Key developments since May 2002:In May 2003, the Council of Ministers of Sudan officially endorsed the Mine
Ban Treaty and transmitted it to the Parliament for ratification. Despite
cease-fire agreements that include non-use of landmines, each side continues to
allege mine use by the other. In September 2002, a memorandum of understanding
was agreed to by the government of Sudan, the SPLM/A and UNMAS regarding UN mine
action support to Sudan. UNMAS established a National Mine Action Center in
Khartoum in September 2002 and a Southern Sudan Mine Action Coordination Office
in Rumbek in February 2003. Mine clearance and mine risk education activities
have expanded.
Mine Ban Policy
Sudan signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December
1997. The government has repeatedly expressed its commitment to the treaty, but
has not yet ratified it. In July 2002, the State Minister of International
Cooperation said that a technical committee had been established to look into
the ratification of the Mine Ban
Treaty.[1] In April 2003, the
Foreign Ministry’s Director of International Organizations told Landmine
Monitor that Sudan has started the ratification process, which was “now in
its final stages.”[2] In
May 2003, Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail announced that the Council of
Ministers of Sudan had officially and unanimously endorsed the Mine Ban Treaty
and had transmitted it to Parliament for
ratification.[3] The Sudan
delegation to the May 2003 Mine Ban Treaty Standing Committee meetings also
stated that Sudan would ratify the convention very soon.
The government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A)
signed the Nuba Mountains Cease-fire agreement on 19 January 2002 and have
renewed it three times for periods of six months, most recently until January
2004.[4] Further peace talks
held in Kenya resulted in a partial military stand down, the Machakos Memorandum
of Understanding on Cessation of Hostilities, signed on 26 October 2002, and
renewed in June 2003.[5] Both
the Nuba Mountains Cease-fire and the Machakos Memorandum commit the warring
parties not to use any types of landmines.
The Sudan People’s Liberation Army has twice signed the Geneva Call
“Deed of Commitment” to ban antipersonnel mines, first on 10 August
2001 in southern Sudan, and again on 4 October 2001 in
Geneva.[6] In November 2002, it
was reported that the SPLM/A had formed a new committee on mine action that
agreed to take disciplinary action against commanders and fighters who failed to
comply with their commitment to not use
landmines.[7] In March 2003, an
SPLA official said, “One of the first issues that needs to feature
prominently in the pre-interim period is the landmine issue. Mines are still
causing problems despite the cease-fire. If peace returns and people begin to
move and cultivate, mines will inevitably become more of a problem. We have a
tremendous problem that needs to be addressed as early as
possible.”[8]
The government of Sudan attended the Fourth Meeting of States Parties to the
Mine Ban Treaty in September 2002 as an observer, where its delegation expressed
appreciation to the ICBL and the Geneva Call for advocating the universalization
of the ban on landmines; to the Sudan Campaign to Ban Landmines for national
mobilization and cross-line coordination; and to the Geneva International Center
for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) for introducing the humanitarian aspects to
the problem of landmines.[9]
Sudan also actively participated in the Standing Committee meetings in February
and May 2003.
The government voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 57/74,
promoting universalization and implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.
Production, Trade, Stockpiling
Sudan has on many occasions in recent years stated
that it does not produce, import, or export antipersonnel mines, and that it has
no stockpile; it maintains that all mines collected during demining and those
taken from rebel forces are
destroyed.[10] Responding to a
Landmine Monitor inquiry, the government on 31 July 2003 stated that it has
“very few mines in storage, and the ones in storage are used for practice
only.”[11] The assertion
of no stockpile is at odds with allegations of use of antipersonnel mines as
reported in this and all previous editions of Landmine Monitor
Report.
An official of the Joint Military Commission (JMC) established to monitor the
Nuba Mountain Cease-fire agreement told Landmine Monitor that there were few
landmines held in the Nuba Mountains by either side and those were in poor
condition.[12]
Use
Mine Use by Government Forces
The government of Sudan and the SPLM/A continued
to accuse each other of ongoing use of antipersonnel mines. The State Minister
of International Cooperation, Dr. Adam Balloh, denied twice any use of landmines
by government forces; first when he addressed the opening of a mine risk
education workshop in July 2002, and again when he met with a United Nations
delegation in October 2002.[13]
An official from the Joint Military Commission told Landmine Monitor that it
appears that government forces used antipersonnel mines around garrisons in the
Nuba Mountains, although it is unknown when the mines were
laid.[14] According to a UN
technical adviser, government garrisons evacuated under the terms of the Nuba
Mountain cease-fire were found to be ringed with antipersonnel
mines.[15] The British
Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) filmed minefields in Torit in southern Sudan when
it was captured and held by the SPLA from 31 August to 8 October
2002.[16]
The SPLA has charged that the government and its militias have continued to
use mines. In March 2003, an official of the SPLA told Landmine Monitor,
“The government of Sudan militias are still using mines in Upper Nile,
around all the government towns and garrisons and around the oil workings. The
government militias don’t feel bound by the agreements between the SPLA
and Khartoum so they continue to use mines despite the ban. But the government
is supplying the militias — for them agreements are just propaganda, they
don’t implement them in the
field.”[17]
Incidents of mine-laying have been reported around the southern oil fields of
Bentiu, where heavy fighting continues, particularly around Leer, in Western
Upper Nile. There are also reports of mine-laying in Yuai and Waat, and around
the strategic town of Akobo, next to the Ethiopian border, all in Upper
Nile.[18]
In late 2002, a US-backed Civilian Protection Monitoring Team (CPMT) was
established with the parties’ consent to investigate allegations that
civilians were targeted in southern Sudan. The CPMT has received allegations of
landmine use by militias; it has frequently blamed the government for violations
of the cease-fire by militias receiving Sudanese government
support.[19]
Mine Use by SPLA
In a March 2003 interview with Landmine Monitor, a senior SPLA official
conceded that there may have been limited mine use by the SPLA, but also said
they have not yet found anyone actually using mines. He stated that SPLA
leadership was too preoccupied with the peace talks to have fully discussed the
mine issue with its fighters, and excused incidents of mine use as due to lack
of dissemination of the ban message among junior
commanders.[20] It also appears
that senior officers are confused about or unaware of restrictions on mine
use.[21]
The SPLA has only agreed to very limited demining of roads around the Nuba
Mountains, as they fear that, should the cease-fire break down, government
forces will attack along these
routes.[22]
The government has repeatedly accused the SPLA of using antipersonnel
landmines in the Eastern Equatorian region of southern
Sudan.[23] In January 2003, the
Sudanese Army reported in a press release that the SPLA planted landmines in the
road between Rubkona and Leer in the Western Upper Nile area of southern
Sudan.[24] The commander of the
Malakal Military Area alleged that the SPLA was planting most of its landmines
around water points and in places where people go to search for their
livelihood. He said the SPLA does not emplace mines around farming areas,
because they get their food from those
fields.[25]
In its July 2003 response to Landmine Monitor, the government stated,
“All the mines planted around oil fields were planted by rebel
factions.” It contended that, despite signing the Geneva Call Deed of
Commitment, “it didn’t stop rebel factions from planting mines in
rural areas and along main roads. These mines hurt the shepherds, farmers and
impaired humanitarian aid
efforts.”[26]
Landmine Problem, Survey and Assessment
The landmine situation in Sudan has not been
comprehensively surveyed, including rebel-controlled parts of southern Sudan and
other areas such as the Nuba Mountains, southern Blue Nile and the Red Sea
Hills. Following the January 2002 cease-fire, some initial assessments were
carried out in the Nuba Mountains, which are described in Landmine Monitor
Report 2002.[27]
In general, there are not large defensive minefields contaminating whole
areas, but rather a number of relatively random mines blocking access routes to
key areas.[28] Many roads,
especially in the Nuba Mountains, are blocked to humanitarian relief traffic.
In 2002, a consultant for the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) conducted
an assessment for the UN World Food Program, investigating the possibility of
opening roads across southern Sudan for relief aid. In April 2003, FSD produced
a report for WFP, with a map showing most roads to be
mined.[29] In February 2002,
the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) Nuba Coordinator gave Landmine Monitor a map
showing almost all roads in Nuba as suspected of being
mined.[30]
In October 2002, the UN reported that landmines on key logistical routes
would continue to hamper humanitarian interventions, and endanger the local
community, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), and UN and NGO staff. In
February 2003, the UN stated, “The presence of mines along this route are
blocking access routes to key areas and forcing the bulk of all food/aid relief
to be delivered by air; all at tremendous, ongoing cost. Should this route be
properly cleared of a mine/UXO hazard the resulting dividend in terms of
increased movement and transit of humanitarian and logistic supplies would
significantly reduce the cost of humanitarian intervention in South
Sudan.”[31]
The JMC convened a seminar in June 2002 in Kauda in the Nuba Mountains
regarding landmines and general obligations under the Nuba Mountains Cease-fire
Agreement. Following the seminar, both sides began to send information to the
JMC to help identify dangerous areas. However, as of mid-2003, both sides have
only provided information on the boundaries of minefields and mined routes;
there are no maps or detailed information on the location or number of
landmines. Institutional records are very weak, and some of the personnel who
laid mines have been either killed or transferred to other parts of the
country.[32]
Mine Action Funding
Given recent developments in Sudan, there is more
interest in supporting mine action activities. At the same time, some donors
are hesitant, preferring to wait to see a comprehensive peace settlement in
Sudan before fully addressing mine action. Sudan's delay in ratifying the Mine
Ban Treaty has also discouraged some
donors.[33]
According to information provided by donors, in 2002, at least twelve donors
provided about $5.1 million in mine action support. This compares to six donors
providing some $2.2 million in 2001.
In 2002, funding for mine action has come from the following sources:
Norway, US$375,000 (to DanChurchAid/DCA for mine
clearance);[34] Italy, $150,100
(to UNMAS);[35] Germany,
$477,043 (to UNMAS and
UNICEF);[36] Denmark, $492,000
(to DCA);[37] Japan, $342,400
(to UNMAS);[38] Switzerland,
$165,000 (to UNDP for
clearance);[39] Luxembourg,
$38,000 (to UNMAS);[40] Canada,
$259,875 (to UNICEF for mine risk
education);[41] the United
States, $178,000;[42] and the
EC, $1,183,000 (for mine clearance and risk
education).[43] UN sources also
report funding between March 2002-March 2003, from Sweden, $250,000
(coordination) and $69,759 (mine action in the Nuba Mountains); from the United
Kingdom, $19,920 (IMSMA consultant), $110,000 (National Mine Action Office) and
$536,000 (mine action in the Nuba Mountains); and $509,998, in unearmarked funds
from the Voluntary Trust
Fund.[44]
Support from the UK, German and Swedish governments totaling US$800,000
enabled the UN to deploy integrated Explosive Detection Dogs and Manual
Clearance teams to the Nuba Mountains for the period January to May 2003, before
the rainy season in the
area.[45]
Mine Action Coordination and Planning
In March 2002, the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS)
posted a chief technical advisor to Khartoum in order to coordinate and plan
mine action activities.[46] An
Outline Concept Plan for a UN Emergency Mine Action Program in Sudan was adopted
on 19 April 2002, along with a UN Emergency Mine Action Plan for the Nuba
Mountains and a UNICEF plan to introduce mine risk
education.[47] One of the
functions of the Joint Military Commission is to supervise the mapping and
clearance of mines. The JMC coordinates this information with
UNMAS.[48]
In September 2002, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was agreed to in
Geneva between the government of Sudan, the SPLM and UNMAS regarding UN mine
action support to Sudan. The UN is to implement an Emergency Mine Action
Program in Sudan operating in both the government and the SPLM controlled areas
with the objective of reducing mine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) casualties
among the civilian population and humanitarian aid community. According to the
MoU, key elements that will be addressed are: accreditation, operational
cooperation, national technical guidelines and standards, quality assurance
monitoring, centralized reporting, resource mobilization and
capacity-building.[49]
In September 2002, UNMAS established a National Mine Action Center in
Khartoum.[50] The Humanitarian
Aid Commission (HAC), under the auspices of a newly established Sudanese
Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, is the government focal point for coordination
of mine action and is represented in the Mine Action Center. UNMAS established
a Southern Sudan Mine Action Coordination Office in Rumbek in February
2003.[51]
The Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) has been installed
in each office. Information regarding mines and UXO is not to be released at
any time without the prior consent of the relevant party. The IMSMA offices are
working with the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA) to
develop a common system to facilitate planning for humanitarian interventions,
particularly related to the expected return of internally displaced
persons.[52]
In November 2002, it was reported that the SPLM had formed a new committee on
mine action.[53] In March 2003,
an SPLA official on the committee said, “It’s important to boost the
capacity of local NGOs working in demining. We have a lot of local capacity that
we can build on with the right kind of inputs from the international
community.”[54]
The Sudan Campaign to Ban Landmines oversees coordination of mine action in
the government-controlled areas of the Sudan. The membership of the Sudan CBL
has reached 27 national and international NGOs. The Sudan CBL convened a
workshop in January 2003 to develop a three-year strategic plan. The Sudan CBL,
Operation Save Innocent Lives (OSIL), which is operating in the SPLM-controlled
areas, and DCA signed a cooperation agreement on 19 September 2002 to enter into
a partnership to implement a cross-conflict mine action program in the Nuba
Mountains. This cooperation agreement, supported by UNMAS, sets out an initial
framework of cooperation and calls for further detailed plans to be developed
with full consultation of all parties.
A mine action coordination meeting for Nuba Mountains was held in Umm
Sirdibba on 22 February 2003. This landmark meeting brought together mine
action actors from both government and SPLM areas and marked a significant
milestone in the development of a cross-line mine action program. NGOs,
government and SPLA military, along with a representative from the SPLM HQ Mine
Action Committee, attended the
meeting.[55]
A cross-line mine action technical committee, consisting of a UN senior
technical advisor and representatives from SPLM headquarters and Sudan CBL, also
met on 22 February 2003 at Um Sirdibba and key coordination issues were
discussed and resolved. During this meeting the SPLM representative raised
concerns that while much activity was taking place in government-controlled
Sudan, activity was lacking on the SPLM side. The UN technical adviser agreed
to explore ways to address this disparity during the coming
months.[56] There are to be
regular bi-monthly meetings in the Nuba Mountains for all agencies involved or
interested in mine
action.[57]
The Sudan Landmine Information and Response Initiative (SLIRI) was
established in 2002 to create a comprehensive information network throughout all
potentially mine-affected areas of Sudan in order to develop accurate landmine
and unexploded ordnance related information which will be stored and used for
demining work at a later date. The EC funded the project with €1.5
million through Oxfam/Great
Britain.[58] SLIRI established
field bases and contacts in Kadugli, Malakal, Juba, Wau and Port Sudan, but
faced many difficulties with the various stakeholders and original partners both
in northern and southern Sudan that slowed down project implementation. The EC
offered the project a no-cost extension up to August
2003.[59]
Fully operational SLIRI Landmine Operations Centers have been established in
Khartoum and Yei. In government-controlled areas, Sector Operations Centers
(SOCs) are functioning in Tokar (Red Sea), Kadugli (Nuba Mountains), Wau (Bahr
el Ghazal), Malakal (Upper Nile), and Juba (Bahr el Jabal). In SPLA-controlled
areas, SOCs are functioning in Yei, Rumbek, Tombura, Yambio and Kurmuk. Other
SOCs are expected to open soon in Panyagor, Chukudum, and Nuba Mountains
(Kauda).[60]
A Technical Training and Advisory Team has been established by Landmine
Action to support SLIRI. Dialogue and networking is being pursued with key
stakeholders. Local populations have also been contacted to make them aware of
the objectives and importance of the project in terms of resettlement,
rehabilitation and planning in the
future.[61]
Since SLIRI’s partnership with OSIL was dissolved, a strategy has been
established to find new partnerships and to broaden the base of the program.
From the various meetings held between SLIRI staff and the key partners and
stakeholders of the project in the south, several areas were identified for
possible collaboration, including: networking and information sharing,
information dissemination, landmine awareness creation among the grass roots
communities, campaigns against indiscriminate use of landmines, lobbying and
advocacy with policy makers and relevant authorities, and landmine
education.[62]
SLIRI partners in the south include: Sudanese Women Voice for Peace, Sudan
Integrated Mine Action Systems, Sudan Evangelical Mission, Nuba Relief and
Rehabilitation Development Organization, New Sudan Council of Churches, Sudan
Women Action Nairobi, Bahr El Ghazal Youth Development Association, Pan African
Christian Women Alliance, Sudan Women Mission for Peace, and Sudan Production
Aid. In the north, SLIRI has entered into negotiations with local NGOs
regarding partnerships, and has concluded an agreement with the Sudanese
Development Association (SDA). In addition, the Nuba Mountains Solidarity
Abroad (NMSA) has a partnership that will involve them in demining in the Nuba
Mountains.[63]
Mine Clearance
Landmine Monitor Report 2002 reported that
as part of the cease-fire agreement and humanitarian relief plans in the Nuba
Mountains, the US had deployed its Quick Reaction Demining Force (QRDF) in April
2002.[64] The QRDF cleared the
route between the villages of Um Sirdibba and Kauda, a total of 50,208 square
meters of land, and a UXO-contaminated area around the JMC location in Kaudahas;
it returned to its base in Mozambique in June
2002.[65]
In August 2002, UNMAS reported on clearance in the Nuba Mountains, stating,
“To date 50,000 square meters has been cleared. The UN Technical Advisor
(TA) has been actively working with JMC, Government of Sudan and with SPLA to
gather reliable information regarding the presence of mines in the area. Many
areas previously thought to contain a mine hazard are now being discredited
based on local knowledge and activity. All such information is being recorded
in IMSMA.”[66]
DanChurchAid brought in a demining dog team from South Africa, with eight
dogs and four handlers, accompanied by a team of four deminers from Kosovo and
two medics from Zimbabwe. They established a camp in the former government
garrison town of Umm Sirdibba in January 2003 and began road clearance tasks
co-coordinated by UNMAS and JMC. They are also training and deploying two
demining teams in the Nuba Mountains across the lines of conflict, as well as
training and deploying mine risk education teams. One team of international
deminers worked with the dog teams to open the first road for the World Food
Program (WFP) to supply food. Work ended in March 2003 and the demining team
returned to Kosovo. A total of 9,825 square meters of road were cleared between
El Hamra and Umm Sirdibba.[67]
For the first time in 19 years, WFP was able to deliver humanitarian
assistance to Karkar in the Nuba Mountains in a convoy originating from
government-controlled areas of Sudan. The first trucks, which contained 43
metric tones of food commodities, left Kadugli in northern Sudan on 31 March and
arrived in rebel-held Karkar on 1 April 2003. Under the escort of the JMC, the
convoy traveled the 80 kilometer journey along a route cleared and/or verified
free of landmines by
DCA.[68]
DCA believes it will take some time before local deminers can replace the
outside teams, stating, “It is clear that the emergency phase of the
program should be extended until the end of 2003, in order to ensure that local
partners are able to take part in the start up, training and further deployment
of the teams. This will ensure that they become familiar with the complexity of
a demining operation.”[69]
Landmine Action has been training Sudanese deminers in the Nuba Mountains,
initially at a training school established at Tillo. As of June 2003, the first
teams had completed training and were being deployed on priority clearance
tasks. Landmine Action's partner for demining in government-held areas of the
Nuba Mountains is Nuba Mountains Solidarity Abroad (NMSA). Funding is provided
by the EC.[70]
In January and February 2003, RONCO cleared a total of 18,595 square meters
in the Fruk al Kup area of Miri Hills, Nuba
Mountains.[71]
Government armed forces marked some mined areas in the Nuba Mountains in
2002.[72]
OSIL reports that between September 1997 and November 2002, its humanitarian
demining teams in Yei and Nimule cleared 5,176,362 square meters of land, 1,284
miles of roads and destroyed 3,376 antipersonnel mines and 112,947
UXO.[73]
The South Sudan Mine Action Coordination Office (SSMACO) has facilitated two
mine clearance projects during this reporting period. NICOH Holdings, a private
company developing land for use in Rumbek, asked for help in confirming their
land was clear of mines and UXO before development. The SSMACO utilized a local
NGO, Sudan Integrated Mine Action Service (SIMAS), for this task. A number of
UXO were found and removed for
destruction.[74] A second
clearance task was requested by the WFP to determine whether land for two new
compounds was free of mines and UXO. SIMAS was again deployed and a number of
mines and UXO were found and removed; this task was still ongoing in June 2003.
The Swiss Foundation for Mine Action reports that, in collaboration with the
World Food Program, it is in the process of establishing a dedicated national
route clearance and survey capacity aimed at the facilitation of safe access to
high priority routes required for distribution of humanitarian
aid.[75]
Mine Risk Education
Mine risk education (MRE) operators in Sudan
include: Sudan Campaign to Ban Landmines, Sudan Red Crescent, Save the Children
Sweden, Save the Children USA, Operation Save Innocent Lives, Sudan Integrated
Mine Action Service, and, more recently, DanChurchAid. All together they
provided MRE to approximately 200,000 people in 2002. Organizations planning to
get involved in MRE include: the Center for Humanitarian Assistance Resource
Management (CHARM), Friends for Peace and Development Organization, Roots,
Abrar, Nile Valley, and Plan
Sudan.[76]
Funding problems were reported in 2002. About US$100,000 was raised for MRE
in Sudan in 2002.[77] In 2003,
Canada pledged US$250,000 while Finland pledged €300,000 over three years
(€100,000 per year) to fund MRE in Sudan. The UNICEF UK National
Committee pledged US$50,000 for MRE in south
Sudan.[78]
In July 2002, SCBL, UNICEF and UNMAS convened a two-day seminar on mine risk
education in Khartoum. The seminar was aimed at reviewing and strengthening MRE
in Sudan, while also addressing the issue of Sudan’s ratification of the
Mine Ban Treaty.
In November 2002, UNICEF sent an MRE Coordinator for Sudan, to be based at
the National Mine Action
Office.[79] UNICEF reports that
there is an urgent need to train national NGOs in mine
issues.[80] The UNICEF MRE
Coordinator, together with a newly established MRE Advisory Group, developed a
plan and terms of reference for an assessment on mine risk education to take
place in the Nuba Mountains, Kassala and Juba areas. MRE provisional Guidelines
and Standards have now been developed as the basic requirement for accreditation
of relevant partners in government-controlled
areas.[81]
The Sudan CBL has launched a number of MRE and information gathering
initiatives throughout Sudan and has been active in the region of Kassala since
1998.[82]
Operation Save Innocent Lives has been conducting MRE in the area around Yei
and Nimule on the Ugandan border. It received training from the UK-based Mines
Advisory Group (MAG) in the
past.[83] It has also received
technical assistance from the Canadian organization, CAMEO. OSIL has received
funding from Trocaire, DCA, UNICEF and
CIDRI.[84]
The Sudan Integrated Mine Action Service has been conducting limited MRE in
schools and villages around Rumbek. It has received funding in the past through
UNICEF, but still lacks proper training, equipment and
funding.[85]
The International Save the Children Alliance supports MRE projects in Kassala
(Save the Children Sweden) and in the Nuba mountains (Save the Children Sweden
and USA).[86]
DanChurchAid started MRE training in May 2003 in the Nuba Mountains in
government-controlled areas, and plans to work in SPLA/M-controlled areas. DCA
works in partnership with OSIL and another NGO, Sudanese Association for
Combating Landmines
(JASMAR).[87]
The Center for Humanitarian Assistance Resource Management had a MRE project
aimed at internally displaced people from the Nuba Mountains returning home
following the January 2002 Cease-fire
Agreement.[88]
Landmine Casualties
In 2002, SLIRI was established, in part, to create
a comprehensive data collection mechanism to register landmine casualties in
Sudan. The National Mine Action Office in Khartoum and the Southern Sudan Mine
Action Coordination Office are working to collect and collate all mine/UXO
casualty data through the use of
IMSMA.[89] As of June 2003, a
total of 2,667 mine/UXO casualties had been reported since 1998 to the National
Mine Action Office. Reports were received from Khartoum, Kadugli, Juba, Malakal
and Kassala, and have come from various authorities, but mainly the military and
health units.[90] Landmine
Monitor did not obtain information on the year in which the reported incidents
occurred.
In 2002, at least 68 new mine/UXO casualties were reported in the limited
information available from various sources in the country. Of these, 21 people
were killed and 42 injured, while the status of five casualties is not known.
In February, two people were killed in Kadugli province, and in March another
person was killed in the Talodi area by antipersonnel
mines.[91] In April, one man
was killed and 12 injured by an antipersonnel mine in Karic, near
Rumbek.[92] In May, a landmine
killed nine civilians, including a top state official from Warap, and injured
eight near Wau, the largest town in Bahr el-Ghazal
region.[93] In July, OSIL
recorded five casualties, two relief workers and three other men, and in August,
a man lost his right leg in a mine explosion while trying to rescue an injured
cow in Kaya town in
Equatoria.[94]
In Kassala State, 14 mine/UXO casualties were reported in 2002. In March, a
soldier was killed by an antivehicle mine. In April, five people were injured
in a UXO incident. In May, six people were injured in an incident involving an
antivehicle mine. In December, a soldier lost his leg in an antipersonnel mine
incident, and another soldier was injured by UXO. Eleven of the fourteen
casualties were civilians.[95]
In the Nuba Mountains, several mine casualties were reported in 2002. In
June, a pickup truck detonated an antitank mine, slightly injuring the four
occupants. In another incident on 11 June, a tractor detonated an antitank
mine, killing six people and injuring three
others.[96] In December 2002, a
truck detonated a suspected antitank mine. The driver and passengers suffered
light injuries.[97]
In 2001, 123 landmine casualties were reported in the period from January to
June.[98]
Casualties continued in 2003. On 14 February 2003, a man was killed in a
mine incident on the edge of Rumbek
town.[99] The Sudanese Red
Crescent, Kassala branch reported one mine and two UXO incidents in January and
February. Two soldiers and four children were
injured.[100]
Survivor Assistance
Landmine survivors reportedly have access to free
medical treatment in the public and NGO hospitals in
Sudan.[101] However, in
general, the assistance available to landmine survivors, from both the
government and NGOs, is irregular and not sufficient to address the size of the
problem. Years of war seriously damaged the healthcare system, and for many
people living in remote areas, the nearest medical facilities are days of travel
away. In the Nuba Mountains there is reportedly only one doctor for every
300,000 people and health workers are often insufficiently trained or equipped
to treat trauma
patients.[102]
Survivor assistance will reportedly form a core component of the UN Mine
Action strategy in Sudan.[103]
In April 2003, the National Mine Action Office recruited a Victim Assistance
(VA) Officer.[104] The UNMAS
Victim Assistance Officer spent one month with the new Sudanese VA Officer to
assist in capacity-building within the NMAO, and develop a plan of action for
victim assistance.[105]
The ICRC’s medical assistance activities in Sudan include first aid
training and providing comprehensive medical and surgical care to the
war-wounded and other surgical emergencies, including landmine casualties, at
its two referral hospitals, the ICRC Lopiding surgical hospital in Lokichokio in
northern Kenya, and the government-run Juba Teaching Hospital (JTH). The ICRC
airlifts emergency cases from Sudan to the hospital in Lokichokio. In 2002,
Lopiding Hospital treated ten landmine casualties from southern
Sudan.[106]
In the Nuba Mountains area, Save the Children USA and MSF Holland have health
clinics, in Como and Limoon, in addition to the German Emergency Doctors
hospital in Luweri. However, all suffer shortages of doctors and medical
supplies. In July 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) started a training
program for medical assistants to treat landmine casualties in the Nuba
Mountains.[107]
In 2002, the ICRC continued to train staff at the National Corporation for
Prosthetics and Orthotics (NAPCO) in Khartoum, and worked with the authorities
to help set up satellite centers in Kassala, Dongola, Nyalla and Damazin. It
also trained hospital staff from Juba, Kassala and Dongola in physiotherapy for
amputees. The ICRC also provided training and materials to the Juba orthopaedic
center, which almost doubled its production, fitting over 100 patients with
prostheses. In 2002, the ICRC-supported centers provided 798 prostheses (of
which 117 were for mine survivors) and 628
orthoses.[108] NAPCO provides
free services to military personnel and charges 50 percent to civilians.
The Prosthetic Center in Kassala, eastern Sudan, has been refurbished and
supplied with new equipment. The ICRC provided US$350,000 while NAPCO
supervised the refurbishment. UNHCR supported the upgrading of the buildings as
part of its program targeting areas with refugee
populations.[109]
During a UN mission to Kassala State, it was reported that the facilities for
mine survivors requiring prosthetics were inadequate. Although the ICRC has
re-equipped the Kassala prosthetic center, the high cost of obtaining a suitable
prosthesis is beyond the means of many
amputees.[110]
The ICRC’s Lopiding Hospital, with its annexed prosthetic-orthotic
center in Lokichokio, northern Kenya, has provided physical rehabilitation to
mine survivors, and other persons with disabilities, from across the border in
rebel-held areas of Southern Sudan since 1992. In 2002, the orthopedic workshop
fitted 380 prostheses, of which 78 were for mine survivors, produced 194
orthoses (one for a mine survivor) and 1,576 crutches, and distributed 23
wheelchairs.[111]
In 2002, the Sudanese Association for the Care and Rehabilitation of War
Victims (ABRAR) provided physiotherapy, psychosocial support and legal aid to
war victims. In 2002, ABRAR assisted 285 landmine survivors.ABRAR also
advocates for a disability policy and legislation that supports the victims of
war, including landmine
survivors.[112]
[1] Remarks by Adam Balloh, State Minister
of International Cooperation, to the Mine Risk Education Workshop, organized by
the Sudan Campaign to Ban Landmines and UNICEF, Khartoum, 3-4 July
2002. [2] Interview with Ambassador
Dafaalla Elhaj Ali, Director of International Organizations, Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Khartoum, 3 April 2003. [3]
“Minister Graham and Sudanese Foreign Affairs Minister conclude bilateral
discussions,” News Release Number 62, Ottawa, 14 May
2003. [4] “Mediators say factions
to extend truce,” Reuters, 24 June
2003. [5]
Ibid. [6] Interview with Commander Nhial
Deng Nhial, Foreign Minister, SPLM, London, 2 March 2002. The SPLA first orally
committed to the Geneva Call on 27 March 2000, in Geneva, though SPLA mine use
apparently continued after that
point. [7] “Sudanese Groups Agree
On Mines,” The East African Standard (Nairobi), 2 November
2002. [8] Interview with Nhial Deng,
Senior SPLA officer, Karen, Kenya, 4 March
2003. [9] Statement by Dr. Sulafadin
Salih, Commissioner, Humanitarian Aid Commission, to the Fourth Meeting of
States Parties, Geneva, Switzerland, 16-20 September
2002. [10] Landmine Monitor Report 2002,
p. 575. [11] Response to Landmine
Monitor from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Humanitarian Aid Commission,
received by fax from the Embassy of the Republic of Sudan, Washington, DC, 31
July 2003. Translation by Landmine
Monitor. [12] Interview with Stuart
McGhie, JMC Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff, Khartoum, 6 April 2003. The JMC is
composed of nine military officers, three each from the government, SPLA and
foreign countries. [13] “The
government ratifies the mine ban treaty in days,” Alhoriyah (daily
newspaper), 6 October 2002. [14]
Interview with Stuart McGhie, JMC, 6 April
2003. [15] Interview with Graeme
Abernethy, UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) technical coordinator, Nuba Mountains,
9 February 2003. [16] Roger Harding,
“Newsnight,” BBC TV News, 21 September 2002; “On Sudan’s
Tense Frontline,” BBC Radio 4 and World Service, 21 and 22 September
2002. [17] Interview with Nhial Deng,
Senior SPLA official, Karen, Kenya, 4 March
2003. [18] Interview with John Luk Jok,
former SPLA Secretary for Information and currently Editor of the South Sudan
Post, Nairobi, 9 March 2003; interview with Nuer Tribal Chief of Yuai, Nairobi,
9 March 2003; interview with Rev. Stephen Tut, Deputy Editor of the South Sudan
Post, Lokichoggio, Kenya, 24 January
2003. [19] Interview with CPMT monitor,
Rumbek, southern Sudan, February
2003. [20] Interview with Nhial Deng,
SPLA, 4 March 2003. [21] Interviews with
senior SPLA officers and officials in Sudan and Kenya, February and March 2003.
The Geneva Call “Deed of Commitment” prohibits all use of
antipersonnel mines. The January 2002 Nuba Mountains Cease-fire and the October
2002 MoU prohibit use of both antivehicle and antipersonnel
mines. [22] Interview with Commander
Abdelaziz Adam el Hilu, SPLA Governor of Nuba Mountains, Luweri, 9 March
2003. [23] Statement by Dr. Sulafadin
Salih, Humanitarian Aid Commission, to Fourth Meeting of States Parties, 16-20
September 2002. [24] “The Peace
Advisory requests SPLA to return to the negotiations,”Alayam (daily
newspaper), 28 January 2003. [25]
Statement by Lt. Col. Khalid Abbas, Commander of the Malakal Military Area, in
SLIRI Newsletter, Issue No. 1, January-February
2003. [26] Response to Landmine Monitor
from the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Humanitarian Aid Commission, received
by fax from the Embassy of the Republic of Sudan, Washington, DC, 31 July 2003.
Translation by Landmine Monitor. [27]
Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp.
577-578. [28] UN Consolidated
Interagency Appeal for Sudan, 2003. [29]
Swiss Foundation for Mine Action, “Assessment Mission for the
establishment of a technical capacity to undertake verification and clearance of
priority roads within Sudan,” April
2003. [30] Interview with Graeme
Abernethy, UNMAS Nuba Coordinator, el Bati, 3 February
2002. [31] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme in Sudan, “Monthly Report: January-February
2003.” [32] Interview with Stuart
McGhie, JMC, 6 April 2003. [33]
Interview with Chris Clark, Senior Technical Advisor, UNMAS, Khartoum, 2 April
2003. [34] Email from the Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 4 March
2003. [35] Article 7 Report, Form J, 16
April 2003. [36] Email to the German
Initiative to Ban Landmines from the German Ministry for Foreign Affairs, 22
April 2003. [37] Email from Ulrik
Enemark Petersen, Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 28 March
2003. [38] Written response to the
Japanese Campaign to Ban Landmines by Humanitarian Assistance Division,
Multilateral Cooperation Department, Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 20
February 2003. [39] UN Mine Action
Investments Database, accessed at
www.mineaction.org. [40]
Email from François Berg, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg, 18
April 2003. [41] UN Mine Action
Investments Database. [42] US Department
of State, “To Walk the Earth in Safety,” September
2002. [43] Email to ICBL (Sylvie Brigot)
from Catherine Horeftari, European Commission, 23 May
2003. [44] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “Quarterly Report: October to December
2002.” [45] UN Emergency Mine
Action Programme, “2002 Annual
Report.” [46] UN Consolidated
Appeal for Sudan 2003. [47] UN Emergency
Mine Action Programme, “2002 Annual
Report.” [48] Interview with
Stuart McGhie, JMC, 6 April 2003. [49]
MoU between the GoS, SPLM and UNMAS signed in Geneva on 19 September 2002.
[50] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “2002 Annual
Report.” [51]
Ibid. [52] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “Monthly Report: January-February
2003.” [53] “Sudanese Groups
Agree On Mines,” The East African Standard (Nairobi), 2 November 2002.
Members of the committee include Nhial Deng Nhial; Edward Lino, Security Chief;
Dr Justin Yac, East Africa Representative; and Aleu Ayieng Aleu, OSIL
Director. [54] Interview with Nhial
Deng, SPLA, 4 March 2003. [55] UN
Emergency Mine Action Programme, “Monthly Report: January-February
2003.” [56]
Ibid. [57] Interview with Dr. Hussein
Elobeid, Coordinator, Sudan CBL, Khartoum, 24 March
2003. [58] Interview with Mohamed Fawz,
Program Coordinator, SLIRI, Khartoum, 3 April
2003. [59] Ibid.
[60] Email to Landmine Monitor (HRW)
from Dylan Matthews, Landmine Action UK, 11 July
2003. [61] Ibid; email from Richard
Lloyd, Landmine Action UK, 5 June
2003. [62]
Ibid. [63]
Ibid. [64] Landmine Monitor Report 2002,
p. 579. [65] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “Monthly Report: July-August 2002.” The team consisted
of two squads of 10 persons each, four mine detection dogs, and additional
support personnel, operating under the auspices of the US commercial firm RONCO,
www.roncoconsulting.com.
Also, interview with Graeme Abernethy, Technical Coordinator, UNMAS, Nuba
Mountains, 9 February 2003. Despite this clearance, a Landmine Monitor
researcher encountered a newly unearthed cluster bomb inside the Kauda JMC base
on 5 February 2003. [66] UN Emergency
Mine Action Programme, “Monthly Report: July-August 2002.”
[67] Email from DCA, 3 June
2003. [68] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “Monthly Report: April
2003.” [69] DCA, “Demining
in Nuba Mt Appeal,” March
2003. [70] Email from Richard Lloyd,
Landmine Action UK, 1 July 2003. [71] UN
Emergency Mine Action Programme, “Monthly Report: January-February
2003.” [72] Interview with Stuart
McGhie, JMC, 6 April 2003. [73] OSIL
monthly report for November 2002. According to a June 2003 news article, OSIL
cleared 10.5 million square meters from September 1997 and April 2003,
destroying 3,512 antipersonnel mines, 732 antitank mines, and 116,930 UXO.
“The Foreseen Arch-Enemy of a Post-War Sudan,” All Africa News
Agency, Nairobi, 30 June 2003. [74] UN
Emergency Mine Action Programme, “Monthly Report: April
2003.” [75] Email to Landmine
Monitor (HRW) from Ian Clarke, Director of Operations, Swiss Foundation for Mine
Action, 29 July 2003. [76] Email from
Miranda Shala, MRE Coordinator, UNICEF Sudan, 9 June
2003. [77] Email from Miranda Shala,
UNICEF, 12 June 2003. [78] Mine Action
Support Group, “Newsletter: April 2003,” p.
29. [79] Email from Miranda Shala,
UNICEF, 12 June 2003. [80] Minutes of
the Mine Risk Education Working Group, Geneva, 13-14 March
2003. [81] UN Emergency Mine Action
Programme, “Monthly Report: April
2003.” [82] Interview with Dr.
Hussein Elobeid, Coordinator, Sudan CBL, 24 March
2003. [83] See
www.mag.org.uk. [84]
Interview with Una McCauley, UNICEF Child Protection Officer, OLS Southern
Sector, Rumbek, 21 February 2003. [85]
Ibid. [86] Interview with Miranda Shala,
UNICEF, 31 March 2003. [87] Email from
Miranda Shala, UNICEF, 12 June 2003; see
www.reliefweb.int. [88]
Interview with Dr. Hussein Elobeid, Director of CHARM, Khartoum, 20 December
2002. [89] UN Emergency Mine Action
Project in Sudan, “Quarterly Report: April to June
2002.” [90] Interview with Shaza
Najmeldin, Victim Assistance Associate, National Mine Action Office, 3 July
2003. [91] Save the Children-USA,
“Updates,” February and March
2002. [92] Interview with Simon Baak
Chol, SIMAS team leader, Rumbek, 18 February
2003. [93] “Land mine kills nine,
including top official, in southern Sudan; government blames rebels,”
Associated Press, 2 May 2002. [94] OSIL,
Monthly Reports, July and August
2002. [95] Sudanese Red Crescent-Kassala
Branch, “Annual Report
2002.” [96] UN Emergency Mine
Action Project in Sudan, “Monthly Report: June
2002.” [97] UN Emergency Mine
Action Programme in Sudan, “Monthly Report: December
2002.” [98] For more details see
Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp.
580-581. [99] Interview with Deng Alor,
SPLM Governor of Bahr el Ghazal, Rumbek, 21 February 2003. The local
administration claimed this was a hand grenade, but local SIMAS mine action
personnel claimed the explosion was caused by an antipersonnel
mine. [100] Sudanese Red Crescent,
Kassala Branch, “Report to Landmine Monitor,” 3 April 2003.
[101] Sudan presentation to Standing
Committee on Victim Assistance, Socioeconomic Reintegration and Mine Awareness,
Geneva, 7 May 2001; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p.
232. [102] See Landmine Monitor Report
2002, p. 581. [103] UN Emergency Mine
Action Programme, “Quarterly Report: October to December
2002.” [104] Interview with Chris
Clark, UNMAS, 2 April 2003. [105] UN
Emergency Mine Action Programme, “Monthly Report: April
2003.” [106] Landmine Monitor
(Kenya) interview with Sister Engred Tjosflaat, Head Nurse, Lopiding Hospital,
17 December 2002. [107] See Landmine
Monitor Report 2002, p. 581. [108] Email
to Landmine Monitor (HRW) from Kathleen Lawand, Legal Advisor, International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), 10 July
2003. [109] “Rehabilitation of the
Prosthetics Centre in Kassala,” Alayam (daily newspaper), 16 February
2003. [110] UN Emergency Mine Action
Project, “Quarterly Report: April to June
2002.” [111] ICRC Physical
Rehabilitation Programs, “Annual Report 2002,” Geneva, June
2003. [112] Report to Landmine Monitor
from Najat Salih, Executive Director, ABRAR, March 2003.
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