On 11 August 1998,
Jordan signed the Mine Ban Treaty, and subsequently ratified on 13 November
1998. It was only the third nation in the Middle East to sign and ratify. Jordan
was an active participant in the treaty’s preparatory meetings, endorsed
the pro-ban treaty Brussels Declaration in June 1997 and participated fully in
the Oslo negotiations. It voted in favor of the pro-ban 1996 UN General Assembly
resolution, and the pro-treaty 1997 UNGA resolution. Yet it did not sign the
treaty when it opened for signature in Ottawa in December 1997. At the treaty
signing, Jordan’s Ambassador to Canada Samir Khalifeh stated, “We
unfortunately will not be able to sign the Convention at this stage, but we
believe that, in time, as the Middle East achieves greater stability, through
the establishment of a comprehensive and just peace, we will be better placed to
sign this noble
document.”[1] The
Ambassador added that Jordan was already working to fulfill the spirit of the
treaty through its demining efforts.
On 11 July 1998, in Amman, Her Majesty Queen Noor told the opening session of
the First Middle East Conference on Landmine Injury and Rehabilitation, “I
would like to begin by announcing with great pride and hope that as of this
morning the Jordanian cabinet has approved the signature of the Ottawa
Convention.”[2] It
formally signed one month later. Jordan and Her Majesty Queen Noor have emerged
as the most visible proponents of a landmine ban in the region.
Jordan has yet to enact domestic implementation legislation, and it does not
appear that the Parliament has considered the issue.
Jordan is not a party to the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons.
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling, Use
According to the Commander of the Royal Corps of
Engineers, Jordan is not an antipersonnel landmine producing
country,[3] and there is no
evidence that Jordan has ever produced. Likewise, Jordan is not known to have
ever exported antipersonnel mines. Her Majesty Queen Noor told the July
Landmine Conference, “Jordan...has never and will never export”
antipersonnel mines.[4]
Jordan has imported mines in the past. The United States supplied 35,972
antipersonnel mines from 1973-1975, including 29,970 non-detectable M14 blast
mines, and 6,002 M18A1 Claymore
mines.[5] Jordan has also
imported mines from Belgium (PRB M35) and the UK (No. 3 and No. 5 AP
mines),[6] but details are not
available.
Jordan maintains a stockpile of antipersonnel mines, but details on the size
and composition are unknown.
The Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) has previously used a variety of landmines
manufactured in Belgium, UK and the United States for defensive purposes.
According to a United Nations survey, Jordan has laid minefields using antitank
mines of M-15 (US), M-19 (US), No. 6 (UK), and SACI (unknown) types, as well as
antipersonnel mines of M-14 (US), No. 3 (UK), No. 5 (UK) and PRB M35 (Belgium)
types.[7]
According to the Commander of the Royal Jordanian Corps of Engineers, Jordan
has not laid new mine fields since
1973.[8]
Landmine Problem
Jordan is considered one of the most landmine-affected countries in the
Middle East.[9] Estimates of
the number of planted landmines vary. One document obtained from the Corps of
Engineers, dated February 1999, puts the number of planted landmines at
303,431.[10] A recent press
report published in the Jordan Times on 31 January 1999 puts the number
of planted landmines at
216,000.[11] A 1998 U.S. State
Department report cites a U.N. estimate of
206,193.[12]
A recent United Nations report found a total of 492 minefields in Jordan,
mainly in the Jordan Valley and the Northern front, along the borders with
Israel and Syria. Most of these fields date from the Arab-Israeli conflict in
1967.[13] Mines were also
laid by Israel in the Wadi Araba area; according to a document prepared by the
Royal Corps of Engineers, Israel laid a total of 66,219
landmines.[14]
A document obtained from the JAF reveals that approximately 15,000 hectares
remain mined.[15] In a recent
speech Her Majesty Queen Noor said that “about ten percent of our
population lives in areas still dangerous and economically unproductive because
of landmines. Scarce agricultural lands and some of the most beautiful and
sacred landscapes in Jordan, especially in the Jordan River Valley, remain
scarred and forbidden because of the danger of
mines.”[16]
One problem, highlighted by UNICEF Mines Focal Point Coordinator Tehnaz
Dastoor, is that “landmines in Jordan are transferred to populated areas
by floods, by animals...or by children or adults who remove signs delineating
mine fields.”[17]
Mine Action Funding
Nations that have supported Jordan’s
demining program include Norway, the United States, and Canada. Last year,
Norway contributed $1 million worth of demining equipment to
Jordan.[18] The U.S. provided
$1.2 million from 1996-1998, and pledged another $2.7 million in early
1999.[19]
On 23 February 1999, Her Majesty Queen Noor received Norwegian Prime Minister
Kjell Magne Bondevik at Bab Al Salam Palace. The Queen and the Prime Minister
discussed Norwegian cooperation for demining in Jordan. As a result of this
meeting Norway has promised to provide Jordan with a new mine clearance
machine.[20]
Mine Clearance
In December 1997, the Permanent Mission of the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United Nations submitted a request to the
Mine Action Service (UNMAS) for either financial or material support of the mine
clearance program.[21] The
request included a list of items ranging from protective equipment and metal
detectors, to large mine clearance machines An assessment mission was conducted
in Jordan by UNMAS in January 1999.
The first phase of a three-phase operation to clear Jordan of landmines began
on 15 March 1993, in accordance with King Hussein’s objective to have all
mines removed from the country by the year
2000.[22] According to the
estimation of retired General Muhammad Ma’ayteh, a former commander of the
Corps of Engineers, Jordan will have to spend close to $100 million to complete
this operation.[23] Phase 1,
completed in March 1995, cleared thirty minefields containing over 14,000 mines
releasing more than 3 million square meters for cultivation. Phase 2 commenced
in May 1995. The operation has cleared 58 minefields releasing 4 million square
meters of land for
cultivation.[24] In July 1997,
Her Majesty Queen Noor said the demining program in the Jordan Valley has
“cleared 146 minefields with 64,000 mines, freeing up 3,100 acres of land
for cultivation, mineral excavation and
tourism.”[25]
Mine clearance is undertaken solely by the Royal Corps of Engineers utilizing
both hand clearance and mechanical clearance techniques. Destruction and removal
activities are concentrated in three main areas: the northern border with Syria,
the Jordan Valley, and the Wadi Araba.
Mine Awareness
Military sources confirm that all mine fields and
border areas are well marked and in many cases fenced with clear “Beware
Mines” signs to alert civilians not to approach the
area.[26] The Royal Corps of
Engineers is the sole military side responsible for marking the mined areas.
General awareness campaigns were launched in the past two years via Jordanian
television and radio stations, and newspapers. The awareness campaign has been
supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Royal
Corps of Engineers, and other non-governmental organizations. According to ICRC
representatives in Jordan dissemination sessions and presentations were held
throughout the past two years for school children, teachers and the general
public in Amman and other Governorates to discuss the threat of landmines. These
sessions have been a result of collaboration between the Jordan Red Crescent
and the Ministry of Education.
Landmine Casualties
Records maintained by the JAF report that over 400
civilians have been killed and that several thousand have been injured by
mines.[27] The JAF reports that
176 military personnel have been killed by mines since 1967. Since the demining
program began in March 1993, twenty-four soldiers have been injured but none
killed.[28] Reports made public
in the local press in 1997 and the first half of 1998 referred to a minimum of
ten civilian casualties, mostly children who were killed or maimed in scattered
incidents of mine and UXO
explosions.[29] There have been
no reports in the local press of landmine casualties since the beginning of
1999.
There are two major governmenthealth care providers for landmine
victims in Jordan: the Royal Medical Services and the Ministry of Health
hospitals. The former is the main health care provider for all acting and
retired military personnel, including landmine survivors and deminers injured
while in action. It has three centers located in the cities of Amman, Eidon,
and Karak. All three centers provide surgical care, prosthetics and orthotics
services. The Ministry of Health has two centers located in Amman and Irbid
that provide both surgical, prosthetic and orthotics services to civil servants.
There are other medical clinics and smaller first aid facilities located across
the country, however, surgical help is available only in the major city
hospitals. The Ministry of Social Development runs one center for
rehabilitation and vocational training in Amman This facility provides services
to all handicapped and persons with special needs, including landmine victims.
Despite these facilities many landmine victims do not benefit from such
services. Many victims live in remote areas and others are discouraged by the
bureaucracy associated with receiving care. Those who do persist with treatment
are often unable to receive proper prosthetic treatment as a result of shortages
in parts and artificial limbs.
To help remedy this situation, Her Majesty Queen Noor announced the
introduction of the Bill of Rights for Landmine
Survivors.[31] The Bill of
Rights contains ten rights “consistent with the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and based on collective wisdom of world religions as well as in
conformity with UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for
Persons with Disabilities.” The Bill of Rights recognizes landmine
survivors right to comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation. The Bill also
recognizes the people’s right to an environment that allows freedom of
movement and transportation in a safe and secure manner. In terms of victim
support the Bill identifies the right of a victim’s family to receive all
necessary relief and support services. The Bill of Rights is, in theory, an
important step forward for landmines victims. It remains to be seen whether the
rights identified in the Bill are implemented effectively.
[1]Statement of Ambassador
Samir Khalifeh at the opening session of the Mine Ban Treaty conference in
Ottawa, December 1997.
[2]Opening speech of Her
Majesty Queen Noor at the first Middle East conference on Landmines injury and
rehabilitation, “Surviving the Scourge of Landmines” held in Amman,
Jordan, 11-12 July 1998.
[4]Opening speech of Her
Majesty Queen Noor at the first Middle East conference on Landmines injury and
rehabilitation, “Surviving the Scourge of Landmines” held in Amman,
Jordan, 11-12 July 1998.
[5]U.S. Army, Armament,
Munitions, and Chemical Command (USAMCCOM), Letter to Human Rights Watch, 25
August 1993, and attached statistical tables. In her remarks in July 1998,
Queen Noor stated that Jordan has not imported AP mines since 1974.
[6]Wolfgang Hirsch, Point
Paper: Jordan, (New York: United Nations Publications 1998), p. 7.
[7]Wolfgang Hirsch, Point
Paper: Jordan, (New York: United Nations Publications 1998), p. 7.
[8]Personal interviews
conducted in July 1998 and January 1999.
[10]Jordanian Armed Forces
official paper presented at the Arab Conference on the Dangers of Mines and
Precautionary measures, Beirut, Lebanon, 11-12 February 1999.
[11]Hind-Lara Mango,
“UNMAS endorses Jordan’s demining efforts: ‘We think that the
standards maintained by the Royal Corps of Engineers here are
exceptional,’” Jordan Times, 31 January 1999.
[12]U.S. State Department,
Hidden Killers, September 1998, p. A-2.
[14]Document obtained from
the Royal Corps of Engineers by Kamel Saadi in July 1998.
[15]Document obtained from
the Royal Corps of Engineers - July 1998, and the Jordanian Armed Forces
official paper presented at the “Arab Conference on the Dangers of Mines
and Precautionary measures,” Beirut, Lebanon, 11-12 February 1999.
[16]Opening speech of Her
Majesty Queen Noor at the first Middle East conference on Landmines injury and
rehabilitation, “Surviving the Scourge of Landmines” held in Amman,
Jordan, 11-12 July 1998.
[25]Opening speech of Her
Majesty Queen Noor at the first Middle East conference on Landmines injury and
rehabilitation, “Surviving the Scourge of Landmines” held in Amman,
Jordan, 11-12 July 1998.
[29]Jordanian weekly,
Hawadeth Al Sa’ah, 13 May 1997; Jordanian daily, Al Arab al
Yom, 19 May 1997; Al Dustour daily 25 December 1997; Al Arab Al
Yom, 26 February 1998, and 10 March 1998.
[30]Information
on landmine survivor assistance is based on a field study undertaken by Kamel
Saadi for the Landmine Survivors Network.
[31]Bill of Rights
Declaration for Landmines Survivors dated 11 July 1998.