A promise not yet fulfilled

Nesim Oner, from Diyarbakir, Turkey, was injured in 2004 after playing with a mine while shepherding his family's sheep. He lost one eye and one of his hands, and he was unable to attend school for two years. Photo: Ahmet Sik

At the First Review Conference of the Mine Ban Treaty in 2004, States Parties renewed their commitment to assisting mine victims in the Nairobi Action Plan 2005-2009. They acknowledged that victim assistance encompasses six elements. The ICBL calls for urgent action in all six of these areas:

1. Understanding the extent of the challenges faced through data collection;
2. Emergency and continuing medical care;
3. Physical rehabilitation, including physiotherapy, prosthetic and assistive devices;
4. Psychological support and social reintegration;
5. Economic reintegration; and
6. The establishment and enforcement of laws and public policies.

The ICBL has issued Guiding Principles for Victim Assistance to provide a framework for all concerned actors to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate victim assistance.

A national responsibility

Assisting mine victims is a crucial responsibility for all States Parties, though first and foremost for those whose citizens suffer the tragedy of mine incidents. This is especially the case for 26 States Parties self-identified as having significant numbers of mine survivors and the greatest responsibility to act, but also the greatest needs and expectation for assistance. This group, known as the VA26, includes Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Burundi, Cambodia, Chad, Colombia, Croatia, Democratic Republic of Congo, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Jordan, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Peru, Senegal, Serbia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Uganda and Yemen.

We also strongly advocate for mine victims and people with disabilities' organizations to be included in planning and policy-making processes at every level, and consulted on what they perceive as gaps in required services. They best know how their needs and rights can be met in full.