Communities Living With Landmines
Story and Photos by Richard Moyes
For people reliant on their livestock for their livelihoods, the loss of animals to landmines can have a serious impact on their economic circumstances. Therefore, when an animal steps on a landmine and becomes injured, herders may take a known risk and enter the mined area in order to retrieve the animal.
In Ratnapuri village, Mannar District, the impact of landmines on the cattle base of this community has already reached such a level it threatens their economic survival. People's efforts to combat this have led them into an increasingly dangerous relationship with the landmines in their environment.
As well as the problems that the cattle owners face, the fact that the area is mined means that good paddy land cannot be farmed. Parents also fear that children who collect wood in the vicinity will venture into the mined area.
Cattle owners in Ratnapuri
Ratnapuri borders a former defensive line. People living in the village know that the area is mined as a result of information from the local military, accidents involving cattle, and a clearly visible earth bund and barbed wire. A track passes through the mined area. This track is believed to be safe as it was graded some time ago with a bulldozer. Cattle are moved along the track in order to reach the only available grazing land which lies on the far side of the minefield from the village. The cattle owners estimated that in the past two years, landmines have resulted in approximately 250 cattle being killed, injured or lost.
Previously, when there was a military post between the village and the defence line, the herders were not allowed to travel with their cattle along the track and into the grazing area. The animals would be herded through and the calves would be kept at home to encourage the cows to return at the end of the day. When cows did not return, there was no way of knowing whether the animal had been injured, killed or lost.
Since the military post has been removed, the herders are free to move along the track with their animals. While this closer supervision may have reduced the number of animals who walk away and become lost, it does not prevent cattle from wandering off the track into the mined area where they are killed or injured.
The herders explained that they have all lost a significant number of cattle as a result of landmine accidents. They agreed that Anthony Mark's story was representative of all Ratnapuri cattle owners.
"I used to have 140 cattle, but 15 have become injured and 25 have died from stepping on landmines. There is no other place that I can take them to graze. Even though I can now travel with my animals, they still walk off the track. They step over the barbed wire into the mined area. There are also mines outside the barbed wire which they sometimes step on."
"Now I have only 115 cattle left. I think that the minimum number of cows that I need to feed and support my family is 100. I'm worried about these accidents because I could easily lose more animals. I would normally try to increase the size of my herd to improve my situation, but cows are expensive - between 5-12,000 rupees. I don't have the money and as accidents happen so regularly, I don't have the faith to invest."
Landmine accidents have reduced his herd size, and therefore his earning potential from milk sales to such an extent that Anthony is unsure for how long herding will be a viable economic activity.
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