the human right to water and sanitation in emergency situations

- Part 2 - Definition of the right to water and sanitation in emergency situations
Case Study 1 - Violence perpetrated against the civilian population of Mozambique
Whilst Mozambique’s civil war ended with the signing of a peace accord in October 1992, it left an
estimated 2 million landmines strewn across its countryside. Human Rights Watch 36 accused the
Mozambican Government, the former Renamo armed opposition movement 37 and foreign forces
of laying the mines. Landmines had been planted in Mozambique for more than a quarter of a century.
During 16 years of civil war, and throughout a decade of national liberation conflict against the
Portuguese before that (1964-74) led by the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) 38 ,
mines were laid not only by government troops and Renamo rebels, but also by soldiers from
Rhodesia, South Africa and Tanzania who came to the assistance of the warring parties.
During that latter conflict, it appears that mines were used deliberately to terrorize civilian
communities and to deny them access to fields, water and fishing. Minefields have been
located in all provinces and the HALO Trust’s 1994 survey found that mines had been used
for defensive and offensive reasons, principally around areas of strategic importance
such as military headquarters, towns and villages, sources of water and power, pylon lines
and dams 39 . As a result, Simon Baynham states that “Drawing water from wells and rivers
has become a daily struggle for survival where water points have been surrounded by
mines 40 ”.
According to General Comment 15 of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,
“Water, and adequate water facilities and services, must be within safe physical
reach for all sections of the population” and, in the same way “Physical security should
not be threatened during access to water facilities and services 41 ”. In the situation mentioned
above, physical accessibility, which is one of the key components of the right to water, was
particularly threatened.
6.5. obligations of States parties
General Comment 15 emphasizes the obligations and duties of States parties and their key role in implementing
the right to water. Constraints due to limited available resources are taken into account and States
are not obliged to implement their policies immediately, but can set them in place progressively (however,
they must act on and respect the principles of non-discrimination). As with all treaties, and just as for any
other human rights, States parties must comply with three basic principles when implementing the right to
water: respect, protect and fulfil 42 (See Table 3).
36 Landmines in Mozambique, Human Rights Watch Report, 1994
37/ In 1977, the guerrilla armed resistance, the Mozambique National Resistance (Renamo), was created by the Rhodesian
Central Intelligence Office in response to Mozambique’s support for Zimbabwean nationalist guerrillas. Rhodesian military
began training Renamo combatants in landmine use for route denial and ambush by mining major roads, supply routes and
rural tracks
38/ In 1964, the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) began an armed struggle for independence from Portuguese
colonial rule and began to use anti-vehicle mines
39/ As well as on roads, tracks and paths and alongside bridges and railway lines
40/ Baynham (S.) Eternal Sentinels: “The Legacy of Landmines in Africa”. In: African Defence Review, Issue No 18, 1994
41/ GC 15, paragraph 12 c)
42/ For more details about the obligations incumbent on States, please refer to the “Manual on the Right to Water and
Sanitation” (2007) produced by COHRE, which is available on line at the following address: http://www.cohre.org/store/
attachments/RWP-Manual-water.pdf
© ACF - THE HUMAN RIGHT TO WATER AND SANITATION IN EMERGENCY SITUATIONS
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