LM Report 2004

Zambia

Key developments since May 2003: In December 2003, Zambia’s government passed national implementation legislation, the “Prohibition of Anti-personnel Mines Act.” The legislation is clear that antivehicle mines that function as antipersonnel mines are prohibited, as is transit of antipersonnel mines. In February 2004, Zambia stated it would destroy half of its stockpile of 6,691 antipersonnel mines, rather than retaining the entire stockpile as originally planned. The Zambian Mine Action Center conducted a national impact survey from August 2003 to May 2004. In June 2004, Zambia reported that a 126-kilometer road in Southern Province had been demined to facilitate the continuation of a World-Bank funded development project, and a 14-kilometer road in Lusaka Province was cleared to open up the area to tourism and agricultural development. Zambia estimates that it will become “mine safe” by the year 2007. In 2003, ZMAC carried out mine risk education for over 21,000 Angolan refugees, preparing them for voluntary repatriation.

Key developments since 1999: Zambia ratified the Mine Ban Treaty on 23 February 2001, and became a State Party on 1 August 2001. Domestic implementation legislation was enacted on 18 November 2003. UNMAS carried out an assessment mission in May-June 2000, and the US State Department conducted an assessment mission in October 2000. The Zambian Mine Action Center was established in August 2001, and training was provided for management, survey, mine risk education, and clearance teams. In November 2002, a Level One Survey was carried out jointly by ZMAC and its Namibian counterpart, to help establish the scale of the landmine problem in Western province. Mine clearance operations began in May 2002. In 2002, 721 kilometers of road along Lake Kariba were cleared to open up the area for a US$50 million World Bank development project. The Angolan government and UNITA forces both appeared to have laid antipersonnel mines inside Zambia in 1999 and 2000.

Mine Ban Policy

After participating in the Oslo negotiations, Zambia signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 12 December 1997. Although it did not ratify the treaty until 23 February 2001, the Zambian government demonstrated support for the ban treaty in a series of public statements made from 1998-2000.^[1] The treaty took effect for the country on 1 August 2001. Domestic implementation legislation, the “Prohibition of Anti-personnel Mines Act,” was enacted by the Zambian parliament on 12 December 2003.^[2]

On 9 February 2004, Zambia submitted its second Article 7 transparency report, covering calendar year 2003. It submitted its initial Article 7 report on 31 August 2001, covering the period from 1 April to 31 August 2001. Annual updates were not submitted in 2002 or 2003.

Zambia has attended all the annual Meetings of States Parties, including the Fifth Meeting of States Parties held in Bangkok, Thailand in September 2003. It has participated regularly in the intersessional work program, including the Standing Committee meetings in February and June 2004. Regionally, Zambia attended a seminar on landmines held in Mali in 2001. Zambia has voted in support of every pro-ban UN General Assembly resolution since 1996, including UNGA Resolution 58/53 on 8 December 2003.

Zambia 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 and 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.

However, Zambia’s national implementation legislation directly covers many of these issues. The legislation is explicit about a prohibition on antivehicle mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling devices which function as antipersonnel mines. The Act states: “a mine other than an anti-personnel mine shall be considered an antipersonnel mine if it is designed or can be detonated by—(i) a trip-wire or break-wire; (ii) a direct or indirect weight less than one hundred and fifty kilograms; (iii) a sensitive fuse which can be unintentionally activated by the presence, proximity or contact of a person; (iv) an anti-handling device which can be unintentionally activated by the presence, proximity or contact of a person.”^[3]

The legislation also states that “transfer” includes “the transit of anti-personnel mines into, out of, or through Zambia by any means....”^[4] It says that members of the armed forces can participate in operations or other military activities with the armed forces of a State not party to the Convention, “Provided that the operation, exercise or military activity is not in contravention of the Convention and that such participation does not amount to active assistance in any activity prohibited by the Convention and this Act.”^[5]

Production, Transfer and Stockpiling

Zambia has not produced or exported antipersonnel mines. Zambia stated in its initial Article 7 report that its entire stockpile of 6,691 antipersonnel mines would be retained for training purposes.^[6] However, in May 2003, Zambia announced that it had decided to destroy some of the stockpile.^[7] This position was reiterated in Bangkok in September 2003.^[8] In its February 2004 Article 7 report, Zambia stated it would destroy 3,345 antipersonnel mines, which represents half its stockpile.

The destruction of the stockpile was scheduled for 1 June 2004,^[9] but in an update to the intersessional Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction in June 2004, the Zambian delegation said a committee to oversee the destruction had been formed, a site chosen and preparations were underway for demolition of the stockpiles by 22 July 2004.^[10] Zambia’s mandatory deadline for stockpile destruction is 1 August 2005.

Use

Zambian security forces began encountering landmines in the 1970s during the independence war in present day Zimbabwe. The use of landmines in Zambia is to a large extent an imported problem, as rebel insurgents carried out “nuisance mining” in the border areas.^[11] Typical of these types of operations, there were no maps of landmines laid in these areas.

There were unconfirmed reports of mines being laid in December 2000 along the border with Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), following fresh incursions by rebel armies on that frontier.^[12] Landmine Monitor Report 2000 noted that the Angolan government and UNITA forces both appeared to have laid antipersonnel mines inside Zambia in 1999 and 2000.^[13]

Landmine Problem, Survey and Assessment

In 2002, Zambia stated that it does not have well-defined minefields, and issued a document citing affected areas.^[14] A United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) assessment mission in 2000 found that Zambia’s landmine/UXO problem was characterized as “mainly residual in nature and concentrated in sparsely populated border areas.”^[15] The report stated that Zambia had landmine problems in six of its nine provinces on the borders with Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia.^[16] The US State Department conducted an assessment mission in October 2000.

With the support of the United States government, the Zambian Mine Action Center (ZMAC) began conducting a national impact survey in August 2003, covering the Lusaka, Northwestern, Southern, Western and Eastern provinces.^[17] This followed a level one survey, carried out jointly in November 2002 by ZMAC and its Namibian counterpart, to help establish the scale of the landmine problem in Western province where SWAPO had operated.^[18]

At the intersessional meetings in June 2004, Zambia announced that the national impact survey had been completed the previous month. The delegation stated, “The survey revealed the existence of mines in 38 locations in various parts of the country. All areas suspected to be mined in Zambia are of low impact apart from four areas which are of medium impact.... With the completion of the National Survey, the National Demining Plan is now being refined. Our estimate is that Zambia will become mine safe by the year 2007.”^[19] The Mine Ban Treaty deadline for clearance of all mined areas is 1 August 2011.

The ZMAC survey team in Zambia reportedly found that unexploded ordnance (UXO) is a significant problem in all the mine-affected areas in Zambia.^[20] The survey team also reported that in March 2004, 15 antivehicle and nine antipersonnel mines, hand grenades and many pieces of UXO were found in the Kafwambila/Syamponde area, near Kalomo in the Gwembe Valley — an area which was recently certified as having been cleared.^[21]

In January 2004, a local administrator called upon ZMAC to establish a Joint Zambia/Angola Demining Unit to help define the common border area.^[22]

Coordination and Planning

In 1999, Zambia established a National Task Force on the Anti-Personnel Mine Convention to act as the central organ for the full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. On its recommendation, Zambia established ZMAC in August 2001 to prioritize and coordinate mine action in the country.^[23] The US government, through the commercial company RONCO, began supporting a capacity building program for ZMAC in both operation and management of a national humanitarian demining program.^[24] ZMAC has now been fully established by an Act of Parliament, and has 54 persons on staff, including professional deminers, 13 transport vehicles and a full complement of demining equipment provided by the US government.^[25]

ZMAC has also developed a strategic demining work plan, employing the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA). According to ZMAC, economic considerations, such as potential for tourism, agricultural and veterinary development, and the movement of people and goods were key factors in determining demining priorities.^[26] In 2003, the Zambia government reportedly asked its development cooperation partners for US$2 million for use in demining activities, including the provision of mine detecting dogs.^[27]

Mine Clearance

At the June 2004 Standing Committee meetings, Zambia stated that its demining program is concentrating on areas earmarked for development projects.^[28] It began clearance operations in May 2002, clearing 721 kilometers of the Bottom and Nkandanzovu roads along Lake Kariba, to help open up the area for the US$50 million World Bank-funded Tonga–Gwembe Development Project. Zambia reported that more recently a 126-kilometer road in Southern Province had been demined to facilitate the continuation of that project, as well as the construction of the Kakaro–Kavalamanja Road.^[29] A 14-kilometer road in Lusaka Province was demined to open up the area to tourism and agricultural development.

The demined Tonga–Gwembe valley has seen an acceleration in development projects. These include the rehabilitation of schools (including the Chief Chipepo Secondary School), hospitals (including Siavonga District Hospital) and health facilities (including Lusitu Health Centre), and the resurfacing of the Siavonga-Chirundu road, which is an important link to tourist resorts.^[30]

Other projects that will be a priority for demining, due to their importance to the Zambian economy, include the Mwapula Settlement area in Chongwe District near Lusaka, where Zimbabwean freedom fighters placed some landmines, and the Sioma Ngwezi Game Park and Lusyatola Camp in Western province, because of tourism potential.^[31]

Prior to the establishment of ZMAC in 2001, the Zambia Army’s Corps of Engineers was responsible for mine clearance, with support from the Ministry of Home Affairs Bomb Disposal Unit.^[32]

Mine Risk Education

Mine Risk Education (MRE) has not been a major component of mine action in Zambia. However, in 2003, ZMAC carried out MRE for over 21,000 Angolan refugees, preparing them for voluntary repatriation from Mayukwayukwa Refugee Camp in Western Province.^[33] The Japanese NGO Association for Aid and Relief (AAR) also received funding in 2003 for an MRE project at the Maheba Refugee Camp to benefit people awaiting repatriation to Angola. This followed on a survey conducted by AAR, which revealed that most refugees had no knowledge of landmines or the signs of landmine presence, and did not know what precautions to take in mined areas.^[34]

Prior to the creation of ZMAC, Army and Ministry of Home Affairs officials gave impromptu mine risk education when carrying out mine clearance in an area.^[35]

Mine Action Funding

In 2003, the United States reported $450,000 in funding for mine action in Zambia,^[36] and the Japanese government donated $69,000 to Association for Aid and Relief.^[37] The United States reports that it provided $816,000 in 2002 and $700,000 in 2001 for mine action in Zambia.^[38] In August 2003, Zambia’s Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Davison Mulela, who is also the chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Task Force on Landmines, hailed the United States for its support and partnership.^[39] In November, the Zambian government publicly commended the US government for its assistance in the training of personnel, provision of logistics, and ongoing collaboration.^[40]

The Zambian parliament voted ZMK3,400,000,000 (US$700,000) in the 2004 budget for mine action activities (i.e., ZMAC’s budget).^[41] This represents a significant increase over previous years when Zambia provided the following funds for national mine action: in 1999, US$41,531; in 2000, US$62,936; in 2001, US$97,948; and in 2002, US$81,283.^[42]

Landmine Casualties and Survivor Assistance

In May 2003, an antipersonnel mine injured one man in the eye and hand in Matebele Village near Sioma Ngwezi Game Park, in Western province, and in January 2004, two boys were injured by an antipersonnel mine in Chiengi district in Northern province.^[43] Between 1999 and 2002, only three other landmine casualties were reported, one in 2002 and two in 1999.^[44] Since 1980, there have been at least 200 landmine casualties, although the number could be higher as hospitals do not keep specific records on mine casualties.^[45]

The public health system does not distinguish between landmine/UXO survivors and other persons with disabilities. The needs of landmine survivors are addressed within the existing public healthcare infrastructure. However, according to the UNMAS assessment mission in 2000, the public health sector suffers from a lack of resources and expertise, which is most acute in the rural areas where the majority of mine/UXO incidents are likely to occur.^[46]

ZMAC has no program for mine survivor assistance. Prosthetics are available at the University Teaching Hospital and the Zambia-Italian Orthopedic Hospital. Rehabilitation facilities are also available through the Cheshire Home in the Solwezi District, Kasama and in Lusaka Province, the Association of the Blind and Handicap, and the Ministry of Community Development and Social Services (MCDSS). However, the MCDSS reportedly does not have sufficient funds to address the needs of mine survivors and other persons with disabilities.^[47] In February 2004, the Zambian parliament called for increased funding for the MCDSS, which caters for all persons with disabilities including mine survivors.^[48]

In 2003, the International Committee of the Red Cross started a new program to build capacity at the University Teaching Hospital in Lusaka to address the needs of disabled Angolan refugees and Zambians. Assistance included renovation of the prosthetic and orthotic center, providing components and materials, transport to the center, an outreach service in four refugee camps, and technical advice and daily on-site training of technicians. In 2003, the ICRC-supported center fitted 239 prostheses, including 183 for mine survivors, and provided 82 orthoses and 216 crutches.^[49]

[1] Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp. 182-183; Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 192. Zambia’s path to embracing the mine ban movement started in September 1996, when a group of students and staff at Lusaka’s University Training Hospital launched the Zambian Campaign to Ban Landmines (ZCAL), in an effort to lobby the government and raise public awareness about the landmine problem. Landmine Monitor Report 1999, p. 183. Members of the ZCBL included the Zambia Red Cross Society, medical students and various NGOs.
[2] Act No. 16 of 2003, short-title “Prohibition of Anti-personnel Mines Act, 2003” date pf assent 11 December 2003, enacted by the Parliament of Zambia 12 December 2003. Penal sanctions include a fine “not exceeding two hundred thousand penalty units” or imprisonment for a term not exceeding seven years, or both. Part III, 9 (2).
[3] “Prohibition of Anti-personnel Mines Act, 2003,” Part I, 2.
[4] Ibid.
[5] “Prohibition of Anti-personnel Mines Act, 2003,” Part III, 17, (1).
[6] The 6,691 mines include the following: 535 ALPER 120 (China); 571 AUPS 24 (Italy); 220 POMZ-2 (Russia); 676 MAUS 58 (Russia); 860 T69 (China); 1,225 T59 (Russia); 1,804 T58 (China); 226 T VARS 40 (Italy); and 574 VARS 50 (Italy). The mines are in the custody of the Zambia Army Central Ammunition Depot in Lusaka.
[7] Remarks to Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 15 May 2003. (Landmine Monitor/HRW notes).
[8] Interview with Davison Mulela, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Inter-ministerial Task Force on Landmines, Bangkok, Thailand, 19 September 2003.
[9] Interview with Matomola Mark Singongi, Coordinator, ZMAC, Lusaka, 28 April 2004.
[10] Remarks to Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction at the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 24 June 2004, (Landmine Monitor notes).
[11] UNMAS, “Mine Action Assessment Mission Report, Zambia,” 29 May-7 June 2000, p.7. For details on early use, see Landmine Monitor Report 1999, pp. 183-185.
[12] Interview with Ministry of Foreign Affairs official, Lusaka, 29 January 2001.
[13] Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 193: “Landmine Monitor interviewed Angolan soldiers who admitted to laying AP mines on Zambian soil in 2000 in order to stop UNITA rebels from obtaining access to suspected rear bases. There have also been reports that UNITA rebels have laid some landmines in Cahvuma district to depopulate the border areas in order that their activities are not witnessed and to avoid being followed by the Zambian security forces.”
[14] Statement by Zambia, Fourth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 17 September 2002. A government document issued in 2002 outlined the landmine problem as particularly acute in southern Zambia’s Gwembe Valley, where some sections of the lakeshore and the Bottom Road are contaminated with landmines. Other affected areas include: Lower Zambezi and Siampondo in Kalomo, Southern Province; Sinjembela area, Lyangati and Mangango, Western Province; Nyimba and Petauke districts, Eastern Province; Chikumbi, Serenje, Mkushi and Mboroma, Central Province; and Kavalamanja in Luangwa, Lusaka Province. See Government of Zambia, "Zambia Landmine Problem," 25 July 2002.
[15] UNMAS, “Assessment Mission Report,” 29 May-7 June 2000, p. 3.
[16] Ibid, p. 7.
[17] Interview with Matomola Mark Singongi, ZMAC, 28 April 2004. The Eastern Province Survey and Demining Program is a joint project of the Zambian and Mozambican governments.
[18] Interview with Mark Singongi, Inter-Ministerial Task Force on Landmines, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 5 December 2002.
[19] Statement by Zambia, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2004.
[20] Interview with Bruce Aongola and Anthony Malama, MRE/Level 1 Surveyors, ZMAC, Lusaka, 28 April 2004.
[21] Ibid.
[22] “Civic Leader Calls for Help,” Evening News on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation TV, 25 January 2004. The official referred to was District Commissioner of Mwinilunga, in the Northwestern Province.
[23] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 501-502.
[24] Statement by Prof. Mwelwa C. Musambachime, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Zambia to the United Nations, New York, 21 November 2001.
[25] Interview with Matomola Singongi, ZMAC, 28 April 2004.
[26] Ibid, 18 September 2003.
[27] “State seeks $2M for demining exercise,” Zambia Daily Mail, 31 October 2003.
[28] “Progress in implementing Article 5: An overview,” presented at the intersessional Standing Committee meetings, Geneva, 21 June 2004.
[29] Ibid.
[30] Interview with Mrs. D.N.K. Kaluwa, Manager, Tonga–Gwembe Valley Development Project, 24 January 2004.
[31] Interview with Matomola Mark Singongi, ZMAC, 28 April 2004.
[32] Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 174-175.
[33] “State Seeks $2m,” Zambia Daily Mail, 31 October 2003.
[34] “Japan Donates to Maheba,” The Times of Zambia, 11 April 2003.
[35] UNMAS, “Assessment Mission Report,” 29 May-7 June 2000, p. 12.
[36] US Department of State, “Congressional Budget Justifications: Foreign Operations, Fiscal Year 2005, Nonproliferation, Antiterrorism, Demining, and Related programs (NADR) appropriation,” 10 February 2004, pp. 154-158.
[37] “Japan Donates to Maheba,” The Times of Zambia, 11 April 2003.
[38] Landmine Monitor Report 2003, pp. 502, 712; Landmine Monitor Report 2002, pp. 529, 769.
[39] “US donates to ZMAC,” Evening News on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation, 18 August 2003.
[40] “Zambia Demines Luangwa,” Evening News of the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation, 21 November 2003; also posted on the website, www.znbc.co.zm.
[41] Interview with Matomola Mark Singongi, ZMAC, 28 April 2004.
[42] “A review of resources to achieve the Convention’s Aims,” presented to the Standing Committee on the General Status and Operation of the Convention, by Norway, Coordinator of the Resource Mobilization Contact Group, 25 June 2004.
[43] Interview with Peter M. Chibesa, Mine Victim Assistance Officer, ZMAC, Lusaka, 28 April 2004.
[44] Interview with Mark Singongi, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 5 December 2002; Times of Zambia (Lusaka), 28 January 1999.
[45] US Department of State, “To Walk the Earth in Safety,” Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Washington, Fourth Edition, September 2002, p. 24.
[46] UNMAS, “Assessment Mission Report,” 29 May-7 June 2000, p. 14; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2000, p. 195.
[47] Presentation by Zambia, Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, Geneva, 4 February 2003.
[48] “Government is encouraging street kids,” Times of Zambia, 25 February 2004.
[49] ICRC Special Report, “Mine Action 2003,” Geneva, August 2004, p. 28.