Nigeria And The Global Ban On Landmines

The United Nations, at a convention in Ottawa, Canada in 2001 placed a total ban on the laying of landmines during wars the world over.

The ban was informed by the deaths and maiming of innocent civilians, due to mine explosions which occurred long after wars had ended.

So far, over 158 countries, including Nigeria have acceded to the convention.

Article 5 of the convention requires all member countries to destroy all landmines in the inventory of her military and unearth all landmines buried in the ground or trenches, where such a nation had been engaged in a war.

Eight years after Nigeria’s ratification of the articles of the convention, a United Nation official, Mr Tim Lardner, who was in Nigeria to monitor the nation’s compliance with the ban, scored the nation high.

Lardner, who clarified Nigeria’s obligations under the Anti Personnel (AP) and Mine Ban Convention (MBC) said that “Nigeria is compliant with the ban”.

No doubt, his assessment was born out of the fact that many of the states in the South East and South-South had been rid of mines which were left over from the nation’s three-year civil war of between 1967 and 1970.

Defence analysts recall that the RSB Holdings had worked for the Ministry Of Defence, to carry out de-mining activities in states like Abia, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo, Rivers and Nassarawa states, where over 11,000 landmines, Unexploded Ordnances and Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) are believed to have been recovered.

The effort of the government, notwithstanding, there is still palpable fear that many mines may still be buried in those areas which were theatres of the civil war and as such, the people still face grave dangers.

Mr Bala Yakubu, Chief Consultant to the Ministry of Defence on the Humanitarian De-mining Project says that the federal government needs to step up its actions in relation to the project, especially when there had been thinking in some quarters that no mines and other explosives were left behind.

According to him, there had been doubts in official quarters, when the press reported the existence of the buried mines until the UN intervened to establish the authenticity of the reports.

Yakubu says that work in the war affected areas has revealed that the relics of the war existed and that they posed dangers to farmers who tilled the soil in course of their farming activities.

“So far, we have cleared seven local government areas of Abia of ERW and a total of nineteen 81mm mortar bombs and seven 82mm bombs recovered.

“We also recovered some quantity of rifle magazines, dane guns buried in the ground as well as some quantity of disused small arms and ammunitions,” he says.

Stressing the dangers of not unearthing bombs and mines, Yakubu says that “it is known that landmines buried in the ground can stay for years and could be detonated accidentally by innocent people”..

“The bombs are very dangerous and have the capacity to go more than 3.5 km in 16 seconds from the point of blast and anybody within 800m radius risks being killed,” he warns.

According to him, more than 600 victims of such mines in the affected areas of the South East, in course of their farm work have been rendered invalid by no fault of theirs.

Yakubu thinks that President Goodluck Jonathan needs to be thoroughly apprised of the situation so that relief can come the way of people living in the mine infested areas.

He laments what he describes as the apathy shown by governors of the affected states towards the mine explosion victims in their areas, adding that “while governors in other zones affected by the war have shown serious concerns, governors of the South East, the main theatre of the war feel unconcerned.”

“One of the unexploded bombs in Imo was recovered from a spot about 800m from the house of the state governor, Chief Ikedi Ohakim.

“The Igbo leaders should feel concerned about their plights,” he stresses.

However, Mr Ugochukwu Emezue, the Special Adviser (Electronic Media) to the Abia governor says this is not exactly so.

Emezue says that the state government is cooperating with all agencies and bodies such as the United Nations and the Federal Government towards removing unexploded landmines that are buried in trenches in the state.

“Government is aware of the project and has given the necessary encouragement to the humanitarian de-miners who are currently scanning the state to locate the landmines.

“Though the governor has not met with them one on one, due to his extremely busy schedule, he is not indifferent to the de-mining initiative.

Concerned citizens in the area have asked the government to unearth all mines buried in the area so as to eliminate the maiming of innocent civilians who know nothing about the cicil war.

One of them is Mrs Oluchukwu Onyenweaku, the Principal, Senior Secondary Technical School, Afara in Umuahia North Local Government Area, who says:

“It was terrible that some of these bombs were in our school premises and we did not know about them.

According to her, it was only after two unexploded bombs were discovered in the middle of four classroom blocks and behind the staff room in the school premises that we realised the danger we faced.

“They were found on the spot where students burned rubbish. Let them scan the whole place so that we can feel safe. This area, we were told was a military centre during the war.

Eze Israel Kanu, traditional ruler of Afaraukwu Autonomous Community, in same local government could not agree less, disclosing that similar bombs had been recovered at the Methodist College, Uzuakoli and other educational institutions.

He says that so many lives had been lost in the past and pleads with the federal government to spare no efforts at ridding his area of ERW.

“The federal government should not downplay the exercise so as to ensure the safety of our entire community. It should go ahead to clear all the areas that were affected by the war because the relics are still buried there,” he says.

Prof. Samuel Emejuaiwe, the traditional ruler of Amediaba in Bende Local Government area expresses same viewpoint and laments that so much havoc had been done innocent persons by exploding landmines.

“Having come under a united Nigeria, it will be good to remove any traces of things that remind us of the pains of the war”, Emejuaiwe, also Chairman of Abia State SIEC says.

No doubt, the concerns of these citizens are germane and it is imperative that all governments and relevant institutions should join hands to rid then areas of buried mines so as to ensure the safety of the citizens.

Acha writes for NAN

Emmanuel Acha