Key developments
since March 1999: Both sides are using antipersonnel mines in the escalated
fighting. The UN Mine Action Project began in July 1999 and was expanded in
early 2000, but had to be suspended in April 2000 due to the conflict. A total
of 214,541 square meters of land had been cleared. It appears there were at
least several hundred civilian mine casualties in 1999.
Background
The Sri Lankan government has been engaged in an
armed conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) since 1983. The
LTTE and the government have used antipersonnel landmines extensively over the
years, and the northern and eastern provinces are heavily contaminated with
landmines. In April 2000, the fighting escalated greatly as the LTTE made
significant inroads into areas that were under governmental control. At the
time of this writing, heavy fighting between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan forces
continues in the Jaffna peninsula.
Mine Ban Policy
Sri Lanka has not signed the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty,
citing security considerations due to the ongoing conflict with the LTTE. Sri
Lanka was one of twelve non-signatories that participated as an observer in the
First Meeting of State Parties in Maputo, Mozambique in May 1999. Its official
statement said, “Sri Lanka is not yet a signatory to the Ottawa Convention
on antipersonnel mines. However, Sri Lanka shares the views of the other member
countries on this issue.... If not for the current security situation...Sri
Lanka would have been among the first group of member countries who have
ratified the convention.... Sri Lanka, in principle, welcomes a comprehensive
ban on antipersonnel mines on humanitarian grounds. However, such a ban should
encompass the use of antipersonnel mines both by the security forces as well as
by the terrorist groups.” Sri Lanka also called on other nations to help
“to bring LTTE atrocities to an end so that Sri Lanka will be able to
participate in future meetings on the convention not as an observer but as an
active signatory.”[1]
On 1 March 2000, the Deputy Foreign Minister told Parliament that Sri Lanka
could not accede to the Mine Ban Treaty because of: (1) the indiscriminate and
unfettered use of mines by the LTTE; (2) the need to deploy antipersonnel
landmines for defensive purposes; and (3) the need to find alternatives before
giving up the use of antipersonnel
landmines.[2]
Sri Lanka has voted in favor of the UN General Assembly resolutions
supporting a comprehensive ban since 1996, including the pro-Mine Ban Treaty
resolution in December 1999, indicating it voted in favor because of the
humanitarian objectives.[3]
Sri Lanka has not signed the Convention on Conventional Weapons, and did not
attend the First Annual Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II
(Landmines) in December 1999. Although a member of the Conference on
Disarmament, its position on negotiating a ban on mine transfers at that forum
is unclear.
The LTTE has not made any statements regarding a ban on antipersonnel mines.
An effort made in 1998 by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General
for Children and Armed Conflict to obtain a commitment from the LTTE to refrain
from using antipersonnel landmines was not
successful.[4]
Non-governmental organizations--local, national, and international--are
engaged in advocating for a ban. The Sri Lanka Campaign to Ban Landmines has
been urging the Sri Lankan government as well as the LTTE to discontinue the use
of antipersonnel landmines, and has also been appealing to the government to
become a party to the Mine Ban Treaty.
In August 1999, the International Committee of the Red Cross organized in Sri
Lanka a South Asian Regional Seminar on Landmines to which the governments of
Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka sent representatives.
The Australian Campaign to Ban Antipersonnel Landmines in Sri
Lanka[5] launched a photo
exhibition and petition campaign on 3 March 2000 urging a ban on the use of
antipersonnel landmines in Sri
Lanka.[6]
Use
It is clear that both sides are continuing to use
antipersonnel mines in the current round of conflict that has escalated greatly
since April 2000.[7]
The Sri Lanka government’s position is that it uses antipersonnel
landmines purely as a defensive
weapon.[8] The government
maintains that “we have taken all possible action to minimize the threat
of antipersonnel mines to civilian life. Land mines are not used by the security
forces as an offensive weapon. In the context of the current situation the
security forces have been compelled to use land mines to defend security
establishments.”[9]
The UN, which has a mine action project in the Jaffna peninsula (presently
suspended), has indicated that it has found three main types of antipersonnel
mines likely used by the government forces: Chinese Type 72a, Pakistani P4, and
Italian VS-50. Evidence of command-detonated Claymore directional fragmentation
mines has also surfaced.[10]
According to the UN, the Sri Lankan security forces have laid barrier
minefields to prevent the LTTE from reoccupying Jaffna; these are large mined
areas laid to a specific pattern and usually marked. Security forces have also
laid minefields to defend specific points; again laid to a pattern and normally
marked.[11]
The LTTE regard antipersonnel landmines and Improvised Explosive Devices
(IEDs) as an essential and effective part of their arsenal. The LTTE are
considered among the most skilled in the world in the use of improvised
explosives. The IEDs have devastating effect; a common one is a buried
explosives-laden petrol can with a tripwire.
The most frequently used mine is the “Jony” mine locally produced
by the LTTE. The UN reports that LTTE defensive minefields have been laid with
a rudimentary pattern and not marked. The LTTE have also laid nuisance
minefields to prevent access to facilities, shelter, wells, and food. These
mines have been laid in small numbers and have never been marked. All nuisance
mines discovered have been laid by the LTTE and it is this type of landmine use
that has created the greatest threat to returning displaced
people.[12]
The UN Development Program reported in February 1999 that both sides to the
conflict agreed not to lay mines in land cleared by the Mine Action project in
the Jaffna peninsula.[13] It is
uncertain at best that this has occurred.
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling
Sri Lanka is not known to have produced
antipersonnel mines. It is believed that Sri Lankan security forces have
imported all of their antipersonnel landmines. As noted above, most mines
appear to be of Pakistani, Chinese, and Italian origin or design. The fact that
virtually no country today is exporting antipersonnel mines could lead to the
commencement of domestic production by Sri Lanka, but there is no evidence that
this is happening at present. Sri Lanka will not reveal any details about the
number or types of antipersonnel mines it has stockpiled.
In addition to making IEDs, the LTTE produce in significant numbers the Jony
mine, a small wooden box with 3-400 grams of TNT or C4 that explodes from
pressure. The LTTE also make a Claymore-type
mine.[14]
Landmine Problem
Antipersonnel landmines are largely confined to
the northern and eastern regions of Sri Lanka, which are seriously affected.
The UN Mine Action Project in Jaffna states that there is an extremely high
level of contamination both in urban and rural areas of the Jaffna
peninsula.[15] The UN
Development Program has also said, “The greater proportion of mines in
Jaffna are the antipersonnel type and they can be found virtually anywhere from
marked minefields, to agricultural land, to houses and gardens.... It is
estimated that there are around 50 to 75 square kilometres of suspect or
contaminated land.”[16]
Accurate figures will be available only upon the conclusion of the community
(Level 1) survey being conducted by the UN Mine Action Project, which is
presently suspended. Affected areas include urban areas, roads, water sources
and fertile agricultural land.
Numbers of mines are difficult to calculate due to the continual use of mines
in the ongoing conflict. The U.S. State Department estimated in 1998 that about
25,000 landmines were
deployed,[17] and the Sri Lankan
government cited an estimate of 20,000 to 25,000 in May
1999.[18] But the figure could
be higher today due to the escalation of the conflict since the latter part of
1999.
Mine Clearance
The UN Mine Action Project which began in July
1999 in the areas controlled by the Sri Lankan security forces in the Jaffna
peninsula was expanded at the beginning of 2000. However, due to the escalation
of the conflict in the Jaffna peninsula, this project was suspended and the
staff started to leave the area on 28 April
2000.[19]
The expanded project consisted of a mine awareness program, Level 1 survey
(identifying suspected areas), Level 2 survey (marking areas), emergency
clearance of priority areas, explosive ordnance disposal, and compilation of a
mine action database. The project was developed by the United Nations
Development Program (UNDP) and implemented by the United Nations Office for
Project Services (UNOPS). Funding was provided by UNDP and the governments of
Australia and the Netherlands. The project was expected to cost around $3.5
million over two years.[20]
Funding up to the time the project was suspended totaled about $1.8
million.[21]
The Level 1 survey was approximately 35-40 percent complete; over 300
individual minefields had been
identified.[22] Total area
identified as suspect at the end of April 2000 was 20,242,485 square
meters.[23] Eleven surveyors
recruited from the local community were involved in the Level 1 survey. The
Level 2 survey and the mine clearing operation were contracted to the Zimbabwean
company Minetech. Twenty-six Minetech personnel were involved, including three
survey/clearance teams. There were also four mine detection
dogs.[24]
By the end of April 2000, they had cleared 214,541 square meters of land and
destroyed over 1,023 antipersonnel
landmines.[25] A manual deminer
could clear up to 200 square meters per day depending on vegetation and soil
conditions.[26]
In addition to mine clearance, unexploded munitions were also destroyed when
they were perceived as a danger to the public. A special team had been created
to deal with this situation. It was estimated that 5-10% of all fired munitions
had failed to explode. The end of 1999 had destroyed at least forty-two UXO
items.
At the time of suspension of the Mine Action Project, one deminer had been
involved in an accident, which resulted in minor injuries. A medical support
team provided emergency medical cover to mine clearance, UXO disposal, and Level
2 survey teams.
Mine Awareness
UNICEF had begun a mine awareness program in
Jaffna in 1998. When the UN project became operational in July 1999, UNICEF
handed over its mine awareness activities in Jaffna. This program has also been
suspended. UNICEF now supports awareness programs outside Jaffna including
locations under the control of the
LTTE.[27]
The UN Mine Action Program used existing structures in sectors such as
health, education, and agricultural to make presentations tailored to specific
audiences taking into account the local cultural attitudes. School children were
a major focus group. Ninety-three schools across the peninsula participated in a
training program for teachers through which 27,770 school children were reached.
Further, twenty-three schools from six divisions participated in a drama
competition.[28]
In the health sector, public health inspectors and midwives in certain areas
provided information about mines and UXOs. In the agricultural sector, thirty
persons working in agricultural instruction and at Agricultural Productive
Centers were trained to educate farming communities about the dangers of
mines.[29]
Making use of the media, a mine awareness page appeared monthly in a local
newspaper, The Sanjeewa. In addition, 60-second radio spots giving
preventive steps were broadcast over the local Sri Lanka Broadcasting
Corporation station beginning in December
1999.[30] These too will be
affected by the suspension of the mine awareness program.
Community-focused programs included “market mornings” where
dancers who are mine victims themselves, and a “talking mine,”
provided an animated forum through which information was conveyed. Other
educational material included the distribution of 1,500 wall-size calendars and
5,000 pocket calendars in the year
2000.[31]
Staff attached to CARE International, Action Contre la Faim, UNHCR and
Save the Children Fund UK, received support from the awareness
program.[32]
The Sri Lankan government has stated that it is implementing awareness
programs in affected regions, and that in areas outside the Jaffna Peninsula,
service personnel and police conduct these
programs.[33]
Landmine Casualties
The Sri Lanka Campaign to Ban Landmines estimates
a total civilian casualty figure of at least 2,000, based on hospital records
and information provided by the Jaipur Foot Program, international
organizations, and non-governmental organizations. The UN Mine Action Project
gave the total number of landmine and UXO victims in Jaffna in 1999 as
thirty-four.[34] However, the
Sri Lanka Jaipur Foot Program, with headquarters in Colombo and branches in
other parts of the country including Jaffna, provided the following information
regarding landmine victims for the year 1999:163 civilians in Jaffna
(Northern Province); 48 civilians in Batticaloa (Eastern Province); and, 386
war-related in Colombo, the majority of which are mine victims, both civilian
and military.[35]
The government stated in June 1999 that approximately 4,000 members of the
armed forces had suffered mine
injuries.[36] The government
also said in May 1999 that over the last two years a monthly average of thirty
security personnel and fifteen civilians were killed or injured by antipersonnel
mines, and “almost all of these are by mines laid by the
LTTE.”[37] That totals
540 mine casualties per year for the last two years.
The LTTE provide no information on landmine casualties. Humanitarian workers
have indicated that over 1,500 landmine victims are presently awaiting
prostheses in the areas outside government control, and a substantial number of
these could well be LTTE cadres.
Survivor Assistance
The UNDP notes that hospitals are poorly equipped
and unable to acquire basic drugs such as anesthetics. Because of the conflict,
there is no reliable road or air link between Jaffna and the main city of
Colombo. There is the possibility of air evacuations by military aircraft, but
it cannot be counted on. “The alternative is to enhance local capacity by
importing expertise and providing dedicated drug supplies to enable casualties
to be treated in Jaffna. The professional competence of local medics is
reasonably high, but there are serious shortcomings in management
practices.”[38]
Medical assistance to victims is primarily provided by the government through
the University Hospital Centers and other hospitals. Foreign organizations also
help in the medical and rehabilitation process. Medecins Sans Frontieres
(France) is involved with the University Hospital center in Jaffna, and three
other government hospitals in the northern and eastern regions. Medecins Sans
Frontieres (Holland) helps a government hospital in an area controlled by the
LTTE.
The Jaipur Foot Centre, which is the best known organization providing
prostheses, states that all victims who come to them are provided with
prostheses. It is reported that an NGO that is operating in the areas controlled
by the LTTE is involved in producing prostheses for landmine victims, and that
it is encountering problems sourcing material.
There are no social and economic integration programs specifically targeted
at antipersonnel mine victims. There are, however, various general
rehabilitation projects underway in the country, including in Jaffna,
implemented by a variety of organizations both local and foreign. The Jaipur
Foot Center states that it provides interest-free loans of up to SLR5000 (about
U.S.$70) to victims of antipersonnel mines (though not confined to this
category) who are able to show a feasible self-employment project. They state
that they are able to fund only two to three applications per month due to
financial constraints.[39] The
now suspended UNDP Jaffna Rehabilitation and Resettlement Program was involved
in self-employment and skills development projects, and implemented a
micro-credit project.
The government has a general program for the disabled, which provides a small
monthly allowance. There are no specific disability laws available to landmine
victims. However, disabled persons of the government forces including landmine
victims receive special assistance and pension benefits.
[1] Statement of Sri Lanka, to the First
Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, undated, but 4 May
1999. [2] Hansard (Official
parliamentary record), 1 March 2000, Vol.128, No.3, col. 457,
458. [3] “UN General Assembly
would convene 2001 conference on illicit arms trade,” M2 Presswire, 9
November 1999, citing comment of Sri Lanka on the resolution during First
Committee consideration. [4] Press
Release, Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for
Children and Armed Conflict, SRSG-CAC/PR/5, 12 May
1998. [5] This campaign includes
Sinhalese and Tamil communities living in Australia; the Australian Council for
Overseas Aid; and the Victorian section of the Australian Network of the
ICBL. [6] “News Fax,”
Australian Council for Overseas Aid, 3 March
2000. [7] One recent report stated,
“Ground troops had to negotiate a very large number of anti-personnel
mines planted by the LTTE which resulted in troops having to spend a
considerable time before assaulting the bunker line,” Daily Mirror, 11
July 2000, p. 1. [8] Hansard (Official
parliamentary record), 1 March 2000, Vol.128, No.3, col.
458. [9] Statement to the First Meeting
of States Parties, 4 May 1999. [10]
Edward Chalmers, Mine Action Coordinator, UNDP/UNOPS Mine Action Project,
Jaffna, e-mail communication to Landmine Monitor researcher for Sri Lanka, 31
March 2000. See also, UNDP, “Mine Action Pilot Project Jaffna,”
undated, but February 1999. [11]
Chalmers, UNDP/UNOPS, email, 31 March
2000. [12]
Ibid. [13] UNDP, “Mine Action
Pilot Project Jaffna,” undated, but February 1999, p.
1. [14] Ibid., pp.
4-5. [15] Chalmers, 31 March
2000. [16] UNDP, “Mine Action
Pilot Project Jaffna,” undated, but February 1999, p. 4. One subsequent
press account reported, “The UNDP said although initial information
indicated 10 to 12 percent of the 1,068 square kilometer Jaffna peninsula was
mined, the actual mined area was about two percent.” “Dogs sniff
for mines in UN project in Sri Lanka,” Reuters, Colombo, 5 August
1999. [17] U.S. Department of State,
Hidden Killers, September 1998, p.
A-2. [18] Statement of Sri Lankan
Representative to the First Meeting of States Parties, 4 May
1999. [19] United Nations Office of the
Resident Co-ordinator, Colombo, Sri Lanka, Press Release, 28 April
2000. [20] Landmine Monitor Report 1999,
p. 511, cites several press
accounts. [21] This figure was provided
by UNDP. One press account stated, “UNDP officials said the cost of the
project has risen to almost $4 million against initial expectations of $2
million.” “Dogs sniff for mines in UN project in Sri Lanka,”
Reuters, Colombo, 5 August 1999. [22]
Chalmers, 31 March 2000. [23] Matthew
Todd, IT/Database Specialist, JRRP, UNDP/UNOPS, email to Landmine Monitor
researcher for Sri Lanka, 7 July
2000. [24] Chalmers, 31 March
2000. [25] Matthew Todd, UNDP/UNOPS,
email to Landmine Monitor researcher for Sri Lanka, 7 July
2000. [26] Chalmers 31 March
2000. [27] Minutes of the Technical
Meeting on Landmines held on 30 March 2000 at the UNHCR office,
Colombo. [28] Chalmers, 31 March
2000. [29]
Ibid. [30]
Ibid. [31]
Ibid. [32]
Ibid. [33] Letter from Sri Lanka High
Commission in Australia to the ACFOA, Sri Lanka Peace Project, Deakin,
Australia, dated 16 June 1999. [34]
Chalmers, 31 March 2000. [35] Telephone
interview with Mr. Cyril Siriwardene, Secretary, Jaipur Foot Center, Colombo
Head Office, 25 January 2000. [36]
Letter from Sri Lanka High Commission in Australia to the ACFOA, dated 16 June
1999. [37] Statement to the First
Meeting of States Parties, 4 May
1999. [38] UNDP, “Mine Action
Pilot Project Jaffna,” undated, but February 1999, pp.
4. [39] Telephone interview with Mr.
Cyril Siriwardene, Secretary, Jaipur Foot Centre, Colombo Head Office, 25
January 2000.
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