“This is great news for all survivors, for Handicap International and the other organisations which have been campaigning against the use of these  arms continuously for many years. But it is also just the start of a process since we now have to ensure that the treaty will really help to improve the daily life of survivors and communities affected by these barbaric weapons” says Stan Brabant from Handicap International.

Handicap International calls on the Government of Belgium to continue its efforts to universalize the convention. The organisation also urges European countries to sign, ratify and implement the Convention, and the EU to increase its support for mine and cluster munitions affected communities. Survivors want to see a significant and lasting improvement in their lives. 

From Belgium, the first country in the world to ban antipersonnel mines and cluster munitions as well as investments in those weapons, Handicap International expects the full implementation of its own domestic legislation, which includes the publication of a blacklist of cluster munitions producers by the Finance Minister by 1 May 2008 and the destruction of its own stockpile of cluster munitions by 9 June 2009, which has not been done to date.

About the Convention on Cluster Munitions
The Convention on Cluster Munitions bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions and requires countries to clear affected areas within 10 years and destroy stockpiles of the weapon within eight. The Convention includes groundbreaking provisions requiring assistance to victims and affected communities. Signed in Oslo in December 2008, it is the most significant international disarmament treaty since the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty banning antipersonnel landmines.

The following 104 countries have signed the Convention
Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, DR Congo, Republic of Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte D’Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Fiji, France, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, The Holy See, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar , Malawi, Mali, Malta, Mexico, Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Rwanda, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tomé and Principe, St. Vincent and Grenadines, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Zambia.

Of these, the following 30 countries have ratified the Convention
Albania (16 Jun 2009), Austria (2 Apr 2009), Belgium (22 Dec 2009), Burkina Faso (16 February 2010), Burundi (25 Sep 2009), Croatia (17 Aug 2009), Denmark (12 February 2010), The Holy See (3 Dec 2008), France (25 Sep 2009), Germany (8 Jul 2009), Ireland (3 Dec 2008), Japan (14 Jul 2009), Lao PDR (18 Mar 2009), Luxembourg (10 Jul 2009), Macedonia (8 Oct 2009), Malawi (7 Oct 2009), Malta (24 Sep 2009), Mexico (6 May 2009), Moldova (16 February 2010), Montenegro (25 January 2010), New Zealand (22 Dec 2009), Nicaragua (6 Nov 2009), Niger (2 Jun 2009), Norway (3 Dec 2008), San Marino (10 Jul 2009), Sierra Leone (3 Dec 2008), Slovenia (19 Aug 2009), Spain (17 Jun 2009), Uruguay (24 Sep 2009), Zambia (12 Aug 2009).

Handicap International’s team in Haiti, which has been treating massive numbers of injuries, estimates there are now more than 2000 amputees because of injuries sustained in the earthquake. While continuing to provide emergency assistance, Handicap International is also planning long-term action to treat the wounded and support their recovery.

To provide care for the maximum number of injured people, Handicap International currently has about 30 rehabilitation and health staff split into six mobile health care teams to treat the injured. Staff is expected to increase to around 100 people in approximately two to three weeks.

In Port-au-Prince, two of Handicap International’s mobile health teams, composed of rehabilitation specialists, are providing care in eight hospitals, where only the most severe injuries are treated due to the massive influx of wounded people. The majority of operations are amputations. Some patients with closed fractures are being asked to leave until the most urgent cases are treated first. Based on information gathered by Handicap International staff and partner organizations, there are currently an estimated 2,000 amputees in Port-au-Prince.

“The situation in Haiti today is really unprecedented,” explained Thomas Calvot, a specialist in the care management of earthquake victims at Handicap International in Lyon. 

“This is due to the sheer number of the injured - 250,000 people according to the U.N. – and the destruction of health facilities. In emergency situations, doctors often have no other choice but to amputate. In Haiti, no organization is in a position to cover all the needs in this area. We are already working with partner organizations in order to take care of the maximum number of injured people, in a coordinated manner,” he added.

With the agreement of hospital officials, Handicap International’s teams are providing postoperative rehabilitation care, distributing walking aids and orthopedic equipment and are establishing a long-term follow-up system for patients.

“You must keep your joints moving,” Dr. Colleen O’Connell explained repeatedly to amputees in overcrowded hospital wards. Dr. O’Connell, a Canadian physician specializing in rehabilitation, is part of a team of rehabilitation specialists who arrived this week from Canada and the United States to monitor postoperative treatment and follow-up.

“You must do exercises every day to avoid muscular contraction. This is vital in order to fit you with an artificial limb later on,” she told patients.

Four other Handicap International mobile rehabilitation teams are working within four of the poorest neighborhoods in the capital -- Carrefour, Carrefour Feuilles, Christ-Roi and Pétionville -- to provide care and distribute walking aids to camps of people left homeless by the earthquake and other vulnerable groups.

Handicap International rehabilitation experts indicate that the fitting of artificial limbs will be needed on a massive scale. This activity will not begin until March, once amputees’ limbs have had sufficient time to heal after surgery. Handicap International plans to produce between 300 and 400 emergency prostheses in the first six months. These temporary artificial limbs will then have to be replaced by permanent prostheses. The organization’s goal is to create and coordinate a structure for rehabilitation and artificial limb fitting and build long-term capacity by training Haitian personnel to ensure the project’s sustainability.

Following the earthquake that hit Haiti on 12 January, Handicap International restored its humanitarian aid transports to Port-au-Princes on Thursday, under the auspices of the World Food Programme and the United Nations. The association began providing direct support to the injured on 16 January, in coordination with other medical emergency stakeholders. 

Handicap International was delighted and relieved to learn on Saturday that 31 Haitian members of its team in Port-au-Prince and 23 others from its base in the city of Jacmel (50% to 60% of which has been destroyed, according to the UN) were all safe and sound.

The logistics platform, consisting of a fleet of 45 off-road lorries, managed by Handicap International in partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP), was back in service two days after the earthquake. On Thursday, two lorries loaded by WFP with 1,200 litres of water and four tonnes of energy biscuits, left Gonaïves for Port-au-Prince. On Friday, eight additional lorries left with fuel and water treatment equipment belonging to Action Contre la Faim.

Twenty lorries will now make regular deliveries of priority goods (water, food and medication) to the capital under escort and coordinated by the United Nations. 

Our team of five expatriate staff has recently been expanded following the arrival of a physiotherapist and two logisticians, with further rehabilitation staff scheduled to arrive next week (a physical rehabilitation doctor, two orthoprosthesists, one occupational therapist and one physiotherapist) from Canada and the US. We began providing direct care to the injured on 16 January. From 19 January, following the recruitment of a dozen Haitian health staff, this care will be extended to six hospitals, four districts of Port-au-Prince and the most disadvantaged neighbourhoods in the surrounding area (in particular Carrefour and Carrefour Feuille), where most of the population lives.

In addition, the Belgian section of Handicap International sent two physiotherapists into the field. They will work with the teams from Médecins Sans Frontières Belgium for two months, providing post-operative rehabilitation care for the injured (multiple traumatisms, fractures, amputations, spinal column and neurological injuries, etc.)


A tonne of equipment, including wheelchairs, artificial limbs, corsets, walking frames, crutches and walking sticks left from Istres airport on Thursday. It is being distributed to hospitals on Monday. Another charter aircraft carrying a tonne and a half of equipment left Vatry airport in Reims today.

Since the end of 2008, Handicap International has managed a fleet of 45 all-purpose lorries, in partnership with the World Food Program (WFP), used to distribute humanitarian aid to areas to which access is severely limited following the hurricanes in 2008.

It is likely that Handicap International will face numerous difficulties including a lack of operational health structures due to the destruction of buildings, a lack of available, qualified personnel and a complex security situation which was already critical prior to the earthquake.

The earthquake which hit Haiti on Tuesday evening at 5 pm local time (11 pm CET) was the worst to hit the region in the last two hundred years. Its epicenter is situated close to the capital Port-au-Prince (two million inhabitants) and the number of victims is expected to run into the hundreds, or even thousands
 
Large numbers of buildings have been destroyed, including the house where Handicap International’s five expatriate staff members live. They are all fortunately safe and sound although deeply shocked by the extent of the disaster and the number of aftershocks that have been felt. At this point in time the one hundred Haitian staff members working with the association are unaccounted for due to the difficulties in communication and transport.
 
Telephone lines and electricity supplies have been cut off and rubble is blocking the roads preventing any movement by road. Handicap International’s Head of Mission told of scenes of chaos and desolation: Mass destruction, dead and injured people lying in the streets, looted shops, and petrol stations on fire.  People everywhere are looking for friends and family members. Most inhabitants have no access to food and water. The numerous aftershocks have forced the population to seek refuge outside of the buildings left standing. 

Since the end of 2008, Handicap International has managed a fleet of 45 all-purpose lorries, in partnership with the World Food Program (WFP), used to distribute humanitarian aid to areas to which access is severely limited following the hurricanes in 2008. An additional team of ten physiotherapists and logisticians will be deployed in the next few days to provide the support needed to the earthquake victims. By the end of the week one ton of equipment (wheelchairs, orthoses, walkers, crutches etc.) will be sent out, with the first plane shipment that left Lyon on Wednesday.

It is likely that Handicap International will face numerous difficulties including a lack of operational health structures due to the destruction of buildings, a lack of available, qualified personnel and a complex security situation which was already critical prior to the earthquake.

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•  The disability bill (on the Protection of Rights of People with Special Needs) is being redrafted and shall be presented to parliament on 15th November including the recommendations we have made, making it compatible with both the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the disability policy which we supported the government to develop in 2006/2007.
• Disability will be mainstreamed in the government 5 year action plans reflecting the new manifesto and are currently being finalised.
• The Maldives Deaf Association have been active for over a year, and continue to be a dynamic force in the country, spreading awareness in many islands about deafness, sign language and much more. They are having a high impact.
• The Association for Disability and Development continues to offer support, information and an open forum for parents and families with a member with a disability. They have just had their 2nd General Assembly Meeting.
• Development of an action plan for the inclusion of children with disabilities with the Ministry of Gender, now updated and part of the Action Plan of the Ministry of Health and Family.
• Care Society continue their work, maintaining a high profile with their Child Development Centre activities, and HI has enjoyed a productive relationship with Care Society  and their partners working on community based rehabilitation in Thinadoo – HEED Learning Centre, and Hithadoo – Association of Women’s Development Institute.
•  HI has distributed small grants to a number of organisations and individuals to improve accessibility for people with disabilities throughout the country, as well as awareness.
• HI collaborated with the French and the British Red Cross during their reconstruction phase following the tsunami  to ensure the IDP camps and the houses they built were accessible for people with disabilities.
•  A survey on behalf of the Ministry of Health and Gender is just completed, identifying children and adults with potential impairments in need of referral.
• The first Maldivian Sign Language Dictionary has just been launched by the President of the Maldives, and 2,000 copies will be distributed free of charge to schools, deaf and hearing impaired people and their families.
• TVM has a Maldivian Sign Language signer on the weekly news broadcast.
• The Education Development Centre has made great steps to develop and build the capacity of the Special Educational Needs Centres now operating throughout the country.
• Each year International Day of Persons with Disabilities is marked with media coverage, celebrations and awareness programmes in Male and other islands.
• A sports group for people with disabilities has been active in Male, although is now facing some problems.

• HI will support a position within the Ministry of Health and Family for a Project Officer – Disability. We will fund the post for 12 months form the appointment, and the Ministry will then continue the salary / position.
• HI is supporting a collaboration between UNDP and the Human Rights Commission, raising awareness of the rights of persons with disabilities. The project will consist of an annual competition whereby film makers propose film concepts and a grant is awarded for the winning concept to be made into a film, to be shown on national TV on the 3rd December. We hope the film makers will include people with disabilities in the making of the films. The project may also include other media and awareness raising competitions.

•  Newsletters in English and Dhivehi with general disability related news and information.
• Nine positive stories in English and Dhivehi about different people who happen to have a disability. The stories do not focus on this aspect, but look more at the aspirations of the people, and some of the difficulties they face too. The stories are being distributed by the Ministry of Health and Family, and also the Education Development Centre throughout Maldives
• ‘Access for Everyone’ in English – a leaflet looking at physical access and barriers in the Maldives, with design recommendations.
• TV Disability Awareness spots, a set of 2 minute spots which showed different individuals with different disabilities saying what they want in life.
• Film ‘Opening Doors’ – 30 mins, English and Dhivehi version,  interviews with a number of people with disabilities and their families from Thinadoo and Hithadoo, and some interviews with people in Male, including the Ministry of Health and Family. The film gives an idea of the current situation for people with disabilities. It will be shown on TV on the 3rd December – International Day of Persons with Disabilities, and 10th December – International Human Rights Day
• Film ‘An Imam’s Story’, English and Dhivehi version – a 6 minute film about Mohamed Juloodh , an Imam from Hithadoo , who is blind, speaking about his life.

Belgium’s ratification of the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 22 December shows its continued commitment to the most significant humanitarian and disarmament treaty of the decade, the Cluster Munition Coalition said today. As the 26th country to ratify, Belgium takes its place among the first 30 states that will trigger the Convention’s entry into force.

“It’s great news that Belgium has joined the vanguard of 30 countries leading the charge to ban cluster bombs,” said Stan Brabant, head of policy at Handicap International Belgium. “We now call on Belgium to promote the Convention internationally and dedicate adequate resources to its  efforts.”

The 2008 Convention comprehensively bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions, sets strict deadlines for clearance of contaminated land and destruction of stockpiles of the weapon, and includes groundbreaking provisions for assistance to victims and affected communities. Thirty ratifications are needed for the Convention to enter into force and become binding international law six months later; currently, 104 countries have signed (Cameroon signed on 15 December 2009) and 26 have ratified (New Zealand and Belgium ratified on 22 December 2009).

In February 2006, Belgium’s Federal Parliament enacted a national prohibition of cluster munitions, making it the first country to formally announce a cluster bomb ban. After passing through a long domestic approval process, the announcement flew in the face of considerable international pressure and lobbying from the arms industry, and came to the surprise of many people who thought a cluster munitions ban impossible. Belgium’s foreign minister signed the Convention at the signing ceremony in Oslo in December 2008.

Handicap International Belgium, a CMC member organisation, has been an avid proponent of the Convention and was instrumental in Belgium’s participation in the Oslo Process. Its “Ban Advocates” initiative gave cluster bomb survivors and victims a platform to voice their support for the Convention, where they were prominent campaigners, powerful lobbyists and a source of inspiration.

 As host to EU institutions as well as NATO’s headquarters, Belgium can play a key role in promoting universalisation of the Convention.

Handicap International, the French Cultural Center in Beijing, G2Studio and ETWORC present the photo exhibition Fatal Footprint. Created by three renowned photographers - Tim Dirven, Gael Turine and John Vinck - this exhibition comes to Beijing after having been shown in various cities in Europe.

The photographs will be shown on large cubes (2mX1mX1m) in the French Cultural Center from the 17th of December to the 15th of January. A press conference will be held on the 16th of December at 4 pm in the auditorium of the French Cultural Center to introduce the exhibition and launch a groundbreaking new report, “Voices from the Ground”. This report shows that, despite some progress in stockpile destruction and landmine clearance, and 10 years after the Mine Ban treaty (MBT) entered into force, there is still a long way to go to treat and reintegrate landmine survivors into societies and answer their needs...

Guangcai International Mansion 18, Gongti Xilu 100020 Beijing, China, Centre