Key developments since May 2004: The Lord’s Resistance Army
continues to use antipersonnel mines. There are reports of Army seizures of
antipersonnel mines from the People’s Redemption Army. In February 2005,
a UNDP Mine Action Advisor was appointed to help the government establish a mine
action program, which was officially launched in July 2005 by the Deputy Prime
Minister. In March, the Department of Disaster Preparedness and Refugees within
the Office of the Prime Minister took responsibility for mine action
coordination. In August through mid-September 2005, 20 army engineers were
trained in mine clearance at the international training center in Nairobi.
Mines Awareness Trust carried out a training needs assessment for mine clearance
and mine risk education. At the First Review Conference, Uganda was identified
as one of 24 States Parties with the greatest needs and responsibility to
provide adequate survivor assistance. In June 2005, Uganda identified some of
its objectives for the period 2005-2009 to address the needs of mine
survivors.
Mine Ban Policy
Uganda signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, ratified on 25
February 1999 and the treaty entered into force for the country on 1 August
1999.
In May 2005, Uganda reported, “An implementation act is ready to be
presented before Parliament.”[1]
Later that month, two officials told Landmine Monitor that the Ministry of
Defence was still reviewing the draft
legislation.[2] The legislation has
been in process since 2002.[3]
Uganda submitted its third Article 7 report on 11 May 2005, covering the
period from 23 July 2003 to 1 May
2005.[4] Uganda did not submit its
required annual updated Article 7 report in 2004.
Uganda participated in the First Review Conference of the Mine Ban Treaty in
Nairobi in November-December 2004, where its representative stated that
continued mine use by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in northern Uganda
represented a “critical challenge” for the country. She said that
Uganda “looks forward to an international mechanism that can be used to
bring non-state actors such as the LRA to
account....”[5]
Uganda participated in the intersessional meetings in Geneva in June 2005,
where it gave statements on mine clearance and victim assistance to the Standing
Committees.
Uganda has not engaged in extensive States Parties’ discussions on
matters of interpretation and implementation related to Articles 1 and 2 of the
Mine Ban Treaty, dealing with the issues of joint military operations with
non-States Parties, foreign stockpiling and transit of antipersonnel mines, and
antivehicle mines with sensitive fuzes or antihandling devices. With regard to
mines retained under Article 3, “Uganda supports the position already
taken by African states which have called for a minimum number of retained mines
to be of a bare minimum and not in
thousands.”[6]
On 3 November 2004, Uganda attended the inaugural meeting in New York of the
Forum of Mine-Affected Countries (FOMAC), a group of high-level representatives
from mine-affected countries. FOMAC was formed to encourage cooperation
between mine-affected countries.[7]
Uganda is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons, but not its
Amended Protocol II on landmines.
The Ugandan Campaign to Ban Landmines released Landmine Monitor Report
2004 on 22 November 2004 at an event that featured a presentation by the
Minister of State for Northern Uganda Reconstruction, Grace Akello.
Campaigners, landmine survivors and government representatives attended.
Production and Transfer
The National Enterprise Corporation, a state-run facility located at
Nakasongola, manufactured antipersonnel mines until at least 1995. It has been
decommissioned. Uganda states that it has never exported antipersonnel
mines.[8]
In January 2005, a UN report said that landmines had been supplied from a
Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) camp to a rebel group in the
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in violation of a UN embargo. In July 2003,
an arms embargo was imposed by the UN Security Council on the Ituri district and
the provinces of North and South Kivu provinces in DRC. In a January 2005
report, the UN Group of Experts monitoring the arms embargo said it was
investigating several apparent cases of weapons, including landmines, being
delivered to Ituri through Uganda in violation of UN Security Council Resolution
1552 (2004).
The report said: “For example, a former FAPC/UCPD soldier who had
recently been demobilized informed the Group that arms had been supplied to the
FAPC/UCPD camp in Mahagi from the Arua UPDF military camp. This soldier, who
was responsible for the logistics of the operation, noted that the arms
comprised 26 82-mm mortar shells, 10 mines and 22 cases of ammunition for
AK-47s. The description of the arms was also confirmed by MONUC in
Mahagi.”[9] The report did
not specify if the mines were antipersonnel or antivehicle. In response,
Uganda’s Minister of State for Defence said it was untrue that Uganda
supplied weapons and other support to rebels in
DRC.[10]
Landmine Monitor asked the government of Uganda for a specific response
regarding the allegation of transfer of landmines. In a lengthy reply, the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the allegations as “patently false
and inflammatory.” It said, “The government of Uganda has always
acted in conformity with her Landmine Ban Treaty obligations. She completed her
stockpile destruction in July 2003.... There is therefore no extra stock from
which even limited supplies to any organization can be got. The allegations
that Uganda supplied landmines to DRC rebels are unacceptable and most
unfortunate.... [Uganda] has neither violated the embargo nor at any time
supplied landmines.”[11]
Stockpiling and Destruction
In July 2003, Uganda completed destruction of its stockpile of 6,383
antipersonnel mines. Another 1,764 antipersonnel mines have reportedly been
retained for training purposes.[12]
Uganda has not yet reported in any detail on the intended purposes and actual
uses of its retained mines—a step agreed to by States Parties in the
Nairobi Action Plan that emerged from the First Review Conference.
The Uganda People’s Defence Forces has continued to capture and recover
weapons, including antipersonnel mines, from the Lord’s Resistance Army
and other non-state armed groups active inside the country.
Use
Antipersonnel mines were used by both government forces and the NRA in the
early 1980s and by rebel forces since that time in northern and western Uganda.
There have been no allegations of use of antipersonnel mines by government
forces inside Uganda in recent years. Landmine Monitor reported serious
allegations of use of antipersonnel mines by Ugandan forces in the Democratic
Republic of Congo in 2000.[13]
Non-State Armed Groups
The Lord’s Resistance Army has waged an armed struggle against the
Ugandan government for the past two decades, often from bases in southern Sudan
and, in the past, with the support of the government of Sudan. There has been a
decrease in LRA activities since 2002, when the governments of Uganda and Sudan
reached an agreement to allow Ugandan army units to pursue LRA units into Sudan
under Operation Iron Fist.
In 2004 and early 2005, LRA was active in the country’s northern
districts of Apac, Gulu, Kitgum, Pader and
Lira.[14] While LRA mine-laying is
believed to continue, Landmine Monitor was not able to independently confirm
specific instances of use of antipersonnel mines, and instead is reliant on
media reporting and information provided by UPDF. In December 2004, Uganda
characterized LRA mine use as “sporadic,” but a “very serious
threat to the resettlement of the internally displaced people in the event of
cessation of
conflict.”[15]
UPDF regularly captures and recovers LRA stockpiles of
landmines.[16] Between 1 January
and 14 May 2005, UPDF reports it captured or received 24 antipersonnel landmines
and 15 antivehicle mines as part of Operation Iron
Fist.[17] In 2004, UPDF reports it
collected 106 mines of all
types.[18] According to a media
report, in 2003 UPDF recovered a total of 99 antipersonnel mines and 35
antivehicle mines from LRA.[19]
There were several reports of UPDF weapons seizures from another non-state
armed group called the People’s Redemption Army (PRA). In early 2005,
media reported that UPDF had recovered weapons, including a total of 24
antipersonnel mines during operations to find PRA
rebels.[20] In December 2004, media
reported that seven landmines and other weapons had been recovered from a PRA
house.[21]
Landmine and UXO Problem
As a result of internal conflict and general unrest in the region, Uganda is
contaminated with mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) throughout its western,
northern and central districts. According to the UN, some 400 square kilometers
are suspected to be
contaminated.[22]
The areas most affected are: Luwero district north of Kampala and several
other neighboring districts together known as the Luwero Triangle, where UXO
remains after fighting in the early 1980s between government forces and the NRA;
the western Rwenzori Mountains, primarily the districts of Kasese, Bundibugyo
and Kabarole, where contamination is the result of infiltration in the late
1990s by the Allied Democratic Forces
(ADF);[23] the north, where there is
ongoing mine use by the LRA on a small-scale ad hoc
basis.[24] In May 2005, LRA was
said to be operating in the districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Pader, Apac and
Lira,[25] and has occasionally
launched attacks in Adjumani
district.[26] In addition, the West
Nile region (Moyo and Arua districts) was mined during the 1979 war that ousted
Idi Amin Dada.[27]
Mine Action Program
During 2005, Uganda has been in the process of building a formal, civilian
mine action program.[28] On 6 July
2005, at an introductory seminar on mine action in Kampala, the program was
officially launched by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Disaster
Preparedness and Refugees.[29]
In February 2005, a UNDP Mine Action Advisor was appointed to help establish
a mine action coordination secretariat in the Office of the Prime Minister
(OPM).[30] In March 2005, the
Department of Disaster Preparedness and Refugees within the OPM took over
responsibility for mine action
coordination.[31]
A Mine Action Steering Committee was established in September 2005,
comprising permanent secretaries of relevant ministries and departments; the
committee will be chaired by the OPM Permanent Secretary who wrote to other
ministries asking them to nominate the relevant permanent secretaries as members
of the steering committee. The committee will be responsible for mine action
policies and guidelines. It will hold monthly coordination meetings; the
secretariat of the committee is the mine action coordination office based in
OPM.[32]
Implementing agencies for mine action will include the ministries of health
(department of disability and rehabilitation), defence (UPDF), internal affairs,
gender, labor and social affairs, as well as national and international NGOs
that will be tasked with carrying out mine
action.[33]
As of mid-2005, no operational mine action center existed in Uganda, but
plans were underway to train staff for the center before the end of 2005, and to
formally establish the center, as well as a regional office for the north of the
country, in 2006.[34] Once the mine
action center is established, OPM will retain the task of supporting the overall
coordination of mine action, mainstreaming the activities of NGOs and other
stakeholders, and supervising the mine action
center.[35]
Uganda has, through the OPM, developed its first annual mine action plan
covering needs assessment, victim assistance and mine risk education. Pending
completion of a long-term mine action strategy, which was being drafted in May
2005, a one-year strategic plan was in place, based on NGO and international
agency workplans submitted to the UNDP Mine Action Advisor for the first phase
of activities.[36]
The mine action strategy will be integrated into national development
programs. The Poverty Eradication Action Program (PEAP) mentions mine action,
although not in detail. In the UNDP country program for 2006-2010, mine action
is mentioned in relation to national policy on internally displaced
persons.[37]
Survey, fencing/marking and clearance were prioritized, based on the impact
on humanitarian suffering and casualties, areas needed for returnees and
refugees to resettle, areas identified for reconstruction and rehabilitation
projects, and the requirements of food security projects (agricultural and
grazing land). Future plans for mine action include a needs assessment in
northern Uganda in the districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Pader and Lira, and clearance
which is expected to start in Kasese district, carried out by UPDF. There are
also plans to install the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA)
in the mine action center in 2006, with staff trained in the second half of
2005, and to establish a mine/UXO casualty surveillance network at the Ministry
of Health. The ministry will be tasked to identify focal points at the district
level, and the process will follow downwards to the lower local administrative
structures and refugee camp
leaders.[38]
There were plans to have two quality assurance teams, supervised and trained
by technical experts from international NGOs, in place by early 2006 with six
mine detection dogs.[39] Handover
of cleared land to communities will be done using the local council structure.
Disputes will be handled by the district land boards, and elders will be
consulted on land
distribution.[40]
Between 1 August and 15 September 2005, 20 UPDF engineers were trained at the
International Mine Action Training Center (IMATC) in Nairobi. Deminers were
then organized into two small, independent teams for mine clearance and
explosive ordnance disposal (EOD). In October 2005, additional UPDF-seconded
Army engineers were due to start attending the IMATC in Nairobi, with funding
from the UK; training is planned for 120 engineers. Once training is completed,
these deminers will also form small mine clearance and EOD teams. By 2007,
Uganda plans to have 12 survey/clearance/EOD teams undertaking mine
action.[41]
In her speech at the opening of the seminar for landmine survivors from the
Great Lakes Region in Kampala on 29 March 2005, Christine Aporu Amongin,
Minister of State for Disaster Preparedness and Refugees, reaffirmed the Ugandan
government’s commitment to work with NGOs and community-based
organizations in reducing mine
risks.[42]
Survey and Assessment
Mines Awareness Trust (MAT) trained Anti-mine Network Rwenzori (AMNET-R) to
carry out a needs assessment for mine clearance and mine risk education in
Kasese district in 2004-2005. By May 2005, the assessment team, supervised by
MAT, had identified 57 dangerous areas. In August, MAT carried out a rapid
assessment in Adjumani district in northwestern
Uganda.[43]
Mine and UXO Clearance
Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty, Uganda must destroy all antipersonnel
mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but
not later than 1 August 2009. In May 2005, senior program staff took the view
that Uganda will be free of at least the most severe humanitarian and economic
effects of mines and UXO by
2009.[44]
Uganda reported no details of mined areas or mine clearance in its Article 7
report of 11 May 2005. Reportedly, however, in 2004 and through September 2005,
UPDF personnel were involved in a small number of emergency EOD responses. UPDF
possesses the South African mobile mine detection system, which carries out both
detection and demolition; it is hoping to upgrade the system in the
future.[45]
Mine Risk Education
Mine risk education (MRE) is not centrally coordinated in Uganda;
capacity-building falls under the brief of the UNDP Mine Action Advisor who
reports very limited funding for
MRE.[46] Organizations involved in
MRE include Mines Awareness Trust, AMNET-R, Associazione Volontari per il
Servizio Internazionale (AVSI) and Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief
(CPAR).
The International Mine Action Standards (IMAS) for MRE have not been applied
in Uganda. National standards have not been developed. However, AVSI states
that its MRE activities are in accordance with international
standards.[47] Mines Awareness
Trust carried out a training needs assessment for mine clearance and MRE in
Kasese district in 2004-2005, and in Adjumani district of West Nile region
(northwestern Uganda) in
mid-2005.[48]
Despite mine incidents continuing to occur in western Uganda (Kasese
district), little MRE took place in the reporting period due to lack of
funding.[49] AMNET-R focused its
activities on a joint needs assessment with MAT that lasted eight months in 2004
through January 2005. The assessment was undertaken in 17 of 21
sub-counties.[50]
It established that children were more at risk from injury from UXO than from
mines.[51]
In northern Uganda, in particular Gulu, Pader and Kitgum districts, MRE
activities were undertaken since June 2004 by AVSI, in collaboration with the
District Rehabilitation Office. Activities have been on three levels: a
training-of-trainers to build capacity amongst camp leaders; awareness training
targeting teachers, religious leaders, NGO staff and other community leaders;
direct MRE, using drama and group discussions, to the community at large, in
particular schoolchildren and
teachers.[52]
Training-of-trainers was carried out in July and August 2004 for 27 camp
leaders, six each from camps in Kitgum, Pader and Lira districts, and nine from
Gulu district. In addition, 38 people from Lira district were trained, with
funding from UNICEF. Workshops are held over three days and seek to equip
participants with the knowledge and skills necessary to facilitate MRE
programming in their communities. Training covers: basic information concerning
the possible location where mines may be found; recognition of mines and warning
signs; other basic MRE information; facilitation skills, participatory
methodologies, developing workplans and activities, and support requirements.
All training-of-trainers participants are then provided with a training kit and
materials to assist future work.[53]
Additionally a series of “standard” one-day training events have
been held. These cover information necessary for participants to keep
themselves and others in their community safe, including: background information
on mine use in Uganda; basic information about mines; basic safe behavior
messages, with marking and reporting messages; a discussion of possible
communication strategies to help the participants’ community feel safe.
Community sensitization training is also undertaken through: a local drama
group, which undertakes performances emphasizing safe behaviors, and
demonstrating the dangers of mines in northern Uganda; followed by group
discussions, and a question-and-answer session led by a member of the UPDF
Engineering Department.[54]
AVSI has also undertaken a basic education program targeting schools. New
MRE materials (school exercise books) were developed and distributed.
Information and messages promoted during the training include: basic statistics
on the number of injuries in the area and the scale of the problem; information
on where mines may be placed; a technical session on recognition of mines,
facilitated by officers from the UPDF Engineering Battalion, and basic dos and
don’ts of being in a suspect
area.[55]
AVSI has also printed and distributed stickers to be placed on jerry cans to
remind people of mine and UXO when collecting water. It has paid for MRE
messages to be broadcast in both Luo and English on local radio stations four
times daily. There are also radio talk shows transmitted every two weeks,
focusing on reports received from the communities. Presenters include
officers from UPDF, AVSI and CPAR, moderated by the district
office.[56]
World Vision Canada planned to become involved in MRE in northern Uganda from
June-July 2005.[57]
Funding and Assistance
Two donors reported funding mine action in Uganda in 2004. Canada provided
C$184,155 (US$141,473) for integrated survivor support and injury
prevention.[58] The European
Commission (EC) contributed €70,000 ($87,066) for mine risk education and
victim assistance.[59]
The total amount sought by Uganda for mine action in 2005 was
$5,660,042.[60] In February 2005,
UNDP in Uganda secured $200,000 from the Bureau of Crisis Recovery and
Prevention, and $233,000 from Germany for capacity-building, including support
for the UNDP Mine Action Advisor and establishing the mine action center office.
The UK provided $220,000 to train and equip 120 Ugandan army engineers in
humanitarian demining. The EC has pledged €1 million (approx. $1.24
million) for mine risk education, victim assistance and needs assessments in
Uganda.[61]
Landmine and UXO Casualties
The number of new mine casualties in Uganda in 2004 is not known as there is
no comprehensive data collection system. Limited information is available from
general hospital records, media reports and information collected by NGOs.
In 2004, there were at least 31 new mine/UXO casualties, including five
people killed and 26 injured. In February 2004, a soldier was killed and a
driver seriously injured in Lira district, when a vehicle hired by a BBC crew
was destroyed after hitting a
landmine.[62] In July, two soldiers
were killed and two others were injured by antipersonnel mines in Lamogi
sub-county.[63] In August, a
peasant from Nebbi district in West Nile region had both legs amputated after a
mine explosion. In separate incidents, two soldiers were killed in mine
explosions. All were admitted to Lacor
hospital.[64] On 21 September, a
soldier lost a leg in a mine explosion and received treatment at Kitgum
Hospital. On 4 October, a peasant from Lamwo county lost a leg in a mine
explosion and was hospitalized at Kitgum
Hospital.[65] From January to the
beginning of September 2004, AVSI identified 20 new mine/UXO survivors,
including five children.[66] In
2003, AVSI recorded 53 civilian mine/UXO survivors, and other sources indicated
that at least 11 people were killed and 48 injured in mine
incidents.[67]
Casualties continued to be reported in 2005. In January, two soldiers lost a
leg above the knee in mine incidents in Gulu
district.[68] In another incident
in January, in Kisongora village in Muhokya sub-county, two people were
critically injured and three others received minor injuries. In March, at
Karambi sub-county headquarters, one boy was killed and four others were
seriously injured in mine/UXO
explosions.[69] In one incident,
the 13-year-old son of the local council chairman was killed while trying to
detonate a device.[70] On 22
February, a soldier lost a leg in a mine explosion and received treatment at
Kitgum Hospital.[71]
It is estimated that since 1998, 425 people were killed and around 400 lost
limbs in landmine incidents.[72]
In September 2005, AVSI initiated a new program for mine casualty data
collection in Gulu district. The first phase of the program is the training of
volunteer data collectors, who will collect information on new casualties and
mine survivors from past
incidents.[73]
Survivor Assistance
At the First Review Conference in Nairobi in November-December 2004, Uganda
was identified as one of 24 States Parties with significant numbers of mine
survivors, and with “the greatest responsibility to act, but also the
greatest needs and expectations for assistance,” in providing adequate
services for the care, rehabilitation and reintegration of
survivors.[74] Three mine survivors
from Uganda participated in the Survivors Summit and the First Review
Conference. From 29 March to 2 April 2005, mine survivors from Uganda,
Ethiopia, Sudan and Uganda met in Kampala for the first landmine survivors
exchange program, in cooperation with the Interfaith Action for Peace in Africa
Initiative.[75]
Uganda participated in the workshop on Advancing Landmine Victim Assistance
in Africa in Nairobi on 31 May-2 June 2005, which was hosted by the co-chairs of
the Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration, to
assist States Parties to develop plans of action to meet the aims of the Nairobi
Action Plan in relation to mine victim assistance.
In June 2005, as part of its commitment to the Nairobi Action Plan, Uganda
identified some of its objectives for the period 2005-2009 to address the needs
of mine survivors, which include: establishing a database and collection
mechanism that includes information on health and socioeconomic status;
improving capacities in first aid and emergency care to reduce mortality in
mine/UXO incidents; providing all landmine survivors with rehabilitation and
strengthening rehabilitation services in western Uganda; strengthening
capacities for psychosocial support; promoting the participation of landmine
survivors in economic and social development, including through vocational
training and micro-credit schemes, and improving accessibility to secondary and
tertiary schools for children with disabilities; strengthening associations of
mine survivors; improving and implementing legal provisions to ensure full and
equal participation, and strengthening the representation of mine survivors and
other persons with disabilities; and increasing awareness among mine/UXO
survivors on the transmission and available services for HIV/AIDS.
Uganda’s main strategy is to mainstream mine victim assistance into
development programs.[76]
The public health system in the mine-affected areas of northern and western
Uganda is ill-equipped to handle landmine casualties, although basic health
facilities are found in hospitals throughout the country. In the most
mine-affected areas, some facilities are overcrowded, understaffed, and lack
equipment and supplies. First aid and emergency facilities are inadequate due
to a lack of equipment, supplies, trained personnel and transport, and
casualties often have to travel long distances before reaching health facilities
that can provide adequate medical
attention.[77]
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in collaboration with
the Ministry of Health and Uganda Red Cross, supports the war-wounded, including
mine casualties, in the districts of Gulu, Kitgum, and Pader: they provide
medical and other basic supplies to hospitals and health clinics, and evacuate
emergency cases from clinics to hospitals. In 2004, ICRC supported: Kitgum
Government Hospital and St Joseph Missionary Hospital in Kitgum district; Gulu
Referral Hospital, St. Mary’s Lacor Missionary Hospital and Gulu Military
hospital in Gulu district; Kalongo Missionary Hospital in Pader district. ICRC
also extended support to health centers in camps for internally displaced
persons in Labuje, Padibe, Mucwini, Kitgum Matidi and Akwang. Between January
2004 and March 2005, the three ICRC-supported hospitals in Gulu treated 1,519
casualties of landmines, gunshots, bomb blasts and other war-related injuries,
and the hospitals in Kitgum and Prader treated another 489 war-related
casualties. ICRC also sponsored a Ugandan prosthetic/orthotic technician to
undertake a training course at the Tanzanian Training Center for Orthopedic
Technologists.[78] In April 2005,
ICRC conducted a three-day seminar on medical care and management of war wounds
for 14 surgeons and health personnel in Kitgum, and in July, a two-week
on-the-job training program on the treatment of war injuries was conducted at
Gulu Government Hospital.[79]
There are five main orthopedic facilities in Uganda and seven smaller
facilities, but only two are in the most mine-affected areas, Gulu and Fort
Portal. The capacities of the orthopedic workshops are reportedly insufficient
to meet the demand. Opportunities for psychosocial support and economic
reintegration are very limited. Access to facilities, due to remoteness, lack
of transport or difficult terrain, and a lack of knowledge of available
services, have been identified as problems for mine survivors. In the north,
the District Rehabilitation Office provides some community outreach and
psychosocial support for war victims in Gulu. In 2004, 75 wheelchairs were
provided for mine survivors; the budget was UGShs11,000,000 ($6,027) for
2004-2005.[80] The Kasese district
local government has allocated UGShs2.4 million ($1,315) for the provision of
orthopedic aids in the district budget for 2004–2005. In August 2004, the
Ministry of Health provided six wheelchairs to be distributed in Kasese
district.[81]
AVSI supports the Gulu Regional Workshop at the Gulu referral hospital and
carries out its program in 13 districts of northern Uganda. The program assists
all war victims, including mine survivors, and includes: outreach clinics for
identification and follow-up; medical rehabilitation; support for patient
welfare, including transport to and accommodation at the workshop and medical
care; training of technical teams in first aid, physiotherapy, occupational
therapy, and the production of orthopedic and assistive devices; psychosocial
support; and skills training. The program is unable to meet the demand for
services and many people must wait months for treatment. All services are
provided free of charge. In 2004, the workshop assisted 338 people,
produced 260 prostheses (66 for mine survivors), and distributed 55 wheelchairs,
23 crutches and 109 other orthotic devices. In addition, 50 victims of
war-related trauma received vocational training, including 10 mine survivors.
AVSI works with other partners, including the Rehabilitation Desk of the
Ministry of Health, local authorities, UN agencies, local NGOs and Canadian
Physicians for Aid and Relief
(CPAR).[82] In January 2005, ICRC
provided the workshop with a new oven for the production of prostheses worth
UGShs3.4 million ($6,000), and World Vision Uganda donated 1,245 orthopedic
devices, to assist about 500 people, worth UGShs7.9 million
($4,328).[83]
In 2004, a new three-year program for persons with disabilities started in
the northern districts of Gulu, Kitgum, Pader, Apac and Lira, and in the West
Nile districts of Nebbi and Arua, with funding of UGShs3 billion ($1.643,667)
from Italy. The program is being implemented by the Italian NGOs AVSI in the
north, and Collegio Universitario Aspiranti Medici Missionari (CUAMM) / Medici
con l’Africa (Doctors with Africa) in West Nile. The project aims to
support and extend medical rehabilitation services, particularly in the area of
physiotherapy units and orthopedic workshops, and improve the working conditions
for persons with disabilities through infrastructure development and disability
policies.[84]
In April 2004, CPAR started a new program, Landmine Survivor Support and
Injury Prevention Project, to build on the achievements of a program that ended
in March 2003. The program, in Gulu district, includes vocational and business
skills training, small revolving loans for income generating activities,
agricultural seeds and tools, and psychosocial activities. In 2004, 285 people
benefited from the program, including 138 landmine survivors; 80 graduates from
the previous project were also supported. The program is mainly supported by
the Canadian International Development
Agency.[85]
In April 2004, Mines Awareness Trust, in collaboration with AMNET-R, started
a new one-year program in western Uganda with funding from the UK-based Comic
Relief. Activities include providing transport to take mine survivors to the
orthopedic workshop in Fort Portal, and the transportation of produce from
income generation activities to local
markets.[86] In early 2005, in
Kasese district, MAT through AMNET-R also sponsored two amputee rehabilitation
specialists from the UK, to undertake a study on how to assist mine survivors
cope with their current situations, and on prostheses more suitable for the
mountainous terrain of the Rwenzori
region.[87]
The Ministry of Defence has its own military hospitals at Mbuya, Gulu and
Bombo. The UPDF has a casualty unit in Mubende, and a smaller unit in
Nakasongola. The Uganda Veterans Assistance Board has a medical rehabilitation
program for disabled soldiers.[88]
On 20 May 2005, refurbishment started on the UPDF Mubende Rehabilitation Center
for disabled soldiers, with support from a South African organization, AMA
Medical Services. To mark the start of the project, 20 artificial limbs were
given to the center. As part of the program, UPDF officers will be trained by
AMA in South Africa to produce
prostheses.[89]
In 2004, a new association, the Kasese Amputees Association, was formed to
provide landmine survivors and other amputees with skills like shoe repair,
tailoring and weaving, to facilitate their socioeconomic reintegration through
income generation
activities.[90]
Other local organizations identified as assisting mine survivors with medical
care rehabilitation, psychosocial support, and economic reintegration through
vocation training and micro credit schemes, include CARITAS Gulu branch, the GUU
Foundation, Kitende Hostels Project in Kasese district, Lira Landmine Survivors
Association in Kampala, Northern Uganda Association for Landmine Survivors,
Kalambi Landmine Survivors Association, Kitholu Landmine Survivors Association,
Mukunyu Landmines and Amputee’s Development Association, National Union of
Disabled Persons of Uganda (NUDIPU) and People with Disabilities
Uganda.[91]
Organizations representing persons with disabilities in Uganda, with the
support of UK-based NGO Action for Disability and Development (ADD), include
NUDIPU, National Union on Women with Disabilities of Uganda, Uganda National
Association of the Blind, Uganda National Association on Physical Disabilities,
Disabled Women’s Network and Resource Organization, Mental Health of
Uganda and others.[92]
Disability Policy and Practice
Uganda has legislation and policies to protect the rights and needs of
persons with disabilities. Uganda has a Minister of State for Disabled Persons,
and a Department for Disabled Persons within the Ministry of Gender, Labour and
Social Development. Five seats in parliament are reserved for representatives
of persons with disabilities. A National Disability Council coordinates all
disability activities in the country. However, there is a lack of funding to
undertake any significant initiatives to improve opportunities for people with
disabilities. The Ministry of Health is currently responsible for the
coordination of victim assistance activities in
Uganda.[93]
In collaboration with the Ministry of Construction and Housing, disability
groups are drafting a “building control” bill to ensure that
accessibility of disabled people is taken into consideration in the construction
of roads and major
buildings.[94]
The 2004/2005 national budget focuses on poverty eradication under the
Poverty Eradication Action Plan. Persons with disabilities participated in the
review of the plan, to ensure their needs and interests were taken into
account.[95]
[1] Article 7 Report, Form A, 11
May 2005.
[2] Telephone interview with Capt.
Kagoro Asingura, Legal Officer, Ministry of Defence, 24 May 2005; interview with
Isaac Sebulime, Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kampala, 25 May
2005.
[3] The draft was titled
“1997 Mine Ban Implementation Bill 2002.” In May 2002, Uganda
reported the act was before parliament. In May 2004, Landmine Monitor was
informed that a revised draft was due to be presented to the cabinet for
approval before going to parliament.
[4] The UN records the submission
date as 11 May 2005, but the report itself is dated 30 April 2004. The report on
the UN website contains only Forms A and I. Previous Article 7 reports were
submitted on 24 July 2003 and 24 May 2002.
[5] Statement by Deputy High
Commissioner Agnes Kalibbala, Uganda High Commission in Kenya, Nairobi Summit on
a Mine-Free World (First Review Conference), Nairobi, 2 December 2004.
[6] Interview with Dorah Kutesa,
First Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Geneva, 23 June 2004. The African
position is contained in a draft document entitled “Africa’s
Declaration for a World Free of Antipersonnel Mines, Nairobi, 29 November
2004.”
[7] United Nations,
“Countries stand united in the battle against landmines,” 4 November
2004, www.un.int/angola/press_release_landmines.
[8]Landmine Monitor Report
1999, p. 91.
[9] United Nations Security
Council, “Letter dated 25 January 2005 from the Chairman of the Security
Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1533 (2004) concerning the
Democratic Republic of the Congo addressed to the President of the Security
Council,”S/2005/30, para 138, 25 January 2005, p. 34. FAPC/UCPD
is Forces Armées du Peuple Congolais/Union de Congolais pour la Paix et
la Democratie. MONUC is the UN Mission in the DRC.
[10] “United Nations:
Rwanda and Uganda violate arms embargo in east Congo (DRC),” Associated
Press (Kinshasa), 29 January 2005.
[11] Letter (MOT/383/406/01) from
Isaac Biruma Sebulime, for the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Kampala, to Stephen Goose, Landmine Monitor Ban Policy Coordinator, 2 September
2005. The full text of the letter can be found on the Landmine Monitor website
at www.icbl.org/lm.
[12] “Uganda endeavors to
reduce landmine risks,” Xinhua, 30 March 2005; Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, p. 835; Landmine Monitor Report 2003, p. 476. Uganda
first revealed details of its stockpile in May 2002 with its initial Article 7
report, declaring a stockpile of 6,782 mines, of which 4,382 would be destroyed
and 2,400 mines retained for training. In May 2003, Uganda announced that the
number of mines to be destroyed had increased to 5,592, due to new mines
captured from rebels. On 7 July 2003, Uganda carried out a destruction event at
Kigo Prison shooting range on the shores of Lake Victoria. Vice President
Gilbert Bukenya initiated the first detonation, and government ministers,
diplomats, army officers, religious leaders and the media witnessed the event. A
larger detonation by the Army occurred later. At the event, Minister of State
for Defence Ruth Nankabirwa reportedly said a total of 5,018 mines would be
destroyed and the remaining 1,764 antipersonnel mines would be retained for
training purposes. The Canadian government reported that the destruction
certificate, dated 9 July 2003, indicates that 6,383 mines were destroyed.
[13]Landmine Monitor Report
2000, p. 115; Landmine Monitor Report 2001, pp. 163-166; Landmine
Monitor Report 2004, p. 835.
[14] Interview with Capt. Wilson
Kabeera, UPDF Engineer, Kampala, 23 February 2005.
[15] Statement by Deputy High
Commissioner Agnes Kalibbala, Uganda High Commission in Kenya, First Review
Conference, Nairobi, 2 December 2004.
[16] Interview with Capt. Wilson
Kabeera, UPDF Engineer, Kampala, 23 February 2005.
[17] Ministry of Defence website,
“Operation Iron Fist SitRep: 1 January-14 May 2005,” 24 May 2005,
www.defenceuganda.mil.ug.
[18] Ministry of Defence website,
“Statistical Performance SitRep for 1 January 2004 to 30 December
2004,” 6 February 2005, www.defenceuganda.mil.ug. In July
2004, the Ugandan army crossed into Sudan to attack a makeshift headquarters of
LRA leader, Joseph Kony, in Bileniang and recovered weapons including landmines.
“Army raids LRA headquarters in southern Sudan,” IRIN
(Kampala), 29 July 2004.
[19] “Landmines kill at
least 425 Ugandans since 1998: report,” Xinhua, 25 November 2004.
[20] “Army Blasts Taban
Amin Over PRA Talk,” Monitor (Kampala), 18 January 2005;
“Uganda Army says the country’s northwest ‘peaceful’
after anti-rebel operations,” Monitor (Kampala), 4 March 2005.
Another report mentions recovery of antipersonnel mines, but does not cite a
total. “PRA Rebels Have Base in West Nile,” Monitor
(Kampala), 7 February 2005.
[21] “Ugandan army discover
rebel weapons cache,” Xinhua (Kampala), 6 December 2004;
“Army claims recovering cache of arms along near Sudan border,”
Agence France-Presse (Kampala), 6 December 2004.
[22] UN, “Country profile:
Uganda,” www.mineaction.org.
[23] UN, “Country profile:
Uganda,” www.mineaction.org.
[24] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, p. 835.
[25] Interview with Woboya
Vicent, Senior Assistant Secretary, Department of Disaster Preparedness and
Refugees, Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and Mine Action Coordination Focal
Point (MACFP), Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[26] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, p. 835.
[27] UN, “Country profile:
Uganda,” www.mineaction.org.
[28] See, for instance, statement
by Deputy High Commissioner Agnes Kalibbala, Uganda High Commission in Kenya,
First Review Conference, Nairobi, 2 December 2004.
[29] Email from Hartmut Thoms,
Mine Action Advisor, UN Development Programme (UNDP), Kampala, 30 August
2005.
[30] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005.
[31] Interview with Woboya
Vicent, OPM/MACFP, Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[32] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interviews with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May and 8 August 2005.
[33] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interview with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[34] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 12 September 2005.
[35] Interview with Woboya
Vicent, OPM/MACFP, Kampala, 8 August 2005.
[36] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interview with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May 2005, and 8 August 2005.
[37] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interview with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[38] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interview with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[39] Email from Hartmut Thoms,
UNDP, Kampala, 30 August 2005.
[40] Interview with Woboya
Vicent, OPM/MACFP, Kampala, 25 May 2005.
[41] Interview with Woboya
Vicent, OPM/MACPF, Kampala, 8 August 2005; information provided by Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, in email 29 August 2005, and interviews 18 May and 12
September 2005.
[42] “Uganda endeavors to
reduce landmine risks,” Xinhua, 30 March 2005.
[43] Information provided by
Hartmut Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, in email 29 August 2005, and interviews, Jinja, 18
May and 12 September 2005.
[44] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005.
[45] Information provided by Lt.
Richard Wahayinje, Liaison Officer, UPDF/OPM, Jinja, 14 September 2005.
[46] Telephone interview with
Hartmut Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 21 June 2005.
[47] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; AVSI, “Humanitarian Mine Action
Program, Summary Report,” November 2004, p.3.
[48] Email from Hartmut Thoms,
UNDP, Kampala, 29 August 2005.
[49] For example, there was an
explosion in January 2005 in Muhokya sub-county at Kisongora village in which
two people were critically injured and three others received minor injuries. In
March 2005, at Karambi sub-county headquarters one boy died immediately and four
others were hospitalized with serious injuries. In each of these cases local
volunteers trained by AMNET-R provided impromptu MRE training to those in the
immediate vicinity. Information provided by Bahati Muhesi, Program Coordinator,
AMNET-R, Kasese 30 June 2005.
[50] Interview with Wilson
Bwambale, Program Manager, AMNET-R, Kasese, 30 June 2005.
[51] Email from Netsanet Solomon,
Program Development Officer, MAT, 15 July 2005; interview with Wilson Bwambale,
AMNET-R, Kasese, 31 March 2005.
[52] AVSI, “Humanitarian
Mine Action Program, Summary Report,” November 2004, p. 3.
[53] AVSI, “Humanitarian
Mine Action Program, Summary Report,” November 2004, p. 4.
[54] AVSI, “Humanitarian
Mine Action Program, Summary Report,” November 2004, p. 5.
[55] Interview with Jeff Dixson,
MRE coordinator, AVSI, 10 March 2005.
[56] Interview with Jeff Dixson,
MRE coordinator, AVSI, 10 March 2005.
[57] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, Mine Action Advisor, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005.
[58] Mine Action Investments
database; emails from Elvan Isikozlu, Mine Action Team, Foreign Affairs Canada,
June-August 2005. Average exchange rate for 2004: US$1 = C$1.3017. US Federal
Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 3 January 2005.
[59] EC, “Contribution to
the Landmine Monitor 2005,” by email from Nicola Marcel, RELEX Unit 3a
Security Policy, EC, 19 July 2005. Average exchange rate for 2004: €1 =
$1.2438. US Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 3
January 2005.
[60] UN, “Country profile:
Uganda,” www.mineaction.org.
[61] Interview with Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 18 May 2005; interview with Woboya Vicent, OPM/MACFP,
Kampala, 25 May 2005; additional information provided in email from Hartmut
Thoms, UNDP, Kampala, 30 August 2005.
[62] Emmy Allio, “BBC crew
vehicle hit in Lira,” New Vision (Kampala), 28 February 2004.
[63] Cornes Lubangakene,
“Twelve LRA Killed,” New Vision, 21 July 2004.
[64] Interview with Dr. Martin
Ogwang, Medical Superintendent, Lacor Hospital, and review of hospital records,
9 March 2005.
[65] Interview with Dr. Alex
Layoo, Surgical Officer, Kitgum Hospital, and review of hospital records, 12
March 2005.
[66] Email to Landmine Monitor
(HI) from Jeff Dixson, AVSI Gulu, 9 September 2004. [67] For more information, see
Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 840-841.
[68] Interview with Dr. Martin
Ogwang, Lacor Hospital, and review of hospital records, 9 March 2005.
[69] Information provided by
Bahati Muhesi, Program Coordinator, AMNET-R, Kasese, 30 June 2005.
[70] Interview with Robson Tembo,
District Councilor for Persons with Disabilities, Kasese District, 29 March
2005; “Blast kills,” New Vision, 31 January 2005.
[71] Interview with Dr. Alex
Layoo, Surgical Officer, Kitgum Hospital, and review of hospital records, 12
March 2005.
[72] “Report from the
Inter-Agency Mine Action Assessment Mission to Uganda,” July 2004, p. 11;
see also Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 841.
[73] Email to Landmine Monitor
(HI) from Andrew McCalister, MAP Coordinator, AVSI Gulu, 6 September 2005.
[74] United Nations, Final
Report, First Review Conference of the States Parties to the Convention on the
Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel
Mines and on Their Destruction, Nairobi, 29 November–3 December 2004,
APLC/CONF/2004/5, 9 February 2005, p. 33.
[75] Email from Margaret Arach
Orech, Co-Chair, ICBL Working Group on Victim Assistance, 25 July 2005.
[76] Presentation by Uganda,
Standing Committee on Victim Assistance and Socio-Economic Reintegration,
Geneva, 16 June 2005; presentation by Uganda, Workshop on Advancing Landmine
Victim Assistance in Africa, Nairobi, 31 May-2 June 2005.
[77] For more information, see
Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 841-842; see also ICRC, “Annual
Report 2004,” Geneva, June 2005, p. 109.
[78] Interview with Juan Carlos
Carrera, Communication Delegate, ICRC, Kampala, 25 April 2005; interview with
Henry M.K. Ochieng, Communication Field Officer, ICRC, Kampala, 25 April 2005;
ICRC, “Annual Report 2004,” Geneva, June 2005, p. 109; ICRC,
“ICRC operations resumed in 2004, set to grow in 2005,” 14 April,
2005, p. 12, www.icrc.org.
[79] ICRC, “ICRC starts
two-week surgery training in Gulu,” 6 July 2005.
[80] Interview with Benard Ocen,
District Rehabilitation Officer, Gulu District Local Government Directorate of
Community Services, Social Rehabilitation Department, Gulu, 9 March 2005; for
more information, see Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 842-843. Average
exchange rate for 2004, used throughout this report: $1 = UGS1825.18516.
Landmine Monitor estimate based on information from www.oanda.com/convert/fxhistory.
[81] Interview with Robson Tembo,
District Councilor for People with Disabilities, Kasese, 29 March 2005.
[82] Email to Landmine Monitor
(HI) from Andrew McCalister, MAP Coordinator, AVSI Gulu, 6 September 2005; see
also Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 843; Standing Tall Australia and
Mines Action Canada, “101 Great Ideas for the Socio-Economic Reintegration
of Mine Survivors,” June 2005, p. 80.
[83] Interview with Juan Carlos
Carrera, Communication Delegate, ICRC, Kampala, 25 April 2005; Lucy Lapoti,
“World Vision Donates Medical Equipment,” The Monitor, 19
January 2005.
[84] Cornes Lubangakene,
“Italy gives Sh3b to north PWDs,” New Vision, 15 April 2005,
p. 9; see also www.doctorswithafrica.org.
[85] Standing Tall Australia and
Mines Action Canada, “101 Great Ideas for the Socio-Economic Reintegration
of Mine Survivors,” June 2005, pp. 81-82; see also Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, pp. 843-844.
[86] Interview with John Lampen,
AMNET-R, Kasese, 31 March 2005; see also Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p.
844.
[87] Interview with Vicky Jarius,
Prothetist, and Judy Ashby, Physiotherapist, from Sheffield Hospital, England
(AMNET-R Volunteers), Kasese, 31 March 2005.
[88] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, p. 845.
[89] “Repair of Mubende
rehabilitation center,” New Vision, 23 May 2005, p. 4;
“Mubende soldiers get artificial limbs,” Monitor, 24 May
2005, p. 3.
[90] Interview with Mary Alyiona,
Coordinator, Kasese Amputees Association, Karambi sub-county, 31 March 2005.
[91] For more information, see
Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 844-845; see also Standing Tall
Australia and Mines Action Canada, “101 Great Ideas for the Socio-Economic
Reintegration of Mine Survivors,” June 2005, pp. 83-84.
[92] Interview with Deus Baraza,
Research and Information Officer, ADD, Kampala, 20 April 2005.
[93] For more information, see
Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 845-846; US Department of State,
“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2004: Uganda,”
Washington DC, 28 February 2005.
[94] Interview with Julius Kamya,
Policy and Research Officer, NUDIPU, Kampala, 20 April 2005.
[95] Interview with Julius Kamya,
NUDIPU, Kampala, 20 April 2005.
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