Myanmar Junta’s Landmine Crisis: Civilian Impact and Urgent Calls for Action
The military junta in Myanmar is intensifying attacks on civilians, particularly targeting individuals with disabilities. Human rights experts, Tom Andrews and Heba Hagrass, warn that the junta’s use of landmines aims to suppress opposition.
They report severe violations, such as compelling civilians to walk through minefields and denying vital aid like medical treatment and prosthetics. These actions contradict international laws, including the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and UN Security Council resolution 2475, which focuses on protecting persons with disabilities in conflict.
Children Most Affected
Table of Contents
The impact of landmines on children is devastating. Data from UNICEF indicates that over 20% of civilian casualties from landmine incidents in 2023 were children. This marks a significant rise from previous years, with 390 incidents recorded in 2022.
Children are especially vulnerable as they often cannot recognize the dangers posed by landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). The placement of these weapons around homes, schools, and playgrounds further endangers them.
A child lost his left leg after stepping on a landmine in his family’s paddy fields in central Myanmar.
Victims Facing Criminalization
Landmine victims face challenges beyond physical injuries. The junta criminalizes amputees, linking their missing limbs to resistance activities. Many amputees now hide to avoid harassment and arrest, as losing a limb is viewed as evidence of wrongdoing.
Reality Far Worse
Victims endure a grim reality. Andrews recounts a conversation with a young woman who lost her leg due to a landmine. She had no hope of getting a prosthesis because junta forces block access to necessary materials.
Call for Action
Andrews and Hagrass urge UN Member States to take unified steps to reduce the junta’s ability to harm civilians. They call for an immediate halt to landmine deployment and for the removal of existing landmines.
Special Rapporteurs monitor and report on specific human rights issues. They operate independently of the UN and serve without pay.