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Table of Contents
Country Reports
Bolivia, Landmine Monitor Report 2004

Bolivia

Key developments since May 2003: In 2003, there were numerous incidents involving the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by cocaleros (coca leaf-growing farmers). At least seven people were killed and more than 83 injured in reported IED incidents in the Chapare region in 2003.

Key developments since 1999: Bolivia became a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty on 1 March 1999. Bolivia submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report in November 1999, but has not issued any of the required annual updated reports. Bolivia has not enacted any legal implementation measures, as required by Article 9. In March 2001, Bolivia provided detailed information to Landmine Monitor on Chilean minefields near its border. In 2003, there were numerous incidents involving the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

Mine Ban Policy

Bolivia signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, ratified on 9 June 1998, and the treaty entered into force on 1 March 1999. Bolivia was an active participant in the Ottawa Process, including the Oslo treaty negotiations, and it was the first country in South America to ratify the treaty. It has subsequently worked to promote the Mine Ban Treaty, both regionally through MERCOSUR, the Rio Group, the Organization of American States (OAS), and globally, including by voting in favor of every annual pro-mine ban United Nations General Assembly resolution since 1996.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Army, Bolivia has not yet enacted any national implementation legislation.[1] In February 2004, the Defense Committee of the House of Representatives was considering draft legislation on weapons, including antipersonnel mines.[2]

On 8 November 1999, Bolivia submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report, for the period 1 January 1999 to 8 November 1999. It has not issued any of the required annual updated reports, due by 30 April of each year. In previous years and most recently in April 2004, the Ministry of Defense told Landmine Monitor it is preparing an annual Article 7 report, but none had been submitted by September 2004.[3]

Bolivia has participated in every annual meeting of States Parties, with the exception of the Fifth Meeting of States Parties in Bangkok, Thailand, which it did not attend due to budgetary restrictions.[4] According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bolivia was represented by its neighboring countries through the Andean Community (Comunidad Andina), which attended as a subregional grouping. Bolivia attended some early meetings of the treaty’s intersessional Standing Committees, but it has not participated since 2001. The government has sent representatives to participate in regional meetings on landmines held in México (January 1999), Argentina (November 2000), Perú (August 2003), and Ecuador (August 2004).

Bolivia 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, it has not made known its views on the issues of 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.

Bolivia is a State Party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) and its Amended Protocol II on landmines and it participated in the November 2003 Fifth Annual Conference of States Parties.

Production, Trade, Stockpiling, Use

Bolivia has reported on several occasions, including in its Article 7 report, that it has never produced, exported, or used antipersonnel mines and it has no stockpiles, including any mines retained for training.[5]

In March 2001, the Ministry of Defense told Landmine Monitor that “Bolivia is not using and does not reserve the right to use Claymore mines. It is not using and does not reserve the right to use other munitions which might function like AP mines and pose danger to civilians, such as anti-tank mines with anti-handling devices, improvised explosive devices, or certain munitions and cluster bombs.”[6]

Use of Improvised Explosive Devices

In recent years the Chapare region in north-central Bolivia has experienced social and political unrest, and often violent confrontations between cocaleros (coca leaf-growing farmers) and their organizations on the one hand, and state security forces implementing a coca crops eradication program called “Plan Dignidad” (Dignity Plan).[7] In 2003, several incidents were recorded of cocaleros using Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) called cazabobos (fool-catcher booby-traps) against security forces in the Chapare region, that killed or injured members of the Armed Forces and Police. This is the first time Landmine Monitor reports on their use in Bolivia. IEDs and explosive booby-traps that are victim-activated are prohibited by the Mine Ban Treaty.

In March 2004, the Police Commander (Policía Ecológica) told media that 90 IED casualties were recorded in 2003, of which 83 were injured (including soldiers, policemen and civilians) and seven killed (five soldiers and two policemen).[8] The media has reported a wide range of casualty figures for 2003 in the Chapare region. A February 2004 article stated that seven Bolivian anti-drug soldiers were killed and at least 91 injured in the Chapare region in 2003, “most of them by explosive booby traps planted shoulder high in the dense undergrowth.”[9]

Unless noted, the following list of cazabobos incidents was provided to Landmine Monitor by the Army in August 2004:[10]

  • On 5 October 2002, a sailor was killed by a cazabobo that had been hidden in a tree in San Andrés sector, Chapare;
  • On 19 October 2002, a soldier was injured by an explosive booby-trap in Sindicato Tres Cruces;
  • On 19 November 2002, four sailors were injured by an unknown explosive booby-trap in Sindicato Tres Cruces;
  • In February 2003, four soldiers were injured after leaving their base in Chimoré when a cazabobo exploded.[11] They were transported to the Santa María Clinic in Santa Cruz de la Sierra for treatment.
  • On 15 June 2003, two soldiers were killed and seven soldiers and police injured by a cazabobo in Sindicato Barrientos y Tacuaral;
  • On 19 June 2003 two police officers were injured by a cazabobo;
  • On 4 September 2003, a police office was injured by a cazabobo in Samuzabeti;
  • On 27 September 2003, five policemen were injured, two seriously, by a cazabobo laid 300 meters from the Rojo II camp of the Fuerza de Tarea Conjunta (Joint Task Force) in the Isinuta zone, Chapare, 270 kilometers from the city of Cochabamba.[12]
  • On 13 October 2003, an 18-year-old soldier lost his eyes and an arm when he moved a rock blocking a road, triggering a cazabobo, near Ivirgazama, Chapare, 280 kilometers from Santa Cruz de la Sierra.[13]
  • On 14 October 2003, an Army officer and soldier were injured by an explosive booby-trap in Mariposas sector;
  • On 23 October 2003, a soldier was killed and seven others injured when a cazabobo exploded two kilometers from Amarillo III camp of the Fuerza de Tarea Conjunta in the Tocopaya sector, near the Isiboro Sécure Park of Cochabamba.[14] The Commander of the Cochabamba Police told media that the cazabobo was “more sophisticated” than previous ones, as it was activated electronically which required “specialized training.” According to the report, the device was triggered by remote control from a distance of 200 meters.[15]
  • On 28 October 2003, a sailor was killed and ten soldiers and sailors were injured by an explosive booby-trap in Comuna Tacopaya;
  • On 11 November 2003, a cazabobo exploded near Isinuta, at the entrance of the Isiboro Sécure Park, but a nearby group of soldiers was not injured.[16] Police subsequently found and deactivated a second device.
  • On 13 November 2003, a policeman was killed when he stepped on an IED and two others were injured in Primavera sector in the Isiboro Sécure Park.[17] According to the report, the government, “did not discard the possibility that the artifact was an antipersonnel mine.[18]
  • On 29 November 2003, a 20-year-old soldier was killed and six others injured, after their Army truck detonated a “homemade mine” in Ismael Montes region, Isinuta.[19] A government official from Chimoré was quoted as saying “while before cazabobos were activated through small batteries and there was lesser potential to harm, now detonators are activated by electrical charges from car batteries and the authors can visualize and select their objective from a distance of 200 meters.”

There are a few reports of IED use prior to 2003. In October 2001, a nine-year-old girl was injured after detonating a booby-trap tripwire on the main road to Villa 4 de Septiembre.[20]

The Army describes cazabobos as “explosive booby traps” made from industrial and homemade explosives, using fuzes triggered by “pressure, traction, release of tension, and electricity” that are placed where people pass, leading to serious injury or death. They are made by specialists and may contain black gunpowder or ammonium nitrate as the multiplier explosive charge.[21] The Commander of the Unidad de Policía Ecológica (Ecological Police Unit) was reported by media as stating that authorities have known about the manufacture of homemade explosives since 1998 and the devices have evolved since then: “At first they used sulphuric acid, then they began using electrical systems with flashlight bulbs and now they are using cement and intermittent light bulbs.”[22] In August 2004, the Army informed Landmine Monitor that it did not have information on the scope of the problem with cazabobos in the Chapare region, or on clearance of the devices.[23]

Landmine Problem

Bolivia is not mine-affected, but the border with Chile was mined by Chile in the 1970s, particularly in 1978 during a territorial dispute. There is no information available on the extent of the cazabobo problem in the Chapare region.

In March 2001, Bolivia’s Ministry of Defense provided Landmine Monitor with detailed information on fifteen Chilean minefields laid near the country’s south-western border covering an area of 3,158,100 square meters:[24]

  • Border marker XIII: Along the Caquena river (foothills of Jiska Cobiri), in Choyota ravine, 400 metres from the border, to the south-west of Cosapa Grande.
  • Border marker XV: In Portesuelo de Achuta, on the road to Achuta, in the foothills of Carbiri hill, in the ravine Jaka Khollo, 100 metres from the border, to the west of Estancia Achuta.
  • Border marker XVI: Opposite Paso de Casiri.
  • Border marker XVII: On the pass to Ajata, close to Quisi Quisini hill.
  • Border marker XVIII: “Tambo Quemado.” On Paso de Chungara.
  • Border marker XIX: Opposite Juchaloma hill and the Paso de Uncaliri and Guallatiri.
  • Border marker XXIII:Lacataya Loma hill, close to Salar de Surire.
  • Border marker XXIV: “Abra Capitán.” Between Luzcaya and Capitán hills, approximately 50 meters west of the marker.
  • Border marker XXXII: posite Pisiga, approximately 4,000 meters from the border.
  • Border marker XXXIV: Opposite Salitral marker.
  • Border marker XXXVIII: “Apacheta Tilujaya.” Opposite Apacheta Oje, approximately 4,000 meters from the border.
  • Border marker XLI: “Camino de Gancosa.” In Quebraba Gancosa, approximately 500 meters from the border.
  • Border marker XLII: near Santalle hill.
  • In Lincancaur Sector, in the only pass between lake Verde and San Pedro de Atacama. The size of the minefield is not specified and it may not be genuine.
  • Border marker LXXXII: “Portesuelo del Cajón,” near Guayaques hill.

The mined areas are located near lakes and mountain passes, especially in Khasiri, Chungara, Tambo Quemado, and Pisiga, in areas that are not near populated centers.[25] In April 2004, the Ministry of Defense informed Landmine Monitor that most landmines were planted between Achuta and border marker 15.[26] Seven of the fifteen minefields were reported to contain a total of 196,767 antipersonnel and antivehicle mines.[27] In May 2002, Bolivia’s Ministry of Defense told Landmine Monitor that the country has no detailed maps of mined areas in the border region, as these areas are located in Chilean territory.[28]

Mine Clearance

Bolivia has offered to assist Chile to demine the border on several occasions, but no clearance of the border had taken place by September 2004.[29] Chile did, however, began mine clearance near its border with Perú in August 2004.

In the Chapare region, the police are responsible for deactivating IED; according to a media report, approximately 100 police officers have been trained to neutralize these explosives.[30] The Police Commander told media that routes used by coca eradication personnel are swept daily for explosives and devices are either deactivated or destroyed in situ.[31] According to the Police Commander, 22 explosives were deactivated or neutralized in 2001. In the first four months of 2003, four booby-traps were deactivated and two were neutralized.[32]

In 2002, Bolivia provided three military mine action supervisors to the MARMINCA mine clearance program by the OAS in Nicaragua.[33] It previously provided two supervisors in 2000.

For the first time, the Army's First Division carried out a mine awareness campaign during 2003 in regions bordering Chile.[34]

Landmine and IED Casualties

In March 2003, a Bolivian national and a Chilean national smuggling drugs across into Chile were reportedly injured by an antipersonnel mine.[35] The government, however, denies that any mine casualties took place along the border in 2003 and Landmine Monitor has not been able to verify the report.[36] Since 1999, Landmine Monitor identified only one other landmine incident in Bolivia. On 26 May 2000, a peasant from Jankomarca, Villarroel province, in La Paz department, lost part of his left foot while crossing the border.[37]

The total number of landmine casualties in Bolivia is not known. Between 1995 and 1997, landmines reportedly killed three Bolivian peasants.[38]

It would appear that Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) pose a greater threat than landmines in Bolivia. At least seven people were killed and more than 83 injured in reported IED incidents in the Chapare region.[39]

Survivor Assistance and Disability Policy and Practice

Basic health services exist in the border area with Chile, while more specialized health services including surgery are found in the capitals of departments such as La Paz, Oruro, and Potosí.[40]

Bolivia has legislation to protect the rights of persons with disabilities, including Law 1678 of 15 December 1995. Article 17 established the National Committee of Disabled Persons (CONALPEDIS), as a decentralized body of the Ministry of Human Development, responsible for coordinating issues relating to persons with disabilities.[41] According to the Ministry of Defense, treatment of injured military personnel and full rehabilitation is the responsibility of the NAS (Antinarcotics assistance), and is available at the Fioanni Clinic in Santa Cruz. In the case of disability, Articles 114 and 118 of the Ley Orgánica de las Fuerzas Armadas LOFA (Fundamental Law of the Armed Forces) cover provisions for treatment, rehabilitation and compensation.[42]


[1] Response to Landmine Monitor by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, signed by Edgar Pinto Tapia, Director General of Multilateral Affairs, 7 April 2004, p. 1; Response from Gen. César López Saavedra, General Commander of the Army, sent by Edgar Pinto Tapia, General Director of Multilateral Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 30 August 2004.
[2] Telephone interview with Julio Mollinedo Claros, Disarmament and International Security Desk, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 4 February 2004.
[3] An Article 7 report for calendar year 2001 was reportedly submitted to the United Nations in May 2002, but not posted on the website of the UN Department of Disarmament Affairs. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p. 112. Landmine Monitor was also informed that a report was being prepared in March 2003, but this report is also not posted. See Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 114; and response to Landmine Monitor from Amb. Gonzalo Montenegro, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, faxed on 24 March 2003. See also response by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 7 April 2004, p. 1.
[4] Response by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 7 April 2004, p. 2.
[5] Ibid; Response to Landmine Monitor from Amb. Jorge Soruco Villanueva, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, faxed on 22 March 2001; Article 7 Report, 8 November 1999.
[6] Response by Ministry of Defense, 22 March 2001.
[7] Human rights violations by state security forces have also been widely reported. See Kathryn Ledebur, “Popular Protest Brings Down the Government,” Washington Office on Latin America, November 2003; “Four Dead and Blockades Continue,” Andean Information Network, 15 January 2003.
[8] Guísela López R. Chapare, “Hay 100 desactivadores de cazabobos,” El Deber (Santa Cruz de la Sierra), 15 March 2004.
[9] Kevin G. Hall, “Coca growers are using bombs and booby traps,” Knight Ridder, 10 February 2004.
[10] Response by Army, 30 August 2004.
[11] “Militares heridos en el Chapare,” El Nuevo Día (La Paz), 15 February 2003.
[12] “Un cazabobos deja heridos a cinco policías en el Chapare,” La Prensa (La Paz), 28 September 2003.
[13] “Soldado mutilado en Chapare queda inhábil y precisa ayuda,” El Deber, 26 October 2003.
[14] “Sofisticado cazabobo mata a soldado y deja 7 heridos,” El Diario (La Paz), 24 October 2003.
[15] Ibid.
[16] “Explota otro “cazabobo” en Chapare. La Policía Ecológica inmediatamente después logró deactivar un explosivo,” Los Tiempos (Cochabamba), 12 November 2003.
[17] “Un cazabobos mata a un policía y hiere a otros dos,” La Razón (La Paz), 14 November 2003.
[18] Ibid. According to the report this was the latest in a series of incidents involving cazabobos. On 14 June 2003, two soldiers were killed and seven were seriously injured in San José Tacuaral zone; on 18 June 2003, two policemen were injured in Santa Fé zone; on 29 September 2003 five policemen were injured in Valle Alto Sindicato, Isinuta; and on 14 October 2003 an Army captain and a soldier were seriously injured.
[19] “Atentado en Bolivia. Un soldado muerto y otros seis heridos,” AP (La Paz), 30 November 2003; “Un soldado muere y seis son heridos en el Chapare,” La Razón, 30 November 2003; “Mesa admite que hay terrorismo en Chapare y promete erradicarlo,” Los Tiempos (Cochabamba), 1 December 2003.
[20] “Bolivia Negotiations Stall as Coca Growers Reject Government Proposal,” Bulletin from the Andean Information Network, 12 October 2001.
[21] Ministry of National Defense response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire, signed by Division General César López Saavedra, General Commander of the Army, p. 1-3, faxed on 8 April 2004; Response by Army, 30 August 2004.
[22] Jesús Aponte Vargas, “Cazabobos: peligro constante en Chapare,” El Deber, 2 November 2003.
[23] Response by Army, 30 August 2004.
[24] The affected area may be larger as Bolivian authorities were not able to determine the size of two mined areas. For more details, see Landmine Monitor Report 2001, p. 277. Response by Ministry of Defense, 22 March 2001.
[25] Ibid.
[26] Response by Ministry of National Defense, 8 April 2004.
[27] Response by Ministry of Defense, 22 March 2001. This included 16,716 AP mines, 153,396 blast mines, 15,267 bounding mines, and 11,388 antivehicle mines.
[28] Response by Ministry of Defense, 10 May 2002.
[29] In July 1998, Bolivia’s President Hugo Bánzer asked Chile to demine the border as soon as possible and offered Bolivia’s assistance in this effort. See “Bolivia offers Chile assistance to accelerate the demining along the border,” Agence France-Presse (La Paz), 4 July 1998.
[30] “Hay 100 desactivadores de cazabobos,” El Deber, 15 March 2004.
[31] Jesús Aponte Vargas, “Cazabobos: peligro constante en Chapare,” El Deber, 2 November 2003.
[32] “Hay 100 desactivadores de cazabobos,” El Deber, 15 March 2004.
[33] “Contributing Countries (International Supervisors) to the OAS Program of Demining in Central America,” Table provided to Landmine Monitor (HRW) from Carl Case, OAS, 18 June 2002.
[34] Response by Army, 30 August 2004.
[35] “Hot news from Chile: Mine clearance along Bolivian border,” MercoPress (Montevideo), 24 November 2003.
[36] Response by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 7 April 2004, p. 3.
[37] “Bolivian national injured by an antipersonnel mines on border with Chile,” Agence France Press (La Paz), 27 May 2000.
[38] El Diario, 21 September 1997.
[39] See “Use of Improvised Explosive Devices” section in this report for details of reported incidents.
[40] Response to Landmine Monitor from Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 22 March 2001.
[41] Congress of Bolivia, “Ley de la Persona con Discapacidad del 15 de diciembre de 1995,” Law No. 1678, .solobolivia.com .
[42] Response by Ministry of Defense, 7 April 2004, p. 2-3.