Liberia
acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty on 23 December 1999 and it entered into force for
Liberia on 1 June 2000. Liberia is not known to have undertaken any national
implementation measures as required by Article 9. Liberia has not submitted its
initial Article 7 transparency report, which was due on 28 November 2000.
Liberia did not attend the Third Meetings of States Parties in Managua,
Nicaragua, in September 2001, nor did it attend the Mine Ban Treaty
intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in January or May 2002.
Liberia was absent for the vote on UN General Assembly Resolution 56/24M in
November 2001, promoting the Mine Ban Treaty. Liberia is not a signatory to the
Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) and did not participate in CCW meetings
in December 2001 in
Geneva.[1]
PRODUCTION, TRANSFER, STOCKPILING, AND USE
Liberia is not known to have produced landmines.
While Liberia has acted as a conduit for illegal arms to the rebel group
Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in Sierra Leone, the presence of landmines
among these arms shipments has not been
proven.[2]
Antipersonnel landmines were used by all factions during the 1989-1997 civil
war, including the former National Patriotic Front of Liberia, which has now
transformed into the ruling political party. While Landmine Monitor has, for
the past three years, reported that Liberia is likely to still have a stockpile
of antipersonnel mines, the government of Liberia is one of the very few States
Parties that have not yet officially confirmed or denied the existence of a
stockpile. If Liberia does have a stockpile of antipersonnel mines, it is bound
by the Mine Ban Treaty to destroy it by 1 June 2004.
Since 1999, new fighting has taken place in increasingly larger areas of the
country. Landmine Monitor has seen no evidence and received no allegations of
use of landmines, although on-site research is virtually
impossible.[3]
MINE PROBLEM
Liberia remains a mine-affected country. The extent
to which it has been affected and the severity of the human and material damage
caused by landmines is difficult to ascertain as a result of the ongoing
turbulence in the country. Areas that could be mine-affected as a result of the
previous 1989-1997 civil war are inaccessible, especially counties and areas
like Lofa, Grand Capemount, Bong Mines, and Kakata, which have all also been
affected by the new civil war.
The Buchanan-based local research group that contributes to Landmine Monitor
reports that there are still landmines in the greater Buchanan area, and that
inhabitants in some areas are afraid to farm because of the fear of
landmines.[4] Liberia’s
rural economy is completely dominated by subsistence agriculture and so the loss
of land due to fear of landmines is particularly damaging.
MINE ACTION, LANDMINE CASUALTIES, AND SURVIVOR ASSISTANCE
There is no mine clearance carried out in Liberia.
In view of the ongoing war, this is clearly not a priority. There are no known
marking exercises to indicate mined or suspected mined areas and no mine risk
education programs are in
place.[5]
In 2001, no new landmine casualties were reported. In 2000, a Liberian
newspaper reported that thirteen people had been killed and six injured in
landmine incidents, however, it was not clear if all incidents occurred in
2000.[6]
There are no specific landmine survivor assistance programs, although limited
assistance is available through programs for all persons with disabilities.
Transport remains a major constraint, and rehabilitation and reintegration
services are extremely limited. There are two prosthetic workshops in the
country; one is in Ganta, run by the Ministry of Health, and one is in Monrovia,
run by Handicap International Belgium. There is very little psychological
support or vocational training available in Liberia, though there are a few
services for those able to pay for
it.[7]
The Buchanan-based research group is continuing its work of identifying
landmine survivors. The four survivors interviewed so far reported similar
experiences. In the immediate aftermath of the incident there was some
assistance from first aid workers who took the victim to the nearest hospital
though this may have been many miles away, where if necessary, amputations were
performed. The survivors have experienced psychological problems since the
incident. All of the survivors identified by the Buchanan group are parents and
none are able to provide for their families; none of the children of these
survivors are able to go to school. This group of landmine survivors were
injured during the civil war and have been living in dire poverty ever
since.[8]
The planned nationwide survey of former fighters by the National Commission
of Ex-Combatants has not begun. The limited resources available are being used
to assist ex-combatants in more practical ways, including new ex-combatants
emerging from the current
war.[9]
[1] The explanation for Liberia’s
diplomatic inaction, which stands in contrast with the previous year, is likely
the sanctions regime put in place against the country by the UN on 7 May 2001.
The sanctions prohibit, among other things, travel by senior government
officials unless a waiver is
obtained. [2] See among others,
“Report of the panel of experts, appointed pursuant to UN Security Council
resolution 1306 (2000), paragraph 19 in relation to Sierra Leone,”
December 2000, paragraph 183; Global Witness, “Taylor Made, the Pivotal
Role of Liberia’s Forests and Flag of Convenience in Regional
Conflict,” September 2001. [3] The
war receives continuous coverage in the local media, but nowhere has the use of
landmines been mentioned. None of the media persons contacted by Landmine
Monitor while in Monrovia had heard of landmines being
used. [4] Submission of the Buchanan
research group to Landmine Monitor, 28 August 2001. For an inventory of the
locations of mines, see Landmine Monitor 2001, p.
88. [5] See Landmine Monitor 2001, pp.
88. [6] For more details see Landmine
Monitor Report 2001, p. 89. [7] Ibid.,
pp. 89-90. [8] Observation based on four
interviews conducted by the Buchanan-based research group. Information contained
in its submission to Landmine Monitor, 28 August
2001. [9] Informal interview with
officials at the National Commission for Ex-Combatants, Monrovia, 11 March
2002.
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