Key developments
since March 1999: In 1999, the government appointed a Mine Action Taskforce
to formulate an action plan that includes surveys of mine-affected zones, mine
awareness, and victim assistance. The U.S. is funding mine action in Djibouti.
Djibouti has not submitted its Article 7 report due by 27 August 1999. Rebel
forces used antitank mines in 1999 and early 2000, resulting in 69 new mine
victims. In November 1999 the French military stationed in Djibouti destroyed
its stockpile of 2,444 antipersonnel landmines.
Mine Ban Policy
Djibouti signed the Mine Ban Treaty (MBT) on 3
December 1997 and ratified it on 18 May 1998. Djibouti has not enacted domestic
implementation legislation. It has not submitted its Article 7 transparency
report, which was due by 27 August 1999. Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials
told Landmine Monitor in February 2000 that they were waiting for a progress
report from the Ministry of
Defense.[1]
Djibouti did not participate in the First Meeting of States Parties in Maputo
in May 1999, nor has it participated in any meetings of the intersessional
meetings of the Standing Committees of Experts. Djibouti voted in favor of UN
General Assembly Resolution 54/54B supporting the Mine Ban Treaty in December
1999, as it had done on similar UNGA resolutions in 1996, 1997 and 1998.
In 1999, the local NGO Association de Soutien aux Victimes des Mines (ASOVIM)
launched the first organized campaign against landmines in Djibouti. ASOVIM has
started a letter writing campaign to government agencies and the parliament
urging the swift adoption of domestic implementation legislation.
Djibouti has not ratified Amended Protocol II of the Convention on
Conventional Weapons. It is not a member of the Conference on Disarmament.
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling
Djibouti has never produced or exported
antipersonnel mines. It appears to have received landmines from France and
Italy. The possible transit of mines through Djibouti territory is a concern.
Djibouti is the most important seaport on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden
and is the major port for all materials to Ethiopia, which has signed but not
ratified the MBT. Neighboring Eritrea has not signed the MBT and neighboring
Somaliland is not in a position to sign at this time. In 1998, Djibouti
opposition groups claimed that at least one shipment of landmines was imported
by Ethiopia through the port of
Djibouti.[2] There have been no
new allegations of landmines transferred through the ports of Djibouti in 1999
or 2000.
Djibouti has not begun stockpile destruction, or apparently even developed a
plan. In 1998 French Foreign Legion technicians assisted Djibouti’s
military with the destruction of 350 kilograms of landmines and unexploded
ordnance.[3] Djibouti, which
obtained independence from France on 27 June 1977, is home to the largest
overseas French military base. On 2-4 November 1999, the French military in
Djibouti destroyed their stockpile of 2,444 antipersonnel landmines at the Grand
Bara, southwest of the city of
Djibouti.[4]
Use
There is no evidence that Djibouti’s army has
used landmines in counterinsurgency operations since signing the MBT. Although
a peace agreement was signed between the Front for the Restoration of Unity and
Democracy (FRUD) rebels and the government of Djibouti, a splinter FRUD faction,
lead by former Prime Minister Ahmed Dini, maintained an armed insurrection in
1998 and 1999. The government of Djibouti and independent observers claim that
FRUD forces employed antitank mines in this renewed conflict. At least ten
accidents involving 69 individuals and 22 fatalities due to new landmines were
recorded in 1999 and in the first two months of 2000. The latest incident
occurred on 7 February 2000. All new use of mines during 1999 and 2000 appear to
involve antitank mines planted on civilian access roads.
The government concluded a reconciliation agreement with the opposition FRUD
on 7 February 2000 under which the two sides freed all prisoners and agreed to
cease hostilities.[5] There have
been no new mine incidents since then.
During 1999, Eritrea accused Djibouti of siding with Ethiopia in the border
conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia. As a result Djibouti broke diplomatic
relations with Eritrea. On various occasions, Djibouti claimed that Eritrea was
emboldening the northern Afar militia and that the Afar militia planted mines in
the border area between Eritrea and Djibouti. Landmine Monitor cannot verify
these allegations. On 13 March 2000, Djibouti and Eritrea normalized diplomatic
relations.[6]
Landmine Problem
Djibouti has a small landmine problem, which is the
legacy of a three-year internal war during 1991-1994. Landmines were used in
this war by both the rebel forces of the FRUD and by government Army
troops.[7] Djibouti military used
French and Italian mines, while FRUD forces employed Italian and Russian
mines.[8] There is no indication
of any large-scale use of landmines against the civilian population by either
party.
No systematic mine surveys have been carried out in Djibouti and no reliable
data are available on the extent of mine contamination. Certain zones in the
northern Afar highlands are considered to face a higher risk than other
areas.[9] Representatives of
ASOVIM toured suspected sites in the Afar Plateau and reported that many public
facilities, such as schools, have been abandoned because of the threat of
landmines.[10] In Obock town,
mines have been found in palm groves, which are now left untended. Rural roads
north of Tadjourah may also be mined. The southern district of Dikhil may also
contain mines.
As part of the reconciliation agreement the two sides are said to have agreed
to reveal all mined areas.
Mine Action
In 1999, the government appointed a Mine Action
Taskforce composed of representatives from the military, Ministry of Health, the
ICRC and WHO. The taskforce is formulating an action plan that includes surveys
of mine-affected zones, mine awareness, and victim assistance.
Djibouti has not allocated any internal funds for mine action. However, the
U.S. plans to contribute approximately $1.1 million in 2000 and 2001 to fund a
mine action program in Djibouti. The U.S. approved Djibouti's request for
humanitarian demining assistance on December 12, 1999. U.S. military trainers
and contractors will apparently be used to establish a complete demining program
including training, equipment, and facilities for demining training. A survey
of requirements was conducted in
2000.[11]
The French army trained of a contingent of thirty Djibouti military deminers
and in November 1998, the newly trained deminers started a limited demining
exercise in the district of
Obock.[12]
Landmine Casualties
A list of recorded mine incidents during 1999
follows, complied by Landmine Monitor from news accounts and interviews. All
incidents were caused by antitank mines. Landmine victim statistics are not
systematically compiled in Djibouti.
Date and Location
Number of Victims
7 Feb. at Mulhole Alayou Dada
2 military victims (1 killed and 1 injured)
Mar. at Day:
5 military victims (1 killed and 4 injured)
4 Apr. at Ripta
7 civilian victims (2 killed and 5 injured)
14 Apr. near Ripta
2 civilian victims (1 killed and 1 injured)
15 Apr. at Boli
2 military victims (6 killed and 6 injured)
26 Apr. at Mdeho
13 military victims (4 killed and 9 injured)
6 May at Adaylou
8 civilian victims (2 killed and 6 injured)
20 July at Near Obock
10 civilian victims (1 killed and 9 injured)
12 Sep. at Alaili Dada
6 civilian victims (3 killed and 3 injured)
24 Sep. at Adaylou
6 civilian victims (3 killed and 3 injured)
TOTAL
69 victims (22 killed and 47 injured)
Survivor Assistance
Djibouti’s northern plateau, the area most
heavily contested during the civil war, and which contains most of the suspected
minefields and mined routes, is mostly rough mountainous terrain that contains
few easily accessible roads. Civilian victims face major difficulties in
calling for or reaching help. Military mine victims are almost always evacuated
by helicopter.
The District hospital of Obock, closest to areas with the greatest landmine
threat, was completely destroyed during the 1991-1994 civil war. There are now
only two hospitals in Djibouti capable of assisting victims of landmines. Both
are in Djibouti City. Civilian victims are treated at the public Peltier Group
Hospital. Although capable of major surgery, Peltier Hospital had gone through
a number of years of deterioration. All military victims of landmines are
treated at the French Military hospital of Bouffard, which has adequate, but
small, surgery and intensive care facilities. Civilians are not normally
treated at this hospital.
Post-operative care is not available for mine victims in Djibouti. Peltier
Hospital has a small rehabilitation center for amputees and other handicapped
persons. It is not equipped to provide prosthetics. No job training or
psychological rehabilitation facilities exist in Djibouti.
The local office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has
been active in providing some assistance to mine victims. The ICRC, which has a
rehabilitation facility in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, imports prosthetics for
landmine amputees or sends patients to Addis Ababa to be fitted with artificial
limbs. During 1999, the ICRC in Djibouti assisted twenty-four military mine
victims. The majority of the soldiers were injured during the 1992-94 war, but
eight were injured between 1997 and 1999. ICRC provided seventeen prostheses,
five wheel chairs and two orthopedic shoes. Also in 1999, following the
resurgence of mine explosions, the ICRC, in collaboration with the Ministry of
Health of Djibouti, started a program of assistance for civilian mine victims.
Six civilians injured during 1999 have so far been treated at the government
Peltier Hospital.[13]
[1] Interview with Office of Multilateral
Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Djibouti, 23 February,
2000. [2] “Addis Readies for War in
the Air,” Indian Ocean Newsletter, ION 842, p.
8-9. [3] Nation (Djibouti government
weekly publication), 28 March 1998; French military
sources. [4] News of the destruction was
broadcast on Djibouti Radio and Television. The destruction of landmines by the
French Army in Djibouti was also witnessed by three delegates from
France’s National Commission on Landmines. See also, “La France
détruit ses dernières mines antipersonnel,” French Ministry
of Defense, press file, 20 December
1999. [5] Radio France International
(RFI), various reports, Radio Television de Djibouti (RTD), various
reports. [6] Nation, 13 March
2000. [7] See Landmine Monitor Report 1999
p. 33-34 for more details. [8] Information
on the types of mines used in Djibouti was given by Djibouti military officials
on the government appointed Mine Action
Taskforce. [9] Information on mined zones
was given by Djibouti military officials and members of the Mine Action
Taskforce. [10] Discussion between
Landmine Monitor and Dahir Osman, President of ASOVIM, 13 March
2000. [11] U.S. Department of State, 9
December 1999 Humanitarian Demining IWG Fact
Sheet. [12] Nation, 18 November
1998. [13] Interview with Mustfa Barkhat,
ICRC Djibouti, 8 May 2000.
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