Key developments since May 2003: The two mine clearance NGOs report
demining 442,292 square meters of land in 2003, destroying 102 antipersonnel
mines and 2,123 UXO. Guinea-Bissau reported that a total of 11,000 people
received mine risk education between April 2003 and April 2004, a significant
decrease from the 30,000 people the previous year. The National Mine Action
Coordination Center is developing a strategic plan for mine action covering the
period from 2004 to 2009. No stockpile destruction has been reported since
September 2002, but Guinea-Bissau has said it could destroy its remaining 3,997
mines before the Nairobi Summit with assistance.
Key developments since 1999: Guinea-Bissau signed the Mine Ban Treaty
on 3 December 1999, ratified on 22 May 2001, and it entered into force on 1
November 2001. From June 2000 to July 2004, some720,000 square meters
of land were cleared of 2,527 antipersonnel mines, 60 antivehicle mines and
28,000 UXO. Mine risk education has been provided to some 24,000 people
outside the capital and 55,000 in Bissau. The National Mine Action Coordination
Center (CAAMI) was established in March 2001, and the National Commission for
Humanitarian Demining in September 2001. A National Mine Action Plan 2001/2004
(PAAMI) was developed. The Education Program to Prevent Accidents involving
Mines (PEPAM) was established in November 2000 to provide mine risk education
and victim assistance. The NGO HUMAID began mine clearance in June 2000 and a
second NGO, LUTCAM, began demining in February 2003. Guinea-Bissau destroyed
4,711 stockpiled antipersonnel mines in February 1998, and another 1,000 in
September 2002, leaving nearly 4,000 to be destroyed before November 2005. A
countrywide survey on mine/UXO casualties was launched in 2002, and has
identified 665 mine/UXO survivors as of July 2004.
Mine Ban Policy
Guinea-Bissau signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, ratified on 22
May 2001, and it entered into force on 1 November 2001. In May 2003, the
government stated that no implementing legislation had been enacted because
under the constitution, the treaty automatically becomes national law, making
landmine-related crimes subject to existing penal
sanctions.[1]
Guinea-Bissau’s delay in ratifying was a consequence of the conflict
that erupted in the country in 1998. Guinea-Bissau was largely absent from the
Ottawa Process, and after signing the Mine Ban Treaty, Guinea-Bissau
participated only in a few treaty meetings until 2001. Since that time, it has
participated in every annual Meeting of States Parties and most intersessional
Standing Committee meetings, including in February and June 2004. At the Fifth
Meeting of States Parties in Bangkok in September 2003, Guinea-Bissau reaffirmed
its commitment to the Mine Ban Treaty noting the “determination of the
government to accomplish...all the clauses of the
convention.”[2]
Guinea-Bissau has voted in favor of the annual pro-mine ban UN General
Assembly resolutions since 1996, except when absent from the votes in 1998, 2000
and 2001. Regionally, Guinea-Bissau has participated in some landmine meetings,
including in Burkina Faso (January 2004) and Mali (February 2001).
Guinea-Bissau submitted its annual Article 7 transparency report on 13 May
2004, covering the period 30 April 2003 to 30 April 2004. This was the
country’s third such
report.[3]
Guinea-Bissau 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, Guinea-Bissau has not made its views known on
issues related to joint military operations with non-States Parties, antivehicle
mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling devices, and the permissible number
of mines retained for training.
Guinea-Bissau is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW).
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling and Destruction
Guinea-Bissau reports that has never produced or exported antipersonnel
mines.[4]
Since September 2002, Guinea-Bissau has had a stockpile of 3,997
antipersonnel mines.[5]
Guinea-Bissau has stated a number of times in 2004 that, subject to financial
and technical assistance, it intended to destroy its remaining stockpile prior
to the 2004 Nairobi Review Conference, a year in advance of its November 2005
stockpile destruction
deadline.[6] In January 2004,
Guinea-Bissau urged all ECOWAS states, and more generally all African states, to
destroy stockpiled mines before the Nairobi Review
Conference.[7]
The country’s first stockpile destruction took place in February 1998,
before signing the treaty, when 4,711 antipersonnel mines were destroyed at a
location in Bissau (Prabis).[8]
Another 1,000 antipersonnel mines were publicly destroyed on 12 September 2002
at Tabanca de Cabuca in Gabú
region.[9] The Army carried out
the destruction by open detonation. No further destruction has been
reported.
In its May 2004 Article 7 report, and at other times, the government has
stated that it intends to retain a small quantity of antipersonnel mines,
“not yet defined,” for training
purposes.[10] However, at the
June 2004 meeting of the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, the
representative from Guinea-Bissau said that the country would not keep any
antipersonnel mines.[11]
Landmine Use
The first instances of mine use in Guinea-Bissau date back to the decade-long
struggle for independence against the Portuguese in the 1960s and early 1970s.
The Portuguese mined strategic positions and bridges to prevent PAIGC, the
African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, from
destroying them.[12]
Most recently, landmines were used during an eight-month conflict that broke
out in June 1998 in the capital of Bissau between the national Army, reinforced
by Senegalese troops, and the opposition rebel Junta. The combatants used mines
principally in five locations: around the Bissau airport, along the demarcation
line within Bissau, along the border with Senegal, around the psychiatric
hospital in Bissau, and along main routes in the south of the
country.[13] Most mines were of
Portuguese, French and Soviet origin. UN and ECOMOG sources indicated both
sides used antipersonnel mines, and an informed military source who was present
on the ground contended that the vast majority of mines were planted by the
government and Senegalese forces in their defense of the city against the
advancing Junta forces. Both Guinea-Bissau and Senegal, who were signatories to
the Mine Ban Treaty at the time, repeatedly denied using antipersonnel mines
during the conflict.[14]
Landmine Problem and Survey
Starting in February 2003, two national community survey teams from the local
NGO LUTCAM identified seventeen suspected zones in Bissau, where one-third of
the country’s population
lives.[15] Mine-affected
neighborhoods in Bissau include Antulo-Bono, Bairro das Pescas, Bôr,
Brá, Enterramento, and Plack. LUTCAM continued its impact survey in 2004
and according to the government, the survey will, “cover the suspected
areas at Bissau by mid-2005, and then, in the immediate outskirts of the
capital. The region will be prioritized for the second half of
2005.”[16] The two LUTCAM
national community survey teams, initially trained in Mozambique between
September and November 2002, received a refresher course in September
2003.[17]
The National Mine Action Coordination Center, CAAMI, has identified at least
12 other locations outside Bissau as still mined: Bigene, Bissasseme de Cima,
Boe, Buruntuma, Contuboel, Cutar, Dungal, Galomaro, Mansaba, Pitche, São
Domingos, and Sonaco.[18]According toHUMAID, a local mine clearance NGO, there are at least
thirteen affected locations outside Bissau “mainly around the perimeters
of former Portuguese military locations in the
interior.”[19]
The extent of the mine problem along the northern border with Senegal remains
unknown and the region is still affected by the ongoing conflict in
Casamance.[20] In 2003,
CAAMI’s Mine Risk Education (MRE) assistant told Landmine Monitor that
security was insufficient for deminers to work north of the Cacheu
River.[21]
The government has reported that in the south of the country, “the
situation is worsened by antivehicle mines and UXOs left behind during the
liberation war.”[22]
Unexploded ordnance poses a particular problem in Brá, where an Army
arsenal blew up during the 1998 conflict. A 2002 report by Handicap
International (HI) found various types of munitions “strewn over a radius
of 5 kilometers around the
epicenter.”[23] During a
January 2003 visit, Landmine Monitor found that the site remained unfenced and
was still insufficiently marked, while local inhabitants have been recovering
scrap metal from the UXO.[24]
The government has said, “Numerous UXO are stockpiled in the island of
Bubaque (Bolama region),” which is Guinea-Bissau’s major tourist
resort.[25]
The government reports that while some minefield marking was carried out in
2000, it was not to international standards and remains
inadequate.[26] In some
instances, the local population has removed minefield markings for other uses.
A significant proportion of the population is sustained through cashew
harvesting and during an April 2004 visit to Plaque II in Bissau, Landmine
Monitor saw children harvesting cashews in unmarked
minefields.[27]
Guinea-Bissau reported that 32 different types of mines (24 types of
antipersonnel mines and eight types of antivehicle mines) from seven countries
(former Czechoslovakia, Hungary, former Soviet Union, Belgium, Portugal, the
United States and Guinea-Bissau) had been found or reported in the
country.[28]
Mine Action Coordination
The National Mine Action Coordination Center (CAAMI, Centro Nacional de
Coordenação da Acção Anti-Minas) was established in
March 2001 to coordinate mine action in the
country.[29] On 10 September
2001, Decree 4/2001 formally created the National Commission for Humanitarian
Demining (CNDH), which works as the steering committee appointed by the
government.[30]
There are two domestic mine action NGOs in operation in Guinea-Bissau: HUMAID
(Humanitarian Aid), active since January 2000, and LUTCAM (LUTCAM -Lutamos Todos
Contra As Minas), which began operations in February 2003.
A new strategic plan for mine action for 2004 to 2009 is being developed by
CAAMI.[31] This follows the
National Mine Action Plan 2001/2004 (PAAMI, Programa Nacional Humanitário
da Acção Anti-Minas na Guiné
Bissau).[32] Guinea-Bissau also
reports the development of a mine action database, using the Information
Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA), expected to be operational in October
2004.[33]
Mine Clearance
The goal of the 2001/2004 National Mine Action Plan was to eliminate the
impact of landmines and UXO in Bissau within a two- to three-year period,
pending sufficient funding for the project, and to eliminate the impact for the
rest of the country within two to three years after completing operations in
Bissau.[34]
According to CAAMI, between June 2000 and the end of July 2004, approximately
720,000 square meters of land was cleared in Guinea-Bissau, and 2,587 landmines
and 28,000 UXO were
destroyed.[35] According to
CAAMI, between May 2003 and April 2004, 168,290 square meters of land was
cleared of 60 mines and 133
UXO.[36] The two mine clearance
NGOs report demining 442,292 square meters of land in 2003, destroying 102
antipersonnel mines and 2,123 UXO.
HUMAID was the only mine action operator in Guinea-Bissau between June 2000
and early 2003. In 2003, it cleared 124,654 square meters of land and destroyed
58 antipersonnel mines and 137 UXO. Between June 2000 and 2003, HUMAID cleared
a total of 411,908 square meters and destroyed 2,480 antipersonnel mines, 50
antivehicle mines, and 13,435
UXO.[37]HUMAID briefly
halted its field operations in early 2004 to be accredited as a national NGO.
When it resumed on 31 March 2004, it had deployed 49 deminers with 11 metal
detectors to a site measuring 57,544 square meters at the “Plaque I”
site in Bissau, with a projected completion date of February 2005. On 29 April
2004, it reported 645.31 square meters had been cleared of 266
UXO.[38]
LUTCAM started demining on 3 February 2003 in Bissau at Plaque I in an area
totaling 128,161 square meters. LUTCAM has deployed 34 deminers with nine metal
detectors. In 2003, it cleared 158,816 square meters of land and destroyed 22
antipersonnel mines and 993
UXO.[39] Since 10 March 2004,
27 LUTCAM deminers have been working at Enterramento, north of Bissau, where
clearance is expected to finish by December 2005. LUTCAM is also working at
Mandina. In the first three months of 2004, LUTCAM reported clearing 27,677
square meters of land, destroying an antipersonnel mine, an antivehicle mine and
23 UXO.[40]
The UNOPS Technical Advisor for CAAMI was expected to finalize Standard
Operating Procedures (SOP) for demining operations by the end of the first half
of 2004.[41] This would appear
particularly pertinent, given Guinea-Bissau’s 2004 Article 7 report which
states, “Although some minefields were cleared once by the first NGO
[HUMAID] working in Bissau between 2001 and 2003, it has been subject to many
repeated mine findings during the reporting period and is still considered
unsafe by the National Mine Action Coordination Authority. The area must be
cleared again by humanitarian mine clearance teams using methods according with
IMAS."[42]
Guinea-Bissau also reports issues with UXO clearance. Its reports that
neither clearance organization has the capacity for UXO clearance and states
that “specialized training” is required “to assist CAAMI in
its efforts to implement battle-area clearance tasks as part of a comprehensive
response to remaining
contamination.”[43]
Mine Risk Education
CAAMI coordinates mine risk education (MRE) activities at the national and
regional level and provides MRE training to teachers and other facilitators. It
is responsible for implementation of the Education Program to Prevent Accidents
involving Mines (Programa de Educação para a
Prevenção de Acidentes com Minas, PEPAM), established in November
2000 to provide MRE and victim assistance. Canada, UNICEF and the World Food
Program funded PEPAM between 2001 and 2004. CAAMI participates together with
nine MRE NGOs and UNICEF in the Mine Awareness Committee (Célula de
Coordenação de Operações Anti-Minas, COAM),
established in April 1999, which meets every two weeks to plan, coordinate, and
evaluate MRE activities in
Guinea-Bissau.[44]
In July 2004, CAAMI reported to Landmine Monitor that it has trained 111
activists/educators since March 2001, including 90 trainers in Bissau. The
trainers work with 310 community MRE facilitators from around the country,
including 160 in Bissau. Another 80 teachers received MRE training, 40 in Bissau
and 40 in other areas.[45] The
primary school curriculum now includes mine risk education. Since 2002,
approximately 2,600 students have participated in MRE activities and 2,000 MRE
notebooks have been distributed annually by
PEPAM.[46]
Guinea-Bissau reported that a total of 11,000 people received mine risk
education between April 2003 and April 2004, including 4,000 inhabitants of
Bissau.[47] This represents a
significant decrease from the 30,000 people reported to have received MRE
between April 2002 and April 2003, including 20,000 inhabitants of
Bissau.[48]Radio
stations in mine-affected areas broadcast MRE messages; in August 2004, CAAMI
reported that since the beginning of 2002, an estimated 55,000 people in Bissau
and 24,000 people in other regions have heard these
messages.[49]
Mine Action Funding
In January 2004, the head of the transitional government issued a $2.4
million appeal for eleven mine action
projects.[50] His goal is
reportedly for Guinea-Bissau to become the first mine-free country in
Africa.[51]
Mine action funding information for Guinea-Bissau is conflicting and
incomplete, as in the past. According to information provided to Landmine
Monitor by donors, in 2003 four donors provided an estimated $1.21 million for
mine action in the country:[52]
The European Commission provided $679,000 (€600,000) to Handicap
International for mine risk education;
France contributed $120,000 (€106,000) to Handicap International for
MRE;
Sweden provided $185,500 (SEK1,500,000) to HUMAID for demining;
The United States contributed $225,000
In addition, the Diana,
Princess of Wales Fund provided $32,568 (€28,796) to Handicap
International.
In 2002, Landmine Monitor reported a donation of $500,000 from the
Netherlands.[53] In 2001,
approximately $1.48 million was provided for mine action in Guinea-Bissau by
donors including Finland ($60,000), France ($192,440), the Netherlands
($500,000), and the United States ($489,000), Germany ($138,660 to HUMAID), and
Sweden ($100,000 to HUMAID).[54]
In 2000, HUMAID received a total of $216,307: Austria ($9,533), Germany
($76,304), the UK ($31,325), and the United States
($99,145).[55]
In June 2004, the director of CAAMI told Landmine Monitor that expected
donors in 2004 included the UK ($230,000) for demining in Brá, and Canada
($171,530) for WHO to support hospitals and other organizations working on
survivor assistance.[56] In
April 2004, HUMAID received $640,477 (€521,709) from Germany through the
Catholic NGO Caritas.[57]
Landmine Casualties
In 2003, CAAMI recorded 12 new mine/UXO casualties, including three children
killed and nine adults
injured.[58] This represents a
significant decrease from the 33 new landmine/UXO casualties reported in 2002,
including 25 people killed and eight injured. At least five casualties in 2002
were caused by landmines.[59]
The number of new mine/UXO casualties rose again in 2004 with CAAMI recording 29
mine/UXO casualties through July, including five people killed and 24 injured.
Since January 2004, 25 percent of incidents were
UXO-related.[60]
The countrywide survey on mine/UXO casualties, launched in 2002, recorded 665
mine/UXOin Guinea-Bissau 1963 and July2004. According to the
survey, almost 35 percent of mine/UXO survivors are children, and 20 percent are
women. The most mine/UXO survivors (32 percent) are found in the northern
region; 24 percent are in the capital and surrounding areas, 21 percent are in
the eastern region; while 23 percent are found in the southern part of the
country.[61] The survey
revealed higher numbers of mine/UXO survivors than previously available, as
CAAMI had recorded only 290 mine/UXO casualties (77 killed and 213 injured)
between June 1998 and April
2002.[62] As of July 2004, the
CAAMI database contained information on 624 mine/UXO
survivors.[63]
Survivor Assistance
Some of the key problems identified in the provision of adequate assistance
to mine survivors and other persons with disabilities include: the cost of
treatment; healthcare facilities lack resources to provide adequate care;
limited availability of physical rehabilitation and prosthetic services, and
psychosocial support; limited opportunities for employment; a lack of awareness
on the rights and needs of persons with disabilities; and the need for a
comprehensive national plan of
action.[64]
In August 2002, CAAMI organized its first meeting to elaborate a national
plan of action to support mine survivors. A multi-sector body, coordinated by
the Ministry of Health, has been created with representatives from CAAMI,
national and international NGOs, UNDP, UNICEF, WHO, the Red Cross, and survivor
representatives; twelve actors are
involved.[65]
Capacities for the care and rehabilitation of mine/UXO casualties are
severely limited since the 1998/1999 conflict seriously affected the healthcare
system in Guinea-Bissau. There is only one national hospital, the Simão
Mendes Hospital in Bissau, and four regional hospitals, in Canchungo,
Bafatá, Gabu and Catio. In 2002, there was reportedly one qualified
trauma surgeon, two general surgeons, and a rehabilitation specialist; all based
at the Simão Mendes Hospital, and eight physiotherapists, five at the
Simão Mendes Hospital, two working with ANDES, and one at the Military
Hospital; most were trained in Cuba as there is no physiotherapy training
available in Guinea-Bissau. Generally landmine casualties are treated at the
Simão Mendes Hospital or the Military Hospital at the airport. Emergency
and first aid is almost non-existent in the country. Casualties arrive at the
hospitals through their own means or are sometimes brought by ambulance.
However, only the healthcare facilities in Bissau, Bafatá, Gabú,
Catio, Tombali, Biombo, Mansoa, Buba and Quinará have ambulances. The
Simão Mendes Hospital has charged patients the cost of medications since
March 2002, and regional hospitals since July 2002. There is no specialized
treatment for mine
casualties.[66]
The specialized Center for Surgery and Rehabilitation in Bissau ceased
functioning before the 1998-1999
conflict.[67]
Mine survivors requiring physical rehabilitation and prostheses are referred
to the NGO ANDES (National Association for Health Development)’s Casa
Amiga dos Deficientes Center (CAD, Friendly House for the Disabled), the only
prosthetic facility in
Guinea-Bissau.[68] The ANDES
center provides physiotherapy, orthopedic devices, and psychosocial support.
Only nine percent of the 665 mine survivors identified in the survey have
benefited from facilities at the
center.[69] In 2003, the center
assisted 169 people, including 30 mine survivors and 26 survivors of other
war-related injuries, and provided 1,363 physiotherapy
treatments.[70] In 2002, 25
mine survivors and 20 UXO survivors were assisted, and 16 in 2001. The ANDES
prosthetic/orthotic program has two prosthetic technicians, a cobbler for
orthopedic shoes, and a coordinator. Amputees are required to pay a portion of
the costs of their prosthesis according to their economic situation; however,
less than ten percent of patients have repaid ANDES. ANDES was supported by
Handicap International with funding from the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial
Fund, and France until December 2003. In 2004, ANDES lacked funding to
operate, with staff not receiving salaries until at least April
2004.[71]
Handicap International (HI) has worked in Guinea-Bissau since 2001. In 2003
several new projects were developed including support for local associations of
persons with disabilities, and two socio-economic reintegration projects.
Following a two-month feasibility study in 2002 on the economic integration of
persons with disability in the area of peeling/processing cashew nuts, 60 people
were trained in relevant techniques to facilitate access to employment in this
sector. Six others were trained in welding for the production of wheelchairs
and tricycles.[72] In 2002, HI
also completed a study on the reintegration of disabled soldiers for the Program
of Demobilization, Reinsertion, and Reintegration (PDRRI), which identified
1,687 disabled soldiers. In September 2002, the Secretary of State for
Ex-Combatants and ANDES signed an agreement to provide medical and orthopedic
assistance and physical rehabilitation to a total of 399 disabled ex-combatants,
some are mine survivors. The Secretary of State reimburses part of the costs to
ANDES for these services.[73]
CAAMI was planning a vocational training and socio-economic reintegration
program in tailoring, handcrafts, and blacksmithing for 32 mine survivors in
2003. However, a shortage of funds delayed the commencement of the
program.[74] CAAMI has two
programs planned for eight mine survivors expected to start in July 2004; four
survivors will receive training in sewing and four in handcrafts. One generator
and four sewing machines are
available.[75] The UNDP also
offered six computers to train mine
survivors.[76]
The new National Mine Action Strategy includes, as one of its strategic
priorities, “....raise pro-active participation in poverty reduction
projects, as well as the victim assistance and socio-economic
reintegration.”[77]
Guinea-Bissau has submitted the voluntary Form J with its Article 7 Report
since 2002 to report on victim assistance
activities.[78]
Disability Policy and Practice
There are no laws or decrees to assist civilians with disabilities in
Guinea-Bissau.[79] The
government assists disabled military veterans with pensions but these are
reportedly insufficient to meet health, housing and food
needs.[80] Medical and
pharmaceutical care in a special clinic is available to ex-soldiers of the
liberation war against Portugal; however, for other persons with disabilities,
including the military serving in the 1998/1999 war, there is no such
entitlement.[81] CAAMI
acknowledges the challenge of including mine survivors in the category of
“war victims” in article 5 of the constitution to facilitate access
to rights for
compensation.[82]
[1] Article 7 Report, Form A, 13 May 2004.
The report cites articles 85.1, para. h, and 68, para. 3, of the Constitution,
as making the treaty national law, and then article 206 of the Penal Code, which
allows sentencing of all misdemeanors. Penal Code Article 206, Number 1,
prohibits the use of explosives. See also, CAAMI Document, “Action de la
Guinee-Bissau concernant la mise en oeuvre de la Convention de Ottawa pour
l'elimination des mines antipersonnel,” January
2004. [2] Statement by Nhassé
Na Mã, Guinea-Bissau, to the Fifth Meeting of States Parties of the Mine
Ban Treaty, Bangkok, Thailand, 16 September
2003. [3] The initial report, due 30
April 2002, was submitted on 19 June 2002 (for the period 22 November 2001-30
April 2002); the second report on 13 May 2003 (for the period 30 April 2002-30
April 2003). [4] Article 7 Report,
Form H, 13 May 2003. However, Form H of the 2002 Article 7 Report notes that
one type of antivehicle mine, the “Justado Vieira,” was produced in
the country. According to the Director of CAAMI, these were mines handmade by
national hero Justado Vieira, but only four have been found. Interview with
Cesar Lopes de Carvalho, Director, CAAMI, Bissau, 14 January
2003. [5] These include 2,951 PMD-6,
1,037 POMZ-2, 6 PMN, 2 M969, and 1 M409 mines. Article 7 Report, Form B, 30
April 2003. [6] “Meeting
Report,” Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 24 June
2004; interview with Cesar Lopes de Carvalho, CAAMI, 28 April 2004; Statement by
Guinea-Bissau during the Workshop on the Implementation of the Ottawa Treaty in
West Africa, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 28-29 January
2004. [7] Statement made by
Guinea-Bissau, Ouagadougou Workshop, 28-29 January
2004. [8] Article 7 Report, Form B, 13
May 2003. A total of 2,630 antipersonnel mines (790 M966B type I, 660 M969 MAPS
and 1,180 PMD-6) and 871 antivehicle mines (all TMD-44) were destroyed on 7
February 1998. A total of 2,081 antipersonnel mines (1,320 M966B type I, 415
M969 MAPS, and 346 PMD-6) and 218 antivehicle mines (218 C3-A) were destroyed on
11 February 1998. [9] Article 7
Report, Form B, 13 May 2003. Mines destroyed included 793 PMD6, 7 PMN and 200
POMZ 2. [10] Article 7 Report, Form D,
13 May 2004. See also, CAAMI, “Action de la Guinee-Bissau,” January
2004, p. 5. In May 2002, a CAAMI official had stated that “a maximum of
50 mines” would be retained for instruction purposes, of which “the
majority would be inert” and “about five live mines” would be
retained. See Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
286. [11] Standing Committee on
Stockpile Destruction, 24 June
2004. [12] John Cann. (ed.),
“Memories of Portugal's African Wars, 1961-1974,” Proceedings of a
Conference, King's College, London, 10 June 1997; Contributions to War Studies,
no.1, (Quantico: Marine Corps University Foundation, 1998), p.
140. [13] Major Herve Petetin,
“Mine Situation in Guinea-Bissau,” UNMAS, December 1998, p.
1. [14] Landmine Monitor Report 1999,
pp. 154-156; Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp. 168-169; Landmine Monitor Report
2001, p. 79. [15] Article 7 Report,
Form C, 13 May 2003; Article 7 Report, Form C, 13 May
2004. [16] Article 7 Report, Form C,
13 May 2004. [17] Article 7 Report,
Forms C & J, 13 May 2004. [18]
Report by CAAMI, 2002. [19] Email from
John Blacken, Administrator, HUMAID, 3 November
2002. [20] Article 7 Report, Form C,
13 May 2003; Article 7 Report, Form C, 13 May
2004. [21] Interview with Irene Laval,
PEPAM/MRE Assistant, CAAMI, 15 January
2003. [22] Article 7 Report, Form C,
13 May 2003; Article 7 Report, Form C, 13 May
2004. [23] Handicap International,
“Technical Mission Report, Handicap International in Guinea-Bissau,”
Lyon, April 2002; email and telephone interview with Manuel Gonzal, Technical
Coordination Mission, HI, Lyon, 14-19 June
2002. [24] Landmine Monitor field
visit to the Brá site, accompanied by John Blacken, HUMAID, and Irene
Laval, CAAMI, 15 and 16 January
2003. [25] “PAAMI -
2001/2004,” April 2001. PAAMI is the Programa Nacional Humanitário
da Acção Anti-Minas na Guiné Bissau, the national mine
action plan 2001-2004. [26] Article 7
Report, Form C, 13 May 2004. [27]
Landmine Monitor site visit (Plaque II, where HUMAID is demining), 29 April
2004. [28] Article 7 Report, Form H,
19 June 2002. The five most frequently found antipersonnel mines are PMD-6, PMN
and POMZ-2 (Soviet Union); M969 (Portugal); and PRB M409 (Belgium). The five
most frequently encountered antivehicle mines are TM-46, TMD-44, and TMD-B
(Soviet Union); Expal C3A and M453
(Portugal). [29] Article 7 Report,
Form A, 13 May 2003; Article 7 Report, Form J, 13 May
2004. [30] Article 7 Report, Form A,
13 May 2003. [31] Interview with
Gerard Chagniot, Technical Advisor, CAAMI, Bissau, 29 April
2004. [32] “PAAMI,
“2001/2004,” April
2001. [33] Article 7 Report, Form J,
13 May 2004. [34] Article 7 Report,
Form J, 13 May 2004. [35]
“Guinea-Bissau National Humanitarian Mine Action Programme: Fact
Sheet,” July 2004, sent in email from Cesar Lopes de Carvalho, CAAMI, 9
August 2004. [36] CAAMI, “Action
de la Guinee-Bissau,” January 2004, p. 11; UNDP, "Guinea-Bissau seeks help
to be first in Africa to eliminate landmines," Newsfront, 14 January
2004. [37] CAAMI Document, "Quadro
Gerald a Produtividade", 30 April
2004. [38] Landmine Monitor Fieldtrip,
"Board of operation," Bissau, 29 April
2004. [39] CAAMI Document, "Quadro
Gerald a Produtividade", 30 April
2004. [40] CAAMI Document, "Quadro
Gerald a Produtividade," 30 April
2004. [41] Interview with Gerard
Chagniot, CAAMI, 30 April 2004. [42]
Article 7 Report, Form J, 13 May
2004. [43] Article 7 Report, Form J,
13 May 2004. [44] CAAMI, "Action de la
Guinée-Bissau concernant la mise en oeuvre de la Convention
d’Ottawa pour l'élimination des mines antipersonnel," January 2004,
p. 11. [45] CAAMI, “Mine Action
Fact Sheet,” July 2004. [46]
Article 7 Report, Form I, 13 May 2003; Article 7 Report, Form I, 13 May 2004;
interview with Irene Laval, CAAMI, 30 April
2004. [47] Article 7 Report, Form I,
13 May 2004. [48] Article 7 Report,
Form I, 13 May 2003. [49] CAAMI,
“Mine Action Fact Sheet,” July
2004. [50] UNDP, “Guinea-Bissau
Seeks Help to Be First in Africa to Eliminate Landmines,” Press Release,
15 January 2004. [51]
Ibid. [52] See individual donor
country reports in this Landmine Monitor Report
2004. [53] CAAMI reported
contributions for 2002 totaling $891,155: the United Kingdom donated $245,138,
and the Netherlands donated $646,017. However, the Netherlands itself reports
providing $500,000 for 2002. The United Kingdom reports a contribution of about
$172,000 in its fiscal year 2000/2001, but nothing in 2001/2002 or
2002/2003. [54] Mine Action
Investments database, “Multi-year Recipient Report: Guinea-Bissau;”
individual country reports for Germany and Sweden in Landmine Monitor Report
2002. [55] Landmine Monitor Report
2001, p. 80. [56] Interview with Cesar
Lopes de Carvalho, CAAMI, Geneva, 28 June
2004. [57] “Doação
de Caritas alemães para apoiar desminagem,” NôPintcha:
Semanário de Informação Geral, 27 April 2004, p.
1. [58] Telephone interview with Irene
Laval, Survivor Assistance Advisor, CAAMI, 30 September
2004. [59] For details see Landmine
Monitor Report 2003, p. 283. [60]
CAAMI, “Mine Action Fact Sheet,” July
2004. [61] Presentation by
Guinea-Bissau, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-economic
Reintegration, Geneva, 23 June
2004. [62] CAAMI, “Accidents by
region from June 98 to April 2002,” (Acidentes de Minas por Regiões
de Junho 98 até Abril 2002), undated, provided to Landmine Monitor by
Irene Laval, CAAMI, Bissau, 15 January
2003. [63] Telephone interview with
Irene Laval, CAAMI, 30 September
2004. [64] Presentation by
Guinea-Bissau, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 23 June
2004. [65] Article 7 Report, Form J,
19 June 2002; interview with Irene Laval, CAAMI, Guinea-Bissau, 30 April 2004;
interview with Gérard Chagniot, UNDP, 17 January
2003. [66] Eric Debert,
“Information on the disability sector,” HI, Bissau, August 2002;
interview with João Fernandes Mendes, Director, ANDES, Bissau, 14 January
2003; interviews with Eric Debert, Program Director, HI, Bissau, 13 and 16
January 2003. [67] Presentation by
Guinea-Bissau, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 23 June
2004. [68] Guinea-Bissau’s
initial Article 7 report Form J, and previous Landmine Monitor Reports indicated
that there was also a government prosthetic center. However, that center was
destroyed in the last war, and is currently inoperative. ANDES has been offered
the facility, but is unable to afford the costs of
reconstruction. [69] CAAMI,
“Mine Action Fact Sheet,” July
2004. [70] Associação
Nacional para o Desenvolvimento Sanitário (ANDES), “Rapport General
D’Activites C.A.D. 2002 – 2003,” p. 10; (ANDES), “Ficha
estatística secção Fisioterapia,” January to December
2003. [71] Interview with João
Fernandes Mendes, ANDES, 28 April 2004; for more details see Landmine Monitor
Report 2003, pp. 284-285; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, p.
291. [72] HI, “Program Summary:
Guinea Bissau 2004,” 21 November 2003; interviews with Eric Debert, HI, 13
and 16 January 2003. [73] Interview
with João Fernandes Mendes, ANDES, 14 January 2003; interviews with Eric
Debert, HI, 13 January 2003 and 20 June 2002 and email, 29 January
2003. [74] Interviews with Irene
Laval, CAAMI, 14 January 2003 and 14 May
2003. [75] Interview with Irene Laval,
CAAMI, 30 April 2004. [76] Article 7
Report, Form J, 19 June 2002. [77]
Article 7 Report, Form J, 13 May
2004. [78] Article 7 Report, Form J,
19 June 2002, Article 7 Report, Form J, 13 May 2003, and Article 7 Report, Form
J, 13 May 2004. [79] Interview with
César Lopes de Carvalho, CAAMI, Bissau, 14 January
2003. [80] US Department of State,
“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Guinea Bissau 2003,”
Washington DC, 25 February 2004. [81]
Interview with Eric Debert, HI, 13 January 2003; interview with João
Fernandes Mendes, ANDES, 14 January
2003. [82] Presentation by
Guinea-Bissau, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance, 23 June
2004.