Human
Rights advocacy
Tsunami
& landmines
Landmines
are an ongoing threat in some places hit by the disaster,
but the risk has not increased dramatically. This is the
word from experts, who question earlier reports of floating
landmines and increased mine casualties in afflicted countries.
In brief, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India, Thailand and the
Maldives are the worst victim of the disaster. Moreover
Sri Lanka, Indonesia, India, Thailand are the countries
with a mine problem. No large-scale displacement of mines
or casualties is going on due to tidal wave. Antipersonnel
mines were a threat to civilians and aid workers before
and are still one now. The main thing that is needed:
caution and continued awareness, ongoing mine action,
pressure to ban mine use forever in Sri Lanka, Indonesia
and India. (Thailand is already a Mine Ban Treaty member,
as is the Maldives.)
Some
flooded areas in Sri Lanka are mine-affected. Displacement
of landmines was not extensive and no mine casualties
have been recorded since the Tsunami, said the United
Nations Development Programme in an USA Today article.
Luckily,
most coastal areas have already been cleared of mines.
In those mined areas remaining, there was some movement
of mines but this was minimal and the mines are believed
to have moved only within areas already regarded as mined
and not into 'safe' areas. In some places minefield markers
and fences were washed away by the floodwaters.
Norwegian
People's Aid, an NGO involved in mine clearance in this
country and a member of the International Campaign to
Ban Landmines, says landmines in the Tsunami disaster
zone won't hinder relief efforts but stresses the importance
of aid workers following standard safety practice in their
work in this heavily mined country.
Also,
there is concern for the safety of returning refugees
as they move through or settle in unfamiliar areas that
may be mined or are no longer marked. Educating displaced
communities about the ongoing risks of mines and the importance
of reporting suspicious objects will be important, as
will re-fencing and marking and ongoing mine clearance.
In
Indonesia, Aceh was severely hit by the Tsunami and it
has a mine and unexploded ordnance problem. Not much is
known yet about how the floods have impacted on the mined
areas but the situation is thought to be similar to that
in Sri Lanka. Although the contamination level is lower
here and the risk has not increased significantly, ongoing
mine awareness is still key.
Sadly,
staff of Nonviolence International, which is an ICBL member,
went missing in Banda Aceh and is feared dead. The organisation's
"Peace Education Program" office was destroyed
and documents and equipment were swept away, including
ground-breaking new resource manual on peacebuilding and
Islam.
In
the other main countries affected by the Tsunami, mined
areas were largely untouched by flooding. For example
in India, the South-Eastern state of Tamil Nadu was the
most affected, but the country's minefields are elsewhere.
The truth is that when post-Tsunami relief and reconstruction
efforts draw to a close, these countries still face the
ongoing development disaster that is caused by antipersonnel
landmines.
Source:
International Campaigns to Ban Landmines (ICBL).
