 report, El Salvador again stated, “not
applicable” with respect to measures adopted to warn the
population.[45] While no formal programs currently exist, the National Civilian Police is
mandated to provide risk education
programs.[46]
In July 2003, IDG stated that risk education was “an urgent
requirement.”[47]
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official acknowledged to Landmine Monitor that the
local population was not informed or qualified to take action upon coming into
contact with
UXO.[48] In April
2004, the official restated that it is important to develop risk education
programming in areas that may be affected by
UXO.[49]
Landmine/UXO Casualties
In 2003, El Salvador reported no new landmine casualties. The last confirmed
report of mine casualties was in
1994.[50] However, Landmine
Monitor was told that landmines or UXO caused 25 casualties in 2000, and
mine/UXO incidents, though seen as isolated cases, were in fact
frequent.[51] El Salvador
continues to have a problem with UXO with several casualties reported since
1999.[52]
Although there are no confirmed reports of recent casualties, El Salvador
does reportedly have a significant number of mine survivors as a result of the
armed conflict in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1986, landmines caused between
64 and 125 military and 19 to 25 civilian casualties per month. The San
Salvador hospital alone reported treating 1,006 military mine casualties in the
first eight months of 1986.[53]
In 1992, at least 576 people were injured by landmines and UXO, in 107 separate
incidents.[54]
In February 2003, Salvadoran representative Dr. Martínez
Panameño, told Landmine Monitor there were approximately 3,700 landmine
survivors in El Salvador, including amputees, and blind and deaf
persons.[55] In February 2004,
El Salvador reported that there could be over 9,700 landmine casualties from the
conflict, and these individuals are now in the economically-productive age group
of between 25 and 40.[56]
Landmine Monitor has not been able to confirm these numbers.
Survivor Assistance
In El Salvador, persons with disabilities, including landmine survivors, are
treated within the regular healthcare
system.[57] However, the
national healthcare system reportedly does not have the infrastructure or
resources to adequately address the needs of persons with
disabilities.[58] In poor urban
areas, and particularly in rural areas, access to medical care and
rehabilitation is limited. Only four departments in El Salvador (San Miguel,
San Salvador, Santa Ana and La Libertad) have rehabilitation facilities for
people with disabilities. In rural areas access to rehabilitation programs is
almost non-existent.[59] In
addition, there is a lack of psychological support services to address the needs
of war-affected people.[60]
El Salvador has initiated a program of decentralization of health services,
establishing 28 centers of integrated basic healthcare services (SIBASIS,
Servicios Básicos de Salud Integral). With the support of the
Canada-México-PAHO tripartite project, rehabilitation services are
available at six of the 28 SIBASIS. In May 2003, it was reported that a
technology transfer and decentralization of rehabilitation services agreement
was sought with Canada, in order to bring services to an additional two
SIBASIS.[61]
The Center for Professional Rehabilitation of the Armed Forces (CERPROFA,
Centro de Rehabilitación Profesional de la Fuerza Armada) assists
military and former Salvadoran army personnel. CERPROFA assists about 400 people
annually with the production of prostheses and orthoses, and provides clinical
care and skills
training.[62]
The Salvadoran Institute for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled (ISRI)
provides rehabilitation services to persons with disabilities in eleven
healthcare centers with specialized medical and technical
personnel.[63]
The Association of the Organization of Disabled of El Salvador (PODES,
Asociación Promotora de la Organización de Discapacitados de El
Salvador) has been producing prosthetic and orthotic devices since 1993. Between
1993 and April 2004, PODES assisted 1,909 people, including 658 landmine
survivors, with 2,050 prostheses or orthoses and 2,962 repairs; 282 were
assisted in 2003, and 67 in early 2004. In 2003, PODES also assisted 100
war-injured from Guatemala, with the financial assistance of the Guatemalan NGO
Transiciones. PODES has five small rehabilitation workshops across the country
but does not have funding to maintain these services. PODES is supported by
Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) and Medico International. VVAF
also provides technical support and
training.[64]
In 2003, a new orthopedic workshop was constructed at the Santiago de
María Hospital, with assistance from the Reconstruction after the
Earthquakes Project (El Proyecto de Reconstrucción después de los
Terremotos - RETOS/GTZ El
Salvador).[65]
The Association of War Wounded of El Salvador (ALGES, Asociación de
Lisiados de Guerra de El Salvador), formed in 1997, has 5,823 members and works
in all 14 departments of El Salvador. ALGES has 120 employees, including 20
community health workers and eight physiotherapists and social workers. In
2003, ALGES provided capacity building for local representatives, medical care
and rehabilitation in ALGES health centers, and assisted 114 people with
vocational training and the development of 21 small
businesses.[66]
Landmine Survivors Network (LSN) began work in El Salvador in June 2001. LSN
has four community-based outreach workers in San Salvador and one in La Libertad
department; all are mine survivors. LSN works with individual survivors to
assess their needs, offer psychological and social support, educates families
about the effects of limb loss, and facilitates access to medical rehabilitation
and vocational training, and other assistance. If none exist, in some cases
LSN provides direct assistance including covering the cost of prostheses, house
repairs or emergency food aid. LSN assisted 165 people in 2003, including 115
landmine survivors: 100 were assisted in 2002 (60 mine survivors); 46 in 2001
(19 mine survivors); and 55 (33 mine survivors) to March 2004. LSN facilitated
31 vocational training sessions, assisted 34 survivors with small businesses,
and provided in-kind assistance, in the form of materials and tools, for
starting small businesses and home repairs. LSN also establishes social support
groups tracks survivors’ progress toward recovery and reintegration. LSN
also developed a national services directory used to link survivors to
rehabilitation services.[67]
The Salvadoran Center for Appropriate Technology (CESTA, Centro
Salvadoreño de Tecnología Apropiada) raises awareness on
disability issues, provides micro-enterprise development support, operates a
bicycle repair workshop run by people with disabilities, and maintains a
workshop with the capacity to build specialized bicycles and wheelchairs for
persons with
disabilities.[68]
The Association of War Wounded of the Armed Forces (ALFAES, Asociacion de
Lisiados de la Fuerza Armada de El Salvador) provides rehabilitation and
economic assistence to El Salvador army veterans; it has 1,700 members in 13
departments. In 2003, 216 members received financial credits to start small
businesses and for home repairs. ALFAES has a small prosthetic workshop which,
due to a lack of funding, is not
operational.[69]
The four-year Canada-México-PAHO tripartite project “Care for
victims of AP mines in Central America” concluded in El Salvador in March
2003. The project included training for community-based rehabilitation
personnel including physiotherapists and prosthetic technicians, raised
awareness on disability issues, and developed a plan of action and provided
training on the socio-economic reintegration of persons with disabilities. At
least 261 people received prosthetic or orthotic devices free-of-charge during
the project.[70]
Other organizations providing services that have also benefited landmine
survivors include: Handicap International; Telethon Foundation
Pro-Rehabilitation (FUNTER) which provides an advisory service for small
businesses; Nuevo Mundo and the governmental Division of Special Education which
give scholarships to the disabled; the Centro de Orientación Familiar y
Comunitaria (Family and Community Orientation Center) which offers
micro-credits; the US Agency for International Development runs six micro-credit
programs in El Salvador; and the Ministry of Labor in Santa Ana has employment
programs that are open to persons with disabilities. Vocational training has
been provided by various NGOs in a diverse range of areas, including carpentry,
welding, electrical, computer skills, small business administration, organic
agriculture, and
tailoring.[71]
Several factors limit effective socio-economic reintegration initiatives
including the lack of access to basic education; lack of appropriate
transportation to facilities; lack of financial support; discrimination; lack of
awareness of the needs of persons with disabilities; lack of access due to
centralization of services; and limited support for income-generating activities
for persons with
disabilities.[72]
In June 2001, prosthetics technicians from El Salvador attended the First
Regional Conference on Victim Assistance and Technologies organized by the OAS
and the Center for International Rehabilitation (CIR), in Managua, Nicaragua.
CIR developed a Lower Extremity Distance Learning program for prosthetic
technicians in El Salvador which also includes a clinical component implemented
by a qualified prosthetic technician who provides hands-on
training.[73]
The Project for the Strengthening of Integral Rehabilitation through
Technical Orthopedics in the Central American Region (Proyecto de
Fortalecimiento de la Rehabilitación Integral a través de la
Ortopedia Técnica en la Región Centroaméricana UDB-GTZ)
provides a range of technical programs for training orthopedic technicians from
El Salvador and the region, through the Don Bosco University in San Salvador.
In 2003, at least 40 students benefited from various courses, including eleven
from El Salvador.[74]
Disability Policy and Practice
The Law for Equal Rights and Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (Ley
de equiparación de oportunidades para las personas con discapacidad),
passed in 2000, regulates the rights of persons with disabilities, including
landmine survivors, to medical and rehabilitation services, education, access to
public places, transport, communications, and vocational training and economic
reintegration.[75]
The Law for the Protection Fund of the Disabled and Wounded as a Result of
the Armed Conflict (Ley del fondo de protección de lisiados y
discapacitados a consecuencia del conflicto armado), passed in 1996, provides a
variety of benefits including medical and rehabilitation services, pensions,
subsidies and economic benefits, and vocational training and economic
reintegration programs. The Law benefits both military and civilian victims of
the conflict, including mine casualties. Landmine survivors and other
war-wounded receive pensions according to the degree of their disability. The
Fund is the governmental implementingagency for Law N° 416, the Law
to Benefit the Protection of the War Wounded and Disabled of the Armed Conflict
[Ley de Beneficio para la Protección de los Lisiados y Discapacitados a
Consecuencia del Conflicto Armado], and contracts out vocational training to
NGOs and private
business.[76]
The National Council for the Integrated Care of the Disabled [CONAIPD,
Consejo Nacional de Atención Integral a las Personas con Discapacidad] is
the official body responsible for developing policies and coordinating and
monitoring institutions and organizations working with people with disabilities
in El Salvador. CONAIPD represents eight governmental and eight non governmental
agencies, with a registry of 16,800 war-affected people. CONAIPD operates with
an annual budget of $2 million provided by the
government.[77]
El Salvador reportedly recognizes its responsibility in providing assistance
and rehabilitation to landmine survivors, in the long term, including
socio-economic
reintegration;[78] however, its
efforts are “insufficient because of a lack of resources for
rehabilitation services, technical support, vocational training and productive
integration.”[79]
It is widely believed that institutions in El Salvador are not adequately
addressing the needs of persons with disabilities in the country, that
discrimination remains a problem, and that there is a lack of political and
societal will to address the issue. Reforms of existing legislation and greater
participation of persons with disabilities in programming is reportedly needed
to bring about change.[80]
A mine survivor from El Salvador participated in the Raising the Voices
training program in 2001.
[1] Maria Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila,
Minister of Foreign Affairs of El Salvador, Report for El Salvador for 2002, 11
February 2002, p. 4. Hereinafter cited as, “Minister of Foreign Affairs
Report, 11 February 2002.” This report was prepared in response to
information in Landmine Monitor Report
2001. [2] Letter to ICBL (Elizabeth
Bernstein) from María Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila, Minister of
Foreign Affairs of El Salvador, Ref: DGPE/D.M./No. 560, 18 May
2003. [3] Telephone interview with
Francisco Gonzales, Department of Foreign Policy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
15 April 2004. In a telephone interview on 26 March 2004, Benito Lara, the
Departmental Coordinator FMLN, stated that it is difficult to know when this
legislation will be passed or if it will be passed at
all. [4] The April 2004 Report covers
the period from April 2003 to April 2004 and includes information on the
completion of stockpile destruction and a number of observations on other
aspects of mine action in point form on a separate form. Previous reports were
submitted on 4 March 2003 (for the period 1 April 2002 – 28 February
2003), 29 April 2002 (for the period 1 September 2001 – 31 March 2002),
and 31 August 2001 (for the period 1 June 2000 – 31 August
2001). [5] Minister of Foreign Affairs
Report, 11 February 2002. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
241. [6] Article 7 Report, Forms E and
H, 4 March 2003. [7] The US State
Department reported that from 1982-1990, the US provided El Salvador 4,410
M-14s, 720 M-24s, and 47,244 M18A1s. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
242. [8] See Landmine Monitor Report
1999, p. 245. [9] For more
information, see Landmine Monitor Report 1999, p.
246. [10] Jesús Corvera,
“Destruyen más de 5 mil minas,” El Diario de Hoy (San
Salvador), 21 February 2003; David Marroquín, “Destruyen 5 mil
minas antipersonales,” La Prensa Gráfica (San Salvador), 21
February 2003; Article 7 Report, Form A, D and F, 4 March 2003; intervention by
El Salvador, Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 15 May
2003. [11] “Destruyen más
de 5 mil minas,” El Diario de Hoy, 21 February
2003. [12] Presentation by Dr.
José Rolando Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on
Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, 13 May
2003. [13] “Destruyen más
de 5 mil minas,” El Diario de Hoy, 21 February 2003. In an intervention at
the May 2003 Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, the representative of
El Salvador made a detailed presentation on the destruction process: “The
mines were placed in metal barrels in pits 1.2 meters deep, and detonated using
electronic initiators.” According to the March 2003 Article 7 report,
rules established by the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources were
followed. Article 7 Report, Form F, 4 March
2003. [14] Article 7 Report, Form D, 4
March 2003; “Informe Ejecutivo, Finalización del Plan de
Destrucción de Minas en Arsenal por la Fuerza Armada de El
Salvador,” undated document provided to Landmine Monitor in March 2003. In
comparing numbers in the 2001, 2002, and 2003 Article 7 reports, it appears that
El Salvador reported on the destruction of 64 M-14 mines twice, both in August
2001 and in April 2002. [15] Response
to Landmine Monitor Qestionnaire by Gen. Alvaro Antonio Calderón Hurtado,
Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Salvadoran Armed Forces, 8 May 2001.
See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 242, for details on discrepancies in
stockpile reporting by El Salvador in August 2001 and April
2002. [16] Article 7 Report, Form B
and D, 4 March 2003. [17] Article 7
Report, Form D, 4 March 2003. [18] See
Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p.
336-337. [19] Intervention by El
Salvador, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine
Action Technologies, 5 February
2003. [20] Statement by the Vice
Minister of Foreign Affairs, OAS Special Security Conference, México, 28
October 2003. [21] Article 7 Report,
Form C, 4 March 2003. The report also states, “There are no minefields in
El Salvador.” Article 7 Report, Forms F and G, 4 March
2003. [22] Verification was
accomplished by breaching the suspected areas, then detecting, neutralizing and
recovering mines. According to IDG, during these investigations, antipersonnel
mines, booby-traps, hand grenades, mortar rounds and a rocket were cleared. All
of these were in operational or “live” condition. Within every
location investigated, mines and UXO were recovered. International Demining
Group, “El Salvador: This Hard Land,” London, May 2001, available at
www.demininggroup.org . See also,
Graeme Goldsworthy and Dr. Frank Faulkner, “This Hard Land: A Renewal of
Humanitarian Mine Action in El Salvador,” in “Landmines in Central
& South America,” Journal of Mine Action, Issue 5.2, Summer 2001, pp.
22-23. [23] Ana Lidia Rivera,
“La muerte a flor de tierra,” Vértice, El Diario de Hoy (San
Salvador), 20 May 2001. The lengthy article appeared in the weekly magazine of
the newspaper. [24]
Ibid. [25] IDG, “El Salvador:
This Hard Land,” May 2001. [26]
Ibid. [27] Interview with Tania
Góchez, IDG, San Salvador, 28 January
2003. [28] IDG, “Pilot Program
for a Level I and II Survey on Humanitarian Mine Action,” 2003, p.
7. [29] Interview with Tania
Góchez, IDG, 28 January
2003. [30] Telephone interview with
Ernesto Morales, Coordinator, CORDES Chalatanango, 26 March 2004; interview with
José Leonidas Argueta Rolda, Executive Director, PODES, San Salvador, 29
March 2004. [31] Interview with Oscar
Chávez Valiente, Secretary General, PNC, San Salvador, 18 May
2004. [32] Interview with Jesús
Martínez, Landmine Survivors Network (LSN) El Salvador, 25 March 2004;
Abbey Alvarenga, “Detonan granada en centro de menores ,” El Diario
de Hoy, 20 January 2004; Abbey Alvarenga, “NC detiene a ex cabo por
amenazas con explosivos,” El Diario de Hoy, 26 November
2003. [33] See Landmine Monitor Report
2002, p. 241. [34] Interview with
Francisco Gonzales, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 27 January
2003. [35] Minister of Foreign Affairs
Report, 11 February 2002, p. 4. [36]
Ibid, p. 1. [37] Interview with Oscar
Chávez Valiente, Secretary General, PNC, San Salvador, 17 May
2004. [38] See Landmine Monitor Report
2001, p. 339. [39] Minister of Foreign
Affairs Report, 11 February 2002. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
243-245. [40] Minister of Foreign
Affairs Report, 11 February 2002, p.
6. [41] Telephone interview with
Francisco Gonzales, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 27 March
2003. [42] Minister of Foreign Affairs
Report, 11 February 2002, p. 6. [43]
Jaime García, “Habrá 740 soldados destacados,” El
Diario de Hoy, 19 December 2003. [44]
Interview with Luis Fernando Repreza Aguilar, Commissioner, Division of Arms and
Explosives, San Salvador, 28 January 2003; telephone interview with Francisco
Gonzales, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 27 March
2003. [45] Article 7 Report, Form I, 4
March 2003. [46] Interview with Luis
Fernando Repreza Aguilar, Division of Arms and Explosives, 28 January
2003. [47] Email from Graeme
Goldsworthy, Director, IDG, 11 July
2003. [48] Telephone interview with
Francisco Gonzales, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 27 March
2003. [49] Ibid, 15 April
2004. [50] ICRC, “Antipersonnel
Mines in Central America: Conflict and post-conflict,” Geneva, January
1996, p. 14. [51] Interview with
Deputy Pablo Parada Andino, Legislative Assembly, San Salvador, 28 May 2001; and
email from Jesús Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 23 July
2001. [52] For details see Landmine
Monitor Report 2001, pp. 340-341; and Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
246. [53] Americas Watch,
“Landmines in El Salvador and Nicaragua: The Civilian Victims,”
December 1986, pp. 22-23. [54] UNICEF,
“Clearing the Minefields: A Step Towards Peace,” May 1995, p.
13. [55] Interview with Dr.
José Rolando Martínez Panameño, Geneva, 6 February
2003. [56] Mario Castro Grande,
Minister Counselor, Permanent Mission of El Salvador to the UN in Geneva,
Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 12 February
2004. [57] Telephone interview with
Dr. José Rolando Martínez Panameño, Director, ISRI, 26
March 2004. [58] “Al
Tope,” ALGES, Publication #15, December
2003. [59] Camila Calles,
“Discapacitados rurales sin acceso a la salud,” La Prensa
Gráfica (San Salvador), 5 December 2003; US Department of State,
“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: El Salvador 2003,”
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, US Department of State,
Washington, 25 February 2004; for more details see Landmine Survivors
Rehabilitation Database – El Salvador, available at www.lsndatabase.org. [60]
Interview with Maricio Salazar Torres, Psychiatrist, Fondo de Protección
de Lisiados y Discapacitados a Consecuencia del Conflicto Armado, 30 March
2004. [61] Telephone interview with
Francisco Gonzales, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2003; Presentation by
Dr. Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance,
Geneva, 13 May 2003. [62] Interview
with Rebecca Chavarria, Administrative Coordinator, CERPROFA, San Salvador, 1
April 2004. [63] Email from Dr.
José Rolando Martínez Panameño, Director, ISRI, 6 June
2003. [64] Interview with José
Leonidas Argueta Rolda, PODES, 29 March 2004; email from José Leonidas
Argueta Rolda, PODES, 30 March 2004; and email to Landmine Monitor (HRW) from
William Brown, Deputy for Administration, VVAF, 23 July,
2001. [65] Año 3 - No. 5
– Mayo 2003,” Proyecto Regional de Ortopedia Técnica San
Salvador, El Salvador. [66] Interview
Michael (Paco) Rleutgeus, Consultant, ALGES, San Salvador, 31 March 2004; and
“Al Tope,” ALGES, Publication #15, December
2003. [67] Interview with Jesús
Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 25 March 2004; Response to LM Questionnaire by
Jesús Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 27 February 2004; email from
Michelle Hecker, Country Officer, LSN, 29 July 2003; Presentation by
Jesús Martínez, Regional Seminar on Antipersonnel Landmine
Victims, Bogotá, Colombia, 13 November 2003; email from Jesús
Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 4 February 2003; Response to LM questionnaire
by Berta Alicia Flores, Social Worker, LSN El Salvador, 13 March
2002. [68] Interview with Silvia
Quiroa Yada, Coordinator of Program Evaluation and Monitoring, CESTA, San
Marcos, 1 April 2004. [69] Interview
with Juan Pablo Bonilla Rodríguez, Vice-President, ALFAES, 30 March
2004. [70] Presentation by Dr.
Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 13 May
2003; and “Seminario-Conferencia del Cierre de la Iniciative Tripartita
México-Canada-OPS,” Memoria: Planificando para un Futuro Integrado,
Organizacion Panamericana de la Salud, Managua, Nicaragua,
2003. [71] Interview with Leonel
Garcia Benitez, Mental Health and Productive Reintegration Coordinator, Fondo de
Protección de Lisiados y Discapacitados a Consecuencia del Conflicto
Armado, 30 March 2004. [72] Interview
with Jesús Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 25 March 2004; interview
with Lourdes Barrera de Morales, Executive Secretary, CONAIPD, San Salvador, 31
March 2004; Margarita Sánchez, “Hay baja escolaridad entre
discapacitados,” El Diario de Hoy, 29 November 2003; Presentation by
Jesús Martínez, Bogotá, 13 November
2003. [73] “Ayudarán
más víctimas de minas antipersonales,” El Nuevo Diario
(Managua), 19 June 2001; and ICBL, “Portfolio of Landmine Victim
Assistance Programs,” available at www.landminevap.org. [74]
Año 3 - No. 5 – Mayo 2003 Proyecto Regional de Ortopedia
Técnica San Salvador, El
Salvador. [75] Presentation by Dr.
Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and
Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 4 February
2003. [76] Interview with Maricio
Salazar Torres, Psychiatrist, Fondo de Protección de Lisiados y
Discapacitados a Consecuencia del Conflicto Armado, 30 March 2004; interview
with Leonel Garcia Benitez, Mental Health and Productive Reintegration
Coordinator, Fondo de Protección, 30 March 2004; Presentation by Dr.
Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 4
February 2003. [77] Interview with
Lourdes Barrera de Morales, CONAIPD, 31 March
2004. [78] Presentation by El
Salvador, Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, 15 May
2003. [79] Presentation by Dr.
Martínez Panameño, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 13 May
2003. [80] Ena Rivas,
“Día agridulce en honor de la persona con discapacidad,” La
Prensa Gráfica, 4 December 2003; interview with José Leonidas
Argueta Rolda, PODES, 29 March 2004; interview with Jesús
Martínez, LSN El Salvador, 25 March 2004; interview with Lourdes Barrera
de Morales, CONAIPD, 31 March 2004; interview with Jesús Avalos Escobar,
Executive Secretary, ALGES, San Salvador, 31 March 2004; “Al Tope,”
ALGES, Publication #16, March 2004; and US Department of State, “Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices: El Salvador 003,” Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights, and Labor, US Department of State, Washington, DC, 25 February
2004.
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