Sarkozy must compensate land mines’ victims: Algerian and French associations

The syndicate of defending Algerians in Europe and a number of French human rights’ associations send a letter to the French president Nicolas Sarkozy urging him to compensate the victims of land mines in Algeria through transferring them to European hospitals for treatment or organs transplant in order to improve their daily life conditions.

• “Our association stepped up its contacts with European human rights associations in order to work in coordination with Algerian organizations and associations and prepare a list of land mines’ victims, particularly children who lost one of their organs in the eastern and western borders of Algeria,” said Bedaoui Mouafak, head of the association which defend the Algerian workers in Europe.
• “We send this letter after French authorities announced willingness to compensate victims who were exposed to radiation during the nuclear tests by the French colonial administration in Algeria. Algerian community representatives in France is seeking to mainstream the French authorities initiative in order to include land mines victims because they were planted during the colonial period by the French army along the eastern and western borders of Algeria where about 20.000 Algerians perished or permanently injured,” he added.
• Number of land mines which were planted by France in Algeria exceeds 11 million land mines. They killed at least 12.000 people, including 7328 during last ten years, as well as hundreds of injuries. Three million anti individual land mines are still planted along the eastern and western borders 1160 km, after Algerian army destroyed eight million mines since the independence.
• Previously, former French ambassador in Algeria, Bernard Bajolet ruled out the idea of compensation by the French government, saying, “The Ottawa agreement prohibited the use, production, stocking, and transfer of the anti individual land mines, and do not speak about compensation of victims. The French government’s mission is over when it gave Algeria all maps about the planted land mines”.