Horn of Africa/Gulf of Aden States Conference on Landmines

The countries of the Horn of Africa are among the worst mine-affected in the world, the aftermath of four decades of cross border and internal civil conflicts. Today, Ethiopia and Eritrea are embroiled in a protracted border war that may have caused the death of 100,000 in the past year alone. There are allegations that thousands of landmines have been used in this war. Unconfirmed reports indicate that there are now 5 to 7 landmine casualties every week in the contested Tigray region. New use of landmines has also been reported in the northern districts of Djibouti bordering on Eritrea. In 1999, ASOVIM, a victim assistance organization in Djibouti, registered 9 accidents due to mines allegedly planted by Afar rebels. 23 people were killed and 50 wounded in these incidents. Seventy percent of the victims were civilians. New landmine use has been reported in northern Kenya along the border with Somalia, in southern Somalia, and in southern Ethiopia. Continued use of landmines compounds an already overwhelming landmine problem in southern and eastern Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia and northern Uganda.

The nations of Yemen and Oman on the northern side of the Gulf of Aden share cultural and trade ties with the Horn of Africa. Both countries also suffer from the threat of landmines. In Yemen, landmines have been used in four conflicts between 1962 and 1994. Oman has a very slight landmine problem, mainly in the southern Salalah region. Both countries are important trade partners with the majority of the Horn of Africa countries and are major transit and transfer routes of goods, including small arms.

Despite the serious threat posed by landmines in the Horn of Africa, the governments of the region have paid very little attention to the menace of landmines. Of the 7 countries of the IGAD sub-region (Intergovernmental Authority on Development) only Uganda and Djibouti have signed and ratified the Ban Treaty (MBT). Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya have signed, but not ratified the MBT. Eritrea has not signed the convention. Research for the Landmine Monitor shows that even the two States Parties to the convention, Djibouti and Uganda, have taken few or no implementation measures. Yemen has ratified the MBT. Oman has not signed the treaty, but participated in the Ottawa signing ceremony, and pledged to consider joining the ban treaty in the near future.

However, there are encouraging signs on the horizon. Uganda has recently indicated that it will begin destroying 50,000 landmines manufactured within Uganda. The Kenyan government has also made favorable remarks towards the ratification of the Ban Treaty. Yemen, with help from the United States, has also started destroying 10,000 landmines in its stockpile. We believe it is important to take advantage of these new opportunities to propel the region towards a collective and comprehensive region-wide action to achieve a mine-free Horn of Africa.

Non-governmental organizations involved in the landmine ban campaign organized a number of workshops over the past year for non-governmental organizations in the region. The Institute for Practical Research and Training (IPR) and the Somaliland Coalition against Landmines (SCAL) organized a workshop on the menace of landmines in the Horn of Africa, November 23-24 in Hargeisa, for local NGOs. At the conclusion of the workshop, the Horn of Africa campaigns called on the countries of the IGAD sub-region to quickly face the threat of landmines and to join the global effort to ban landmines. Similarly, the Greater Horn of Africa Mine Action Network organized workshops in October and November in Nairobi for NGOs involved in mine awareness. The Horn of Africa campaigns believe that while many of the alleged users of landmines are internal opposition groups (non-state actors), it is essential that the governments of the region come together and collectively show a commitment towards the total non-use and eradication of landmines from their region. It is also essential to maximize the scarce resources available to mine action programs, which would be achieved through regular exchange of information on lessons learned.

A number of mine clearance programs have been started in the region over the past few years. The US Government is assisting Yemen, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Oman and the Northwestern region of Somalia (Somaliland). Both the Danish and the German Governments are also assisting heavily mined Somaliland. These projects, as well as many smaller projects in mine awareness and victim assistance are implemented in isolation and without coordination. Coordination would help maximize the scarce resources available to mine action programs and through "lesson learned exchanges" help us avoid wasteful mistakes.

To facilitate collective action by regional governments on landmines and to focus local and international attention on the menace of landmines in this region, we are proposing a Horn of Africa /Gulf of Aden States Conference on Landmines to be held in Djibouti. Djibouti is one of the two ratifiers of the MBT, and has agreed to sponsor the conference under its current mandate as the President of IGAD.

The conference is designed to be a high level gathering of about 80-100 participants including government delegations, senior leaders of local and international NGOs and mine clearance organizations, donors and leaders of the ban movement. Plenary sessions will be used to explore global landmine issues. Working group sessions will facilitate face-face meetings between the various government delegations to achieve collective and harmonized policy. The conference format will give sufficient emphasis to donor and regional community partnerships and, will, therefore, provide a forum for discussions and meetings between regional governments and donors.

Keynote addresses will be made by heads of delegations, leaders of the ban movement (ICBL, ICRC) and experts on the use and utility of landmines in warfare. The Institute of Practical Research and Training and the Landmine Monitor will release a special publication on landmines in the Horn of Africa. Press conferences will be held as appropriate during the conference and at the conclusion of the conference. The organizers will prepare public events to sensitize the general public and to promote mine awareness. These public events will include a photo exposition and documentary video/film shows.

Horn of Africa region campaigns, including Kenya, Sudan, Uganda, Djibouti, Tanzania and the Greater Horn Mine Action Network, have all agreed to join the coordinating committee and to lobby their governments to send high level delegations.

The conference will invite presentations from representatives of agencies engaged in the various aspects mine action (survey, victim assistance, mine awareness and mine clearance). These will include representatives from UN agencies (UNDP, UNICEF), Care International, the ICRC, HALO TRUST, the Danish Demining Group and the Santa Barbara Foundation.

In addition to the conference, a satellite training workshop will be organized just prior to the conference for Horn of Africa/Gulf of Aden Landmine Monitor researchers. The researchers will participate in the conference and present their findings in open plenary sessions.

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For further information please contact us by e-mail: ahesa@rocketmail.com or fax 252-2-52-31-52 or call us at 252-2-52-31-52, 253-22-5785 or 252-213-4585. 
Updated information will posted at Institute for Practical Research and Training website www.iprt.org.