Key
developments since May 2000: The government of President Joseph Kabila has
expressed its intention to join the Mine Ban Treaty. The DRC reportedly
completed the domestic procedures necessary to accede to the Mine Ban Treaty on
28 March 2001. However, as of July the instrument of accession had not yet been
formally deposited at the United Nations.
Since May 2000, there has been
continued use of antipersonnel mines in the DRC, even as the fragile peace takes
hold. An April 2001 UN report stated, “During the disengagement phase,
[UN observers] received information indicating the presence of minefields laid
by the belligerent forces to protect their front-line positions,” and
remarked on “both the increased number of new defensive positions and the
danger of mines.”
Landmine Monitor has been unable to confirm
definitively which of the fighting parties have used antipersonnel mines. In
light of continued serious allegations regarding use by Mine Ban Treaty States
Parties, Landmine Monitor strongly urges States Parties as a matter of priority
to consult, seek clarifications, and cooperate with each other to establish the
facts and resolve questions regarding antipersonnel mine use in the Democratic
Republic of Congo.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has not
acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. Since the assassination of President
Laurent-Desiré Kabila in January 2001, the new government of his son
President Joseph Kabila has indicated its intention to join the Mine Ban Treaty.
During an Africa-wide landmine conference in Bamako, Mali on 15-16 February
2001, the DRC provided a written statement saying, “There is...no doubt
that the DRC aspires to become a party to the Ottawa Convention [Mine Ban
Treaty] in order to contribute to its universalization and its
reinforcement.”[1] DRC
representatives at the conference told Landmine Monitor that accession to the
Mine Ban Treaty “will come to pass very
soon.”[2] This marked the
first time the DRC had participated in any diplomatic landmine conference.
President Joseph Kabila, in a meeting with Human Rights Watch in London on 12
March 2001, said that the war in the DRC had precluded its signing the Mine Ban
Treaty, but that the context had changed and that the DRC could now sign the
treaty in a matter of
days.[3]
The DRC reportedly
completed the domestic procedures necessary to accede to the Mine Ban Treaty on
28 March 2001.[4] However, as
of July the instrument of accession had not yet been formally deposited at the
United Nations.
The DRC did not attend the Second Meeting of States Parties
to the Mine Ban Treaty in September 2000, nor did it send representatives to the
intersessional Standing Committee meetings in December 2000 or May 2001. The
DRC was one of 22 governments to abstain from the UN General Assembly First
Committee vote on the November 2000 resolution calling for universalization of
the Mine Ban Treaty. The DRC was subsequently absent from the vote on the
resolution in the full General Assembly. The DRC had voted in favor of similar
UNGA pro-ban resolutions in 1988 and 1999.
The DRC is not a party to the
Convention on Conventional Weapons, but has informed the International Committee
of the Red Cross (ICRC) that it has completed internal procedures for accession.
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling
The DRC is not known to be a landmine producer or
exporter. It is assumed that the DRC and rebel groups have, at least in the
past, acquired antipersonnel mines from a number of sources. A Tanzanian
diplomat told Landmine Monitor that mines from the following countries have been
found in the DRC: Italy, Russia, South Africa, Ukraine, Uganda, USA, and
Yugoslavia.[5] Landmine Monitor
has not been able to confirm this information, although other sources in the
field have identified Italian, South African, and Yugoslav mines.
In March
2001 a Congolese diplomat in Kampala, Uganda acknowledged that the DRC has
antipersonnel mines in stockpile; he added that the DRC “will destroy them
when the security situation allows, which is soon given the current climate of
reconciliation.”[6]
It
is difficult to get accurate information on stockpiles that rebels might have.
It would appear RCD stocks include Italian TS-50 mines, US M2A3 mines, and
claymore-type mines.[7] Rebel
groups are known to make homemade mines and other types of improvised explosive
devices.
Use
Landmines have been a significant feature in the
DRC conflict, which has actually been a succession of conflicts of varying
nature and intensity. In such an unstable situation, gathering information
about the use of landmines is extremely difficult and dangerous. Thus, Landmine
Monitor continues to stress that information on mine use remains sketchy and
unreliable.
Virtually all forces fighting in the DRC since 1998 have, at some
point, been accused of using mines, and virtually all have denied it.
Government forces (Forces Armees Congolaises, FAC), have been supported
by military forces from Zimbabwe, Angola, and Namibia. Rebel forces, most
notably the Rassemblement Congolais pour la Democratie (Congolese Rally for
Democracy, RCD), have been supported by government troops from Uganda and
Rwanda.[8] Other countries
directly involved have included Burundi, Chad and Sudan. Though the DRC is not
part of the Mine Ban Treaty, all of the foreign forces are from nations that are
either States Parties or signatories to the Mine Ban
Treaty.[9] Previous allegations
of use by different parties and in different areas can be found in Landmine
Monitor Report 2000 and Landmine Monitor Report
1999.[10]
There is no
question that there has been continued use of antipersonnel mines in this
Landmine Monitor reporting period (since May 2000). However, it remains
impossible to verify responsibility for that use, particularly in view of
charges, counter-charges and denials by all parties. Similar uncertainties
about responsibility resulted in Landmine Monitor Report 2000 expressing
its belief that it had “reached the point where States Parties to the Mine
Ban Treaty should make detailed requests for clarification” and make all
other efforts to establish the facts regarding mine use in the Democratic
Republic of Congo.[11] Nothing
concrete has resulted from that suggestion.
In light of continued serious
allegations regarding mine use by States Parties, Landmine Monitor again
strongly urges States Parties as a matter of priority to consult, seek
clarification, and cooperate with each other to establish the facts and resolve
questions regarding antipersonnel mine use in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Landmine Monitor believes that establishment of the facts is important in
ensuring the credibility of the Mine Ban Treaty, and ensuring that that the ban
becomes the international norm.
In its investigations and research, carried
out primarily from February-June 2001, Landmine Monitor has received information
regarding use of antipersonnel mines from sources in the DRC, Uganda, Rwanda,
Tanzania, Kenya, and elsewhere. The sources have included diplomats, other
government officials, combatants, government military, rebel military, former
military, aid workers, refugees, landmine victims, and civilians in local
communities. Nearly all sources have requested anonymity, either for safety or
other reasons.
Use of Mines in 2000
FAC and RCD
Some sources contend that
FAC government troops, supported by Zimbabwean forces, continued to use
antipersonnel mines in the Ikela area (Equateur Province) during 2000, even
after the RCD siege of that town ended in January
2000.[12]
Some sources
contend that the RCD-Goma laid mines, particularly on the road between Ikela and
Opala, to protect its retreat from the Ikela area in early 2000. The road
between Ikela and Opala is mined for about five kilometers.
Landmine
Monitor also heard allegations of mine use in 1999 and 2000 in Shaba and
Kasaï, on the frontline between FAC and RCD forces. The areas most
frequently mentioned for mine use include
Mbuji-Maï,[13] Kabinda, and
Kabalo (Kalemie-Kabalo road). At least three mine victims have been identified
in Kabalo.
There were allegations about more recent mine use in the area of
Pweto, which experienced heavy fighting from November 2000 through January
2001.
Landmine Monitor cannot identify who laid mines in these areas. In a
war context such as this, it is very difficult to establish who used mines or
even when mines were used, particularly when frontlines kept moving. But the
most frequent view expressed to Landmine Monitor during its investigations and
research is that all parties to the conflict were using antipersonnel mines.
In February 2001, DRC officials told Landmine Monitor that DRC forces had
never used antipersonnel mines. The same officials accused the forces of
Angola, Burundi, Rwanda and Sudan of using mines in the
DRC.[14]
Uganda
Landmine Monitor Report 2000 cited serious
allegations that Ugandan forces had used antipersonnel mines during the fighting
around Kisangani in the DRC in June
2000.[15] Since that time, a UN
assessment mission and aid workers in Kisangani have confirmed the presence of
large numbers of mines and unexploded ordnance
(UXO).[16] In July 2000, a
United Nations official in Kisangani told Landmine Monitor that Uganda and
Rwanda had both used mines in the fighting over
Kisangani.[17] The RCD rebels
claimed that Ugandan and Rwandan troops left more than 4,000 antipersonnel
landmines in the town, and stated that they found most of the mines close to a
former Ugandan army base on the road to Bangoka
airport.[18]
Uganda denied
these allegations at the time of the release of the
report.[19] On 5 May 2001,
Captain Kagoro A. Asingura, the Ugandan representative at the Mine Ban Treaty
intersessional meetings in Geneva, told Landmine Monitor that the UPDF had not
used antipersonnel mines in the DRC at any time. He indicated that mine use was
not part of Army doctrine or training, that Army engineers only knew how to
clear mines, and that UPDF forces in the DRC did not have any stocks of
antipersonnel mines.[20]
However, the same official also said that very few in the military, even
high ranking officers, were aware of the Mine Ban Treaty or Uganda’s
obligations. He said that given the shifting relations between formerly allied
forces from Uganda, Rwanda, and the rebel RCD, it was very difficult to
determine who had used mines in Kisangani. When asked by Landmine Monitor if it
were possible that Ugandan troops in Kisangani, unaware of the prohibition on
use of antipersonnel mines, could have helped to lay mines (provided perhaps by
rebels or Rwanda), the official acknowledged that such a thing could occur, but
stressed that it would be contrary to government policy.
The official said
that no specific investigation or inquiry into possible use of antipersonnel
mines by Ugandan forces had been carried out, although a general investigation
of the battle had been conducted, which resulted in the commander being
withdrawn for mismanagement of the
situation.[21]
Since
publication of last year’s report, Landmine Monitor has continued to
receive disturbing information regarding Ugandan use of antipersonnel mines in
the DRC in mid-2000. A United Nations assessment mission in August 2000 tasked
with assessing the damage to the civilian population of the fighting between
Uganda and Rwanda in Kisangani in June 2000 reported that: “Landmines and
unexploded ordnance are still a major impediment to the return of displaced
people to their homes and to the resumption of daily life in the city. Mines
were laid in strategic locations to prevent the advance of troops and to protect
retreating forces. Around 18 mines were placed on the Tshopo bridge, the major
link in the city. Reports indicated that some mines were laid after the
ceasefire.”[22]
Many
different sources reported to Landmine Monitor use of antipersonnel mines by
Ugandan forces around military camps and airports, in particular in Kisangani,
Beni, and Buta in June 2000.[23]These sources include demobilized Ugandan soldiers, non-governmental
humanitarian aid workers, World Food Program staff, RCD rebel officers, and
people in local communities.
Notably, the area surrounding a former Ugandan
military camp located 13 kilometers from Kisangani in an area called “La
Forestière” was extensively mined. At least seven mine accidents
have been reported in the area surrounding the
camp.[24]
In its February
2001 human rights report on Uganda for the year 2000, the US State Department
said, “There were allegations of human rights violations during fighting
between UPDF and Rwandan army troops in Kisangani, DRC, in May and June, which
resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths.... There were reports that
both Ugandan and Rwandan forces used landmines during the fighting in
Kisangani.... Verification of these reports was extremely difficult,
particularly those emanating from remote areas and those affected by active
combat, primarily in eastern DRC. Independent observers often found access
difficult due to hazardous security conditions and frequent impediments imposed
by authorities. Both pro- and anti-DRC Government forces used propaganda
disseminated via local media extensively, including accusations of abuse by
opposing forces, further complicating efforts to obtain accurate information
regarding such
events.”[25]
The
International Committee of the Red Cross launched an emergency information
campaign on local radio in Kisangani following the fighting between Ugandan and
Rwandan forces to inform civilians returning home of the dangers posed by mines
and UXO laid by parties to the conflict. The national army cleared mines and
UXO with the logistical support of the ICRC.
While Landmine Monitor has not
received any eyewitness accounts or direct admissions by those who actually used
the mines, the testimony of a significant number and range of knowledgeable
sources, coupled with practical evidence such as the location of the mines
around defensive Ugandan positions, indicates a strong possibility of use of
antipersonnel mines by Ugandan forces, or their allies.
Landmine Monitor
believes that the serious and credible allegations of use of antipersonnel mines
by Ugandan forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo in mid-2000 must be taken
seriously. These allegations merit the urgent attention of States Parties, who
should consult with the Ugandan government and other relevant actors in order to
seek clarification, establish the facts, and resolve these questions regarding
compliance with the Mine Ban Treaty.
Rwanda
As noted above, Landmine Monitor Report 2000
cited serious allegations from a UN official, RCD rebels and others that Rwandan
as well as Ugandan forces used antipersonnel mines during the fighting around
Kisangani in June 2000. Since last year’s report, the UN assessment
mission and the US government’s annual human rights report have indicated
the possibility of use by both Rwanda and Uganda.
In June 2000, Uganda had
accused Rwanda of mining the Tshopo bridge in
Kisangani.[26] In its
assessment mission report, the UN states, “Landmines were also laid by
retreating forces on the [Tshopo] bridge and along major routes.... Around 18
mines were placed on the Tshopo bridge, the major link in the
city.”[27]
Congolese refugees told Landmine Monitor that Rwandan soldiers planted mines
in the roads leading to Kisangani from Basoko and Bafwasende, and that four mine
incidents had occurred in February and March 2001. Landmine Monitor was not in
a position to verify these
claims.[28]
Burundi
As a result of the conflict in Burundi, landmines
have been planted in the DRC in the Uvira region in Kivu, close to the Burundi
border. The Uvira airport,[29]
the Uvira-Baraka road,[30]
Makobolo and the Ruzizi valley are reported to be
mined.[31] More than 20 mine
victims have been reported in the Uvira region, and most of the mine incidents
took place in the beginning of
2001.[32] It is not known if
Burundi rebels or Burundi government forces (or both) laid the mines, nor is it
known when the mines were laid.
Use of Mines in 2001
In 2001, the August 1999 Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement
finally began to take hold, and fighting has largely subsided in most of the
country. Congolese government, rebel and foreign troops have begun the process
of disengagement and redeployment. In February 2001, Uganda announced its
intention to withdraw two battalions from the
DRC.[33] By June, it had
withdrawn almost five battalions and the withdrawal was continuing. The United
Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) has
a mandate to oversee implementation of the Lusaka agreement, including
assessment and action on landmines and UXO.
There are reports and allegations
that landmines continued to be used even into this disengagement phase of the
fragile peace in the country. As various government and rebel forces began the
disengagement process in March 2001, relocating to new agreed upon defensive
positions, it appears some have planted new mines.
Congolese diplomats have
alleged that foreign forces and rebels have laid mines in Orientale Province
following the cessation of hostilities, in order to mark off areas of
occupation.[34] The government
army FAC alleged that rebel FLC troops attacked one of its patrols and laid
mines in the Bolomba area (Equateur Province) on 11 May
2001.[35]
The UN Secretary
General’s April 2001 report on the DRC stated, “During the
disengagement phase, MONUC received information indicating the presence of
minefields laid by the belligerent forces to protect their front-line
positions.... In view of both the increased number of new defensive positions
and the danger of mines, MONUC has also confirmed the need to create additional
small coordination
centres....”[36]
The UN
report language is not clear about when the mines were laid. Landmine Monitor
has not been able to confirm recent use, and does not know which
“belligerent forces” the United Nations report refers to, be it FAC,
rebels, Uganda, Rwanda, or others.
Landmine Monitor received information in
July 2001 from an RCD soldier that the RCD continues to use antipersonnel mines
on the frontline in the surroundings of Ikela; he also alleged ongoing use of
antipersonnel mines by FAC in the same area. A humanitarian aid worker provided
the same information to Landmine Monitor.
Assisting Mine Use
Even if allegations of use of antipersonnel mines
by States Parties involved in the conflict in the DRC proved to be false,
Landmine Monitor is concerned that States Parties could be at risk of violating
the Mine Ban Treaty by virtue of close military cooperation, including joint
combat operations, with armed forces that do use antipersonnel mines.
Under
Article 1 of the Mine Ban Treaty, a State Party may not “under any
circumstance...assist, encourage or induce, in any way, anyone to engage in any
activity that is prohibited to a State Party under this
Convention.”
Landmine Problem
See Landmine Monitor Report 2000 for a
description of heavily mined areas in DRC. In June 2001, the World Food Program
(WFP) began an airlift operation to the Katanga district of Manono where
hundreds of children are suffering from malnutrition. A WFP spokesperson said
the airlift, while expensive, is the only viable way to deliver food to the
province, which is riddled with landmines: “The roads are covered with
mines. This is why we need to organize the airlift. We cannot deliver the
supplies by road, which is a shame because more can be brought in that
way,” said WFP’s Christiane
Berthiaume.[37]
Landmines
have affected the peace process by hampering the ability of MONUC to verify the
disengagement of fighting forces in some areas. The UN reported in June 2001
that “MONUC observers have thus far been unable to verify the
disengagement in Bolomba, as they are deployed on the FAC side and the area
between them and FLC is mined and
unaccessible.”[38]
Mine Action
It is not possible to quantify the need for mine
action programs because the magnitude of the landmine problem is not completely
known. Neither the Kinshasa government nor rebel groups are known to have
carried out or supported any mine action efforts. But during the Bamako
Conference, 15-16 February 2001, the DRC called for the establishment of
“a center for research and training on antipersonnel
mines.”[39]
In February
2000, the UN Security Council mandated MONUC to “deploy mine action
experts to assess the scope of the mine and unexploded ordnance problems,
coordinate the initiation of the mine action activities, develop a mine action
plan, and carry out emergency mine action activities as required in support of
its mandate.”[40]
In
June 2001, the UN reported, “To enable MONUC to maintain proper records of
minefields and conduct mine awareness campaigns for military observers and the
civilian population of affected areas, a mine action center will be established
in MONUC headquarters, with subsidiary cells in each sector headquarters. In
determining mine action priorities, a gender perspective should be incorporated
at every stage. This includes the design of mine awareness campaigns, the
designation of priority areas for the removal of mines and unexploded ordnance,
rehabilitation and prosthetic assistance for victims and the collection and
analysis of data on
victims.”[41]
On 1
March 2001, Handicap International (Belgium) launched a six-month mine action
program with US$570,000 from Belgium’s Ministry of Development
Cooperation. That program calls for the preparation, coordination and
implementation of a clearance and mine awareness program in the Kisangani
area.[42] It will involve
demining training, as well as clearance of mines and UXO and mine
awareness.[43]
It is has been
reported that in some areas local people have devised their own means of
detecting landmines in areas they deem unsafe. There reportedly have been
instances in which cattle have been released to graze in particular areas of
concern so that if there are any landmines, the cattle will detonate the mines
– a sacrifice deemed necessary to ensure the safety of human
beings.[44]
Landmine Casualties
Lack of communication and the size of the DRC make
the accurate collection of information on mine victims impossible at this stage.
These same factors are believed to result in most mine victims dying on the spot
after their accident. Landmine Monitor believes the figures reported to date are
significantly lower than reality.
Landmine Monitor research within the city
of Kisangani revealed that at least four mine/UXO incidents occurred between
June 2000 and March 2001. Six people were killed and one person was injured.
Of those killed, four were children between 3 and 8 years of age. The injured
person lost both legs and her right hand after stepping on an antipersonnel mine
while gathering fruit in the "La Forestière"
area.[45] Municipal authorities
of Kisangani reported in July 2000 that more than 10 people had been killed by
mine explosions since the fighting stopped the month
before.[46]
Fifty-two mine
victims have been reported since 1997 in the Orientale
province.[47] A July 2000 press
account reported 70 mine victims in Katanga and 35 in Equateur (all in
Ikela).[48] In Kivu, more than
20 mine victims have been reported in the Uvira region, close to the Burundian
border; most of the incidents took place in the beginning of
2001.[49] Two mine victims have
also been reported in Equateur Province, in the Balomba region.
Survivor Assistance
Health centers are quite numerous in the DRC, but
generally lack equipment and medicines. Referral hospitals, which are based in
major towns, are the only ones that can provide any assistance to mine victims,
but they lack equipment and medicine. Mine incidents often take place in remote
areas, far from health centers and hospitals; therefore, most victims do not
have any access to appropriate care and assistance. The size of the country and
the lack of any means of communication generally prevent mine victims from
reaching hospitals.
In Kisangani, the referral hospital and the university
hospital recently took care of mine victims. Both hospitals lack basic surgical
equipment.[50]
The Red Cross
Society of the DRC runs a center in Kinshasa. This center appears to be the only
one in Kinshasa that is capable of producing prostheses in significant
numbers.[51]
Handicap
International (Belgium) runs an orthopedic workshop in Mbuji-Mai (Kasaï)
that is capable of producing prostheses, but no mine victims have been reported
there.[52]
Two rehabilitation
centers are operating in Eastern DRC, one in Goma and one in Kisangani (Simana
Center). Both are managed by religious communities.
[1] Statement by the
Democratic Republic of Congo to the Bamako Seminar on Universalization and
Implementation of the Ottawa Convention in Africa, Bamako, Mali, 15-17 February
2001.
[2] Landmine
Monitor/Human Rights Watch interview with Midia Monga and Sibtamu Memy, DRC
delegation to the Bamako Seminar on Universalization and Implementation of the
Ottawa Convention in Africa, Bamako, Mali, 15 February 2001.
[3] Remarks by President
Joseph Kabila in a meeting with Alex Vines of Human Rights Watch, London, UK, 12
March 2001.
[4] An informal
paper from the Canadian government dated 6 May 2001 indicates that it received a
copy of “Decret-loi No. 006/01 du 28 mars 2001,” authorizing
accession to the Mine Ban. The law was accompanied by an instrument of
accession. Also, announcement by the co-chair of the intersessional Standing
Committee on the General Status and Operation of the Convention (Belgium),
Geneva, Switzerland, 11 May 2001. An email to Handicap International Belgium
from a Belgian diplomat, dated 11 June 2001, stated that the Belgian Ambassador
in Kinshasa confirmed ratification on 28 April
2001.
[5] Interview with
Tanzanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs official requesting anonymity,
Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania, 11 April
2001.
[6] Interview with DRC
diplomat requesting anonymity, Kampala, Uganda, 30 March
2001.
[7] Confidential
sources in DRC, including an RCD
soldier.
[8] In May 1998 the
RCD split into two groups: RCD-Goma supported by Rwanda and RCD-Kisangani
supported by Uganda. Another rebel group, the Mouvement pour la liberation du
Congo (MLC), emerged in 1999 in Equateur and Orientale provinces. In early
2001, MLC merged with RCD forces to become the Front de liberation du Congo
(FLC).
[9] The Mine Ban
Treaty entered into force for the States Parties as follows: Namibia (1 March
1999), Zimbabwe (1 March 1999), Uganda (1 August 1999), Chad (1 November 1999),
Rwanda (1 December 2000). Angola, Burundi and Sudan all signed the Mine Ban
Treaty in December 1997, but none have yet
ratified.
[10]Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, pp. 199-201; Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp.
193-195.
[11]Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, p.
200.
[12] Perhaps the most
serious allegations of use by FAC, supported by Zimbawean forces, have been made
with respect to extensive use of antipersonnel mines in the area surrounding the
town of Ikela (Equateur Province), in particular during the siege of the town by
the rebel RCD from mid-1999 to January 2000. Rebel troops allegedly lost one
vehicle and dozens of soldiers during the siege because of landmines. Around
3,000 Zimbabweans troops fighting alongside DRC army units were holed up in
Ikela for some seven months due to the rebel siege. See also, “Congolese
Rebels Deny Breaking of Ikela Siege,” Sapa-AFP, Kigali, 18 January
2000.
[13] Interview with Mr.
Mubima, press attaché of the DRC Embassy, Nairobi, Kenya, 29 April 2001.
He said, “The Lodja forest in Kasai near Mbuji-Mayi is heavily mined.
Villagers are in terrible famine, because they can not have access to their
farms for fear of
mines.”
[14] Landmine
Monitor interview with Midia Monga and Sibtamu Memy, DRC delegation to the
Bamako Seminar on Universalization and Implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty,
Bamako, Mali, 15 February 2001.
[15]Landmine Monitor
Report 2000, p. 115.
[16]
UN Security Council, S/2000/1153, “Letter dated 4 December 2000 from the
Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council,” and
“Annex: Report of the inter-agency assessment mission to Kisangani,”
4 December 2000, p. 9.
[17]
Telephone interview with UN official in Kisangani, 28 July 2000. The official
said that mines were planted around Bangoka International airport and on a
section of the Kisangani-Buta road known as Km 31, and that a number of areas
had been declared off-limits because of landmines. Another source indicated
mines were laid at Simi Simi and Bunia airport and Ikela. Interview with BRZ
International Ltd., Johannesburg, June 2000. BRZ is a South African mine
clearance firm which conducted a survey in DRC in 2000 and described it as
“badly
contaminated.”
[18]
“Rebels say more than 4,000 Mines Left in Kisangani,” AFP
(Kisangani), 21 July 2000, in
FBIS.
[19]The New
Vision (daily newspaper), Kampala, 14 September 2000, p.
2.
[20] Landmine Monitor
interview with Captain Kagoro A. Asingura, UPDF General Headquarters, at Mine
Ban Treaty intersessional Standing Committee meetings, Geneva, 8 May 2001.
[21] Ibid.
[22] UN Security Council,
S/2000/1153, “Letter dated 4 December 2000 from the Secretary-General
addressed to the President of the Security Council,” and “Annex:
Report of the inter-agency assessment mission to Kisangani,” 4 December
2000, p. 9.
[23] Interview
with Ugandan demobilized soldiers in Kampala, Uganda. 30 March 2001; interview
with Congolese rebels and displaced migrants in Kigali, Rwanda, 4 April 2001;
telephone interviews with NGO workers and World Food Program staff in Kigoma,
Tanzania and Kigali, Rwanda, 4 and 5 April 2001; interview with RCD officers;
interviews with local people in Kisangani, DRC, March-April
2001.
[24] Interviews,
Kisangani, DRC, March-April 2001.
[25] U.S. Department of
State, 2000 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Uganda, February
2001.
[26]Landmine
Monitor Report 2000, pp. 90-91; “Tchopo Bridge Mines,” New
Vision, 19 June
2000.
[27] UN Security
Council, S/2000/1153, “Letter dated 4 December 2000 from the
Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council,” and
“Annex: Report of the inter-agency assessment mission to Kisangani,”
4 December 2000, pp. 3 and
9.
[28] Interviews with
Congolese refugees, Kampala, Uganda, 2 April
2001.
[29] Interviews,
Eastern DRC, April 2001.
[30]
In its news summary of Wednesday 21 March 2001, BBC reported, “In Eastern
DRC, the FDD (Forces pour la Défense de la Democratie) laid antitank
mines on Uvira-Baraka road. Banyamulenge militia recently fell victim to
antipersonnel mines around
Baraka.”
[31] See
www.heritiers.org/landmine.html.
[32]
Ibid.
[33]Daily
Nation (newspaper), Nairobi, Kenya, 23 February 2001, p.
6.
[34] Interviews with DRC
diplomats in Kampala, Uganda, 2 April 2001, and in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania, 9
April 2001.
[35]
“Eighth report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Organization
Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” UN Security Council,
S/2001/572, 8 June 2001, p.
3.
[36] “Seventh report
of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Organization Mission in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo,” UN Security Council, S/2001/373, 17
April 2001, p. 9.
[37]
“WFP begins massive airlift into ravaged southeastern DR Congo,”
Agence France Presse, Geneva, 19 June
2001.
[38] “Eighth
report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Organization Mission in
the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” UN Security Council, S/2001/572, 8
June 2001, p. 5.
[39]
“Au niveau régional, la RDC propose la création d’un
Centre pour la recherche et la formation sur les mines antipersonnel, de
promouvoir des actions collectives et des politiques régionales
concertées et de renforcer la Coopération interafricaine dans le
domaine du déminage et de l’assistance aux victimes de mines,
conformément au plan d’action de l’OUA et autres
décisions y relatives.” Statement by DRC at the Bamako Conference
on Landmines, Bamako, Mali, 15-16 February
2001.
[40] UN Security
Council Resolution 192, 24 February 2000. See
http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/monuc/monucM.htm.
[41]
“Eighth report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Organization
Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” UN Security Council,
S/2001/572, 8 June 2001, p.
13.
[42] IRIN Online, 8 March
2001.
[43] Interview with
Bernard Hacourt, Handicap International (Belgium), 28 March
2001.
[44] Interview with
Buhendwa, Nyangezi, 18 March
2001.
[45] Confidential
sources in Kisingani.
[46]
IRIN-CEA Update 973, 24 July
2000.
[47] Statistics
provided to Landmine Monitor by a local nongovernmental organization, Kisangani,
2001.
[48] IRIN-CEA Update
973, 24 July 2000. This information was supported during interviews with RCD
officials who mentioned “dozens” of military victims of mines in and
around Ikela.
[49] See
http://www.heritiers.org/landmine.html.
[50]
Interviews, Kisangani, March-April
2001.
[51] ICRC Physical
Rehabilitation Unit, Annual Report 2000,
p.7.
[52] Telephone interview
with Bruno Leclercq, Handicap International (Belgium), 7 June 2001.
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