Key developments since May 2002: The
country’s first humanitarian demining program started in mid-2002. By
January 2003, it had cleared 396,555 square meters of land in Tigray, destroying
132 antipersonnel landmines, 12 antivehicle mines and 251 UXO. A national
Landmine Impact Survey is due to be completed in October 2003. In 2002, mine
risk education reached 301,372 people. Mine action funding totaled more than
US$8.7 million in 2002. Ethiopia hosted the ICBL/Landmine Monitor Africa-wide
regional meeting in December 2002. In 2002, 67 new landmine/UXO casualties were
reported.
Mine Ban Policy
Ethiopia signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December
1997, but has not yet ratified it. Addressing a regional ICBL/Landmine Monitor
meeting in Addis Ababa in December 2002, a government official said: “The
government of Ethiopia is fully committed to the evolving international norms
for the total eradication of antipersonnel landmines. Ethiopia signed the Mine
Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, and is fully committed to its principles and
objectives. As we have reiterated on several occasions, in pursuing the
strengthening of the Treaty, a regional approach should be adopted to encourage
countries...that remain outside the Ottawa process or those [that] have not yet
ratified it, not only to join the treaty but also adhere to its letter and
spirit.”[1]
Ethiopia attended the Fourth Meeting of States Parties in September 2002 and
the Standing Committee meetings in February and May 2003. The delegation’s
statement during the February meetings made no commitment regarding ratification
of the treaty. Ethiopia voted in support of UN General Assembly Resolution
57/74 in November 2002, promoting universalization and implementation of the
Mine Ban Treaty.
Production, Transfer and Stockpiling
Ethiopia has stated that it does not produce
antipersonnel mines, and has not imported antipersonnel mines since the
overthrow of the Mengistu regime in
1991.[2] The size and
composition of Ethiopia’s stockpile of antipersonnel mines is not yet
known, though the types of mines found planted in Ethiopia have been
identified.[3]
There have been no allegations of use of antipersonnel mines in Ethiopia in
this reporting period by either government forces or non-state actors. However,
in March 2003, Eritrea's Commissioner for coordination with the UN peacekeeping
force, Brigadier General Abrahaley Kifle, publicly accused the government of
Ethiopia of laying new antivehicle mines in the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ)
between the two countries. An Ethiopian foreign ministry official said that
General Abrahaley's remarks came as a “surprise,” while the United
Nations said it believed “dissident groups” opposed to the Eritrean
authorities were responsible for laying new mines in the
TSZ.[4]
In July 2003, the head of Somalia’s transitional government accused
Ethiopia of supplying arms, including landmines, to Somali factions. Abkikassim
Salad Hassan said, “Ethiopia continues to violate the arms embargo on
Somalia imposed by the UN Security Council by supplying large quantities of
weapons, ammunition and prohibited landmines to its clientele warlords.”
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi rejected the allegation as
“nonsense.”[5]
Landmine Problem, Survey and Assessment
There is extensive landmine and unexploded
ordnance (UXO) contamination in Ethiopia as a result of the 1998-2000 war with
Eritrea, as well as border disputes with Somalia and Sudan, dating back to the
1930s. Many of the mines and minefields are near populated areas and inflict
casualties on both people and livestock. Mines pose dangers to the resident
population, internally displaced persons, and humanitarian relief efforts. At
the December 2002 ICBL meeting in Addis Ababa, a government official said,
“Having recognized the incalculable humanitarian and socio-economic impact
of landmines, the Government of Ethiopia has accorded mine action significant
importance.”[6] A
demining official noted that large areas of land are no longer economically
viable due to mines and UXO, and that dangers are increasing, as drought has
caused population movement to contaminated
areas.[7]
Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), under contract with Survey Action Center
(SAC) and in close coordination with the Ethiopian Mine Action Office (EMAO),
has been conducting a Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) in Ethiopia since January
2002. Data collection began in April 2003. The survey is to cover all of
Ethiopia including Tigray, Amhara, Oromia and the Somali National Regional
state.[8] NPA expects completion
by October 2003, although the UN has cited a date of December
2003.[9] As of June 2003, data
collection was ongoing in all regions of the country, with 577 mine-suspected
communities visited.[10]
Funding for the survey has been provided by Germany, Norway, the US, and the
European Commission.
The results of the LIS will be used to develop a mine action strategy and to
determine mine action priorities based on the socio-economic needs of the
affected communities. Data from an earlier rapid assessment by the British
demining NGO HALO Trust was entered into the Information Management System for
Mine Action (IMSMA) database, and is being used to identify mined areas during
general survey activities.[11]
IMSMA was installed in the EMAO late in 2002 by the UN Development Program as
part of their technical capacity building project with
EMAO.[12]
Mine Clearance and Coordination
The Ethiopian Mine Action Office was established
in February 2001 to carry out humanitarian mine action in the
country.[13] EMAO’s
director cites as major accomplishments the development of a management focal
point, engagement of international advisors, training of senior and middle level
management staff by Cranfield University, and the equipping and training of four
companies of civilian deminers to international
standards.[14] Two companies
were trained and equipped by the commercial US firm RONCO with US State
Department funds. The other two companies were trained by EMAO with assistance
from UN technical advisors; the cost of the training and demining equipment was
covered with a World Bank loan.
EMAO’s companies were deployed to Tigray in May 2002 and began the
first humanitarian demining operations in Ethiopia soon thereafter. By the
beginning of 2003, they had cleared 130,840 square meters of land in Gerhusirnay
and 265,715 square meters of land in Marta, destroying 132 antipersonnel mines,
12 antivehicle mines and 251 UXO. The EMAO-trained companies were deployed to
Tigray (Gemahlo) and Afar (Bure) in December
2002.[15]
In addition to the demining in Tigray and Afar, mine clearance operations are
being conducted in the Temporary Security Zone. (See Eritrea country report for
details).
Mine Risk Education
In 2002, Mine Risk Education (MRE) reached more
than 300,000 people in Ethiopia through programs carried out by the Ethiopian
NGO Rehabilitation and Development Organization (RaDO) in the Tigray and Afar
regions along the border with Eritrea. UNICEF provides technical and financial
assistance to RaDO, which also works in partnership with the Office of
Rehabilitation and Social Affairs of Tigray Region, and the Disaster Prevention
and Preparedness Bureau of Tigray and Afar
Regions.[16] During 2002, more
than 250,000 people received some form of MRE in Tigray. A total of 20,601
adults received community-based MRE, and 45,610 students received
classroom-based MRE from schoolteachers and RaDO. RaDO and child MRE
instructors reached 11,705 and 84,355 out-of-school children, respectively. A
total of 2,596 deportees received MRE before leaving Adwa transit camp. An
additional 87,147 people were sensitized in the year
2002.[17] RaDO’s MRE
project in Afar region reached 21,250 people through its community-based
approach, 4,807 children in regular schools, 5,867 children in Koranic
(religious) schools through its school-based approach, and 19,448 through its
sensitization program.[18]
An MRE community liaison training session was carried out by RaDO, EMAO and
UNICEF from 26 March-1 April 2003 at EMAO’s office. Sixteen participants
were drawn from RaDO, EMAO, Ethiopian Red Cross Society, and regional government
representatives of Tigray and
Afar.[19]
Mine Action Funding
A UN official in Ethiopia told Landmine Monitor
that in 2002, direct and indirect contributions for mine action totaled $8.736
million.[20] This included $3.5
million in funding from the Ethiopian government, as part of a World Ban loan.
Reportedly, the World Bank loan to Ethiopia initially had $30 million earmarked
for mine action, but that has been reduced to $15
million.[21] The reduction was
made following an assessment done jointly by the World Bank, UNDP, and the
Emergency Rehabilitation Program Monitoring
Unit.[22]
In 2002, eight donors provided about US$4.87 million to mine action in
Ethiopia, based on information provided to Landmine Monitor by the
donors.[23] The largest donor
was the United States with
$2,425,000.[24] Other
contributors included: the European Commission $950,000; Japan $481,552; Italy
$501,750; Germany $190,000; Canada $175,500; Norway $100,000; and Switzerland
$45,000.
According to the UN official, Finland provided $48,000 and the United Kingdom
$193,000 through UNICEF. In-kind contributions to the UNDP mine action in
Ethiopia were made by: Ireland $6,300 (to support middle management training in
Amman, Jordan); the Netherlands (provided two demining trainers for four
months); and Switzerland (provided an advisor for six
months).[25]
A mine action project document was signed with UNDP in September 2001 and
extended in September 2002 for another year. The project provides more than $2
million in UNDP and donor funds for technical assistance for mine action in
Ethiopia, including a component for the Landmine Impact
Survey.[26]
Landmine/UXO Casualties
In 2002, 67 new landmine/UXO casualties were
reported by RaDO in Tigrayand in Afar; 13 were killed and 54 injured.
Data on mine/UXO casualties is collected in RaDO mine risk education project
areas. In addition, in June 2002, five Ethiopian civilians were killed and
seven injured when the truck they were traveling in detonated an antivehicle
mine on the Ethiopian side of the border in the
TSZ.[27]
In Tigray region, 62 new mine/UXO casualties were reported, of which 12 were
killed and 50 injured: 59 males and three females, 25 were under 18 years of
age. Of the total casualties, 25 were caused by antivehicle mines, 11 by
antipersonnel mines, and 26 by UXO. Activities at the time of the incidents
included tampering (26), herding (8), traveling (24), collecting firewood (1),
and ploughing (2).[28]
In Afar region, five new mine/UXO casualties were reported; one person was
killed and four injured. Three were female and two male. Three were under 18
years of age.[29]
In the period from 1998 to December 2001, reported landmine and UXO incidents
resulted in 335 casualties being registered in Tigray region alone: 119 were
killed and 216 injured. In 1998, eight people were killed and eight injured. In
1999, 53 people were killed and 68 injured. In 2000, 47 were killed and 102
injured. In 2001, 11 people were killed and 38
injured.[30]
In the period from 1999 to December 2001, in the Afar region, 87 mine/UXO
casualties were recorded in the three districts where RaDO works. In 1999, 7
people were killed and 32 injured. In 2000, 4 people were killed and 17
injured. In 2001, 7 people were killed and 20 injured. Of the total casualties
to the end of December 2002, 55 were adults and 37 were under 18 years of age.
Children were killed and injured while herding cattle or tampering with UXOs.
Antipersonnel mines caused 39 casualties, antivehicle mines 2 casualties, UXO 46
casualties, and the cause of 5 casualties is
unknown.[31]
Casualties continue to be reported in the Tigray region in 2003, with three
persons killed and thirteen injured in mine and UXO incidents as of the end of
May.[32]
Survivor Assistance
In Ethiopia, few hospitals are capable of
performing emergency surgery and most health posts in the mine-affected areas do
not have the capacity to provide emergency care to mine casualties. Adigrat
Hospital provides emergency care and physiotherapy services. Shire Hospital, a
government hospital located in Endaselasie town in the western part of Tigray
region, has also assisted a number of landmine casualties in emergency care and
treatment. The ICRC supports the Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS) Tigray
branch: ERCS first aid volunteers and ambulance service provides emergency
assistance in mine-affected
areas.[33]
In Ethiopia there are centers providing physical rehabilitation and
orthopedic devices; some are government run and others are operated by NGOs or
international agencies. The Rehabilitation Affairs Department, of the Ministry
of Labor and Social Affairs (MOLSA) is responsible for coordinating
rehabilitation services for persons with disabilities. It oversees four
orthopedic workshops in different parts of the country: Addis Ababa, Mekelle,
Harar, and Dessie.
The Addis Ababa Prosthetic Orthotic Center (POC) is a referral center for
physical rehabilitation and operates an orthopedic workshop and physiotherapy
department. It is also a training center on orthopedic technology and
physiotherapy, which is conducted in partnership mainly with MOLSA, the ICRC and
Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF). In 2002, the center assisted
4,717 people, including 547 landmine survivors. The center produced and
supplied 766 prostheses, 1,356 orthoses, 92 wheelchairs, 4,237 crutches and 8
assistive devices; 507 prostheses and 40 other devices were for landmine
survivors. The annual budget for the program is Birr 3.2 million
(US$376,470).[34]
The Dessie Prosthetic Orthotic Center provides physical rehabilitation
services. The center works in partnership mainly with the ICRC and VVAF. In
2002, the center assisted 430 people; none were landmine survivors. The center
produced and supplied 197 prostheses, 98 orthoses, and 464 crutches, and
repaired 135 devices.[35]
The Harar Prosthetic Orthotic Center provides physical rehabilitation
services. The Center works in partnership mainly with ICRC, Menschen fur
Menschen and RaDO. In 2002, the center assisted 130 people, including 80
landmine survivors. The center also produced and supplied 136 prostheses, 20
orthoses, 160 crutches and 10 walking
frames.[36]
The local NGO, Mekelle Orthopedic, Physiotherapy Center of the Tigray
Disabled Veterans Association (TDVA) provides physical rehabilitation services.
The center works in partnership mainly with the ICRC, German Leprosy and TB
Relief Association, MOLSA (Demobilization and Integration and Coordination Unit)
and the Office of Rehabilitation and Social Affairs of Tigray Region (ORSA). In
2002, the center assisted 516 people, including 214 landmine survivors. The
center produced and supplied 355 prostheses, 161 orthoses, produced 500 crutches
and supplied 462; 202 prostheses, 420 crutches and 6 assistive devices were for
landmine survivors.[37]
In 2002, the ICRC supported seven prosthetic/orthotic centers in Ethiopia
including Addis Ababa, Mekelle, Dessie, Harar, Alert Hospital, and Mickey
Leyland, with materials, training and
supervision.[38] The ICRC also
implements the Patients Support Services (PSS) program for war victims in the
orthopedic workshops of Addis Ababa, Dessie, Harar and Mekelle. With the PSS
arrangement, the ICRC reimburses the cost of services rendered to patients,
transportation costs, the cost of food and accommodation, and the cost of the
orthopedic appliances. In 2002, under the PSS program, 1,073 people were
assisted, including 878 landmine survivors. The ICRC reports total production
from the centers as 1,902 prostheses, 1,695 orthoses and 4,378 crutches; 835
prostheses and 43 orthoses were for landmine
survivors.[39]
The Arbaminch Rehabilitation Center is a local NGO providing physical and
medical rehabilitation services, social and economic reintegration, and
vocational training. The center works in partnership mainly with the ICRC,
CORDAID and Catholic Organization for Relief and Development. In 2002, the
center assisted 416 people, including 153 landmine survivors. The center
produced and supplied 110 prostheses, 54 orthoses, 164 crutches, and 8 assistive
devices; 51 prostheses and 102 crutches were for landmine
survivors.[40]
The local NGO Rehabilitation and Development Organization (RaDO) works in the
Somali refugee camps and the surrounding local population providing social and
physical rehabilitation services. The program is implemented in collaboration
with UNHCR, Stichting Vluchteling Netherlands (SV) and the Administration for
Refugees and Returnees affairs (ARRA). In 2002, 1,931 people were assisted,
including 41 landmine survivors. RaDO produced and supplied 514 orthopedic
devices, 481 crutches, and 56 assistive devices; 31 prostheses and 22 other
devices were for landmine
survivors.[41]
Addis Development Vision (ADV) is a local NGO providing developmental
rehabilitation, skills training, medical rehabilitation, and early childhood
development to disabled and destitute children. It works in partnership with
Cheshire Service, POC and ALERT. In 2002, it assisted 544 people, including 32
landmine survivors. ADV supplied 70 prostheses, 90 orthoses, six wheelchairs,
94 crutches and 13 assistive devices; 25 prostheses, six wheelchairs and three
crutches were for landmine survivors. ADV also provided a one-year skills
training program, startup capital and basic tools for self-employment for 85
persons with disabilities.[42]
Cheshire Service Ethiopia provides institutional and outreach rehabilitation
services for children with disabilities in the regions, and a Community Based
Rehabilitation (CBR) program in Addis Ababa, with objectives of prevention,
rehabilitation, and reintegration, of persons with disabilities. The center
works in partnership mainly with LSN Ethiopia, Christian Blind Mission,
Alemachin, Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission and MOLSA. In 2002,
the center assisted 6,067 people, including 357 landmine survivors. The center
produced and supplied 1,838 orthoses, produced 2,500 crutches and supplied
2,274, and produced 2,000 assistive devices and supplied 1,990; 174 crutches and
81 assistive devices were for landmine
survivors.[43]
As part of the
OMEGA Initiative,
VVAF is working with war-disabled, including landmine survivors, in the Amhara
region, principally in the town of Dessie. The program became operational in
early 2003. VVAF is developing a physiotherapy unit and gait-training area to
expand and improve the quality of services available at the Dessie orthopedic
center. In June 2003, it is developing a community follow-up (CFU) scheme as a
component of the overall rehabilitation service in the center. VVAF is also
planning to establish a satellite orthopedic workshop in Bahir Dar in 2004.
During the development of the program, VVAF concluded that significant problems
for mine survivors and other persons with disabilities were a lack of knowledge
about existing services, and the cost of getting to the workshop and staying in
town while their devices were
produced.[44]
The Landmine Survivors Network (LSN) program in Ethiopia uses community-based
outreach workers, who are also amputees, to work with individual mine survivors
to assess their needs, offer psychological and social support, and educate
families about the effects of limb loss. The program also provides material
support when needed. In 2002, LSN assisted 356 people, including 303 landmine
survivors. All their services are free of charge. LSN works in partnership with
the Bureau of Labor and Social Affairs and the Bureau of Foreign Relation and
Development Cooperation of the Addis Ababa Region. According to LSN, the needs
of mine survivors are housing and shelter, economic and social support,
vocational training and employment opportunities, medical care, mobility devices
and education. The annual budget for the program is Birr 1,713,813
(US$201,625).[45]
The ICRC Special Fund for the Disabled (SFD) manages a training center in
prosthetics at the Addis Ababa POC. In 2002, 26 prosthetics from 14 countries
benefited from the training. In addition to training at the POC, eight
technicians attended training sessions in Damascus at the Red Crescent
Orthopedic Center, and two technicians attended training at the Kangemi
Rehabilitation Center in Nairobi. The ICRC (SFD) also sponsored two technicians
to undertake a three-year course in prosthetics/orthotics at TATCOT in
Tanzania.[46]
Other organizations assisting persons with disabilities, including landmine
survivors, in physical rehabilitation, orthopedic devices, and social and
economic reintegration include: Handicap National-Action for Children with
Disabilities (HN-ACD), Ethiopian National Association of the Blind, Ethiopian
National Association of the Deaf, and the Ethiopian National Association of the
Physically Handicapped.[47]
Disability Policy and Practice
The Ethiopian Federation of Persons with
Disabilities (EFPD) is an umbrella organization of the five national disability
associations. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and the EFPD coordinate
disability issues at the national
level.[48]
[1] Statement by Mehreta’ab Mulugeta,
Head, International Organizations and Economic Cooperation General Directorate
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic Republic of
Ethiopia, to the ICBL/Landmine Monitor Africa-Wide Regional Meeting, Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia, 11 December 2002, p.
7. [2] Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
549. [3] Landmine Monitor Report 1999,
pp. 145-146. [4] “Ethiopia rejects
accusations of laying mines,” IRIN, 21 March 2003, available at
www.irinnews.org.
[5] Manoah Esipisu, “Somalia
launches broadside against Ethiopia,” Reuters (Maputo), 12 July
2003. [6] Statement by Mehreta’ab
Mulugeta, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 11 December 2002, p.
2. [7] Statement by Teklewold Mengesha,
Director, Ethiopian Mine Action Office, to the ICBL/Landmine Monitor Africa-Wide
Regional Meeting, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 11 December
2002. [8] Interview with Jonas
Zackrisson, NPA team leader, Addis Ababa, 6 March
2003. [9] Ibid; UN, “Portfolio of
Mine-Related Projects 2003,” October
2002. [10] Survey Action Center,
“Newsletter,” Vol. 2, No. 6, June
2003. [11] Interview with Teklewold
Mengesha, Director, Ethiopian Mine Action Office, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 30
January 2003. [12] Email to Landmine
Monitor (HRW) from Karen McClure, Mine Risk Education Project Officer, UNICEF
Ethiopia, 24 July 2003. [13] Statement
by Mehreta’ab Mulugeta, Head, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 11 December
2002, p. 3. [14] Interview with
Teklewold Mengesha, EMAO, 30 January 2003; interview with Mehereta’ ab
Mulugeta, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 11 December
2003. [15] Interview with Teklewold
Mengesha, EMAO, 30 January 2003. [16]
Interview with Tilahun G. Kidan, Executive Director, RaDO, Addis Ababa, 27
December 2002. [17] Interview with
Temesgen Abraha, Mekelle, 15 January
2003. [18] Interview with Abdu Ali,
Manager, Afar MRE Project, RaDO, Asayita, 23 January
2003. [19] Interview with Ambachew
Negus, MRE Coordinator, RaDO, Addis Ababa, 1 April
2003. [20] Discussion with Jim
Prudhomme, Senior Technical Advisor, UN mine action in Ethiopia, 1 March
2003. [21] Statement by Teklewold
Mengesha, EMAO, 11 December 2002, p.
8. [22] Email to Landmine Monitor (HRW)
from Karen McClure, UNICEF Ethiopia, 24 July
2003. [23] See the individual donor
country reports in this Landmine Monitor Report. For some donors, figures are
for their fiscal year, not the calendar year. Currency conversions made by
Landmine Monitor. [24] This included
$1,275,000 from the State Department, an estimated $800,000 from the Defense
Department, and $350,000 from the Centers for Disease Control. See, US
Department of State, “To Walk the Earth in Safety,” September
2002. [25] Discussion with Jim
Prudhomme, Senior Technical Advisor, 1 March 2003. He also indicated that in
2002, donor contributions of $1.64 million to UNDP Trust Funds and cost Sharing
Arrangements included: Canada, $187,000; Germany, $190,000; Netherlands,
$1,000,000 (includes LIS); and Norway, $257,000.
[26] UN Portfolio of mine-related
projects, 2003, p. 125. [27] “UN
observer, Eritrean national wounded in landmine explosion,” IRIN, 25 June
2002. [28] Interview with Temesgen
Abraha, RaDO, 15 January 2003. [29]
Interview with Abdu Ali, RaDO, 23 January
2003. [30] Interview with Temesgen
Abraha, RaDO, 15 January 2003. [31]
Interview with Abdu Ali, RaDO, 23 January
2003. [32] Email to Landmine Monitor
(HRW) from Karen McClure, UNICEF Ethiopia, 24 July
2003. [33] Landmine Monitor Report 2002,
pp. 553-554. [34] Interview with
Yohannes Behanu, Manager, Prosthetic Orthotic Center, Addis Ababa, 16 January
2003. [35] Interview with Daniel Kassa,
Manager, Dessie POC, 3 February
2003. [36] Interview with Tsegaye
W/medhin, Manager, Harar POC, Harar, 25 January
2003. [37] Interview with Girmay
Gmeskel, Manager, Mekelle Orthopedic Physiotherapy Center, Mekelle, 12 January
2003. [38] ICRC, “Annual Report
2002,” Geneva, June 2003, p.
76. [39] Interview with Didier Cooreman,
Head of Orthopedic Program, ICRC, Addis Ababa, 20 January 2003. It should be
noted that these figures are a cumulative total of the workshops supported by
the ICRC. [40] Interview with Abebaw
Amsalu, Project and Training Officer, Arbaminch Rehabilitation Center,
Arbaminch, 21 January 2003. [41]
Interview with Teshome Zewdie, Manager, RaDO, Jijiga, 14 February
2003. [42] Interview with Haimanot
Desalegn, Program Coordinator, Addis Ababa Development Vision, Addis Ababa, 14
January 2003. [43] Interview with Dereje
Tekle, Cheshire Service Ethiopia, Director, Addis Ababa, 16 December
2002. [44] Emails to Landmine Monitor
(HIB) from Tilahun G Kidan, Country Representative, VVAF, 20 June 2003; and
Linda Monroe, Physical Therapist, The Omega Initiative-Ethiopia, 9 June
2003. [45] Interview with Gebreselasie
Gebremariam, Director, LSN-Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, 20 January
2003. [46] ICRC Special Fund for the
Disabled, “Annual Report 2002,” Geneva, June
2003. [47] Landmine Monitor Report 2002,
pp. 555-556. [48] Ibid.