Libya

Mine Ban Policy

The Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. In October 2007, Libya’s President Muammar al Gaddafi strongly criticized the treaty saying it is “a faulty and flawed instrument. It must be reviewed. Otherwise, the states that hastened to adhere to it must withdraw from it.” He noted that while mine clearance, victim assistance, and the rehabilitation of affected environments are positive elements of the treaty, the prohibition of production and use of mines, as well as the requirement to destroy stockpiles, are not acceptable. He asserted that mines “are the means of self-defense of the weak countries.”^[1]

In November 2007, Libya attended as an observer the Eighth Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty in Jordan, and made a similar statement declaring that the treaty does not serve the interest of mine-affected countries, and called for a review of the treaty in order to ensure the accession of all countries.^[2]

Libya stated several times in 2007, as it has often in the past, that it has not joined the treaty because it does not require states that have planted mines in the past to pay for the clearance and compensate for damages.^[3] Libya has also said that it would require too much money and human resources to fulfill the treaty’s clearance obligations. More generally, it has said that it has the legal right to defend itself and to protect the security of its vast borders, sometimes declaring that mines are important obstacles to infiltration and illegal immigration.^[4]

Libya did not attend the intersessional Standing Committee meetings in June 2008. In September 2007, it participated in the ICRC’s regional seminar in Tunis, Addressing the Human Costs of Anti-personnel Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War, Seminar for States of the Maghreb, and reiterated some of its objections to the treaty. At the seminar, Libya also proposed the establishment of an information center on mine action technology and offered to host it.^[5]

On 5 December 2007, Libya was one of 18 states to abstain from voting on UN General Assembly Resolution 62/41, which promotes the universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.^[6] It has abstained from voting on similar resolutions every year since 1998.

Libya has stated in the past that it has never produced or exported antipersonnel mines, and that it no longer has a stockpile of antipersonnel mines.^[7] Libya imported mines from the former Soviet Union, including POMZ-2 and POMZ-2M antipersonnel fragmentation mines, as well as from the former Yugoslavia, including PMA-3 blast mines.^[8] Libya is not known to have used antipersonnel mines since its war with Chad from 1980–1987.

Libya is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons. It attended as an observer the Ninth Annual Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II on landmines in November 2007. It also attended as an observer the Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions in May 2008.

Landmine/ERW Problem

Libya is contaminated with mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW), mainly unexploded ordnance (UXO), as a result of the World War II campaign in North Africa, as well as wars with Egypt in 1977 and Chad from 1980–1987. The borders with Chad, Egypt, and Tunisia are affected by mines and UXO, as are areas in the north and south of the country.^[9] Minefields are said to exist in deserts, ports, and urban areas.^[10]

The precise extent of the problem is not known as no nationwide survey has been conducted. There are no maps of mines on the border with Chad, but maps are said to exist for those laid on the border with Egypt.^[11] Germany and Italy have handed over maps of minefields to Libya in the last few years.^[12] In 1998, Italy had signed an agreement in which it pledged to provide Libya with historical records, technical assistance, and training for Libyan deminers.^[13]

The current impact of mines in Libya is unclear, although in the past agriculture and livestock are said to have been severely affected.^[14] A Libyan organization under the auspices of the Gaddafi International Charity and Development Foundation, the De-mining Society (also known as the Anti-Mines Association),^[15] claims that its “preliminary studies” of the impact of mines in Libya concluded that mines have caused huge financial and human loss and impeded transportation, oil prospecting (especially in the south of the country), tourism, land reclamation, and pasture.^[16] It has not been possible to obtain copies of the studies, but in June 2008 the De-mining Society announced its intention to publish a detailed report on the issue.^[17]

Mine Action Program

Libya does not have a fully developed mine action program, despite the announcement in 2005 of a “national campaign” to remove landmines along the borders with Egypt and Chad.^[18] Similarly, one of the main goals of the De-mining Society is stated to be demining of Libya’s borders with Egypt and Chad, where about two million mines are said to have been emplaced.^[19] It remains unclear if these are different initiatives.^[20]

Demining

It is unclear exactly who has been conducting demining in Libya, where, and to which standards. It has previously been reported that the Ministry of Defense is responsible for clearing areas serving either a military or civilian development purpose. The Civil Protection Unit, located within the Ministry of Interior and Justice, is also said to have carried out clearance in affected communities.^[21] In addition, commercial companies have carried out clearance operations in support of the construction of oil pipelines.^[22]

On 20 August 2005, demining operations were said to have started in minefields at Ozu and Sara on the border with Chad; an agreement was made subsequently for operations to continue on the Chadian side of the border.^[23] The De-mining Society has estimated that these minefields contained some 80,000 mines.^[24] In July 2008, it was reported on the De-mining Society’s website that it had begun implementing an agreement with the Chad National Demining Center concluded on 14 June 2008 to support demining in “The Great Auganaga Valley,” as a first stage in a broader demining project. All the costs of the operations were to be covered by the De-mining Society.^[25]

The De-Mining Society also claimed in November 2006 that since its establishment in 2004 it had cleared 7,957 antipersonnel mines and 11,150 antivehicle mines from the border area with Egypt, but “due to a lack of cooperation” from Egypt, it had not been able to achieve its main target for clearance.^[26] The methods and standards used in these demining operations have not been reported.^[27]

In February 2007, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) signed a Cooperation Memorandum with Libya in which the GICHD offered to provide technical assistance and training for Libyan mine action personnel. The memorandum also envisaged discussion as to the possible installation of the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) in Libya.^[28] No progress has occurred since.^[29]

The Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) has also visited Libya on a number of occasions to discuss initiating a demining program in the country, but no project has been developed so far. As of June 2008, FSD was not working in Libya.^[30]

Landmine/ERW Casualties

At the Eighth Meeting of States Parties, Libya stated that mine/ERW contamination “had claimed and continued to claim the lives and limbs of people in Libya.”^[31] However, the government official at the meeting was not aware of any casualties occurring in 2007.^[32] Landmine Monitor was not able to identify new mine/ERW casualties in Libya in 2007 and through June 2008. In July 2008, three police officers transporting cleared mines were reported killed when the mines blew up in their car near Tobruk.^[33]

There is no public data collection mechanism to record mine/ERW incidents, and casualties are not reported in the media. In September 2007, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) reported that the Libyan Security Services and the Secretariat for Health and Social Solidarity were in the process of updating casualty information, but no further updates were provided.^[34]

The De-mining Society and the Libyan Civil Defense Department had registered 1,852 mine casualties by the end of 2006. Estimates for the total number of mine/ERW casualties range around 12,000, but it is not known if these figures are reliable.^[35]

Under the Letter of Intent between the De-mining Society and UNDP, signed on 25 May 2008, technical assistance would be provided to “strengthen statistical data collection, and [to set up] information management systems in the domain of mines.”^[36]

Landmine/ERW Risk Education

In November 2007, Libya reported that no mine/ERW risk education (RE) activities were being carried out in Libya.^[37] In 2006, the De-mining Society and the ministries of interior and defense reported RE activities.

The 2008 agreement between the De-mining Society and UNDP also includes provisions for RE.^[38] Reportedly a strategic plan, including RE activities, was developed. Proposed activities include: providing information on safe behavior in mine-affected areas; establishing “communication groups” where local authorities in mine-affected areas would be trained to provide RE messages to their communities; and developing a mine awareness plan for Libyan media. Under the strategic plan, a database for mine action tracking RE activities would be established.^[39]

Victim Assistance

In November 2007, Libya reported that no victim assistance activities were carried out in Libya.^[40] In its statement at the Eighth Meeting of States Parties, Libya called upon those who had used mines in Libya to “provide…assistance to the victims, and to rehabilitate them.”^[41]

The Letter of Intent between UNDP and the De-Mining Society stipulated that support will be provided to initiatives rehabilitating mine survivors. The Letter of Intent notes that the Resident Representative of the UNDP and the Director of the Demining will be in charge of coordination of the projects but that implementation is subject to adequate funding.^[42] At the ICRC regional seminar in 2007 in Tunis, Libya said that its victim assistance activities would include establishing medical and specialized reintegration centers, and modernizing its rehabilitation center in Benghazi.^[43]

The Libyan government provides free healthcare to all citizens and has achieved high basic health coverage. Private healthcare is increasing but, without a health insurance system, is unaffordable for most.^[44] Further development of the medical sector is hampered by the absence of a central coordinating body, weak capacity of institutions and staff, insufficient health budget, and a lack of medical research.^[45]

The Social Solidarity Fund is responsible for providing rehabilitation services and assistance to persons with disabilities, however services are reportedly inadequate to meet the needs of persons with disabilities in Libya, including mine/ERW survivors.^[46]

People with a permanent disability receive a pension; this amounted to LYD96 (US$82/€53) per month in 2007.^[47] Libyan law protects the rights of persons with disabilities and their access to employment, education, healthcare, and other state services was generally protected.^[48] As of 31 July 2008, Libya had not signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities or its Optional Protocol.

Support for Mine Action

As noted above, in July 2008 it was reported that the De-Mining Society was preparing to conduct demining operations in Chad.^[49] The value of this assistance was not reported.