Key
developments since May 2002: The Minister of Defense of Abkhazia stated
that in mid-2002, both Abkhazian and Georgian troops mined areas around the
Marukh mountain pass. In 2002, HALO Trust cleared 858,688 square meters of
mine-affected land and destroyed 456 antipersonnel mines, 127 antivehicle mines,
and 749 UXO.
Mine Ban Policy
After the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the
conflict between Abkhazia and the government of Georgia was characterized by
significant use of mines by both sides, followed by a cease-fire agreement in
May 1994. Because Abkhazia is not an internationally recognized State, it
cannot become party to the Mine Ban Treaty. According to the Prime Minister of
Abkhazia, Raul Khadzhinba, “The attitude of Abkhazia to the landmines does
not depend on its leadership only. First of all it is the problem of new use by
the persons who use the mines and other explosive devices to create the
instability and atmosphere of fear. Apart from these questions, the
antipersonnel mine problem can be addressed on the wider
level.”[1]
Abkhazia is not believed to have ever produced or exported antipersonnel
mines. Abkhazian forces maintain a stockpile of antipersonnel mines, though its
size and composition is unknown. Mines used in the conflict have been of Soviet
manufacture. Russian engineering units serving with Commonwealth of Independent
States (CIS) peacekeeping forces may also have a stockpile of antipersonnel
mines.
Use
In June 2003, the Minister of Defense of Abkhazia,
Vyacheslav Eshba, confirmed that Abkhazian soldiers used antipersonnel mines in
2002 for self-protection, such as when soldiers had overnight stays in
observation posts in the forests around Gal and Kodor Valley regions. He said
that the soldiers always dug up and removed the mines when they left the area.
The Minister told Landmine Monitor that in mid-2002, regular troops from both
Abkhazia and Georgia mined areas around the Marukh mountain
pass.[2] The Minister and the
head of the Abkhaz Engineering Corps said that in 2003, “Abkhazian forces
are not using and have no intention to use antipersonnel
mines.”[3]
On 25 March 2003, according to a report in the Black Sea Press Agency, a
100-person Abkhazian unit from Gudauta mined their positions in the 24-kilometer
area of responsibility of Russian peacekeeping forces in Gal
region.[4] Abkhazia’s
Minister of Defense denied this claim as a “provocative
falsification.”[5] There
was no independent confirmation of the mine-laying.
In this reporting period (since May 2002), there were also allegations that
Georgian military forces and Russian peacekeeping forces used antipersonnel
mines in or around Abkhazia:
A press report in July 2002 stated that, “Georgian frontier guards
blew up while laying mines in the upper Kodori gorge of Abkhazia,” and
noted that one guard died and another was seriously
wounded.[6] It said that a
press release from the CIS peacekeepers office stated that “the staff of
Georgian Border Protection Department are laying mines in the upper part of the
Kodori gorge...in particular the territory between the 107th post of
CIS peacekeepers and the village of Kuabchara.” Georgia has denied using
antipersonnel mines. (See the Landmine Monitor report on Georgia).
On 15 October 2002, the Black Sea Press Agency reported that a 14-year-old
boy was injured by a mine planted by Russian peacekeepers in the northern part
of Kodori gorge. The press secretary of the peacekeeping forces denied this
claim.[7]
Landmine Problem
Both Georgian and Abkhazian forces laid tens of
thousands of mines during the 1992-93 fighting. There were numerous reports in
1999 and 2000 that groups from Georgia, allegedly linked to the government,
infiltrated Abkhazia and laid antipersonnel
mines.[8] Approximately 18
million square meters of land were deemed dangerous or suspect in a survey
conducted by the HALO Trust in 1999. HALO categorized five million square
meters as requiring priority one or two
clearance.[9] As of May 2003,
approximately 40 percent or about two million square meters of this
high-priority land had been demined. As Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and
refugees return and start to use the land again, the priority status of certain
mine-affected land may
change.[10]
Mine Action and Mine Clearance
The mine clearance NGO, HALO, fully funds, staffs
and supports the Abkhazian Mine Action Center (AMAC). Donors in 2002 and 2003
included Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States, Tokyo
Broadcasting System Project “Mine-Free” Committee (in cooperation
with Association for Aid and Relief Japan’s “Zero Landmine
Campaign”), and the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial
Fund.[11]
In 2002, HALO cleared 858,688 square meters of mine-affected land (337,191
square meters cleared manually and 521,497 square meters cleared using
mechanical equipment). It destroyed 456 antipersonnel mines, 127 antivehicle
mines, and 749 items of unexploded ordnance (UXO).
Between 1 January 2003 and 13 May 2003, HALO cleared 224,854 square meters of
land and destroyed 249 antipersonnel mines, 49 antivehicle mines and 261 UXO.
From 18 December 1997 to 5 May 2003, HALO cleared a total of 1,991,836 square
meters of mine-affected land (901,767 square meters cleared manually and
1,090,069 square meters cleared using mechanical equipment). It destroyed 4,152
antipersonnel mines, 405 antivehicle mines, and 3,367
UXO.[12]
Mine clearance rates in 2002 increased significantly, compared to the
previous five years, because of the use of new mine clearance equipment, more
deminers working, and improved clearance procedures. Clearance of the remaining
priority one and two tasks is expected to take another two or three years.
Clearance of priority three and four mined areas, approximately 13,000,000
square meters of land, is expected to take considerably longer and will be
carried out only if funding is made
available.[13]
In 2003, HALO employed 380 national staff, divided into fourteen manual mine
clearance teams (seven in Ochamchira, four in Gal and three in Sukhum), a
minefield marking/explosive ordnance disposal/survey team, and five mechanical
mine clearance teams (six armored medium-wheeled front end loaders and a
customized stone crusher working in Sukhum, Gulripsh, Ochamchira and Gal
regions). In June 2003, HALO reported that it has almost completed mine
clearance of the banks of the Gumista
River.[14] During 2002,
HALO’s program in Abkhazia underwent a substantial structural
reorganization, with a shift in emphasis of work away from Sukhum region (which
is nearing completion) to the region of
Ochamchira.[15]
HALO conducted trials with three mine detecting dogs from August to December
2002 to see if the dogs could work effectively and efficiently in
Abkhazia’s minefields. The trail was suspended when the dogs were
recalled for use in HALO’s Angola
program.[16]
Russian peacekeeping forces deployed in Abkhazia also have a demining
capability. In November 2002, a Russian Ministry of Defense official stated
that Russian forces have cleared 23,000 explosive objects during peacekeeping
operations in Abkhazia.[17]
Minister of Defense Vyacheslav Eshba told Landmine Monitor in June 2003 that
recent negotiations between Abkhazian authorities and the leadership of armed
groups in the Kodor valley had resulted in an agreement in principal to allow
demining of these areas. He said negotiations were underway to allow safe
conditions for humanitarian demining as soon as possible.[18]
Mine Risk Education
HALO deploys three mine risk education (MRE) teams
in Abkhazia, each with two
specialists.[19] The Diana,
Princess of Wales Memorial Fund is the principal donor for HALO’s MRE work
in Abkhazia. From April 2002 to March 2003, 9,631 individuals benefited from
MRE delivered by HALO through presentations and lectures and educational
materials (such as text books and coloring books) in 87 schools of the four
principle regions of Abkhazia, and in communities living near mined areas. In
the same period, HALO visited another fourteen schools and distributed
educational materials in Zugdidi region in Georgia, where the majority of
Internally Displaced Persons live. Over 300 MRE posters are on display in
Abkhazia and in the Zugdidi region of Georgia.
Because it is impractical, for geographic and demographic reasons, to give
conventional presentations to every individual in Abkhazia, HALO has developed
new methods to convey the MRE message, including a 20-minute film broadcast on
national television over a six-month period and an MRE puppet show performed by
children to younger children. It is estimated that these have carried the MRE
message to another 20,000 people.
In 2002, the ICRC supported HALO to carry out a survey of the knowledge
people had about mines and UXO. According to the survey, people knew in general
about the risk of mines, but were still not aware of what they could do to
minimize the risk. In response, the ICRC worked with HALO to find ways to make
MRE activities more effective and conducted training using a community-based
approach.[20] In 2002, the ICRC
organized for HALO staff to visit the ICRC mine/UXO risk education program in
Nagorny-Karabakh.[21]
ICRC field staff working in Abkhazia often receive information on areas
infested with mines or UXO, which they pass the information to HALO for the
follow-up. On seventeen separate occasions, recipients of HALO MRE
presentations have informed HALO’s teams on the whereabouts of landmines
or UXO, which has resulted in the destruction of 48 landmines or UXO. Often
inhabitants of mine-affected areas inform HALO’s survey and clearance
teams directly.
Landmine Casualties
There is no systematic data collection on landmine
casualties in Abkhazia. In 2002, there were reports of twelve new landmine
casualties, of which six were killed and six injured. The Abkhazian Committee
of the ICBL (AbCBL) believes the available data underestimates the actual number
of new mine casualties.
Casualties in 2002 include an incident on 8 January, in which an old man was
killed after his horse and cart detonated a device that reportedly consisted of
two antivehicle mines.[22] In
May and June, mine incidents in the Kodor valley killed a civilian and injured
two CIS peacekeepers. In May, four people were killed and two injured in Gal
after their horse stepped on an antivehicle mine. The two injured people
received first aid at the Ochamchira city hospital, after which they were
transferred to Sukhum for further
treatment.[23] In October, a
14-year-old boy was injured after stepping on a landmine in the northern part of
Kodori gorge.[24]
In March 2002, a deminer working with HALO received serious injuries during a
mine clearance operation.[25]
HALO’s incident database recorded five mine or UXO related incidents
between April 2002 and March 2003, compared to eight incidents between April
2001 and March 2002. HALO’s MRE teams interviews recent landmine
casualties for the purpose of identifying dangerous
areas.[26]
Data collected by the Gagra Orthopedic Center identified 244 landmine
amputees since 1995: 208 male, 20 female and 16
children.[27] The Ministry of
Health and Social Security does not collect specific data on landmine
casualties.
More than 50 CIS peacekeepers have reportedly been killed by landmines in
Abkhazia over the past several
years.[28]
Survivor Assistance and Disability Policy and Practice
Health facilities in Abkhazia are in poor
condition due to a lack of resources. The ICRC regularly provides equipment,
supplies, and medicines to Sukhum, Agudzera, and Tkvarchal hospitals, while
hospitals in Gal and Ochamchira receive first aid supplies. In 2002, 1,362
surgical procedures were performed in these hospitals, including 14 for mine
casualties.[29] In October
2002, two surgeons from Abkhazia attended an ICRC seminar on war surgery in
Moscow.[30] Médecins
sans Frontières (MSF) continues to provide emergency medical care and
surgical equipment in support of health facilities in Abkhazia, including a
clinic in Sukhum.[31] In
February 2002, a new Abkhazian NGO, Agency for Development and Support (ADS), in
cooperation with the Swedish Heart to Heart Foundation, delivered a truckload of
second-hand hospital equipment to Abkhazia for distribution to local
hospitals.[32]
The Gagra Orthopedic Center (GOC), established by the ICRC in cooperation
with the Ministry of Health, provides physical rehabilitation services and
orthopedic devices free-of-charge. In 2002, the GOC provided 142 prostheses, 48
orthoses, 331 crutches, nine wheelchairs, and repaired 45 prostheses; 83
prostheses were for mine
survivors.[33] The Gagra
Rehabilitation Center (GRC) provides rehabilitation and accommodation for
amputees waiting for their prostheses to be
made.[34]
Abkhazian NGOs created by persons with disabilities include the Charitable
Association of the Disabled, the Association of the Disabled of Gudauta region,
and the Society of the
Blind.[35] The Sukhum-based
Association of Invalid Support, formerly the Association of Invalids with Spinal
Injuries (AIS), provides physical rehabilitation, psychosocial support, and
vocational training, including computer classes, to persons with disabilities.
The AIS has hosted the AbCBL since 2001. The AIS initiated a “Forum for
the Organizations of Disabled” in May 2001, to lobby their interests in
the local and international institutions, which led to the founding, on 14
February 2003, of the “Coordination Council on the Issues of Disabled in
Abkhazia.” This is a coalition of government and non-governmental
organizations established to address the needs of persons with disabilities,
including landmine
survivors.[36]
Abkhazian legislation does not specifically mention landmine survivors as all
persons with disabilities are treated
equally.[37]
[1] Interview with Raul Khadzhinba, Prime
Minister of Abkhazia, Sukhum, 16 June
2003. [2] Interview with Vyacheslav
Eshba, Minister of Defense of Abkhazia, Sukhum, 23 June 2003; see also Landmine
Monitor Report 2002, pp. 795-796. [3]
Interview with Col. Khuta Kurt-Ogly, Head of Engineering Forces, Ministry of
Defense of Abkhazia, Sukhum, 16 June
2003. [4] “Abkhazian side mined
its block-posts in ‘Security Zone,’” Black Sea Press Agency,
25 March 2003; Independent TV Channel “Rustavi 2,” 25 March
2003. [5] Interfax news agency, 25 March
2003. [6] “Georgian frontier
guards blown up on a mine in the upper Kodori gorge,” Caucasus Press
(Tblisi), 2 July 2002; see also, Apsnypress (Abkhazian State Press Agency), 7
July 2002, available at
apsnypress.narod.ru. [7]
Apsnypress (Abkhazian State Press Agency), Report No. 210, 16 October
2002. [8] US Department of State,
“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2002, Georgia,” Online
Version, 31 March 2003. [9] In 1999, the
HALO Trust conducted a full technical survey of all suspect areas in Abkhazia.
The results of this survey were published in March 2000 in the Abkhazia
Minefield Survey Report. Because the original survey was so comprehensive, only
two areas (constituting 20,000 square meters) of suspected mine-affected land
have since been identified and HALO now has only one Survey Team that also
serves as a Minefield Marking and Explosive Ordnance Disposal
Team. [10] Interview with Tim Turner,
Program Manager, the HALO Trust, Ochamchira, Abkhazia, Georgia, 16 June
2003. [11] Information provided by Tim
Turner, HALO, 10 June 2003. [12]
Ibid. [13]
Ibid. [14]
Ibid. [15]
Ibid. [16]
Ibid. [17] Major General Alexander
Averchenko, Ministry of Defense, Russian Federation, “Making the Ottawa
Convention a Reality: Military Implications,” presentation to the ICRC
Seminar on Landmines and ERW, Moscow, 4 November
2002. [18] Interview with Vyachislav
Eshba, Minister of Defense of Abkhazia, Sukhum, 23 June
2003. [19] Information in this section
was extracted from, “The HALO Trust 2002-3 Final Report to The Princess of
Wales Memorial Fund,” 6 May 2003, provided to Landmine Monitor by Tim
Turner, HALO, 10 June 2003. [20] Email
to Landmine Monitor (HRW) from Kathleen Lawand, Legal Advisor, ICRC, 9 July
2003. [21] Interview with Christopher
Mehley, Head of Mission, ICRC, Sukhum, 1 April
2003. [22] Interview with UNOMIG
officer, Gal, January 2002. [23] Report
of the UN Secretary-General on the situation in Abkhazia, Georgia, S/2002/742,
10 July 2002, p. 3; Apsnypress, 7 May
2002. [24] Apsnypress, report N210, 16
October 2002; Report of the UN Secretary-General on the situation in Abkhazia,
Georgia, S/2003/39, 13 January 2003, p.
3. [25] Report of the UN
Secretary-General on the situation in Abkhazia, Georgia, S/2002/7469, 19 April
2002, p. 3. [26] Information provided by
Tim Turner, HALO, 10 June 2003. [27]
Interview with Christopher Mehley, ICRC, Sukhum, 1 April 2003; ICRC statistics
dated 29 January 2003. [28] See Landmine
Monitor Report 2002, p. 798. [29] ICRC,
“Georgia: January 2003,” Operational update, 6 May 2003, p. 4,
available at
www.icrc.org. [30]
ICRC, “Annual Report 2002,” Geneva, June 2003, p.
251. [31] Interview with MSF personnel,
Sukhum, 11 July 2003; see also MSF, “Activity Report 2002,”
available at
www.msf.org. [32]
Interview with Otar Kakalia, Director, Agency for Development and Support,
Sukhum, 23 March 2003. [33] Interview
with Christopher Mehley, ICRC, 1 April 2003; ICRC statistics dated 29 January
2003. [34] See Landmine Monitor Report
2002, p. 800. [35] Interview with Daur
Lataria, Director, Society for the Blind, Sukhum, 27 June
2003. [36] Interview with Alhas
Tkhagushev, Director, AIS, Sukhum, 21 March
2003. [37] See Landmine Monitor Report
2002, p. 800.
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