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MINE
DOGS FLY FOR FREE For the past eight years, Air Namibia has been fulfilling a critical logistical role in supporting the anti-landmine activities of international NGO MgM (Menschen gegen Minen) in Angola, according to MgM Director Hendrik Ehlers. This critical if unsung support in the battle against the scourge of landmines again came to the fore when it recently flew in six specially-bred Mallinois (a Belgian breed of the well-known German Shepherd) explosives-sniffing dogs via Windhoek to Luanda from the United Kingdom. With the kind sponsorship of Woker Freight Services and Air Namibia, the six dogs, aged between 12 and 15 months, will now be deployed at MgM’s nine demining operational sites across Angola. Although South Africa is world-famous for breeding and training explosive-sniffing dogs at the well-known Mine Dog School outside Pretoria, the demand for their services in Iraq has seen a general lack of capacity in sub-Saharan Africa. "The best dogs from South Africa have all gone to Iraq, the demand is so great there," said MgM Director Hendrik Ehlers. But with the need to especially clear roads growing massively as Angola slowly returns to normalcy after nearly 40 years of civil war, MgM has found itself short of the acute sniffing skills that only properly trained dogs can bring to the field. As a result, MgM therefore had to import these six new recruits at a cost of N$160 000 to augment the team of 15 dogs already deployed in Angola. Over the next three months, the young dogs will undergo a rigorous training program under the watchful eye of Mozambican trainer Acai Muzuzu. Although MgM is perhaps more known for their highly technical approach to demining, the dogs form a critical quality control component to especially the road-clearing activities. Mr. Ehlers described it as a "three-layer approach": first, a suspect area is prepared by armored machines and manually cleared by teams of deminers, then the area is physically stripped by mechanical means of the top 20 centimeters of soil, and finally, the dogs are deployed to ensure that nothing remains in the soil. Road-clearance is performed with the Voodoo System, a ballet of armored graders, manual deminers and explosives sniffer dogs. It is a very exact science – and the dogs also have to be taught in the same way. Over a three-month period, the dogs will be introduced to a "smell-library" of over 250 different odors. But is it not all work and no play – in fact, playing with the dogs is how they are rewarded for performing a task correctly. With nine ongoing operations, the need to ensure that no explosive device of any kind gets left behind is absolutely critical – and dogs are the only really fool-proof way to ensure this. "Some things, like wet leather buried under the ground, will fool them," said Mr. Ehlers. "But generally, there is nothing that beats a dog’s sense of smell when it comes to explosives. It is the only way you can be absolutely, 100 percent sure." With peace now reigning in Angola, access to roads have become a critical component of normalising life in that vast country. MgM, the only demining NGO that specializes in road demining (and with a commensurate international reputation), are currently facing an ever-increasing demand for their services. "What often does not get said is that the success of such an operation depends to a large extent to good logistics. If you can’t get the right equipment to the right people, in time and in one piece, you risk lives – not only that of your team, but also that of the local people who desperately need that road to be cleared," said Mr. Ehlers. And for that, MgM has long depended on the support of Air Namibia and Woker Freight Services, who he said has helped move "tons and tons" of equipment to Angola for them since 1996. So – here’s to Air Namibia and Woker Freight Services: On behalf of thousands of Angolans who indirectly benefit from your compassion and support, a heart-felt thank-you! back more about mine sniffing dogs |
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