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Articles 31 - 60 of 112

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Advocacy For Persons With Disabilities In Tajikistan, Reykhan Muminova Oct 2012

Advocacy For Persons With Disabilities In Tajikistan, Reykhan Muminova

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Since 2007, the Tajikistan Mine Action Centre, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Tajikistan and its partners, has organized a range of activities to increase awareness on the rights of persons with disabilities and to advocate for the country’s accession to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilitie.


Providing Safe Drinking Water In Post-Civil War Sri Lanka, Hartmut Thoms Oct 2012

Providing Safe Drinking Water In Post-Civil War Sri Lanka, Hartmut Thoms

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

After decades of Civil War, Sri Lanka is making positive strides toward recovery. As former refugees return home, it remains to be seen whether the poorest districts will have access to one of the most basic human necessities, clean water. Fondation Suisse de Déminage (Swiss Foundation for Mine Action) hopes to alleviate this situation by clearing contaminated wells.


Canadian Scientist Receives Grant To Continue Developing Innovative, Low-Cost Prosthetic, Cisr Journal Jul 2012

Canadian Scientist Receives Grant To Continue Developing Innovative, Low-Cost Prosthetic, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Economically impoverished survivors of landmines and explosive remnants of war not only face psychological and physiological trauma but also economic upheaval as they may not be able to continue previous professions, especially those involving physically taxing work such as farming, manufacturing or construction. Furthermore, a survivor of a mine-related accident "typically requires amputation, multiple operations and prolonged physical rehabilitation," all of which are extremely time-consuming and costly. The reality is harsh for many landmine and ERW survivors in the developing world who lack access to adequate health care and safe, effective and affordable prosthetic limbs. Thus, one of the most …


Peer-Support Training For Nonliterate And Semiliterate Female Ex-Combatants: Experience In Burundi, Cameron Macauley, Monica Onyango, Eric Niragira Jul 2012

Peer-Support Training For Nonliterate And Semiliterate Female Ex-Combatants: Experience In Burundi, Cameron Macauley, Monica Onyango, Eric Niragira

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In September 2011, 25 female veterans of Burundi’s civil war were trained to become peer-support workers. The five-day training, funded under a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and conducted by James Madison University’s Center for International Stabilization and Recovery, was the first of its kind to offer peer-counseling skills to non-literate and semiliterate women.


Pathways To Resilience Workshop Promotes Leadership And Peer Support, Anne Stewart, Lennie Echterling, Cameron Macauley, Nicole Neitzey, Hasan Hamdan Oct 2011

Pathways To Resilience Workshop Promotes Leadership And Peer Support, Anne Stewart, Lennie Echterling, Cameron Macauley, Nicole Neitzey, Hasan Hamdan

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Pathways to Resilience (P2R) created a unique leadership program to help landmine survivors promote resilience and create secure collegial relationships. This article provides background regarding the curriculum and training activities and recounts how P2R helped survivors experience posttraumatic growth after tragedy.


New Prosthetics Offer Hope In Sudan, Mohammad Ismail Jul 2011

New Prosthetics Offer Hope In Sudan, Mohammad Ismail

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Unfortunately for amputees in developing countries, poverty and disability go hand-in-hand. Limb loss can make it extremely difficult for victims to provide for themselves and their families. From this reality came the inspiration for Sudanpro, an inexpensive and durable prosthetic developed by the author, an orthotist and prosthetist working with Project Hope Sudan.


The Journal Of Erw And Mine Action Issue 15.2 (2011), Cisr Journal Jul 2011

The Journal Of Erw And Mine Action Issue 15.2 (2011), Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Victim Assistance | Deminers on the Frontline | Information Systems and GIS Mapping | Notes from the Field | Research and Development


Peer Support And Recovery From Limb Loss In Post-Conflict Settings, Cameron Macauley, Marcia Townsend, Melissa Freeman, Brent Maxwell Jul 2011

Peer Support And Recovery From Limb Loss In Post-Conflict Settings, Cameron Macauley, Marcia Townsend, Melissa Freeman, Brent Maxwell

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In this article, the authors describe an unprecedented study on peer support services for landmine survivors and victims of explosive remnants of war based on the strategic approach implemented by Survivor Corps, in which survivors were trained to provide psychosocial assistance to other survivors. The study’s methodology is thoroughly explained and analyzed by the authors.


Gender-Sensitive Victim Assistance, Arianna Calza Bini, Asa Massleberg Jul 2011

Gender-Sensitive Victim Assistance, Arianna Calza Bini, Asa Massleberg

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article affirms that, in order for victim assistance to be more effective, sustainable and equitable for all people in landmine/explosive remnants of war-affected communities, gender sensitivity is needed. The different impacts of landmines/ERW on all genders and ages are outlined, and the problems facing female victims are highlighted. Finally some recommendations on how to take gender into consideration in VA are presented.


Peer Support And Trauma Recovery, Cameron Macauley Jul 2011

Peer Support And Trauma Recovery, Cameron Macauley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Peer support is becoming an important strategy to help survivors of war-related violence recover from psychological trauma. After a short training in counseling techniques, peer-support workers seek out trauma survivors in the community and help them reintegrate into society, find work, engage in sports and come to terms with their traumatic memories. Peer-support programs incur costs related to transportation and communication, but support groups may recover some costs through income-generating projects.


Assisting Cluster Munition Victims: A New International Standard, Markus Reiterer Jul 2011

Assisting Cluster Munition Victims: A New International Standard, Markus Reiterer

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Convention on Cluster Munitions adopted a number of innovative approaches to victim assistance which are, nonetheless, firmly rooted in long-standing experience in this field. By addressing human suffering in a disarmament treaty and linking its provisions to human rights and humanitarian law, the CCM truly constitutes a milestone in the efforts of the international community toward humanitarian disarmament. The CCM contains an entire package of provisions that aim to assist cluster munition victims and establish clear responsibilities for doing so. Now the crucial phase of implementing the legal text begins.


Survivor Heroes Heal Lives And Landscapes Throughout The World, Ken Rutherford Jul 2011

Survivor Heroes Heal Lives And Landscapes Throughout The World, Ken Rutherford

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Landmine and traumatic-accident victims and their families face numerous recovery obstacles in any setting, but in a post-conflict setting resources may be scarce. Victims must deal with emotional and psychological trauma, often for years after the event. These challenges range from physical limitations and psychological aftermath to the economic impact on their livelihoods. Some victims take their traumatic experience—which is one in which the victim is terrified, afraid for him or herself as well as for others, temporarily helpless, humiliated, and isolated—and apply them to assisting other victims through activism and support.


Art Therapy And Sport Activities Enhance Psychosocial Rehabilitation, Reykhan Muminova Jul 2011

Art Therapy And Sport Activities Enhance Psychosocial Rehabilitation, Reykhan Muminova

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Tajikistan Mine Action Centre has worked to improve the physical and psychological health of landmine survivors through its summer camps in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Using sport activities, survivors improve their ability to function physically and learn to adjust to life with their disability, while art therapy helps them overcome fears of self-expression, enabling them to form healthy relationships with others.


Victim Assistance For Mine/Erw Survivors And Pwds In Sudan, Boutros Hobeika Jul 2011

Victim Assistance For Mine/Erw Survivors And Pwds In Sudan, Boutros Hobeika

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Sudan’s socioeconomic rehabilitation programs help mine/explosive-remnants-of-war survivors and persons with disabilities find work and reintegrate into society, but policies need to be created to ensure that victims are not discriminated against as they seek employment.


Victim Assistance In Peru, Theresa Kane Jul 2011

Victim Assistance In Peru, Theresa Kane

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Landmines still plague parts of Peru as a result of the 1980–92 internal conflict with the Shining Path (in Spanish, Sendero Luminoso), guerrillas and the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement. This article examines the work of the Polus Center in its victim-assistance efforts which strive to provide landmine survivors with the tools they need to reintegrate into society and earn a viable income.


Daniel Yuval: A Survivor’S Hope, Cisr Journal Jul 2011

Daniel Yuval: A Survivor’S Hope, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Just a little more than a year since an explosion blew off his right leg, Daniel Yuval has experienced unprecedented success in prompting Israel to take action against landmines. His call to the Israeli Parliament, as well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to remove landmines has resulted in a majority-sponsored bill in Parliament to establish a landmine-removal agency.


Victim-Assistance History In International Humanitarian Law: From Somalia To Geneva To Laos, Ken Rutherford Jul 2011

Victim-Assistance History In International Humanitarian Law: From Somalia To Geneva To Laos, Ken Rutherford

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In the following article, Ken Rutherford, Director of JMU’s Center for International Stabilization and Recovery and a landmine survivor, examines how victim assistance has changed and argues that while victim assistance is a more integral element of mine action today than ever before, there is yet room to move forward.


Victim Assistance And Inclusive Livelihoods, Wanda M. Jaime Jul 2011

Victim Assistance And Inclusive Livelihoods, Wanda M. Jaime

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Handicap International first started its operations in the Thai-Cambodia border refugee camps in 1982. At that time, the organization’s main focus was physical rehabilitation. However, over the years, HI has adopted a more comprehensive approach that can be exemplified by a livelihoods project specifically targeting Cambodia’s victims of mines/explosive remnants of war. This article explores the links between the international victim-assistance legal and policy framework and field practice through the experience of the Towards Sustainable Income Generating Activities for Landmine/ERW Victims project.


The Terter Regional Vocational Training Center, Nick Nwolisa Oct 2010

The Terter Regional Vocational Training Center, Nick Nwolisa

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Recently, International Eurasia Press Fund helped to form the Terter Regional Vocational Training Center to provide computer, business and vocational training for mine victims and their family members. The victims are also given medical and legal help by the Azerbaijan Mine Victims Association. The VTC and the AMVA both work to help war victims reintegrate into society.


A Survivor’S Successful Story: Sadafmo, Reykhan Muminova Oct 2010

A Survivor’S Successful Story: Sadafmo, Reykhan Muminova

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

As one of more than 800 Tajik landmine victims, Rahmatova Sadafmo is a 32-year-old woman living in the small mountainous village of Dashtijum on the Tajik-Afghan border. Despite losing her leg in a tragic landmine accident, Sadafmo is able to support herself and her young son with assistance from the Tajikistan Mine Action Centre. She helps other landmine victims and looks toward her future with hope and enthusiasm.


Peer-To-Peer Support Vital To Survivors, Ken Rutherford Jul 2010

Peer-To-Peer Support Vital To Survivors, Ken Rutherford

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Landmine victims suffer not only from physical trauma, but also from intense emotional, psychological and social difficulties. As a landmine survivor and person with a disability myself, I know the challenges of recovery firsthand. On a personal level, I feel I can better communicate challenges with other landmine survivors and people with disabilities rather than my doctors, family and friends; peer-to-peer support helped me face the difficulties I encountered following the loss of my legs.


Profile: Clear Path International, Cisr Journal Jul 2010

Profile: Clear Path International, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Every year landmines kill or injure an estimated 24,000 people. The majority of these victims suffer long-term injuries, including the loss of a limb, a physical disability, post-traumatic stress disorder or permanent internal injuries due to shrapnel. Life for landmine victims is never the same, as they require treatment for more than just physical injuries. Many victims need psychological assistance and help finding their place in society, since landmine victims are often ostracized by society. Recovering from a landmine explosion is a life-long process. Clear Path International recognizes the need for landmine-survivor assistance and has taken great strides to help …


U.S. Department Of State Humanitarian Mine-Action Support In Colombia, Edmund Trimakas Jul 2009

U.S. Department Of State Humanitarian Mine-Action Support In Colombia, Edmund Trimakas

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Years of conflict between the Colombian government and the militant groupFuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia has left the country littered with landmines and millions of internally displaced persons. The Colombian government is trying to address this situation. The Bureau of Political-Military Affairs’ Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department of State is working with Colombian organizations and nongovernmenal organizations to clean up contaminated areas and resettle Colombia’s IDPs.


Icrc Weapons-Contamination Activities In Colombia, Andy Wheatley Jul 2009

Icrc Weapons-Contamination Activities In Colombia, Andy Wheatley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The International Committee of the Red Cross has been working alongside the Colombian Red Cross to ease Colombia’s weapons-contamination problem, made more difficult by ongoing conflict. By combining preventive measures, victim assistance, rehabilitation programs and economic aid, the ICRC has strengthened Colombian organizations, while educating the public and assisting those negatively affected by explosive remnants of war. The efforts of the ICRC have significantly helped Colombia where many other international organizations had found it difficult to assist because of the current political situation.


Unsung Hero: Carson Harte, Cisr Journal Jul 2009

Unsung Hero: Carson Harte, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

For more than 15 years, Carson Harte’s work with The Cambodia Trust has been at the core of physical-rehabilitation efforts throughout Southeast Asia, a region whose legacy of conflict has made the need for trained professionals like prosthetists and orthotists invaluable. The Cambodia Trust—a nongovernmental organization based in the United Kingdom–addresses that need, and as its Executive Director, Harte has overseen the organization’s expanding operations in Indonesi and Sri Lanka, the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste.


Comprehensive Medical Assistance For Landmine Survivors In Nicaragua, Cecilia Bustamante Jul 2009

Comprehensive Medical Assistance For Landmine Survivors In Nicaragua, Cecilia Bustamante

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The victim-assistance component of the Acción Integral contra las Minas Antipersonal program was established in Nicaragua in 1997, and similar programs were set up across Central America. In Nicaragua, the AICMA victim-assistance element aims to help landmine victims obtain physical and psychological care, and provides them access to medical specialists they could not otherwise see. With many victims unable to pay for their medical treatment, the AICMA is coordinating funding and removing the financial burden of travel and lodging for treatment.


Landmine Victim Assistance Progress, Challenges And Best Practices, Michael Lundquist Jul 2008

Landmine Victim Assistance Progress, Challenges And Best Practices, Michael Lundquist

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

While progress has been made in several areas of mine action, victim assistance is facing a number of new challenges. This article presents these challenges and three areas of best practice: addressing complex needs, developing capacity and leadership, and broadening interest in the issue.


Victim Assistance: Still Seeking The Way, Suzanne Fiederlein Jul 2008

Victim Assistance: Still Seeking The Way, Suzanne Fiederlein

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article looks at the progress made in the area of victim assistance since 2002 with special attention paid to data collection, funding and program coordination.


The Yemen Association For Landmine And Uxo Survivors, Anne Capelle Jul 2008

The Yemen Association For Landmine And Uxo Survivors, Anne Capelle

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Since its creation in September 2004 by the Yemen Executive Mine Action Centre, the Yemen Association for Landmine and UXO Survivors has played an active role in raising awareness of mine-affected areas and in promoting socioeconomic reintegration of mine/unexploded ordnance survivors through educational programs. Currently, YALS and YEMAC are working together with the goal of reintegrating 500 survivors by 2009.


Erw And Survivor Assistance In Central Vietnam, Ari Perlstein, Imbert Matthee Jul 2008

Erw And Survivor Assistance In Central Vietnam, Ari Perlstein, Imbert Matthee

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In central Vietnam, the problem of unexploded ordnance and landmine contamination is still particularly serious, and casualty rates continue to be high in certain areas. The following is an overview of Clear Path International’s activities in the region, and includes an analysis of the most recent data collected about explosive remnants of war incidents.