The
People’s Republic of China (PRC) has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty.
China continues to insist on a military requirement for antipersonnel mines at
the present time, while acknowledging the desirability of a total prohibition at
some point in the future. At the Second Annual Conference for Amended Protocol
II of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) in December 2000, Ambassador
Sha Zukang stated:
The Ottawa Convention stands for complete and immediate
prohibition of anti-personnel landmines.... Complete prohibition is undoubtedly
the best solution. To those countries that have voluntarily waived their rights
of continued use of anti-personnel landmines and acceded to the Ottawa
Convention, China respects their sovereign choice and wishes to offer its
congratulation to them.... Many countries like China have to reserve the right
of continued use of landmines out of military or security considerations. It is
thus difficult for them to prohibit anti-personnel landmines completely at this
stage.... So, we believe that the Ottawa Convention and the Protocol, these two
legal instruments are non-exclusive, and mutually supportive and reinforcing
with each other, and that they share the very same objective.... [G]iven
China’s security environment and national conditions, we cannot but
reserve the right of continued use of anti-personnel landmines on its own
territories for the purpose of self-defense pending our alternative means are
identified and effective defensive capabilities are put in
place.[1]
In September
2000 China attended as an observer the Second Meeting of States Parties (SMSP)
to the Mine Ban Treaty. It had also attended the first meeting in May 1999.
China participated in the Mine Ban Treaty intersessional Standing Committee
meetings in May 2000 and May 2001, but not in December 2000. China was among
the small number of states to abstain on the pro-ban treaty UN General Assembly
resolutions in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
On 4 November 1998, China ratified
CCW Amended Protocol II and indicated it would exercise the optional nine-year
deferral period for compliance with key
restrictions.[2] Atthe
Second Annual Conference for Amended Protocol II in December 2000 China strongly
opposed further revision of Amended Protocol II as proposed by the US delegation
on the grounds that it would be counter-productive to the most pressing task of
gaining new accessions to the protocol and would complicate States
Parties’ efforts in their implementation of the
protocol.[3] China co-sponsored
the statement by the Non-Aligned Movement states against further revision of the
Amended Protocol.[4] China
again expressed these concerns in April 2001 at the preparatory meeting for the
CCW Review Conference.
During the Second Annual Conference, China submitted
its national annual report as required under Amended Protocol II Article 13. It
described the efforts being undertaken to make all military personnel aware of
their obligations under the Amended Protocol, and noted that military
departments were drafting procedures and compiling national military standards
regarding the technical specifications for antipersonnel mines and the marking
of minefields.[5]
Production
China is known as one of the world's largest
producers of antipersonnel mines. China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO)
and Chinese State Arsenals have been producing approximately twenty-two types of
antipersonnel mines, six of which are based on Soviet designs and the rest of
which are Chinese.[6] It is
unknown if China plans to begin production of new antipersonnel mines that are
compliant with Amended Protocol II, such as scatterable mines that have
self-destruct and self-deactivating mechanisms which meet the protocol’s
technical requirements.
China has conducted “preliminary
research” of antipersonnel mine alternatives, and in March 2000 the
Chinese military held an “expert symposium” on the concept,
requirements, and technical viability of
alternatives.[7]
Transfer
On 22 April 1996, the government of China declared
a moratorium on the export of antipersonnel mines that are incompatible with
Protocol II requirements. Landmine Monitor is unaware of exports of any Chinese
antipersonnel mines of any type since that time. In its December 2000 Protocol
II report, China states that in 2000 it “has not transferred a single
mine.”[8] However,
Chinese officials have stressed that China's official moratorium applies only to
non-detectable mines and remotely-delivered mines not in accordance with
Protocol II.[9] In the past
China was one of the world's largest exporters of antipersonnel mines.
Stockpiling
China is believed to have the largest
antipersonnel mine stockpile in the world. Based on interviews with non-Chinese
government officials involved in Protocol II discussions, Landmine Monitor has
estimated the Chinese antipersonnel mine stockpile at 110 million, including
perhaps 100 million Type 72 mines.
In late 1999 China reported that it had
destroyed over 1.7 million old-type antipersonnel
mines;[10] China’s
December 2000 Protocol II report did not mention any updated figures. It
appears that China is opting to convert low metal content antipersonnel mines
that are not compliant with Amended Protocol II by adding eight grams of metal,
rather than destroying the
mines.[11]
Use
It has come to light that the first use of
landmines dates back to the early Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644). In April
2001 Chinese archaeologists discovered over 20 ancient landmines, some six
hundred years old, in Togtoh County of northern China’s Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region.[12] Modern
China has used antipersonnel landmines along its borders with Russia, India, and
especially Vietnam, planting an estimated 10 million mines along these borders
over the years.[13]
Landmine Problem
The government states, “China is not a
country seriously affected by
mines.”[14] After major
clearance operations from 1992-1999, China maintains that the “mine threat
on the Chinese side along the Sino-Vietnamese border has been basically
removed.”[15] The danger
to civilians from mines laid along China's borders with India and Russia is
reportedly minimal due to the sparsely populated, mountainous
terrain.[16]
Mine Action Assistance
China has supported international humanitarian
mine clearance efforts since 1998. China has indicated that by the end of 2001
it will have donated landmine detecting and clearing equipment to Cambodia,
Angola, Mozambique, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Namibia, including GTL115 mine
detectors, GBP 123 single-person rocket-blasting kits, GBP114 demining
demolition cartridge-cases and single-person mine exclusion shelter
equipment.[17] In September
2000 at the SMSP, China released a statement entitled “China’s
Experience in Mine Clearance and International Demining Cooperation.” The
statement indicated that China would donate some mine detection and clearance
equipment to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund before 2001. In its December 2000
Protocol II report, China stated that it “is willing to further contribute
to international demining efforts.... China is ready to share its experience
and cooperate with other countries and relevant international
organizations....”[18]
China
has sponsored two international mine clearance training courses in Nanjing. The
first was held from 11-30 October 1999, with sixteen trainees from Cambodia,
Namibia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The second course was held from 16 May to 4
June 2000, with 24 trainees from Angola, Mozambique, Ethiopia, and
Rwanda.[19] China reports that
the curriculum included landmine structure and use, landmine detection and
clearing technology and its application, international demining engineering
standards, and the organization and command of demining operations. While China
notes that the second course was held “in conjunction with the UN Mine
Action Service,”[20] UN
officials told Landmine Monitor that UNMAS asked to be disassociated from the
training because it was inconsistent with UN mine action policy and UN
International Standards for Humanitarian Mine Clearance
Operations.[21] In December
2000 at the Second Annual Conference for CCW Amended Protocol II, China issued a
leaflet entitled “International Mine Clearance Training in China
(1999-2000).”[22]
Mine Clearance
China has not reported any mine clearance
activities in 2000 or 2001. China has stated that it completed clearance of its
border with Vietnam in August/September
1999.[23] For some minefields,
covering a total of 20-30 square kilometers, China decided to mark and
“seal” the areas instead of clearing them. It said that these
minefields were located near water sources or in primeval forests, and these
steps were taken in order to protect the natural resources and prevent civilian
injuries.[24] A Landmine
Monitor survey conducted in February 2001 identified markings of minefields in
Malirpo County, Yunnan Province. Seen from a distance, markings consisted of a
one-meter-long wooden stick painted white. The marker sticks were staked 50
meters apart along the periphery of the minefields.
Landmine Casualties
Although the government of China is believed to be
collecting information on landmine casualties, no comprehensive data is
available for 2000.[25] In
February 2001, Landmine Monitor researchers conducted a field survey in the
provinces of Guangxi and Yunnan, both bordering Vietnam. Their findings are
based on a compilation of interviews and direct
observations.[26] In the survey
region, most mine accidents occurred in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During
this period, the Jingxi County Hospital in Guangxi Province treated
approximately 70 mine victims and the Funning County hospital in Yunnan Province
treated as many as 370 mine victims. Since the late 1980s, the number of mine
victims at hospitals in both Guangxi and Yunnan provinces has
decreased.[27]
In Guangxi
Province, three of the eight mine-affected counties were surveyed – Daxin,
Jingxi and Napo. A total of 359 people from a population of 939,090 have been
recorded as mine victims. No new mine victims have been reported in these
counties since 1996.[28]
In
Yunnan Province, Landmine Monitor surveyed Wenshan Prefecture, one of the three
mine-affected prefectures in the province. The population of Wenshan is
3,230,000. A total of 5,310 people were mine victims; 3,811 people
survived.[29] Although China
officially announced the completion of mine clearance and minefield marking on
the Vietnam border in 1999 accidents still occur in Yunnan Province. The latest
recorded mine accident occurred in September 2000 in Malirpo County when a
16-year-old boy was injured and required an amputation after stepping on a
landmine in his
village.[30]
The majority of
mine victims interviewed were young working males engaged in farming activities
at the time of their accidents, although three were on military duty. Most
reported that their capacity to work had been drastically reduced because of
their injuries and many had to abandon their previous occupations. The inability
to work and earn an income was of major concern for the majority of those
interviewed.
The low proportion of women mine victims is evident from the
Landmine Monitor interviews as well as from the statistics of the China Disabled
Person’s Federation (CDPF) Guangxi Prosthesis Center. According to the
data on the provision of prostheses to mine victims in 2000, out of 200
recipients 97% were men and 3% were women. Minority ethnic groups also
represented a high proportion of mine victims. The reason for this imbalance
might lie in the fact that most minority groups live in mountain areas and face
a more direct threat from landmines.
Survivor Assistance
As a result of the field survey, information is
now available on victim assistance programs in the provinces of Guangxi and
Yunnan. Emergency first aid services are non-existent in these rural
mine-affected areas. Remote villages have at least one public health clinic;
however, the capacity is very limited and cannot adequately provide first aid to
the seriously injured. The primary role of township level hospitals is to
provide primary health care services to the local population and many do not
have surgical facilities.[31]
In the case of mine accidents, nearly half of the victims interviewed (13 out of
27) were evacuated directly from accident sites to county level hospitals with
the capacity to perform
amputations.[32]
Rehabilitation
for the disabled is run under the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the China
Disabled Person’s Federation. The CDPF is actively involved in the
provision of prostheses. CDPF Nanning in Guangxi and CDPF Wenshan in Yunnan have
run prosthesis workshops since 1999. According to the distribution list, in
2000, CDPF Nanning produced 225 below-knee prostheses with funds from the Hong
Kong-based Li Jia Cheng Fund, which stipulated that the main beneficiaries of
the prostheses be mine victims. Of the 225 prostheses, 200 were provided to
mine victims in Guangxi
Province.[33] The CDPF Wenshan
prosthesis workshop produced approximately 500 prostheses, including 140
above-knee prostheses during 1999 and 2000. In 1999, 180 prostheses were
supplied to mine victims and in 2000 a further 26 were
supplied.[34] A survey
organized by CDPF in 2000 on prosthesis needs revealed that 106 out of 141
landmine amputees in three counties, Jingxi, Napo and Daxin, were waiting for a
prosthesis, compared with 209 out of 608 amputees as a result of other
accidents.[35] Prostheses
produced by CDPF workshops are sold to the disabled in accordance with the
patients’ economic capacity.
Two main problems exist in relation to the
provision of prostheses for mine victims. First, there is the relatively long
distance between the workshops in urban areas and the mountainous border areas
where a large number of the mine victims live. Under the current system, a
direct visit by the patient to the workshop is required for the fitting of a
prosthesis. Large distances often prevent patients from accessing the prosthesis
services available. Second, there is a lack of developed referral systems
between the hospitals and prosthesis or rehabilitation facilities, thus limiting
access for potential beneficiaries.
Physical rehabilitation remains an
indispensable component in the social reintegration of mine victims. Yet, there
are no systematic efforts for enhancing physical rehabilitation. Most mine
victims with prostheses did not get physiotherapy treatment before or after the
fitting of their
prosthesis.[36]
Community-based
rehabilitation (CBR) programs have been put forward by CDPF, and programs with
special emphasis on the social integration of children with disabilities have
been conducted in 24 provinces in cooperation with
UNICEF.[37] These efforts have
not yet been developed in mine-affected areas. The concept of CBR was not
well-known to either local authorities or the mine victims interviewed.
CDPF
workshops are responsible for conducting follow-up visits with patients two
months after returning to their communities with a prosthesis. However, it
appears that regular follow-up is often suspended because of a lack of manpower
and transport to the
villages.[38]
The CDPF has
established vocational training units in each county. But, vocational training
opportunities for mine victims in Guang Xi and Yunnan are limited due to budget
restraints.[39] Job
opportunities among the mine victims interviewed are very limited. Nearly half
of the respondents expect financial support from the government to open
individual
businesses.[40]
Disability Policy and Practice
China’s December 2000 Protocol II report
included for the first time a section on Rehabilitation and Relief of Civilians
Accidentally Injured by Landmines. The section reported the measures undertaken
by the Chinese government to assist, rehabilitate and relieve civilians injured
by landmines during and after the conflict with Vietnam. The government has
formulated a series of policies which include the provision of medical treatment
subsidies according to the degree of the individuals injuries and disability;
the provision of artificial limbs including regular changes; the provision of
regular post-treatment medical check-ups free of charge; the provision of
facilities and support to families, such as tax cuts; free tuition fees for
children and temporary relief aid; and the provision of a lump sum subsidy to
the families after the death of the landmine
victim.[41]
The Chinese
Rehabilitation and Relief policy was implemented with the support of Chinese
NGOs and other sectors of society. Chinese NGOs have sponsored training
programs in prosthetics and orthotics in the border areas. They have also
provided free fitting and changes of artificial limbs (Popular Model). Following
the initiative of NGOs, some local enterprises, institutions and organizations
have sponsored rehabilitation and vocational training programs for disabled
victims and provided them with jobs. The NGOs have also mobilized to raise
awareness on disability in the border
areas.[42]
The Landmine
Monitor field survey showed that the efficiency of the support system for mine
victims depends on the efforts of the local authority to ensure that the
disabled benefit from the system. In Guangxi Province, the mine victims
interviewed (with the exception of two former soldiers) had not received
benefits from the government. In comparison, the respondents in Yunnan Province
received benefits on a regular basis in accordance with their respective
disability.
Tibet
The landmine problem in Tibet dates from
China’s military intervention in 1959, and from the attacks on India by
China launched from Tibet in 1962. Mine pollution remains near the lines of
occupation established by China during its military push into the present areas
of India in Ladakh and Arunachal
Pradesh.[43] These are
extremely remote, almost uninhabited, high mountain regions. Some are on
permanent glaciers. Maintenance by China of minefields bordering Arunachel
Pradesh has been reported, but no new mine
laying.[44]
Casualties among
the local Indian population in Arunachal Pradesh have been reported to the
Landmine Monitor, but none among Tibetan
refugees.[45] Possibilities for
immediate and continuing medical care for victims are unknown. The mined border
mainly runs along rugged mountains with few roads. Landmines in these remote
border areas have been reported to claim the lives of Tibetan gazelle, Tibetan
wild ass, blue sheep, alpine musk deer and the snow
leopard.[46]
[1] Statement by H.E.
Ambassador Sha Zukang at the Second Annual Conference of High Contracting
Parties to Amended Protocol II annexed to the CCW, 11 December
2000.
[2] Declarations and
Reservations on CCW Protocol II entry into force 3 December 1998, at
http://www.un.org/Depts/Treaty/final/ts2/newfiles/part_boo/xxvi_boo/xxvi_2.html.
[3]
Statement by the Chinese Delegation on the Issue of Further Revising the Amended
Protocol at the Second Annual Conference of the State Parties to the Amended
Protocol II, Geneva, 12 December
2000.
[4] Statement by the
Chinese Delegation on the Issue of Further Revising the Amended Protocol at the
Second Annual Conference of the States Parties to the Amended Protocol II,
Geneva, 12 December 2000.
[5]
China, Article 13 report, 13 December 2000, p.
4.
[6] For additional details
see Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp.
457-458.
[7] China, Article
13 report, 13 December 2000, p.
4.
[8] Ibid, p.
5.
[9] See Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, p.
483.
[10] China, Article 13
report, October 1999.
[11]
See Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p.
483.
[12] “600-Year-Old
Mines Unearthed in Inner Mongolia,” Xinhua, Hohhot, Mongolia, 11
April 2001. These mines came in two sizes. The larger ones weighed 1.7 kg and
were 11 cm in diameter; the smaller ones weighed 0.8 kg and were 8.5 cm in
diameter. The mines were made of iron and shaped like a ball. The archaeologists
found black or yellow-gray powder in the
mines.
[13] US Department of
State, Hidden Killers 1998, Table
A-1.
[14] Foreign Affairs
Office of the Ministry of National Defense, People’s Republic of China,
Postwar Demining Operations in China (1992-1999), December 1999, p.
1.
[15] Foreign Affairs
Office of the Ministry of National Defense, People’s Republic of China,
Postwar Demining Operations in China (1992-1999), December 1999, p. 11.
Before the clearance operations, landmines posed a threat to civilians in the
border areas with Vietnam, where there were more than 560 minefields covering an
area of over 300 square kilometers. Ibid, pp.
1-2.
[16] US Department of
State, Hidden Killers 1994, p.
18.
[17] China, Article 13
report, 13 December 2000, pp.
4-5.
[18] Ibid, p.
5.
[19] Ibid, p.
4.
[20]
Ibid.
[21] See Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, p. 485, for more
details.
[22]
“International Mine Clearance Training in China (1999-2000),”
Foreign Affairs Office of National Defense, People’s Republic of China,
December 2000, Beijing.
[23]
See Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 485, and Ministry of National
Defense, Postwar Demining Operations in China, December, 1999, p. 4.
China’s September 2000 statement, “China’s Experience in Mine
Clearance and International Demining Cooperation,” says that from early
1992 to August 1999 China cleared over 300 square kilometers, including 1.88
million landmines, opening up over 290 border posts and trade passes, and
recovering more than 60,000 hectares of fields and
forests.
[24] Ministry of
National Defense, Postwar Demining Operations in China, December 1999, p.
5.
[25] See Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, p.
486.
[26] The Landmine
Monitor survey was conducted over the period 5-14 February 2001. Interviews
were conducted with 13 mine survivors in Guangxi Province and with 14 mine
survivors from Yunnan Province. Interviews were also conducted with Township
Chief, Directors of Hospitals, and with CDPF Prosthesis Centers in both
provinces.
[27] Landmine
Monitor interviews with Directors of Daxin County Hospital, Yue Xu Township
Hospital, Shuo Long Township Hospital, Jingxi County Hospital, Guangxi
Provincial Hospital, and Funning County Hospital, 7-11 February
2001.
[28] Landmine Monitor
interviews with the Directors of Guangxi Provincial Hospital, Nanning, Jingxi
County Hospital, Jingxi, Shuo Long Township Hospital, Daxin, and Yue Xu Township
Hospital, Jingxi, 8-10 February
2001.
[29] Interview with
CDPF, Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan, 5 February
2001.
[30] Interview with
Chief of village and with mine victim, Ba Li He village, Malipro, Yunnan, 12
February 2001.
[31]
Interviews with Directors of Daxin County Hospital, Yue Xu Township Hospital,
Shuo Long Township Hospital, Jingxi County Hospital, Guangxi Provincial
Hospital, and Funning County Hospital, 8-11 February
2001.
[32] Interviews with
mine victims.
[33]
Distribution list of prostheses for 2000, dated 30 December 2000, provided by
CDPF Nanning Prosthesis
Workshop.
[34] Distribution
list of prostheses for 1999 and 2000, dated December 2000, provided by CDPF
Wenshan Prosthesis
Workshop.
[35] Response to
Landmine Monitor question, CDPF Napo county, Guangxi, 6 February 2001 and CDPF
Jingxi county, Guangxi, 9 February
2001.
[36] Interviews with
mine victims.
[37] Interview
with CDPF Kunming, 14 February
2001.
[38] Interviews with
CDPF Nanning Prosthesis Workshop, Nanning, 6 February 2001 and CDPF Wenshan
Prosthesis Workshop, Malirpo, 13 February
2001.
[39] Interviews with
Chiefs of Shuo Long Township, Yue Xu Township, Zhe Miao village, Malirpo County,
and Funning County, 8-12 February
2001.
[40] Interviews with
mine victims.
[41] China,
Article 13 report, 13 December 2000, pp.
5-6.
[42]
Ibid.
[43] Interview with
former Maj. D. Banerjee, Institute for Peace & Conflict Studies (New Delhi),
Oslo, March 1999.
[44]
Ibid.
[45] Interview with Dr.
Pema Dorjee, Chief Medical Officer of Men Tsee Khang Clinic, Jalpaiguri, West
Bengal, 17 June 1999.
[46]
Grant Peck, “Animals and Landmines,” Associated Press
(Bangkok), 7 May 2000.
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