Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction Volume 5 Issue 1 The Journal of Mine Action Article 12 April 2001 Pakistan: The Landmine Problem in Federally Administered Tribal Areas Faiz Muhammad Fayyad Human Survival & Development (HSD) Follow this and additional works at: https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cisr-journal Part of the Defense and Security Studies Commons, Emergency and Disaster Management Commons, Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons, and the Peace and Conflict Studies Commons Recommended Citation Fayyad, Faiz Muhammad (2001) "Pakistan: The Landmine Problem in Federally Administered Tribal Areas," Journal of Mine Action : Vol. 5 : Iss. 1 , Article 12. Available at: https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cisr-journal/vol5/iss1/12 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Center for International Stabilization and Recovery at JMU Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction by an authorized editor of JMU Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Fayyad: Pakistan: The Landmine Problem in Federally Administered Tribal Areas Published by JMU Scholarly Commons, 2001 1 Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction, Vol. 5, Iss. 1 [2001], Art. 12 Foundation for Landmine Victim Aid (H SD donors). families and become reintegrated into che household, occur weekly in the area, generally as a result of a lack of McGrath visited the affected areas, met with locals and community, and society. mine awareness training. Children and women are among interviewed victims. He compiled a derailed assessment To aid in rehabilitation efforts, H SD has installed a the most vulnerable groups that have become mine victims. report that proffered suggestions and recommendations, mine victim database. T he database is part of a larger BMA and RA, which were instituted in Bajaur on August substantiated our assertions and initial research, and called management informacion system (MIS) char incl udes, 2, 2000, are also an important pillar ofHSD mine action for support for a mine action project in response to che besides the database fo r mine victims, a geographical strategy. In the absence of these educational programs, the humanitarian disaster in FATA. information sys tem (GIS). In addition to that, it has a magnitude of the mine threat is multiplied. Following McGrath's assessment, HSD initiated a package fo r H SD fi nance. A package for ad ministration In an area with an unusually high death ratio, the HSD mine action program in Bajaur Agency through funding will also be developed, while a database for BMA and RA field ream prioritizes the teaching of first aid as part of its from the Swiss Federation for Mine Clearance and the Swiss education is being perfected. HSD has also proffered a progress mine awareness program. Measures taught include stopping Foundation for Landmine Victim Aid. This program is report on the conduction ofopera tional activities commenced profuse bleed ing and learning to guard against infections, on August 2, 2000. shocks or other typical afflictions. HSD performs this training in an arrempt to remedy the lack offir st aid training FATA Breakdown in the community and a lack of effective transport. In general, casualties must be initially transported to the local FATA is a collection of seven agencies, which, unfo r­ hospital fo r fi rst aid and then to the provincial metropolis tunately, have been neglected by successive governments hospital fo r treatment. By the rime victims reach the in Pakistan for the last 50 years. The policy of status quo hospital, colossal amounts of blood are lost. HSD's training has prevailed in chese areas, disall owing any concrete social would allow victims' initial treatment to be done on site. progress. FATA is geographically linked to the NWFP and To combat this problem on another level, HSD has constitutes these seven tribal agencies (six of which share a also secured two ambulances through irs donors. These freel y passed border with Afghanistan): South Waziristan, will be stationed in close proximity to the community of North Wazi ristan, Kurram, O rakzai, Khyber, Mohmand Bajaur to pass casualties to an equipped medical center. and Bajaur. Located within the seven districts are six tribal One of them is ready to be sent from Geneva. areas o r Frontier Regions, which constitute an area of Since August 2000, HSD has educated about 30,000 27,220 sq. km, or 2.6 percent of the total area of Pakistan: community members in schools, Madrassas (religious mines with a gun or stoning mines as a mine clearing • Womenmust Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Lakki, Tank, and Dera Ismai l schools), mosques, hujras (places for men to gather), and strategy, as determined by HSD surveys. Finally, a few of receive mine Khan. T he region consists of 3.1 million generally bazaars. The community has now largely accepted the mine the communi ty members have bought poor quality mine awareness education conservative, religious people. awareness program and is cooperating with HSD teams. detectors from the black marker and used them in separately from the • ICRC orthopedic Children, in particular, are displaying keen interest in the inappropriate manners. With no formal training from a male population. center in Wazir dedicated to the safety and integrated rehabilitation of mine Bajaur Agency class because of the easy and culturally appropriate medium mine action expert, the result has been a number of c/oFaiz Aklbar Khan. victims of FATA , functioning apart from the humanitarian of communicarion-Pushro-the local language. Due to accidents. The community is also not familiar with any Muhammad Fayyaz c/o ICRC!Zalmai Ahad mine clearance effort. Specifically, the program consists of Bajaur vall ey (area of 600 sq. miles) is a hilly area the cultural practice of excluding women during mine safe victim evacuation methods. Multiple casualties often Basic Mine Awareness (BMA) and Risk Avoidance (RA) located northwest o f Malakand. T he approximate awareness sessions in the schools, mosques and public result from the presence of multiple mines in the vicinity education and physical and socioeconomic rehabilitation population of 364,000 comprises two main tribes-the places, the H SD team urges the audience co transmit the of the victim. of the mine victims. Locals are also interviewed throughout Tarkhanis and Utmankhels. lessons to the females of the community, as well. After the program to determine household data. At present, HSD several meetings between the HSD executive director and Mine Awareness Materials is engaged in BMA and RA and collection of household BMAandRA other staff members wich community elders and religious data. It has recorded data for 599 mine victims and groups, the ream has been allowed to gain access to the HSD developed irs mine awareness material after educated about 25,000 locals. BMA aims to red uce casualties by promoting safe female child ren in the schools and mosques for cond ucting considering the needs and suffering of the local community. behavio r and facili tating appropriate responses to rhe awareness classes. It includes wooden mine models (appropriately painted) Rehabilitation problem. In general, programs provide information on the Throughout the course ofHSD field activities, we have of the common types of mines found and used in the identification of mines and UXO and the dangers they observed that the community has a few strange and region. In addition, there are two kinds of posters-one HSD's philosophy on rehabilitation goes beyond the pose, and seek to reach safe behavior to civilians living in dangerous ways of responding to landmines and casualties. depicting common types of mines found and used in the practice of mere physical rehabilitation, the provision of or moving into mine-affected areas. This incl udes guidance Our team d iscovered char members of the community use region and the other showing landscapes with mine means of mobility, and prosthesis/orthotics. It also involves on how to recognize a potentially mine or UXO-con­ whey (yogurt beaten to liquid form) over a victim's wounds. problems. Both these tools are used for instruction in rhe the integration of socioeconomic rehabilitation. For this taminated area, as well as what to do if someone accidentally This is not an isolated occurrence, but a widely practiced field. T he clear and simple message on the printed materials purpose, H SD has planned in irs project to provide the fi nds himself in che middle of a mine field. Instruction in exercise-a fact borne by the household survey HSD appears to be assimilated by rhe community. victims with skill development training and micro credits basic fi rst aid for mine victims is often a part of che program. conducted. Admittedly, this is harmful practice. HSD is HSD is using places like mosques, schools and hujras to establish and operate viable and profitable micro Teaching BMA and RA, especially to the most attempting to raise awareness in the community against fo r conducting irs BMA and RA classes. Such locations enterprises. In this way, the mine victims will be able to vulnerable gro ups, is important in Bajaur due to its the potential harm held by chis practice. A second ensure maximum attendance of all age groups of the earn steady incomes to support themselves and cheir land mine situati on. About two mine-related incidents dangerous practice widely seen in Bajaur is the shoo ring of community. Children and reachers are rhe target group in https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/cisr-journal/vol5/iss1/12 • 32. - • 33 . 2 Fayyad: Pakistan: The Landmine Problem in Federally Administered Tribal Areas schools. In mosques, mullahs (religious groups) and other socioeconomic rehabilitation male members of the community assemble for prayers fi ve Case Studies shall require providing the times a day.