Transcript Presentation

4 March 2002, Bangkok

Lt. Col DS Weeraman, Commanding Officer, Sri Lanka Army

The Landmine Problem

On February 4, 1998 Sri Lanka became independent after centuries of control by the Dutch and Portuguese.  In 1983, ethnic conflict arose, claiming 60,000 lives.  During this time, hundreds of thousands of landmines were used by rebel forces in the north and eastern provinces.  These reminders of past conflict continue to pose a problem to local populations primarily because there are no records of the landmines laid.  The landmines are found everywhere; near shops, water sources, and houses.

Mine Action

In Northern Sri Lanka 10-person teams are deployed to clear mine-affected land.  These deminers are outfitted in personal protective equipment and use mine detectors and metal detectors.  The teams find these technologies to be unreliable in many cases.  The deminers mark mines on the ground and defuse them.  Since March 2001, an estimated 9,038 P4Mk 1 AP mines and 1,889 M72 AP mines have been found and destroyed.

The Sri Lanka Army faces many problems in its demining operations.  Since there are no records of where mines were laid, demining displaces many civilians until the land is rendered safe.  In addition, deminers are exhausted after long hours because there are no additional demining units to replace them.  They also lack sophisticated equipment to demine efficiently, periodical training to improve their productivity and safety measures, and expert training facilities and opportunities.  The terrain in Sri Lanka makes demining an extremely slow process because of thick vegetation that must be manually cut with a grass cutter before proceeding with demining tasks.

In the future, the Sri Lankan Army would like to incorporate the use of modern techniques, mine detection dogs, proper recording systems, mine awareness, and deminer training into its operations.  Ultimately, Sri Lanka hopes to arrive at a long-lasting solution to their landmine problem.

Q&A Session

Matthew Hovell (Program Manager, HALO Trust)

Answer: We have spoken with UNDP, but not other organizations.

Question: Politically, would you welcome participation from external agencies?

 Jim Spence (Demining Program Manager, U.S. Pacific Command)

Answer: A line is drawn; where civilians are displaced we clear that area.  We demine within the army-controlled area.