+   *    +     +     
About Us 
The Issues 
Our Research Products 
Order Publications 
Multimedia 
Press Room 
Resources for Monitor Researchers 
ARCHIVES HOME PAGE 
    >
 
Table of Contents
Country Reports
Angola, Landmine Monitor Report 2004

Angola

Key developments since May 2003: On 14 September 2004, Angola submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report, originally due by 30 June 2003. According to the report, the Armed Forces of Angola stockpile 50,659 antipersonnel mines, of which 1,360 mines will be retained for training purposes. The size or composition of the landmine stockpile that was held by former UNITA military forces remains unknown. In 2003, CNIDAH reported that an area totalling 3,525,197 square meters had been cleared of 14,726 antipersonnel mines, 1,045 antivehicle mines and 71,596 UXO. In 2003, local and international NGOs provided mine risk education to 806,319 individuals through 8,077 events. A Landmine Impact Survey started in December 2002 was ongoing as of September 2004.

Key developments since 1999: Angola signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997, but continued to use landmines until the peace agreement signed with UNITA forces in April 2002. Angola ratified the treaty on 5 July 2002, and it entered into force on 1 January 2003. In 2001, the government created the Inter-Sectoral Commission on Demining and Humanitarian Assistance (CNIDAH) to be responsible for policy-making, coordination of mine action and victim assistance, and the design of a new National Mine Action Plan. Trouble-plagued INAROEE, the national demining institution, was restructured in 2003, and renamed the National Institute for Demining (INAD). A Landmine Impact Survey started in December 2002 was ongoing as of September 2004. Landmine Monitor estimates that more than 20 million square meters of land were cleared from 1999-2003. Up to 20 different agencies have conducted mine risk education in Angola since 1999. From 1999 to 2003, 2.35 million people reportedly took part in MRE activities. From 1999 to 2003, there were at least 2,912 new mine/UXO casualties reported in Angola. In 2001, the Ministry of Health launched the National Program for Physical and Sensorial Rehabilitation 2001-2005.

Mine Ban Policy

Angola signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997 and ratified on 5 July 2002, after a peace agreement was signed with UNITA forces in April 2002.[1] The treaty entered into force on 1 January 2003. There have apparently been no steps taken toward developing domestic legislation, and Angola’s initial Article 7 report states that no legal implementation measures have been taken. Angola submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report, originally due by 30 June 2003, on 14 September 2004.[2] It included voluntary Form J.

The Angolan government first publicly stated its support for a total prohibition of antipersonnel mines in May 1996 and the country participated actively in the Ottawa Process. Angola has attended every annual Meeting of States Parties, including in September 2003, as well as most intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva, including those held in February and June 2004. Angola’s participation posed particular problems in early meetings. At the First Meeting of States Parties in May 1999, Angola arrived on the last day of the conference to avoid any questions on its use of antipersonnel mines in fighting that erupted in November 1998, while during the Second Meeting of States Parties in September 2000, Angolan diplomats attempted to justify the government’s continued use of antipersonnel mines. Angola has voted in favor of every annual pro-ban UN General Assembly resolution since 1996, except for 1997 when it was absent.

Regionally, Angola has been somewhat active on the issue. The seventh meeting of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Acting Committee on Landmines was held on 27-28 June 2002 in Luanda, Angola at the same time as SADC’s first Conference of Demining Operators.[3] The head of INAROEE attended a seminar on the Mine Ban Treaty in February 2001 in Mali. In September 2003, Angola stated the importance of the African Union and SADC on the landmine issue, noting that only through “serious and collective responses” could the weapon not remain “a permanent threat to all nations of the world.”[4]

Angola has not engaged in the extensive discussions that States Parties have had on matters of interpretation and implementation related to Articles 1, 2, and 3. Thus, Angola has not made known its views on issues related to joint military operations with non-States Parties, foreign stockpiling and transit of antipersonnel mines, antivehicle mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling devices, and the permissible number of mines retained for training. It is particularly notable that Angola has not spoken on these issues, given its past history of mine use and participation in joint operations.

Angola is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Production, Transfer, and Stockpiling

Angola is not a known producer or exporter of landmines.[5] Its Article 7 report states that there has never been any kind of antipersonnel mines manufactured in Angola.[6]

According to the government, a total of 47 different mines from 18 countries have been found or reported in the country, including mines from Austria, Belgium, China, the former Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, North Korea, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the former Soviet Union, South Africa, United States, Vietnam, and the former Yugoslavia.[7]

In its Article 7 report, Angola states that it possesses a total of 50,659 antipersonnel mines, of three types, mostly from the former Soviet bloc. It indicated that it would retain 1,390 mines for training purposes. However, in the report, the numbers of individual mines listed as being retained actually totalled 1,460. Included are 30 “flares.”[8]

Stockpiled Antipersonnel Mines Reported by Angola

Type
(country of origin added by LM)
Quantity
Retained for Training
PPM-2 (East Germany)
0
200
POMZ[9] (USSR)
0
200
M–75 (Romania)
0
200
PMN (USSR)
0
100
PMN–1 (USSR)[10]
6,932
200
MON–100 (USSR)
0
50
PMD–6 (USSR)
0
50
PPMSR–1 (Czechslovakia)
0
30
Flares
0
30
OTK (unknown origin)
0
190
OZM-4 (USSR)
1,377
50
OZM–72 (USSR)
0
--
MON–50 (USSR)
0
30
GYATA (Hungary)
0
30
M–90 (USSR)[11]
42,350
100
Total
50,659[12]
1,390 (1,460)[13]

Little is known about the size or composition of the landmine stockpile that was held by former UNITA military forces and Landmine Monitor was told such information is closely guarded for security reasons.[14] In 1999 and 2000, the Angolan army found antipersonnel and antivehicle mines in various UNITA weapons caches.[15] Confiscated arms shown to Landmine Monitor in 2000 included mines mostly from Romania, South Africa and the USSR.[16]

The treaty-mandated deadline for destruction of all Angola’s stockpiled antipersonnel mines is 1 January 2007. In June 2004, Angola made a presentation to the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction that provided details of Angola’s plan to destroy its stockpile. It noted 8,432 antipersonnel mines were destroyed in late 2003/early 2004, leaving 50,659 to be destroyed. The destruction program was expected to take some 18 to 24 months to complete, at an estimated cost of $1.47 million; the European Commission would be asked to fund 90 percent and the Angolan government would provide 10 percent.[17]

Angola’s Article 7 report states that it destroyed 7,072 landmines from September 2003 to April 2004. Again, this included a number of “flares,” without which the total was 6,845 mines. Angola also reported that 15,896 mines had been destroyed during mine clearance operations.[18]

Landmines Reported Destroyed by Angola, September 2003 to April 2004

Type
Quantity
PPM-2
445
POMZ
1,251
M-75
606
PMN
184
MON-100
152
PMD-6
154
PPMSR-1
160
FLARES
227
OTK
170
OZM-4
2,544
OZM-72
186
MON-50
167
GYATA
826
TOTAL
7,072

Use

Landmines were a constant feature of the fighting in Angola since the war of independence, which began 1961, and through the various phases of the civil war from 1975 until the peace agreements of April 2002, following the death of UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi. Mines were used in great numbers by all parties to the conflict. Prior to April 2002, and even after signing the Mine Ban Treaty, Angolan government officials admitted to the continued planting of mines by their military forces on many occasions, and previous field research by the Landmine Monitor documented specific instances of such use.[19] Mines were also reportedly used by Angolan Army and UNITA forces fighting outside Angola in Namibian territory.[20]

Though the Mine Ban Treaty had not entered into force for Angola, the ICBL and other States Parties protested its continued use of antipersonnel mines, noting that use of mines by a signatory can be judged a breach of its international obligations. Under Article 18 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, “A state is obliged to refrain from acts which would defeat the object and purpose of a treaty when...it has signed the treaty....” Clearly, use of mines by a signatory defeats the object and purpose of the treaty.

Since the end of the war, there have been sporadic and unconfirmed reports of new use of antipersonnel and antivehicle mines. Allegations have been aimed primarily at criminal groups. For instance, in January 2004 media reported that an army operation against illegal diamond miners in the Bié province yielded a large array of weapons, including an antivehicle mine.[21] In January 2003, an observer noted, “Some are also speculating that new landmines are being laid, either by disgruntled ex-UNITA angry at government’s lack of [support] to the quartering areas or by Angolan military who don’t want aid agencies cutting into their monopoly of commercial transport to quartering areas.”[22] Mine incidents continued to be reported frequently throughout 2003 and 2004, but Landmine Monitor could not determine whether these demonstrated new mine use or were the result of old mines that had been placed during the war. One of INAD’s directors, Araújo Martinho Kapapelo Nunda, ruled out any new use of mines in a media interview.[23]

Since the end of the war and taking into account the ongoing attempts to integrate the two armed forces, former UNITA fighters have been working with the Angolan demining institutions to help locate both stocks and minefields.[24]

Landmine Problem

Angola is still considered to be one of the countries most affected by mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). Information on the extent of landmine contamination in the country remains limited and unclear due to the fact that numerous parties were involved in mine-laying, as well as the lack of credible records.

According to Angola’s Article 7 report, the country’s national database registers 4,200 areas that contain or are suspected to contain mines.[25] This differs from figures provided by the National Institute of Demining (INAD—formerly INAROEE), which indicate that Angola has a total of 4,000 minefields.[26] In 2001, a total of 2,232 known minefields and UXO locations had been registered in the national database, and some 660 minefields and sites had been cleared since 1995.[27] In 2002, some 72 new suspected areas were reportedly surveyed and recorded by various mine action organizations.[28]

With a return to peace in 2002, general movement throughout the country increased significantly. Additionally, according to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (UNOCHA), “Between June and September 2002, hundreds of thousands of displaced persons returned to areas of origin. Of the approximately 750,000 internally displaced persons (IDP) who had returned by the end of September, only 15 percent had moved under an organized plan.”[29] The number of mine incidents increased dramatically during 2002 and early 2003, particularly incidents involving antivehicle mines, and there was concern that as movement and repatriation continued, the numbers could rise.[30] But, as indicated below, that was not reportedly the case in 2003.

The repatriation of refugees continues under the auspices of UNHCR, which plans to have all estimated 450,000 refugees repatriated from neighbouring countries by 2005.[31] However, many refugees return to Angola spontaneously, and risks of increased mine accidents are significant. As far as the organized repatriation is concerned, UNHCR has been helpful in facilitating mine risk education in refugee camps in Namibia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.[32]

Survey and Assessment

The conclusion of the war has made possible the first systematic national assessment of the landmine problem. A Landmine Impact Survey (LIS), started in December 2002 under the auspices of CNIDAH and the various demining NGOs working in Angola (including HALO Trust, InterSOS, Santa Barbara Foundation, Norwegian People’s Aid and Mines Advisory Group) is ongoing.[33] INAD was added as a survey partner in August 2004. By 27 September 2004, the survey had begun in Benguela, Bie, Cunene, Huambo, Huila, Lunda, Malanje, Moxico, Namibe and Sol.

The Survey Action Center (SAC) and the NGO implementing partners will conduct an operational review in mid-November 2004. Data collection is expected to be completed by February 2005 with final analysis and reporting done by August 2005. A coordination team from the Survey Action Center, based in Luanda, is providing oversight and monitoring. Funding has been provided by the United States, Canada, Germany and the European Commission.

CNIDAH has installed the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), with the support of the Geneva International Center for Humanitarian Demining and in cooperation with SAC, with the intent of consolidating all information into the IMSMA format.[34] The IMSMA system was not fully operational by August 2004; at that time it was only being utilized by SAC for the LIS data.[35]

Prior to initiating the Landmine Impact Survey, various survey and assessment activities were carried out in Angola. As the government reported, “extensive survey operations” were carried out in ten eastern provinces between 1995-1997, which yielded 1,940 individual reports. In 1998, five more provinces were surveyed (Bié, Cabinda, Cunene, Huambo, and Lunda Sul), “increasing the number of survey reports that were submitted to the data base.” In 1999, ongoing surveys covered 280 suspected mined areas although “the activities had to be adapted to the new working conditions due to the resumption of the military hostilities.” Security concerns resulted in the postponement of surveys in Kuando Kubango, Lunda Norte and Moxico.[36]

Mine Action Coordination and Planning

The National Inter-Sectoral Commission on Demining and Humanitarian Assistance (Comissão Nacional Intersectorial de Desminagem e Assistência Humanitária às vítimas de minas, CNIDAH) was created on 28 June 2001, during a restructuring of the national mine action sector. It was established in response to the lack of overall coordination in the mine action sector and the lack of donor confidence in national mine action institutions. According to one assessment, collaboration between the international community and the original national institute for demining, the National Institute for the Removal of Explosive Obstacles (Instituto Nacional de Remoção De Obstáculos E Engenhos Explosivos, INAROEE), “showed clear signs of a lack of proper mandates, poor overall planning, lack of co-operation between key organizations, contradictory messages to donors, and a gradually increasing international distrust in the work of INAROEE.”[37] CNIDAH is to provide a clear separation between policy, coordination, and fundraising on the one hand, and the implementation of mine action activities on the other.

INAROEE was plagued with problems since its establishment in 1995; by 2002 its activities had been reduced to a minimum.[38] In 2003 and 2004, INAROEE underwent a thorough restructuring and was renamed the National Institute for Demining (Instituto Nacional de Desminagem, INAD). The director of INAD is also a coordinator of CNIDAH. INAD seeks to establish offices in ten of the most mine-affected provinces in the country. It also works with the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) to get them to adopt humanitarian mine clearance standards and practices.

The activities and role of CNIDAH have gradually been taking shape since its creation and it is slowly assuming responsibility for the national demining effort. Its two sub-commissions (demining and mine risk education) are operational and NGOs are working with them to restructure the national mine action sector. CNIDAH is also assuming its role as the liaison agency between the international humanitarian partners and the various appropriate Angolan government focal points.

In 2004, the main focus of CNIDAH’s work appears to be decentralization, with a goal of having its operations functional in all provincial capitals by 2005.[39] The intent is to establish an operations room in each province under the authority of the Vice-Governor where information would be gathered and analyzed and a mine action fund established for rapid response. CNIDAH has no desire to centralize this information because it believes the system would work best at decentralized levels. Some Vice-Governors have reacted positively to the notion of being listed as the mine action focal point for the province, others are reached through national meetings and through outreach by CNIDAH’s president.[40]

The development of a national mine action plan, as reported in 2003, has progressed significantly but needs to be translated to the provincial level, where it is to work through the provincial focal points. In August 2004, one such provincial office, including an operations room with office equipment, was inaugurated in Caxito, the capital of Bengo province.[41]

In order to prioritize its own work, CNIDAH has made an inventory of all provinces and decided intervention levels based on five criteria: density of the population, number of minefields, number of mine victims, recorded incidents in 2003 and numbers of vulnerable people, especially those in transit, IDPs or returning refugees. Based on these criteria, CNIDAH has made a breakdown of the provinces according to five levels of urgency: Bié (Level 1); Cuando Cubango, Benguela, and Malanje (Level 2); Kwanza Sul, Huambo, Moxico, and Huila (Level 3); Bengo, Kwanza Norte, Uige, Zaire, Lunda Norte, Cunene, Lunda Sul (Level 4); and Cabinda, Namibe, and Luanda (Level 5).[42]

In 2003, Landmine Monitor noted some concerns expressed by the humanitarian partners about the decentralization plan, including that it was difficult to see the impact of considerable funding on mine action coordination, and it was unclear how CNIDAH would manage the increased flow of mine action information and utilize it for planning purposes. Some also said it was unclear how CNIDAH was represented at the provincial level, and how provincial decisions related to central level planning.[43]

There is now some clarity, for example on the question of representation at the provincial level, but concerns still remain, including that CNIDAH’s activities will remain at the discretion of the provincial Vice Governors, who decide whether or not to take up the issue of landmines. Some mine action operators have also noted that certain long-standing, complicated, and time-consuming bureaucratic procedures remain unresolved and continue to delay program implementation, such as difficulties with importing demining equipment and obtaining work visas for international staff.[44]

Mine Clearance

According to CNIDAH, in 2003 all organizations engaged in demining in Angola cleared a total of 3,525,197 square meters of land and destroyed 14,726 antipersonnel mines, 1,045 antivehicle mines and 71,596 UXO.[45] In a presentation to the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction in June 2004, CNIDAH stated that 57,731 mines were cleared in 2002-2003, and 15,896 were destroyed in 2003-2004.[46] Priority areas included roads, bridges, and the soon to be reopened Benguela Railway, which is of huge potential economic significance to Angola, as it links the country to Central Africa.[47] The management of the 1,165 kilometer-long railway, which is owned by the Angolan government, has voiced concern about the slow pace of the work, estimated to cost around $80 million.[48]

In the six years it has been reporting, Landmine Monitor has faced difficulties in reconciling conflicting data on mine clearance for Angola, particularly as reported by INAROEE and its successor. Past Landmine Monitor reports have indicated that during 2002 and the first quarter of 2003, mine action NGOs reported clearing more than 2.8 million square meters of land, surveying more than 7.8 million square meters of land, and destroying more than 5,000 mines and 13,000 UXO.[49] In 2001, according to the mine action NGOs operating in Angola, 6.8 million square meters of land were cleared.[50] For 2000, major mine action NGOs reported clearing some 5.8 million square meters of land.[51] It was reported that from 1995 through May 2000, 2,610 mine or UXO fields had been identified, of which 517 were cleared; a total area of ten million square meters of land and some 5,000 kilometers of main roads had been cleared; some 15,000 mines 300,000 UXO had been destroyed.[52] Thus, it would appear that from 2000-2003, more than 18 million square meters of land was cleared, and more than 20 million square meters from 1999-2003.

In 2004, there were ten operators engaged in mine clearance-related activities in Angola: eight NGOs (HALO, MAG, NPA, InterSOS, SBF, BTS, MgM, and DCA), the National Demining Institute and the Angolan Armed Forces. Three of the NGOs are large operators with a decade of experience working in the country (HALO, MAG, and NPA). Four others are smaller, but also long-established in Angola (BTS, InterSOS, MgM, and SBF), while another, DanChurchAid, has been operating in Angola for one year. In previous years, other groups active in mine action in Angola have included the commercial South African firm BRZ International Ltd (1999-2001), the UK-based commercial firm Greenfield Consultants that was contracted by Care International (1995-1999), and two German NGOs: Demira (1999) and Kap Anamur (1992-1996).

Mines Advisory Group (MAG). The British NGO Mines Advisory Group has implemented mine action projects in Angola since April 1994, and conducted mine risk education as early as 1992. MAG has bases in Cunene and Moxico provinces. By mid-2004 MAG had expanded its technical capacity to twelve 15-person Mine Action Teams and four seven-person Survey/Demarcation Teams, and is establishing three Mechanical Operations Units to conduct vegetation clearance, excavation, area reduction and quality assurance. MAG also runs Community Liaison Teams in each base, conducting data gathering, prioritization and MRE activities. In total, MAG employs 386 Angolan staff and 11 expatriates. It is supported by the European Commission, ECHO, United States, Germany, The Netherlands, UK, MSF-Belgium and the Zero Campaign, administered by the Committee for Project Mine Free.

Between January 2003 and June 2004, MAG cleared 284,993 square meters of land, completing 16 mined areas and destroying 153 antipersonnel mines, 54 antivehicle mines and 1,797 UXO, enabling the rehabilitation of a health clinic, two schools, a key bridge over the River Zambeze and several well sites and irrigation channels, as well as land for resettlement of returnees and agricultural activities. In addition, MAG responded to 725 reports of mines and UXO from local communities, NGOs and local authorities, removing 623 antipersonnel mines, 71 antivehicle mines and 41,505 UXO. In the same period MAG demarcated eight suspect areas totalling 421,587 square meters, destroying six antipersonnel mines and 12 antivehicle mines during the technical survey process.[53]

HALO Trust.[54] The Halo Trust (HALO), a British NGO, has operated in Angola since 1994. HALO expanded its Angola operations significantly during 2002, increasing national staff numbers from 385 to 620 and increasing the number of manual demining teams from 26 to 40. In 2004, HALO had five international staff members in country, managing the 40 manual teams, five mechanical teams and six combined teams. In 2004, it had operational bases in four central provinces (Bié, Huambo, Benguela, and in Kuando Kubango). HALO receives financial support from the US State Department, the Netherlands, Ireland, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Japan, Finland, and the European Commission.

In 2003, HALO surveyed 26,286,113 square meters, reduced another 6,510,416 square meters, and cleared 679,049 square meters of affected land. It destroyed 4,085 antipersonnel mines, 476 antivehicle mines and 1,412 UXO. In 2003, HALO verified 765 kilometers of road using the Chubby road system. HALO is also involved in mine risk education activities. In the first four months of 2004, HALO surveyed 340,800 square meters; did area reduction of 792,000 square meters; and cleared 330,437 square meters. It destroyed 1,289 antipersonnel mines, 101 antivehicle mines and 248 UXO.

Between 1999 and 2003, HALO cleared a total of 43,963,129 square meters of affected land manually, reduced another 6,561,429 square meters, cleared 88,878,224 square meters by battle area clearance, and surveyed a total of 35,777,569 square meters. In this period, HALO destroyed a total of 102,743 antipersonnel mines, 854 antivehicle mines and 5,747 UXO.

Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA). The Norwegian NGO Norwegian People’s Aid has conducted mine action operations in Angola since early 1995. In 2003, it operated from three regional bases (Malanje, Luena and Lubango) and employed approximately 500 Angolan staff, as well as ten expatriates.[55] In 2002, NPA restructured its Angola mine action unit so that each regional bases now functions as a fully integrated mine action unit with a manual team, a survey team, a mechanical team, a dog team, an EOD team, and one REST/dog sampling team. NPA receives funding from the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the US State Department, as well as Statoil, the Norwegian oil company.

In 2003, NPA manually cleared a total of 366,499 square meters of land, cleared another 1,533,116 square meters mechanically, and verified 177 kilometers of road in Malanje, Moxico, Huila and Kwanza Norte provinces. It destroyed 586 antipersonnel mines, 219 antivehicle mines and 6,393 UXO.[56] NPA mine survey teams also identified and documented 21 mined sites in 2003. In the first four months of 2004, NPA cleared a total of 1.5 million square meters of land, and destroyed 117 antipersonnel mines, 62 antivehicle mines and 1,145 UXO. In June/July 2004, NPA moved its southern base from Huila province to Gabela in Kwansa Sul province.[57]

Between 1999 and 2003, NPA cleared a total of 10,059,943 square meters of affected land and destroyed a total of 3,285 antipersonnel mines, 501 antivehicle mines and 155,415 UXO.

Santa Barbara Foundation (SBF). The German NGO Santa Barbara Foundation has worked in Angola since late 1996, conducting manual and mechanical clearance, and deploying mine detecting dog teams. In 2003, SBF verified 72 kilometers of road, destroying 17 UXO in the process.[58] In 2004, SBF started clearance activities in May in Bocoio in the western coastal province of Buenguela, clearing agricultural land and 30 kilometers of roads needed for the resettlement of refugees and IDPs, and conducting mine risk education.[59] SBF receives funding from Germany and UNOCHA.

Between 1999 and 2003, SBF cleared a total of 645,000 square meters of affected land and destroyed a total of 189 antipersonnel mines, 129 antivehicle mines and 1,118 UXO.

InterSOS.[60] The Italian NGO InterSOS has operated in Angola since 1997 in the southern provinces of Huila and Kuando Kubango, carrying out mine surveys, mine clearance, EOD and battle area clearance. It receives funding from the EC, Italy, and UNDP.

In 2003, InterSOS cleared 85,506 square meters of affected land, did battle area clearance of another 274,000 square meters and destroyed 38 antipersonnel mines and 56 antivehicle mines. It also verified 1,403 kilometers of road.

Menschen gegen Minen (MgM). The German NGO Menschen gegen Minen has conducted mine action activities in the country since 1996, working in the central provinces of Bengo and Kwanza Sul and in the southern provinces of Cunene and Huila. MgM maintains an operational capacity of two armored graders and one armored Caterpillar 916 with ROTAR attachment, plus two dog teams and 40 manual deminers.[61] It receives funding from Germany. In 2003, MgM cleared 17,150 square meters of land, destroyed 85 antipersonnel mines and 50 antivehicle mines, and verified 129 kilometers of road.[62]

Between 1999 and 2003, MgM cleared a total of 2,904,259 square meters of affected land and destroyed a total of 999 antipersonnel mines, 86 antivehicle mines and 3,295 UXO.

DanChurchAid (DCA). DanChurchAid began operating in Angola in 2003 in partnership with Lutheran World Federation (LWF)/Angola in support of beneficiaries in LWF’s project area. It has received accreditation to work in Moxico and Lunda Sul provinces. Its activities include mine risk education, survey (including road survey/verification) and mine/UXO clearance. In 2003, training for mine/UXO clearance was carried out, but no teams were deployed as they were awaiting accreditation. For 2004, DCA is completing training of approximately 110 national staff and planning for their deployment, as well as developing national middle management capacity.[63] By September 2004, DCA employed 130 locals and 10 expatriates. DCA is supported by Denmark (Danida), Finland (Finnida), ACT, and its own DCA funds.

Brigadas Técnicas de Sapadores (BTS). BTS is the INAD’s mine action project implementor. In 2004, BTS operated in seven provinces (Bié, Huambo, Kuando Kubango, Lunda Sul, Malange, Moxico, and Uige). In 2003, BTS cleared 136,434 square meters manually, destroying 16 antipersonnel mines and 51 antivehicle mines.[64] The units reportedly lack sufficient demining equipment. In February 2004, the INAD director, Leonardo Sapalo, said that BTS urgently required financing, field equipment and vehicles to speed up demining work.[65]

The Angolan Armed Forces (FAA). The Angolan Armed Forces received a budget of $7 million from the Angolan government for mine action in the period immediately following the signing of April 2002 peace accords.[66] Most of these funds were spent on returning demobilized troops to their areas of origin, facilitating the return of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, and on emergency mine risk education and mine marking projects in known mined areas. FAA deminers have cleared small areas land, but record-keeping of these activities remains inadequate.[67] The FAA received demining training from Spain in 2002. In 2004, FAA destroyed 54 mines from two locations.[68]

Commercial Demining. There is considerable commercial demining taking place in Angola. In 2003, the local industrial security firm, Cogote, also known as CNDD (Cogote, Nevada, Desmatação e Desminagem), carried out demining work along a vital high voltage electricity line between a hydroelectric installation and Luanda. According to CNIDAH, Cogote’s team of 37 deminers, operating out of Dondo in Kwanza Norte, destroyed 832 mines from along the electricity line in 2003. The operation was briefly suspended in December 2003, when Cogote did not receive payment from the national electricity company of Angola.[69]

Mine Risk Education

Up to 20 different agencies have conducted mine risk education[70] in Angola since 1999.[71] In 2003, local and international NGOs[72] provided MRE to 806,319 individuals through 8,077 events.[73] This represents an increase compared to the 543,713 recipients reported by CNIDAH in 2002.[74] Between 1999 and 2001, 999,047 people reportedly took part in mine risk education activities (526,784 in 1999, 209,537 in 2000, 262,726 in 2001).[75]

Since 1999, a growing number of Angolan NGOs have been providing mine risk education: four MRE NGOs were reported in 2000,[76] while eight were reported in 2004.[77] In 2003, eight Angolan NGOs provided MRE sessions to 279,765 people in the provinces of Bié and Huambo (GAC), Huila (Clube de Jovens de Huila), Kuando Kubango (Acção de Dessenvolvimento Cristã), Malanje (Palancas Negras), Moxico (Enxame de Abelhas), Uige (SECUT), Kuanza-Norte (ASASP) and Bengo (Trindade Ninho de Infancia).[78] The educational sessions they provide serve local residents, IDPs and refugees, and use drama, dance, puppetry, and other traditional means to communicate the message of living safely with mines.[79] In 2003, in Bié and Huambo, GAC reported four minefields, 29 individual mines and 44 UXO; most of them were cleared by the HALO Trust. In Huila, Clube de Jovens reported three UXO, two isolated mines and eight minefields; all reports resulted in clearance or marking, except for one minefield that was an ex-military area. MgM marked three of the minefields reported.[80]

Handicap International (HI) has been working in mine risk education in Angola since 1995, initially at an institutional level (INAROEE), before giving priority in 2002 and 2003 to direct interventions at community level, in particular for IDPs and refugees.[81] In 2003, HI conducted MRE sessions for 361,592 people in Bié, Huambo, Kuando Kubango, Benguela, Bengo and Zaire provinces.[82] Methods used included radio, theater, comics and the active involvement of local authority figures.[83] HI reports that it exchanged data for marking and clearance with mine clearance operators such as the HALO Trust. It also conducts MRE around areas where clearance takes place.[84]

The International Committee of the Red Cross initiated a community-based mine risk education program in late 2002.[85] In 2003, the ICRC supported the Angolan Red Cross (Cruz Vermelha de Angola) by helping train a network of 40 volunteers in Benguela and Bié provinces. Some 300 MRE sessions were organized for about 48,000 people.[86] Volunteers passed out information about contaminated areas to demining organizations, encouraging them to either clear the areas or mark them. In 2003, the ICRC began handing over technical and managerial responsibility for the mine action program to the Angolan Red Cross.[87]

Mines Advisory Group has conducted MRE in Moxico province since 1992 and in Cunene since 1999, as well as facilitating MRE to refugees in Zambia and the DRC. In mid-2003 MAG established MRE activities in the Transit Centres in Luau, Cazombo and Lumbala N’guimbo, and delivered MRE in the Reception Centre in Luena, targeting IDPs and returnees under the UNHCR Voluntary Repatriation Process. Between January 2003 and June 2004, MAG delivered MRE to approximately 87,750 beneficiaries through a variety of methods including theatre, discussion groups, posters and pamphlets, and games. MAG worked with UNICEF and Handicap International to provide over 10,000 comic books and 5,000 posters to Angolan NGOs implementing MRE activities.[88]

In 2003, Africare conducted MRE sessions for 50,131 people in Bié and Kuanza-Sul provinces. The organization has been providing MRE since 1999. [89]

UNICEF began its involvement in mine risk education in late 1994.[90] It mainly supported Angolan NGOs and continues to be a lead agency in the coordination of MRE in Angola. Since 2002, UNICEF has worked with INAD and HI to fund and coordinate MRE activities.[91] Its work is evolving from direct involvement in MRE to training the trainers, and its objectives for 2004 and 2005 reflect this new focus. It is primarily geared towards strengthening local capacities, both at CNIDAH and with local NGOs, and it supports six national NGOs in seven of the most mine-affected provinces in Angola. Teachers are an outreach target, and the aim is to reach 29,000 primary school teachers who will be working with the Ministry of Education and CNIDAH. Locally, mine committees will be formed, made up of local authority figures, such as teachers, midwives, religious leaders, and the police. They will be responsible at the local level for MRE, for school-based sensitization efforts and for the maintenance of minefield marking.[92]

One of the worrying behaviors to emerge in 2004 has been the removal of red “Danger Mines” signs that are then used as decorations for cars or souvenirs at home. OCHA raised the alarm about this in February and the theme was also taken up by INAD’s director, who has called these acts extremely irresponsible.[93]

In July 2004, an exhibit of 76 photographs about the dangers of mines was on display at the Sao Miguel Fort in Luanda. It was sponsored by MAG and CNIDAH and was set up to commemorate 10 years of MAG work in Angola.[94]

An external evaluation of MRE in Angola took place in 1999.[95] An impact assessment of MRE in Angola took place in 2003.[96]

Mine Action Funding

There is no centralized record of mine action funding in Angola. From Landmine Monitor country reporting, in 2003, seventeen countries and the European Commission (EC) reported contributions to mine action in Angola totalling approximately US$21.3 million. In addition, in September 2004, the European Commission informed Landmine Monitor that it also has an emergency mine action program for sustainable return and resettlement of Angolan refugees, funded at €10 million ($11.3 million).[97] This compares to $21.2 million donated in 2002,[98] $13.5 million in 2001,[99] $13 million in 2000,[100] and $14.7 million in 1999. The increase in international funding for 2002 was probably the result of the end of the decades-long civil war, as well as Angola’s ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty.[101] In July 2004, CNIDAH director General Santana André Pitra “Petroff” told media that the annual budget of $16 million and was insufficient to cover the whole country.[102]

Donor coordination appears to be increasing, as evidenced by a joint delegation of seven major donors (Canada, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland and the USA) which visited Angola in May 2004 to see demining work in progress.[103]

International contributions for 2003 included the following:[104]

  • Germany provided $4.5 million (€4,019,157) for a physical therapy and rehabilitation center ($2.04 million, €1,801,828), the Landmine Impact Survey ($296,825, €262,329), for mine clearance by MgM in Cunene province ($814,680, €720,000), for mine clearance by SBF in Benguela province ($814,680, €720,000), and for integrated mine clearance by MAG and Medico International in Moxico province ($582,723, €515,000).
  • The United States provided $3.5 million for mine clearance.
  • The European Commission provided $3.02 million (€2,669,970), including €1.5 million ($1,697,250) for the Landmine Impact Survey and €1,169,970 ($1,323,821) for mine clearance conducted by NGOs. As noted above, the EC also has a €10 million ($11,315,000) emergency mine action program for sustainable return and resettlement of Angolan refugees in the DRC.[105]
  • Norway provided $2.12 million (NOK15 million) to NPA for mine clearance.
  • Japan donated $1,351,354 (¥164,900,000) for mine clearance by HALO ($702,354, ¥85,700,000) and for UNMAS ($649,000, ¥79,200,000).
  • Finland provided approximately $1.13 million (€1 million), including for mine clearance by Finnish Church Aid in Luena ($509,175, €450,000), for mine clearance by HALO in Maninga ($169,725, €150,000), and for MRE and mine clearance by the Finnish Red Cross and the ICRC (approx. $509,175, €450,000).
  • The Netherlands donated $1,096,631 for mine clearance by HALO ($596,631) for integrated mine action by NPA ($500,000). The Netherlands is providing multiyear funding (2003-2008) to four mine action organizations operating in several countries, including Angola: HALO ($20.5 million), MAG ($8 million), NPA ($8 million), Handicap International ($1.4 million). A Dutch NGO, Stichting Vluchteling, provided $96,000 for MRE in Cunene province to MAG.[106] NOVIB also provided $36,000 for MRE in Angola.[107]
  • Sweden donated $989,829 (SEK8,000,000) to NPA for mine clearance.
  • Denmark donated $911,854 (DKK6,000,000) to DCA for survey and mine clearance.
  • Italy provided $792,050 (€700,000) for the planning and coordination of mine action by UNDP ($565,750, €500,000) and for MRE by UNICEF ($226,300, €200,000).
  • France donated $520,490 (€460,000) for emergency mine clearance by HALO ($294,190, €260,000), and MRE by Handicap International in Huambo province ($226,300, €200,000).[108]
  • Belgium provided $375,300 (€331,684) to Handicap International for victim assistance in Benguele province.
  • Canada provided $335,785 (CAN$470,535) for MRE carried out under the lead of UNICEF ($101,572, CAN$142,334) and for the Landmine Impact Survey ($234,212, CAN$328,201).
  • Switzerland provided $320,000 to HALO for demining operations in Huambo province. Handicap International Switzerland spent $51,575 on demining and MRE in Angola.
  • The UK contributed $192,252 (£117,650) to HALO for road verification activities.
  • Portugal donated $68,700 (€60,716) for a physiotherapeutic care for Angolan children, including mine victims.
  • South Africa contributed $50,000 (R500,000) in the financial year ending March 2003 to the ICRC for mine action in Angola.
  • Ireland allocated $1.13 million (€1,000,000) for demining activities in Afghanistan, Angola, Eritrea and Somalia, but no country-level breakdown is available.
  • The Committee for the Project Mine Free made a contribution of US$200,000 to MAG for activities in Cunene Province.[109]

Angola reported to States Parties that in 2003 it contributed $125,000 for mine action within its own borders, and that in 2002, it provided $300,000.[110] In contrast, on 13 November 2003, Angola told the UN Security Council that the government has allocated an increasing share of the national budget to mine action, including approximately $15 million for 2003.[111] On 8 September 2004, the media reported that the government had announced that it was investing $16 million in mine clearing equipment and the training of nine new demining brigades for INAD.[112]

Landmine Casualties

There is no comprehensive data collection mechanism in Angola and there are conflicting reports on the number of new landmine casualties in 2003. The UN Security Office reportedly registered at least 36 people killed and 142 injured, including seven children, in 103 landmine incidents, while the National Institute of Demining reportedly registered 44 people killed and 182 injured in 95 mine-related incidents.[113] CNIDAH reported that 106 people were killed in mine incidents in 2003.[114] The contradictions in statistics make it difficult to judge whether casualties have significantly increased or decreased from the 287 new landmine/UXO casualties (69 killed and 218 injured) reported in 2002.[115]

The true number of casualties is presumed to be higher than what has been reported, as many incidents are not recorded due to inaccessibility to casualties, and the lack of an organized system for reporting.[116] Non-governmental sources interviewed by Landmine Monitor in 2003 indicated that the number of incidents increased dramatically during 2002 and early 2003, particularly incidents involving antivehicle mines.[117] According to UNDP, there were several reasons for the increase including an increase in movement of the population following the cease-fire agreement, particularly of internally displaced people returning to their former homes.[118] According to UNICEF there had been at least 200 mine incidents up to April 2002; INAROEE recorded 27.[119] However, over time the rate of new mine casualties appears to be decreasing.

In 2002, the US State Department estimated that there were 800 new mine casualties each year in Angola.[120] In 1997, the ICRC estimated that there were at least 120 new landmine casualties each month, or 1,440 a year, in Angola.[121]

In 2003, one deminer was killed and 16 others injured during mine clearance operations. The single largest accident was at Cambaxi, Malanje, on 11 September 2003, when 14 NPA deminers were injured, none seriously, after an accident involving an unmarked mine.[122] On 12 December 2003, five Angolan workers with the NGO CARE International were killed when the tractor they were riding on hit a landmine.[123]

Casualties continue to be reported in 2004. In January alone, 19 reported mine incidents caused 21 new casualties.[124] Handicap International reported nine people killed and nine injured in mine incidents during the first half of 2004 in the province of Benguela alone.[125] In Bié province, 27 people were killed and 41 injured in mine incidents in the same period.[126]

The total number of landmine casualties in Angola is not known. From 1999 to 2002, there were at least 2,686 new mine/UXO casualties reported in Angola: 287 (69 killed and 218 injured) in 2002; 660 (at least 170 people killed and 362 injured) in 2001; 874 (at least 388 people killed and 452 injured) in 2000; and 865 in 1999. The majority of casualties were civilians, and at least 327 were children.[127] In September 2004, the government reportedly stated that 700 people had been killed and 2,300 injured in landmine incidents “over the last six years.” The government estimates that there are 80,000 mine survivors in Angola.[128] When completed, the Landmine Impact Survey will provide a clearer picture of the number of mine survivors in the country.

Survivor Assistance

Despite billions in annual oil revenue, Angola remains a desperately poor country in which limited facilities are available for the physically disabled. Civilian survivor assistance in Angola consists mostly of physical rehabilitation, provided by international NGOs. However, the provision of any type of assistance, particularly outside major cities, has been significantly affected by the conflict. The challenges faced by both local and international organizations working with Angolan mine survivors since 1999 included military clashes, population displacements, as well as a decrease in resources from donors. The weaknesses in the provision of assistance to mine survivors and other persons with disabilities in Angola include the limited availability of services, a lack of information about the number and needs of mine survivors, and a delay in formulating policies and operational plans.[129]

Since September 2001, the Support and Social Reintegration Sub-Commission of CNIDAH has coordinated and monitored the activities of mine victim assistance providers in Angola, holding monthly coordination meetings with key actors in victim assistance. The sub-commission is made up of representatives of the Ministries of Health, Labor, Social Affairs, and Education, UN agencies, the ICRC, and international and local NGOs. Assistance to mine survivors is a part of the Ministry of Health’s National Program for Physical and Sensorial Rehabilitation 2001-2005.[130] The ICRC and other physical rehabilitation NGOs also continue to work with the Orthopedic Coordination Group, established in 1995 by the Ministry of Health.[131]

Less than 30 percent of Angolans have access to healthcare and the public health situation in the country remains critical.[132] The conflict reportedly destroyed an estimated 60 percent of the healthcare infrastructure in the country. There are few qualified medical personnel, and medicines and equipment are in short supply.[133] It is believed that 30 to 50 percent of mine casualties die before or after surgery for reasons including the distance to the nearest medical facility, lack of transport, and incorrectly applied first aid.[134] The World Health Organization, together with the Norwegian NGO, Trauma Care Foundation and Advanced Trauma Life Support provide emergency care training to medical personnel in Luena province. Since 2001 at least 28 people have been trained; ten qualified as instructors for training villagers as first responders to provide first aid to mine casualties.[135]

The ICRC has worked in close collaboration with the Ministry of Health, providing assistance to government hospitals. In the provinces of Huambo, Bié and Uíge, the ICRC also supported up to 16 primary healthcare centers, in collaboration with the national Red Cross Society and the Ministry of Health. The ICRC ended its support to the surgical ward in Huambo at the end of 2002 and the health posts in 2003 as part of its policy to hand responsibility for healthcare back to the government. Since 2000, the ICRC-supported Huambo hospital treated 250 mine/UXO casualties: nine in 2003, 51 in 2002, 46 in 2001, and 144 in 2000.[136]

There are eight orthopedic centers in Angola run by the Ministry of Health, in cooperation with international NGOs, providing rehabilitation services for all persons with disabilities.[137] Three centers are supported by the ICRC (Huambo, Kuito, Luanda), two by Handicap International (Lubango and Benguela), one by German Technical Cooperation (Viana), one by Intersos (Menongue), and one by Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (Luena).

The ICRC continues to provide physical rehabilitation services, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, at three centers located in Luanda, Huambo, and Kuito. Support includes ongoing training of technicians. In 2003, four technicians from each center participated in one-month upper limb prosthetic training courses, and two technicians were sponsored to attend a one-year course in orthotics at the TATCOT School in Tanzania. Since 2000, more than 55 technicians and 14 physiotherapists have received on-the-job training. The ICRC also facilitates access to its centers for people from remote areas on ICRC flights or on organized road transport, and accommodates patients during their period of treatment. Since 1999, the three ICRC-supported centers produced 10,069 prostheses (8,001 for mine survivors), 205 orthoses (at least 24 for mine survivors) and distributed 22,028 crutches and 518 wheelchairs; including 1,643 prostheses (1,235 for mine survivors), 48 orthoses (six for mine survivors), 5,288 crutches and 271 wheelchairs in 2003. The ICRC’s goal is to build local capacity to enable Angolans to run the centers by 2008.[138]

Handicap International (HI) supports two physical rehabilitation workshops in Benguela, Lubango, as well as the prosthetic foot factory in Viana; support for a third workshop in Negage ended in mid-2002 due to a lack of funding. In 2003, the two centers provided 618 prostheses. HI also provides training to orthopedic technicians and physiotherapy assistants. A drastic shortage of funding forced HI to significantly decrease support to the Viana foot factory in June 2002; however, support has returned to the required level. The Viana foot factory produced 4,300 prosthetic feet in 2003, which were distributed to the other orthopedic centers in the country. HI provides technical assistance to the Ministry of Health on the development of a national policy for physical rehabilitation.[139]

The Italian NGO, Intersos, in cooperation with the local NGO Mbembwa, began construction of the Landmine Victims Orthopedic Center in Menongue, Kuando Kubango province in October 1999. At the same time, training began for orthopedic technicians and physiotherapy staff. Fifteen qualified nurses have been trained, seven as orthopedic technicians and eight as physiotherapists. Intersos continues to provide technical support, training for technicians, equipment, repairs and maintenance, and facilitates transport to the center. In 2003, the center assisted 117 people, including 97 mine survivors, and produced 96 prostheses, six orthoses and 584 crutches, and repaired 73 prostheses, 51 crutches and six wheelchairs. The local NGO, Mbembwa, in cooperation with other organizations, organizes psychosocial support and vocational training to assist the reintegration of persons with disabilities into their communities.[140]

Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF), in Angola since 1996, continues to support the orthopedic center in Luena, Moxico province, providing physical rehabilitation, physiotherapy, psychosocial support, and socio-economic reintegration to war-affected Angolans. The center also provides prostheses, orthoses, crutches and wheelchairs to mine survivors and other people with disabilities. In 2002, VVAF expanded its operation by bringing beneficiaries to Luena from the neighboring provinces of Lunda Sul and Lunda Norte by road and by air.[141] In 2003, the center provided 1,112 physiotherapy treatments and produced 309 prostheses and 315 crutches.[142] By June of 2004, the center has provided 4,000 mobility aids. In the first six months of 2004 alone, VVAF has delivered 390 physiotherapy treatments and produced 177 prostheses and 150 crutches.[143] In early 2003, VVAF started the Sports for Life program to promote the physical and psychosocial rehabilitation of mine survivors and other persons with disabilities. Since the program started, around 100 athletes with disabilities have participated in wheelchair basketball and organized soccer tournaments.[144]

As of May 2004, a total of 44 Angolan child mine survivors had benefited from medical treatment in Coimbra Hospital in Portugal.[145] The last group of ten survivors returned to Angola in December 2003 and the hospital team planned to visit Angola in 2004 to select a new group of children for treatment in Portugal.

For many landmine survivors in Angola the opportunities for earning a living are very limited. In a country with one of the highest rates of landmine casualties in the world, the availability of services to assist in their social and economic reintegration is either non-existent or inadequate to meet the need.

The Ministry of Labor’s National Institute for Professional Training and the Ministry of Social Affairs’ National Institute for Support of Disabled People work with local and international NGOs to support mine survivors with vocational training and micro-credit programs.[146] According to Angola’s Article 7 Report, between September 2003 and May 2004, about 5,000 people and their families benefited from community based programs, 120 families of mine survivors benefited from an agricultural production support program and 25 mine survivors were assisted with income generating opportunities.[147]

The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) socio-economic program for landmine survivors in Luena has assisted more than 300 mine survivors and their families since 2001 with vocational training in carpentry, dressmaking, shoemaking, breadmaking, animal breeding, and literacy skills, material support for families, micro-credits for income generation projects, and assistance in securing farming land. In October 2003, JRS began a registration process of all mine survivors in Luena province; more than 900 people have been registered.[148]

Medico International (MI) shares the premises at the Regional Community Rehabilitation Center in Luena with VVAF and JRS and continues its program of community development with the aim of full reintegration of mine survivors into the community. MI works with the local NGO Support Center for the Promotion and Development of Communities (CAPDC), to provide psychosocial support to landmine survivors, their families and other persons with disabilities. Activities include the development of sports and cultural activities, working with amputees in their homes, accompanying amputees to the prosthetic workshop for fittings and follow up rehabilitation, and organizing referrals for vocational or literacy training. The program also supports the opthalmology ward at the Central Hospital, a community theater and a mobile clinic.[149]

In September 2001, the Jaipur Limb Campaign UK started a program, called Dignidade, in Luanda and later in Benguela with the local NGO League for the Reintegration of Disabled People (LARDEF), to promote the economic reintegration of persons with disabilities. The program operates small cooperatives with three-wheel vehicles that provide a taxi service for people and goods. The cooperatives also provide transport to orthopedic centers in order to improve access to rehabilitation services. Members of the cooperatives receive driving lessons and training in running a small business from the National Institute for Vocational Training. The program is self-sustaining with profits shared between the members, with a small percentage set aside as a reserve fund. By 2003, the cooperatives had 50 members who, together with their families, benefit from the program; 32 are mine survivors.[150]

Handicap International runs a small program for the socio-economic reintegration of mine survivors and other persons with disabilities in collaboration with the Professional Training Center in Luanda. Participants receive nine months of training in courses such as tailoring, shoemaking and electronics. HI handed over the training facility to the City of Luanda in August 2004. A similar facility is run in conjunction with the El-Shaddai Foundation in the poor Luanda suburb of Cazenga. Small loans are also available to start income generating activities.[151]

The local NGO ANDA works in partnership with the Fund Lwini on socio-economic reintegration programs to enable persons with disabilities to return to their areas of origin. The program is financed by the Angolan government through the National Institute of Social Security.[152]

Two mine survivors from Angola participated in the Raising the Voices training in Geneva in May 2002.

Angola submitted the voluntary Form J with its initial Article 7 Report on 14 September 2004 to report on mine victim assistance activities.[153]

Disability Policy and Practice

Angola has three legislative acts dating back to the 1980s on protecting the rights of persons with disabilities, including Decree 21/82 of 1982 and Resolution number 2/85 from 1985 that provides for the socio-economic reintegration of persons with disabilities. Orden number 83, dated 29 November 1983, established a National Commission for Professional Rehabilitation.[154] However, the provisions are reportedly not fully implemented and the government has done little to improve the physical or socio-economic conditions of the disabled.[155] A new law for persons with disabilities has reportedly been in preparation since 2000 but the fourth version has yet to be put before Parliament.[156]

Following an assessment mission in 2000, the European Union commenced a five-year program of assistance to the Ministry of Health to implement a national program to rehabilitate persons with disabilities: the National Program for Physical and Sensorial Rehabilitation 2001-2005. The aim of the program is to ensure the rights, dignity and equal opportunities for persons with disabilities through improved access to physical rehabilitation, social and economic reintegration, and effective legislation. In November 2003, a five-day national conference convened by the government in Luanda stressed the need for a comprehensive national strategy on rehabilitation for persons with disabilities.[157]

The World Health Organization has developed a plan for an integrated public health information system, which will include persons with disabilities, regardless of the origin of their disability. The objective is to provide an integrated service that includes prevention, care and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, including mine survivors.[158]

At the February 2004 Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration meeting, Angola made a statement on the problems and priorities for mine victim assistance which was reported by the national state-run news agency ANGOP.


[1] On 22 February 2002, UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi was killed by government forces in Moxico Province. A cease-fire took affect almost immediately, followed by the 4 April 2002 signing of a Memorandum of Understanding effectively reactivating the Lusaka Protocol. See “Statement of the Government of Angola on the ceasefire settlement of the Government and UNITA general military staff,” UN Security Council, S/2002/346, 3 April 2002. For a description of various prior attempts at peace in Angola, see Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp. 115-117.
[2] Article 7 Report, 14 September 2004, covering the period September 2003 to April 2004. Landmine Monitor received an earlier version of this report, which was undated, but listed the reporting period variously as March to April, June and August 2003 on different Forms. This version contained some information that does not appear in the 14 September 2004 report and in some cases Landmine Monitor has cited that data, referenced to: Draft Article 7 Report, undated.
[3] “SADC experts defend enlargement of campaign against landmines,” ANGOP (Angolan press agency), 29 June 2002.
[4] Statement by Angola, Fifth Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Convention, Bangkok, Thailand, 17 September 2003.
[5] On 1 May 2004, the LUSA press agency carried a report on the discovery of eight allegedly Belgian landmines (whether antipersonnel or antivehicle was not specified) in the Coreia suburb of the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, which were supposedly from Angola. This was strongly denied by the Angolan Embassy in Brazil, which stated that landmines carried in luggage belonging to Angolan citizens would simply never make it past the security posts that are present in Angolan ports and airports. (See the Brazil entry in this report.
[6] Article 7 Report, Form H, 14 September 2004.
[7] Ibid. Landmine Monitor has also identified Cuba, Spain, and the UK.
[8] These flares were initially listed as under “signaling mines” in the Draft Article 7 Report, Form H, undated.
[9] Listed as “PONZ,” this is most likely the POMZ.
[10] Listed as “PMM-1,” this is most likely the PMN-1.
[11] This is most likely the MON-90 directional fragmentation mine manufactured by the USSR.
[12] Article 7 Report, Form B, 14 September 2004.
[13] As noted, the total listed in the report is 1,390, but when the individual numbers are added up, they come to a total of 1,460 mines to be retained for training purposes, including 30 “flares.” Article 7 Report, Form D, 14 September 2004.
[14] Information from informal talks during Landmine Monitor field mission in Luanda, August 2004.
[15] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 131.
[16] FAA commanders shown the mines to Landmine Monitor at Catumbela, Benguela, 15 August 2000.
[17] Presentation by CNIDAH representative, Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, 24 June 2004.
[18] Article 7 Report 2004, Form G, 14 September 2004.
[19] Previous editions of the Landmine Monitor Report have extensive descriptions of past mine use in Angola; some cite admissions of use by Angolan officials. See, Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp. 111-117; Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 129-130, 131-134; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 183-184, 185-186; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 65-66; Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 78-79.
[20] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 81-83; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 123-125; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 362. The ICBL expressed concerns that Namibia could be violating the Mine Ban Treaty by providing assistance to Angolan forces using mines during joint military operations.
[21] ANGOP, 13 January 2004.
[22] John Prendergast, International Crisis Group, speaking at the Angola Working Group Meeting, Washington, DC, 13 January 2003.
[23] “A situação da desminagem em Angola,” O Apostolado, 23 August 2004.
[24] Ibid.
[25] Article 7 Report, Form C, 14 September 2004.
[26] “UNICEF Presents Programme for 2004,” ANGOP, 1 March 2004.
[27] INAROEE Annual Report, “Mine Accident and Survey Report – 2001.”
[28] INAROEE “Relatório de Acidentes e de Pesquisa de Minas Terrestres 2002,” (Survey and Mine Accident Report), p. 11. The report was provided to Landmine Monitor on 28 March 2003.
[29] UNOCHA, “Provincial Emergency Plans of Action for Resettlement and Return, Phase II,” December 2002.
[30] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 79.
[31] IRIN, 19 December 2003.
[32] Information from ICRC, Luanda, 18 August 2004. The ICRC conducted mine risk education in a camp in Namibia.
[33] Information on the LIS was provided in an email from Mike Kendellen, Director for Survey, Survey Action Center, 28 September 2004.
[34] Interviews with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP, 28 February and 3 March 2003.
[35] Information gathered during Landmine Monitor field visit to Luanda, August 2004.
[36] Draft Article 7 Report, Form C, undated. Much of the early survey work was carried out by Norwegian People's Aid. See Landmine Monitor Report 1999, p. 177; Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 134; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 66. Others involved in survey and assessment have included HALO, MAG, MgM and SBF; see Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 66-67.
[37] GICHD, “The Mine Action Sector in Angola: Mission Report,” February 2002, p. 4.
[38] Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 68-69. For more details about INAROEE, see Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 139-141, and Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp. 120-122. The crisis in INAROEE was exacerbated by the withdrawal of donor support as Angola continued to use landmines.
[39] Interview with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP/CNIDAH, 16 August 2004.
[40] Ibid.
[41] “Office to coordinate demining process set up,” ANGOP, 11 August 2004.
[42] Interview with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP/CNIDAH, 16 August 2004.
[43] Interview with UNOCHA, 3 March 2003; interview with UNICEF, 6 March 2003.
[44] Email from Christian Larssen, Program Manager, DCA, Luanda, 25 February 2004.
[45] Resultados operacionais de desminagem, referentes amo de 2003, table dates Luanda, 5 March 2004. In CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[46] Presentation by CNIDAH, Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, 24 June 2004.
[47] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[48] “USD 80 million for railway demining,” ANGOP, 9 February 2004.
[49] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 82.
[50] Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 69-70. In that report, Landmine Monitor noted, “Great disparities in the information provided to Landmine Monitor by INAROEE underscore its weakness in coordinating mine action. It could not provide clear statistics for mine clearance in 2001, nor could it provide data for the first quarter of 2002.”
[51] Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 183.
[52] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 138-139.
[53] Email from Tim Carstairs, Director for Policy, Mines Advisory Group, 4 October 2004.
[54] Unless noted otherwise, information on HALO was provided by: Email from Matthew Hovel, Caucasus and Balkans Desk Officer, HALO, 3 September 2004; interview with José Pedro Agostinho, Deputy Program Manager, HALO, Luanda, 13 August 2004.
[55] Email to Landmine Monitor from Sigbjorn Langvik, Program Manager, NPA, 16 June 2004.
[56] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[57] Email to Landmine Monitor from Sigbjorn Langvik, NPA, 16 June 2004.
[58] Response to LM Questionnaire by Norbert Rossa, Executive Director, SBF, Bonn, 29 July 2004.
[59] Ibid.
[60] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[61] Email from Ken O’Connell, MgM Angola, 26 May 2002.
[62] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[63] Email from Christian Larssen, DCA, 25 February 2004.
[64] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[65] LUSA, 20 February 2004.
[66] Interview with General Petroff, CNIDAH, 26 February 2003.
[67] Interview with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP, 3 March 2003.
[68] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[69] “Empresa de desminagem suspende actividade na provincial,” ANGOP, 12 March 2004; ANGOP, 10 July 2004.
[70] The term used in Angola is PEPAM (Programa de Educaçao para Prevençao de Acidentes com Minas).
[71] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 148-149; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 192-193; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 73-74; Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 86-87.
[72] Angolan agencies have included the Ministry of Education, the Angolan Red Cross and the following NGOs: Acção de Dessenvolvimento Cristã, ASASP, Clube de Jovens de Huila, Enxame de Abelhas, Grupo de Apoio e Criança (GAC), Palancas Negras, SECUT, and Trindade Ninho de Infancia. International agencies have included Africare, CARE, HALO, HI, InterSOS, MAG and World Vision.
[73] Of those 800,000 plus, 377,274 were men, 429,045 were women and 363,257 were children; Draft Article 7 Report, Form I, undated; CNIDAH, “Annual report 2003.”
[74] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 87.
[75] Draft Article 7 Report, Form I, undated.
[76] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 148.
[77] Draft Article 7 Report, Form I, undated.
[78] Ibid.
[79] Interview with Sharon Ball, MRE Project Officer, UNICEF Angola, Luanda, 16 August 2004.
[80] Email from Sharon Ball, UNICEF Angola, 21 September 2004.
[81] HI, “Fiches de présentation des actions de Handicap International,” Issue 2004.
[82] Draft Article 7 Report, Form I, undated.
[83] Information provided by Emmanuelle Rioufol, Country Director, HI, Luanda, 13 August 2004.
[84] Email from Sophie Bonichon, MRE Coordinator, HI Lyon, 25 February 2004.
[85] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 87.
[86] ICRC, “Special Report: Mine Action 2003,” Geneva, August 2003, p. 20. However, Angola's Article 7 report, Form I, 14 September 2004, indicates that 75,819 people attended MRE sessions organized by the Angolan Red Cross, while the ICRC reports only 48,000 participants.
[87] ICRC, “Special Report: Mine Action 2003,” Geneva, August 2003, p. 20.
[88] Email from Tim Carstairs, Mines Advisory Group, 4 October 2004.
[89] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 148-149.
[90] CIET, “Angola: Mine Awareness Evaluation Summary,” July 2000, p. iv.
[91] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 86.
[92] Interview with Sharon Ball, UNICEF Angola, 16 August 2004.
[93] “Playfool removal of landmine signs a danger in Huila, UN agency warns,” LUSA, 27 February 2004.
[94] “ONG realiza exposição fotogràfica sobre o perigo de minas,” ANGOP, 16 July 2004.
[95] CIET, “Angola: Mine Awareness Evaluation Summary,” July 2000. See also Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 192.
[96] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 86.
[97] “2003 European Community Mine Action,” updated Excel Table provided by Catherine Horeftari, DG Relex, European Commission, 21 September 2004. This program will also include the rehabilitation or reconstruction of key bridges and rehabilitation of key stretches of secondary roads. The main components of the program are: provincial coordination of mine action operations and institutional capacity building; a Rapid Response Fund for emergency mine action; humanitarian mine action; logistics and construction of bridges; rehabilitation of secondary roads.
[98] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 80-81. Donors in 2002 included the EC, Austria, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States.
[99] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 80, gave the range of funding for 2001 as between US$9.6 million and US$13.5 million. It noted that in the previous year’s report, it had reported the lower figure, but that subsequent reporting from mine action NGOs yielded the higher figure. The nine donors for 2001 included the US, the Netherlands, Norway, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Ireland, Japan and Canada.
[100] Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 186-187. Donors in 1999 and 2000 included: the EC, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United States.
[101] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 80.
[102] ANGOP, 10 July 2004.
[103] ANGOP, 15 May 2004.
[104] Unless otherwise noted, information comes from the individual country reports in this edition of Landmine Monitor Report. In some cases, the funding was for the country’s fiscal year, not calendar year 2003. Landmine Monitor has converted the currencies and rounded off numbers.
[105] “2003 European Community Mine Action,” provided by Catherine Horeftari, EC, 21 September 2004.
[106] Email from Tim Carstairs, Mines Advisory Group, 4 October 2004.
[107] Email from Tilleke Kiewied, Emergency Operations Coordinator, Novib, 8 April 2004, to the Landmine Monitor researcher for the Netherlands.
[108] US$312,000 (€260,000) to HALO was part of the 2002 budget, but the money was disbursed in 2003. Landmine Monitor (France) interview with Gérard Chesnel, Ambassador for Mine Action, Paris, 14 April 2004.
[109] Email from Tim Carstairs, Mines Advisory Group, 4 October 2004.
[110] Resource Mobilization Contact Group, "A review to achieve the Convention’s aims," Table 2: Mine Action Funding 1997 - 2003 (Mine Affected States Parties), p. 7, presented by Norway at the Standing Committee on General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 25 June 2004.
[111] Statement by Gaspar Martins, 4858th UNSC Meeting, S/PV.4858, New York, 13 November 2003.
[112] “Angolan govt. Invests in mine clearing,” Xinhua (Luanda), 8 September 2004.
[113] US Department of State, “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Angola 2003,” Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington DC, 25 February 2004.
[114] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[115] All casualty data is taken from the INAROEE Survey and Mine Accident Report 2002.
[116] INAROEE Survey and Mine Accident Report 2002, p. 5; ICRC Special Report, “Mine Action 2003,” Geneva, August 2004, p. 19.
[117] Landmine Monitor interviewed at least seven mine action NGOs, three UN agencies, and the ICRC; all expressed concerns in the increase of mine incidents during 2002 and 2003.
[118] Interview with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP, 3 March 2003.
[119] Interview with UNICEF, Luanda, 29 April 2002; printout provided to Landmine Monitor by INAROEE, 29 April 2002.
[120] US Department of State, “To Walk the Earth in Safety,” September 2002, p. 12.
[121] ICRC, “Antipersonnel Mines: An Overview,” 1 August 1997, p. 1.
[122] CNIDAH, “Annual Report 2003.”
[123] “Five killed in landmine explosion in Angola,” AFP (ANGOLA), 16 December 2003.
[124] UNOCHA, “Humanitarian situation in Angola – Monthly analysis, Jan 2004,” 31 January 2004.
[125] Information from Emmanuelle Rioufol, HI, Luanda, 13 August 2004.
[126] “Landmines kill 27 people in Angolan central province,” Xinhua, 12 August 2004.
[127] For details see Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 74; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 193-194; see also INAROEE Annual Reports, available at www.inaroee.ebonet.net/relatorios.en.html (accessed 20 September 2004).
[128] Presentation by Angola, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 10 February 2004.
[129] Article 7 Report, Form J, 14 September 2004.
[130] Presentation by Dr. Adriano Gonçalves, CNIDAH, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 23 June 2004.
[131] ICRC Physical Rehabilitation Programs, “Annual Report 2003,” Geneva, 9 March 2004, p. 7; interviews with Rogério Neves e Castro, UNDP, 28 February and 3 March 2003.
[132] UNOCHA, “Consolidated Inter-Agency Appeal for Angola 2003,” 19 November 2002.
[133] Immigration and Nationality Directorate Home Office, “Angola Country Report,” Country Information and Policy Unit, United Kingdom, April 2004, pp. 18-19.
[134] Presentation by Sebastian Kasack, Medico International, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 28 January 2002.
[135] Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 74-75.
[136] ICRC Special Reports, “Mine Action 2003,” Geneva, August 2004, p. 19; “Mine Action 2002,” July 2003, p. 18; “Mine Action 2001,” July 2002, p. 16; “Mine Action 2000,” July 2001, p. 13.
[137] ICRC Physical Rehabilitation Programs, “Annual Report 2003,” Geneva, 9 March 2003, p. 7.
[138] Ibid, pp. 7 and 26; “Annual Report 2002, July 2002; “Annual Report 2000,” 31 March 2001; “Annual Report 1999,” 31 March 2000, p. 11; interview at ICRC, Luanda, 18 August 2004.
[139] HI, “Activity Report 2003,” Brussels, 15 July 2004, p. 16; HI, “Orthopedic Aid Production per Country Program 2003,” report prepared for ISPO by Technical Support Department, Brussels, undated; information provided by Gilles Delecourt, Angola Program Director, HI, Brussels, 9 July 2003. For details on activities in previous years see Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 89; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 75; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 195.
[140] Response to LM Questionnaire by Stefano Calabretta, Mine Action Coordinator, Intersos, 5 February 2004. For details on activities in previous years see Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 89-90; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 75-76; Intersos report on activities dated 20 February 2003 provided to Landmine Monitor; “Intersos: Orthopedic Center for Amputated Landmine Victims, Menongue-Kuando Kubango Province–2002 Briefing Document,” via email from Stefano Calabretta, Intersos, 28 and 29 June 2002.
[141] Email from Tom Petocz, VVAF, 4 May 2003. See also Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 90; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 76; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 196.
[142] Information supplied by Shi Nguyen, WHO, Luanda, 16 August 2004.
[143] Tracy Brown, Country Representative, VVAF, 4 October, 2004.
[144] USAID, “Patrick J. Leahy War Victims Fund: 2004 Portfolio Synopsis,” p. 32; USAID, “Sports for Life Program inspires the disabled,” 10 August 2004.
[145] “Child victims of landmines return from Portugal,” ANGOP, 16 December 2003; Email to Landmine Monitor (Portugal) from Col. Carlos Manuel Armas da Silveira Gonçalves, Director, Coimbra Hospital, and from ALEM-SOLVIG, May 2004.
[146] Presentation by CNIDAH, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 23 June 2004.
[147] Article 7 Report, Form J, 14 September 2004.
[148] Jesuit Refugee Service, “Annual Report 2003,” p. 27; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 90; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 76; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 196.
[149] Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 76.
[150] Information supplied in email from Isabel Silva, Projects Officer, Jaipur Limb Campaign, 13 September 2004; Paolo Varandas, Dignidade Coordinator, LARDEF, “Dignity for disabled people in Angola,” Jaipur Limb Campaign News, Issue 9, December 2002, pp. 1-2; Isabel Silva, Jaipur Limb Campaign, response to LM Questionnaire, 11 July 2002.
[151] Information provided by HI, 13 August 2004; “Micro-credit scheme gives disabled a chance,” IRIN, 28 October 2003; interview with Ema Macia, Head of PEPAM project, HI, Luanda, 6 March 2003.
[152] Presentation by CNIDAH, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 23 June 2004.
[153] Article 7 Report, Form J, 14 September 2004.
[154] Interview with Emmanuelle Rioufol, HI, 13 August 2004; see also HI, “Landmine Victim Assistance: World Report 2002,” Lyon, December 2002, p. 58.
[155] US DOS, “Human Rights Practices: Angola 2003,” 25 February 2004.
[156] Information provided by HI, 13 August 2004.
[157] Presentation by Angola, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 10 February 2004; ICRC Physical Rehabilitation Programs, “Annual Report 2003,” Geneva, 9 March 2004, p. 7; “Annual Report 2000,” 31 March 2001.
[158] Interview with Shi Nguyen, WHO, Luanda, 16 August 2004.