Casualties

Casualties Overview

In 2011, the National Mine Action Coordination Center (Centro Nacional de Coordenção da Accão Anti-Minas, CAAMI) recorded two new casualties from explosive remnants of war (ERW) in Guinea-Bissau, both in the capital of Bissau. A woman was injured in the Enteramento neighborhood and a boy was injured near the Amura barracks.[1] In 2010, a boy was injured by the explosion of a 60mm mortar shell in the outskirts of Bissau.[2]

There were a total of 1,217 casualties from mines/ERW recorded by CAAMI dating from 1974 through December 2011. However, this was not believed to be a comprehensive figure.[3] It was estimated that 1,000 of the recorded casualties survived the incident. An estimated 70% of all recorded casualties were male and 18% were children.[4] No information was available on whether the figure included both military and civilian casualties. The last confirmed casualties caused by mines were reported in 2006, when 34 casualties occurred in two separate antivehicle mine incidents.[5] All recorded casualties since 2006 have been caused by ERW.[6]

Victim Assistance

The total number of mine/ERW survivors is estimated to be about 1000.[7] Some of these may have already died, but it is likely there are many more unrecorded.[8]

CAAMI is the national focal point for victim assistance, but in 2011, as in previous years, its efforts to coordinate victim assistance were largely stymied by a lack of national or international resources.[9]

There has been little progress overall in improving access and quality of assistance to survivors in Guinea-Bissau in recent years due to lack of funds and of government support. There were few facilities near mine-affected areas, emergency transportation was almost non-existent, and services were further hampered by a lack of communication mechanisms and roads/transport.[10]

In March 2011, the Centro de Reabilitação Motora was officially inaugurated in Bissau to serve as the main physical rehabilitation center for the country.[11] The renovation of the center received support from Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and ICRC.[12]

Article 5 of the constitution of Guinea-Bissau prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities, but implementation was weak. There was no law mandating access to public buildings and no efforts were made to ensure access to buildings or streets.[13] Some mine survivors were eligible to receive pensions for persons with disabilities from the Ministry of Social Solidarity and Poverty Reduction (MSSPR).[14] Disabled former military personnel received pensions from the Ministry of Defense and Ex-Combatants but these programs did not adequately address health, housing, or food needs.[15]

In November 2011, the signing of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was under consideration within the National Assembly,[16] but as of 1 June 2012, Guinea-Bissau had not yet signed.