Contamination Map
The United Nations Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU), in collaboration with the Landmine Monitor, has produced its 10th updated contamination map .
The map is based on townships in which credible reports of antipersonnel landmine contamination have been recorded by the Landmine Monitor from 1999 – 2020. The map also graphically maps casualties which occurred between January and December 2019.
In a small chart in the corner a cumulative total of casualties between 2007 and 209 are compiled to provide an understanding of the level of casualties in a particular state. The first of these maps produced in 2011 documented contamination in 47 townships in the country. However, as noted in the top left corner, a cumulative 93 townships, 28% of all townships in Myanmar have reports of contamination, and the most recent casualty map found casualties in 47 of those townships.
The maps do not indicate how much, or how many areas, or precisely where the contamination may be located, and in some cases may be quite minimal, however as there is no humanitarian mine clearance programme in the country, all previously identified areas are believed to remain dangerous.
Infographic
The MIMU also produces an infographic which summarizes much of the hard data within the Landmine Monitor report, cumulatively, over the past decade.
1900 landmine casualties, both injured and killed, have occurred since the authorities in Myanmar launched discussions on peace in the country.
According to Landmine Monitor data, 52% of the casualties are attributed to antipersonnel landmines, 5% are attributed to antivehicle mines or explosive remnants of war, but for 43% of incidents the type of explosive hazard could not be specified.
The activity at time of landmine incident for civilians chiefly involves forest based livelihood activities, such as foraging for additional foods to supplement their diet, collect medicinal herbs or collection of forest products for sale in the market. This is followed by general travel in mine affected townships or agricultural work in mine affected townships. To a lessor degree other causes include finding missing animals, being taken for forced labour by combatants, or helping others who were injured by a landdmine.
Predominantly adult men are the victims of landmines in those cases where the gender of the casualty is known. 7% are children of both genders and 6% are adult women. The gender of the victim was not available for about a quarter of the victims.