Key
developments since May 2001: Two rebel groups continued to use
antipersonnel mines – the New People’s Army and Abu Sayyaf. The
government recovered a stockpile of homemade mines apparently belonging to a
faction of the Moro National Liberation Front; this was the first
landmine-related incident involving the MNLF since 1996. Another rebel group,
the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, re-committed in writing to a total ban on
antipersonnel mines in April 2002; however, there continued to be allegations of
MILF use of mines in 2001 and 2002.
MINE BAN POLICY
The Philippines signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3
December 1997 and ratified it on 15 February 2000. The treaty entered into
force on 1 August 2000. In July 2001, Hon. Neptali Gonzales II tabled national
implementation legislation, House Bill 346, which prohibits the use,
manufacture, acquisition, sale, and transfer of
landmines.[1]This bill
was still pending approval of the House of Representatives as of May 2002. Legislation previously introduced in June 2000 was not
enacted.[2] House Bill 346
applies not just to antipersonnel mines, but also antivehicle mines,
booby-traps, and other explosive
devices.[3]
The Philippines participated in the Third Meeting of States Parties in
Managua in September 2001. Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Lauro L. Baja,
Jr., stated, “By participating in the Third Meeting of State Parties, the
Philippine Government can lend its voice and active support to the global
campaign to eradicate anti-personnel mines, especially considering that the
Philippines became the spokesperson of the Anti-Personnel Mines Convention for
the Asia-Pacific region during the process of campaigning for its early entry
into force.”[4]
Undersecretary Baja expressed concerns on mine use by Non-State Actors:
“The Philippines also recognizes that armed groups, acting against or
beyond the control of States also produce, stockpile, and use landmines. This
and concern for people on mined land under non-state control make it clear that
an inter-state ban alone is insufficient to stop new landmines from being placed
in the ground nor to clear those already planted. The Philippines supports the
efforts of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) Working Group on
Non-State Actors in its appeals to renounce the use of anti-personnel mines as
means of warfare.... [W]e believe that full cooperation of Non-States Parties
is essential in ensuring the successful implementation of the Convention on
Anti-Personnel
Mines.”[5]
On 20 September 2001, on the side of the Third Meeting of the States Parties,
the Philippines participated in an ASEAN informal group meeting. Participants,
including Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, agreed that the best approach to
engaging ASEAN countries in landmine issues would be to focus on humanitarian
aspects such as victim assistance, mine awareness, and socio-economic
development for mine-affected
areas.[6]
The Philippine government participated in the Regional Seminar on Stockpile
Destruction of Anti-personnel Mines and other Munitions held in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia, from 8-9 August 2001. Representatives from the Department of Foreign
Affairs, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the Philippine Campaign to Ban
Landmines attended the meeting. The Philippines cosponsored and voted in favor
of UN General Assembly Resolution 56/24M in November 2001 endorsing the Mine Ban
Treaty. The Philippines attended the January and May 2002 intersessional
Standing Committee meetings in Geneva. It also participated in the Regional
Seminar on Landmines in Southeast Asia, hosted by Thailand from 13-15 May 2002.
After its initial incomplete Article 7 transparency report, the
Philippines submitted a full Article 7 Report on 13 August 2001 for the period
12 September 2000 to 29 April 2001. On 5 April 2002, it submitted the required
annual update Article 7 Report, covering the period from 29 April 2001 to 4
April 2002.
The Philippine Senate ratified Amended Protocol II to the Convention on
Conventional Weapons on 4 June 1996. The Philippines attended the Third Annual
Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II, and the Second CCW
Review Conference, both in December 2001. The Philippines has not submitted its
annual report required under Article 13 of Amended Protocol II.
On 10 October 2001, the Philippine Campaign to Ban Landmines (PCBL) held a
forum, “Universalizing the Mine Ban Treaty, A Post-Managua
Briefing,” in Quezon City. The PCBL discussed with representatives of the
Department of Foreign Affairs, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and
the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the draft national
implementation law. Representatives of the governments of Cambodia and Canada,
as well as other NGOs, also attended the forum. The PCBL produced a paper,
“Framework for National Legislation on Anti-Personnel Mines,” with
recommendations for provisions to be included in the
legislation.[7]
USE
There has been no reported use of antipersonnel
mines by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) since its stockpile was
destroyed in July 1998. In late January 2002, AFP Southern Command spokesperson
Maj. Noel Detoyato stated that the U.S. would not bring landmines for the joint
military training exercises and operations between the Philippine and U.S.
military forces that began February
2002.[8] In early February
2002, Col. Horacio Lactao, Director for Training of the Philippine Army,
confirmed that no antipersonnel mines would be used in the exercises, pledging
that the Philippine government will abide by its international commitments,
including the Mine Ban
Treaty.[9]
NPA
Several newspaper reports of encounters in 2001 and
early 2002 involving the Philippine military and the New People’s Army
(NPA), the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines and the National
Democratic Front, indicate continuing use of improvised landmines by the rebel
group.
In June 2001, two policemen died and another was seriously wounded when a
landmine laid by the NPA rebels exploded in Paluan, Occidental Mindoro. Chief
Inspector Nicasio E. Pedraja, Occidental Mindoro police operations head, said
the policemen were on their way to Paluan town for a spot inspection when rebels
exploded a landmine.[10]
In November 2001, a truck loaded with Army soldiers hit a landmine in
Barangay Aliwagwag, Davao Oriental. NPA guerillas then opened fire at the
soldiers with automatic rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. Eighteen
soldiers died and ten other members of the 27th Special Forces
Company, including the commander, were
wounded.[11]
On 28 February 2002, the Hummer vehicle sent to pursue retreating NPA rebels
in Motiong town, Samar (Eastern Visayas), passed by a mined road. A Claymore
mine exploded after the vehicle passed the road near the Paranas Cemetery. The
police recovered in the area three other
landmines.[12] No
landmine-related injury was reported.
In March 2002, following an encounter with NPA guerrillas in the hinterlands
of Magpet, Cotabato, AFP soldiers recovered an unspecified number of landmines
and blasting caps, along with grenades, rifles, and communist
documents.[13]
An
AFP list of landmine incidents from 1999 to March 2002 shows eight incidents
when the AFP recovered landmines allegedly belonging to the NPA. The last
recovery, of one improvised antipersonnel mine in Rizal, Cagayan, Isabela,
occurred in August 2001; the other seven incidents took place in 1999 and 2000.
In total, the AFP found five antipersonnel mines/improvised explosive devices,
six improvised antivehicle mines, and two firing devices for Claymore
mines.[14]
The NPA claims that it only uses command-detonated antipersonnel mines and
antivehicle mines, which are not covered by the Mine Ban Treaty. A spokesperson
of the Willie Zapanta Command of the NPA in Davao Oriental said that
“depriving us of the use of these command-detonated mines will further
favor the...Armed Forces of the Philippines which already enjoys overwhelming
advantage over the NPA in terms of number, arms and
logistics.”[15] Davao
Oriental was the site of renewed NPA operations and AFP counter-attacks in the
first quarter of 2002. The Command’s argument echoes the April 2001
written reply to interview questions of the PCBL by Ka Julian, a CPP Central
Committee member: “Anti-personnel mines covered by the anti-mine ban are
not such significant offensive or defensive weapons of NPA units.
Command-detonated mines, the type we use, are not covered by the ban. They prove
to be valuable in preventing armored intrusions and attacks of enemy forces into
NPA territories. Since we have no anti-armor weapons, we have to rely on such if
we have to stop armored tanks and vehicles from entering or going through NPA
territories. Most of the time, we can do with just the use of rifles and
grenades. But these have no effective stopping power against armored tanks and
vehicles.”[16]
Abu Sayyaf
A published account of the travails of a group of
hostages kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) on 20 March 2000 in Tumahubong,
Basilan, reveals regular use of landmines by ASG. Twenty-two teachers,
including a Claretian priest and 27 students, were herded off to the ASG’s
Camp Abdurazzal in Mount Puno Mahadji. Children hostages said they could have
escaped, but were afraid because the ASG claimed they planted landmines around
the area. An adult hostage, Lydia Ajon, claimed that she saw soldiers trying to
penetrate the camp, but they were hit by bullets and wounded by
landmines.[17]
Fr. Cirilio Nacorda, parish priest of Lamitan, Basilan, also reported ASG use
of landmines, although he did not see them plant mines during the period he was
held hostage in 1994. He recalled there were areas in Mount Puno Mahadji that
the ASG avoided passing through because of the
mines.[18]
The government says that its soldiers have fallen victim to ASG mines.
According to one report, intelligence sources claim that the ASG has built up an
inventory of some 3,000 homemade
landmines.[19]
MNLF
On 29 November 2001, stocks of improvised explosive
devices (homemade mines) were recovered at the Autonomous Region of Muslim
Mindanao government complex in Cabatangan, Zamboanga, after armed loyalists of
the ousted chair of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), Nur Misuari,
withdrew from the
complex.[20] While no
use of mines was reported, this is the first landmine-related incident involving
the MNLF since it forged a Peace Agreement in September 1996 with the Philippine
government.
The AFP Southern Command reportedly recovered from the government complex
occupied by the MNLF five improvised antipersonnel mines, 10 antivehicle mines,
and 200 kilos of improvised explosives, among other
items.[21] Members from the
Army’s Explosives and Ordnance Division and the Police Anti-Crime Task
Force cleared the complex of explosives and landmines using metal detectors and
mine-detection dogs.[22] A
soldier posted at the checkpoint during the clearing operation said the area was
heavily mined.[23]
A former MNLF official who did not wish to be identified claimed that the
explosives found came from a fishing vessel apprehended by the military a day
before and utilized by the Army to prevent the fielding of reinforcements by
MNLF-Misuari supporters.[24]
There is no evidence, however, to substantiate this claim. The Army denied this
counter-accusation.[25]
MILF
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed the
NGO Geneva Call’s “Deed of Commitment” banning the use of
antipersonnel mines in March 2000. As reported in Landmine Monitor Report
2001, there continued to be allegations of MILF use of mines in 2000 and
early 2001.[26]
In an abandoned training camp of the MILF, discovered in early 2001 in
Maguindanao, 16th Infantry Battalion soldiers reportedly found
improvised landmines, as well as 40 rocket-propelled grenades, rifle grenades,
bomb-making materials, and fuses of
mortars.[27]
In August 2001, peace negotiations resumed and a cease-fire agreement was
forged in Malaysia. However, an Agence France Press report of 24 March 2002 said
that five improvised mines, believed to be planted by the MILF, were recovered
following clashes between the group and the AFP in southern
Philippines.[28]
Geneva Call, in coordination with the PCBL, concluded in April 2002 an
international fact-finding mission regarding mine-planting by the
MILF.[29] However, specific
landmine incidents reported by the AFP, and landmines recovered being
attributed by the AFP to the MILF, could not be independently verified as
members of the mission were unable to travel to Mindanao.
The MILF nonetheless signed an expanded “Deed of Commitment”
under Geneva Call on 7 April 2002. MILF Vice-Chairman for Military Affairs,
Chief of Staff of its Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, and MILF Peace Panel
Chair Al Haj Murad was the person who signed of the new Deed. The Deed commits
the MILF to a total and unconditional ban on antipersonnel mines, whereas before
the MILF justified mine use on “defensive and discriminate”
grounds.
RPA-ABB
The Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng
Manggagawa-Pilipinas (RPM-P, Revolutionary Party of Workers-Philippines) is a
breakaway group from the NPA/CPP, and operates largely in the Visayas group of
islands. The RPM-P signed the Geneva Call’s Deed of Commitment to a total
ban on landmines on 10 April 2001. The RPM-P has a standing cease-fire and
peace agreement with the Philippine government since December 2000.
In response to a request for a report on compliance by the Geneva Call, RPM-P
Central Committee Chair Andres Nava wrote that the RPM-P is reiterating its
“unwavering belief and commitment” to a total ban on antipersonnel
mines. The RPM-P also declared that no landmines were employed in six
encounters with the New People’s
Army.[30] (Hostility between the
two groups erupts intermittently.)
Use by Unknown Parties
In the AFP’s Landmine Incident Journal, it
reported at least 23 mine incidents occurred between 26 April 2001 and 1 April
2002 in different parts of Mindanao (Misamis Oriental, Maguindanao, Sulu,
Cotabato, Davao Oriental, Agusan del Sur, General Santos City), Western Samar in
the Visayas, and Cagayan Valley in Luzon. The journal alternately described the
mines as improvised landmines, improvised antivehicle mines, landmines fashioned
from an 81mm/60mm mortar, improvised Claymore mines, or simply anti-personnel
mines or landmines.[31] There
is no way to determine which armed group was responsible for each incident.
PRODUCTION, TRANSFER, STOCKPILING
In its April 2002 Article 7 transparency report,
the Philippine government reported that no antipersonnel mines had been
obtained, procured, or manufactured by AFP since July 1998. It also reported
destruction of its entire antipersonnel mine stockpile of 2,460 Claymore mines
in July 1998, and that it was retaining no mines for development or training
purposes.[32]
Landmine Monitor reported last year that the AFP was considering acquiring
new Claymore mines, but according to Col. William Estrada of the Office of Chief
Ordnance and Chemical Services, they decided not to re-stock after conferring
with the PCBL.[33]
However, a military spokesperson told Landmine Monitor in January 2002 that
some military personnel in fact did possess Claymore mines. He clarified that
these were used in command-detonated
mode.[34] The statement raises
doubts as to whether all mines in the AFP stockpile were destroyed and/or if new
Claymore mines have been acquired. Some Claymore mines may also have fallen
into the possession of rebel groups like the NPA as suggested by the incident on
28 February 2002 (see section on NPA Mine Use).
LANDMINE PROBLEM AND MINE ACTION
The AFP has conducted several small-scale clearing
operations for mines and UXO in affected areas in Mindanao since 2001, but
implementation and mapping have not been very systematic. In any case, there
are no large-scale mined areas; mines are found sporadically, usually around
rebel camps or battle areas.
At the Third Meeting of the States Parties, the Philippines offered “to
extend humanitarian assistance to the global anti-personnel mines campaign by
contributing technical experts for demining projects being implemented by the
United Nations and other international organizations in mine-affected
countries.”[35]
Balay, Inc., a human rights group involved in rehabilitation efforts in
Central Mindanao, reported that evacuees from the villages of Sarakan, Sapal,
Sarmiento, Tiba, Langkong, and Minantao, all in Matanog, Maguindanao, refused to
return to their homes because of fear of landmine explosions. Hundreds of war
refugees are temporarily residing along the Narciso Ramos Highway. They have
been prohibited by the military from going beyond one kilometer from the highway
because of the danger of mines. Balay, Inc. has called on the government to
clear the war-affected villages of
landmines.[36]
Landmines and shrapnel in farms in five war-ravaged towns in Lanao del Sur
and Maguindanao provinces have been slowing down government efforts to reopen
these lands to agricultural production.
The PCBL initiated a negotiation with the MILF and the Philippine government
for a collaborative demining effort in mine-affected areas in Mindanao, notably
in Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao. The proposal for joint mine clearance
operations was also discussed by PCBL representative Alfredo Lubang with
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in a dinner meeting of peace advocates at the
Malacanang Palace on 18 January 2002. President Macapagal Arroyo expressed
interest in the proposal and immediately instructed the Office of the
Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process to explore the mechanics of joint
clearing as part of the government’s confidence building measure with the
MILF. Consultations are being made in coordination with Geneva Call, the Swiss
Federation for Mine Action, the MILF and the government, for mine mapping and
clearing of affected areas in Maguindanao, Cotabato, and Lanao.
LANDMINE CASUALTIES AND SURVIVOR ASSISTANCE
In 2001, there were reports of 22 new casualties in
at least six mine and UXO incidents: two were killed and 20 injured. Five were
civilians, including one 11-year-old child, and 17 were military personnel or
police officers. In addition, 18 soldiers died and 10 were wounded in an ambush
in November 2001, but it is not clear if casualties were due to the impact of
the antivehicle mine explosion or other weapons used in the
ambush.[37] In 2000, the AFP
reported 64 new casualties, of which 11 died and 53 were injured, including 19
civilians.[38]
On 30 June 2001, in the western part of Poblacion (Barangay Bugasan),
Matanog, Maguindanao, four corn farmers clearing land with the slash-and-burn
method were injured by an explosion triggered by the fire set to burn the grass.
Since the area was heavily bombed by the military in the offensive launched
against the MILF in 2000, it was not ascertained whether the explosion was due
to landmines planted by the MILF or UXO from military
planes.[39]
The casualties were brought to the nearby DIGS (Development Initiative of the
Government for Society) hospital in Parang, Maguindanao, however, the hospital
did not have adequate facilities to treat the injuries, so the casualties were
then transported to the Cotabato Regional Hospital in an ambulance. One
survivor lost his left eye and spent three months out of work as a result of the
incident. The Department of Social Welfare and Development gave P1,000 (approx.
US$20) assistance to each of the survivors. They were also treated and given
free medicine by Red Cross medical missions.
On 16 June 2001, in the same area of Matanog, Maguindanao, a 40-year-old
farmer, the father of eight children, was harvesting coconuts when one hit the
ground, triggering an explosion. He was brought first to the DIGS hospital and
later transferred to the Cotabato Regional Hospital for treatment of multiple
shrapnel injuries.[40]
In June 2001, in an NPA-related landmine incident in Occidental Mindoro, two
police officers died and a third police officer was
injured.[41] Several incidents
were reported by the AFP/DND: on 9 March 2001, two enlisted personnel (EP) were
injured in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao, after an improvised mine believed to have
been planted by the MILF exploded; on 10 October 2001, eight EPs and two
officers were injured after a landmine was detonated by their vehicle in
Indanan, Sulu; and on 11 November 2001, two soldiers were injured following a
landmine explosion while conducting mine clearance in Ampatuan,
Maguindanao.[42]
AFP landmine casualties in Central Mindanao are transported by helicopter to
the Camp Navarro General Hospital for emergency treatment. They are
subsequently referred to the V. Luna AFP Medical Center in Quezon City for
prostheses and
rehabilitation.[43]
[1] The title is “An Act Prohibiting
the Use, Manufacture, Acquisition, Sale, and Deployment of Landmines and
Prescribing Penalties Therefore.” Sanctions include: 20 years and one day
to 40 years of reclusion perpetua if a prohibited act causes death; 12 years and
one day to 20 years of reclusion temporal if no death but serious injuries are
sustained; and six years and one day to 20 years of prison mayor for violations
not resulting in death and serious injury. If the offender is a military
officer, additional penalties are prescribed, including dishonorable discharge
from the service. [2] This was House
Bill No. 222, “An Act Prohibiting the Use, Manufacture, Sale and
Deployment of Landmines and Prescribing Penalties Therefore.” See,
Article 7 Report, 5 April 2002; and, Statement of Lauro L. Baja, Jr.,
Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, to the Third Meeting of State Parties,
Managua, Nicaragua, 19 September
2001. [3] “Landmine” in this
bill is defined as, “any munition placed under, on or near the ground or
other surface area and designed to be detonated or exploded by the presence,
proximity or contact of a person or vehicle including mines laid to interdict
beaches, waterway crossings or river crossings, but does not apply to the use of
anti-ship mines at sea or in inland waterways; it shall also include: (1) booby
trap which is a device or material designed, constructed or adapted to kill or
injure unexpectedly when a person disturbs or approaches an apparently harmless
object or performs an apparent safe act; (2) other devices which are
manually-emplaced munitions and devices designed to kill, injure or damage and
which are actuated by remote control or automatically after a lapse of
time.” [4] Statement of Lauro L.
Baja, Jr., Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, to the Third Meeting of State
Parties, Managua, Nicaragua, 19 September
2001. [5]
Ibid. [6] Article 7 Report, 5 April
2002. [7] Philippine Campaign to Ban
Landmines, “Framework for National Legislation on Anti-Personnel
Mines,” 10 October 2001. [8]
Interview with Maj. Noel Detoyato, Southern Command Headquarters, Zamboanga
City, 25 January 2002. [9] Academe Meets
Government Series 2002, “The Return of G.I. Joe, US Troops in
Mindanao,” organized by the University of the Philippines Third World
Studies Center, Philippine Center for Policy Studies, Quezon City, 7 February
2002. [10] Alfred Dizon, Joel J. Jabal
and Ferdinand Zuasola, “Rebels kill 4 soldiers, 2 cops,” Philippine
Daily Inquirer, 14 June 2001, p.12. [11]
Ferdinand O. Zuasola, “18 soldiers killed in NPA ambush,” Philippine
Daily Inquirer, 19 November 2001, p.1. It was not reported if the deaths and
injuries were due to the mine explosion or the other
weapons. [12] Vicente S. Labro and
Cynthia A. Borgueta, “Samar cop chief, town’s entire police force
sacked after raid,” Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2 March 2002,
p.12. [13] Edwin O. Fernandez,
“NPA rebel killed,” Philippine Daily Inquirer, 22 March 2002,
p.17. [14] “Landmining Incidents
(1999-Mar 2002),” provided by AFP Colonel Levy Zamora of the 45th Infantry
Brigade based in San Mariano, Isabela, in Northern Luzon, to the PCBL,
postmarked 25 March 2002. [15] Ferdinand
Zuasola, “NPA leader justifies use of landmines vs. military,”
Philippine Daily Inquirer, 5 April
2002. [16] Written response by Ka
Julian, Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines, 28 April
2001. [17] Jose Torres, Jr., Into the
Mountains: Hostaged by the Abu Sayyaf (Quezon City: Claretian Publications,
2001), pp. 53, 97. [18] Interview with
Fr. Cirilia Nacorda, Lamitan, Basilan, 26 January
2002. [19] Yael Shahar, “Libya and
the Jolo Hostages, Seeking a new image, or polishing the old one?,” 20
August 2000. [20] Julie S. Alipala and
Rolly A. San Juan, “Misuari HQ a bomb factory, AFP finds out,”
Philippine Daily Inquirer, 1 December 2001, pp.1, 21.
[21] Ibid. The report referred to five
“gallons” of mines. The cache was also shown in television footages
aired by the news program, TV Patrol, ABS-CBN Channel 2 on 29 November
2001. [22] Interview with Maj. Noel
Detoyato, Southern Command Headquarters, Zamboanga City, 25 January
2002. [23] Al Jacinto, “Soldiers
clear Cabatangan,” Zamboanga Today, 30 November 2001,
p.2. [24] Interview with a former MNLF
State Secretary, Zamboanga City, 24 January
2002. [25] Interview with Maj. Noel
Detoyato, Southern Command Headquarters, Zamboanga City, 25 January
2002. [26] Landmine Monitor Report 2001,
pp. 473-474. [27] Edwin O. Fernandez,
“Soldiers stumble on abandoned camp of MILF,” Philippine Daily
Inquirer, 25 February 2001, p.17. [28]
“Five killed in southern Philippines fighting,” Agence France Press,
24 March 2002. [29] The mission was
headed by retired Indian general Dipankar Banerjee and coordinated by Atty.
Soliman Santos, Jr., Director for Asia of Geneva Call. The four other members
of the mission were Frenchman Andre-Marc Farineau of the Swiss Federation for
Mine Action, Prof. Miriam Coronel Ferrer of the PCBL, Faiz Mohammad Fayyaz of
the Pakistan Campaign to Ban Landmines, and Alfredo Lubang of the Gaston Z.
Ortigas Peace Institute. [30] Letter
of Andres Nava, Chairperson, Central Committee of the Rebolusyonaryong Partido
ng Manggagawa-Pilipinas, to Elisabeth Reusse-Decrey, President of Geneva Call, 7
January 2002. [31] The AFP’s
Ordnance and Chemical Services Landmine Incident Journal (CY 2002). The copy
given to PCBL and Geneva Call in April 2002 also included landmine-related
incidents that took place in 1999 and
2000. [32] Article 7 Report, 5 April
2002. [33] Statement made during the
PCBL-organized forum on “Universalizing the Mine Ban Treaty, A Post-
Managua Briefing,” Quezon City, 10 October 2001. This public statement
was a reiteration of information given to the PCBL by Col. Estrada in August
2001. [34] Interview with Maj. Noel
Detoyato, Southern Command Headquarters, Zamboanga City, 25 January
2002. [35] Statement of the Honorable
Lauro L. Baja, Jr., Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs, to the Third Meeting of
State Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, Managua, Nicaragua, 19 September
2001. [36] Aquiles Zonio,
“Landmines scourge of Mindanao folk,” Philippine Daily Inquirer, 31
October 2001, p.13. [37] Ferdinand O.
Zuasola, “18 soldiers killed in NPA ambush”, Philippine Daily
Inquirer, 19 November 2001, p.1. See also Ferdinand Zuasola, “NPA leader
justifies use of landmines vs. military”, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 5
April 2002. The latter report, however, said that the incident occurred in
December 2001. [38] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2001, p. 476. [39] Landmine
Monitor interview with survivors in Barangay Bugasan, Matanog, Maguindanao, 17
November 2001. See also Aquiles Zonio, “Landmines scourge of Mindanao
folk”, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 31 October 2001, p.13. However, the
newspaper story wrongly reported that the casualties were killed in the
explosion. [40] Landmine Monitor
interview with landmine survivor, Matanaog, Maguindanao, 17 November 2002. See
also Aquiles Zonio, “Landmines scourge of Mindanao folk”, Philippine
Daily Inquirer, 31 October 2001,
p.13. [41] Alfred Dizon, Joel J. Jabal
and Ferdinand Zuasola, “Rebels kill 4 soldiers, 2 cops”, Philippine
Daily Inquirer, 14 June 2001, p.12. [42]
AFP Landmine Incident Journal (CY 2002). Other victims were reported for the
years 1999 and 2000. However, in a number of cases it is not clear if the cause
of injury or death is directly attributable to mines, and whether the mines were
antipersonnel or antitank. [43]
Interview with Maj. Noel Detoyato, Southern Command Headquarters, Zamboanga
City, 25 January 2002.
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