Cambodia Calls for Greater Resolve to Eradicate Mines

By Sok Lak

The International Day for Mind Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action have held in Siem Reap province, to review the country’s achievements and strategy for clearing landmines and explosive remnants of war.

H.E. Prak Sokhon, Minister attached to the Prime Minister and Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), said that the treat of landmines still remains in 66 countries according to the Mine Ban Convention. Many still face challenges in fulfilling their obligations under the Convention.

“The international community needs to show greater resolve to help landmine-affected countries like Cambodia, to eradicate the deadly remnants of war that continue to hinder efforts to lift people out of poverty,” he said at the event on 4-5 April.

He added that Cambodia has the highest numbers of victims and casualties, which peaked at 4,320 in 1996. “From historical setting and where we came from three decades ago, we have traveled a remarkable journey. Yet we have managed to come a long way.”

H.E. Prak Sokhon formally launched the 2010-2019 National Mine Action Strategy. It will serve as a single guide for development partners interested in supporting mine clearance and encourage directing financial resources to areas most affected by landmines and having an undue impact on poor and vulnerable Cambodians.

The core of strategy is the completion of a Baseline Survey to identify all remaining mined areas and the release of land for productive use. Up to now, some 43 districts have been surveyed and 645,239,037 square meters of affected land have been released. It is a part of the implementation of the National Plan of Action for People with Disabilities.

“All of our gains on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will not last if they continue to be crippled by the threat and danger of landmines and explosive remnants of war. That is why the strategy we now have provides a testament of how fundamental mine action is to the country’s development plans and strategies,” he said.

Mr. Douglas Broderick, United Nation Resident Coordinator, said that landmines and explosive remnants of war continue to inflict a terrible hazard. These indiscriminate weapons cause serious injuries and death, hamper reconstruction in post-conflict zones, damage the environment, and are an obstacle to socioeconomic and development activities long after conflicts have ended.

“Through 2015, under the stewardship of the Cambodian Mine Action Authority, some 25 square kilometers of rural land are expected to be cleared, allowing for more schools to be built, roads paved, farm land expanded, lives saved and poverty reduced.”

He added that thousands of landmines have been destroyed and more than 45 million square meters have been cleared to save lives and limps, support resettlement efforts and assist development of rural areas and infrastructure in hundreds of communities across the most affected provinces.

The workshop is also a preparation for 11^th Meetings of the States Parties to the AP Mine Ban Convention (11MSP) will host from 28 November to 2 December 2011 in Cambodia. This convention will provide a unique opportunity for friends of the Convention and all interested stakeholders to feel the reality of an environment of disturbed by the treat of landmines and will generate needed momentum to all collective efforts.

Source: The Southeast Asia Weekly, April 10-16/Vol5, Issue 15, Page 6