Landmines
/ UXO / Explosive Remnants Of War
(i)
Introduction
Prime Minister Hun Sen named mine clearance as the ninth millennium goal for Cambodia. This indicates the importance of Mine Action in Cambodia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. The reduction of human misery and expenses for health care caused by mine accidents, the availability of safe land for agriculture and settlement for landless people and the security of mine free travel for work, income generation and play, would greatly improve the quality of life for many rural Cambodians. The commitment, work and sacrifices of many humanitarian deminers, and organisation assisting survivors of landmines and mine affected communities need to be honoured by assigning funds to complete their tasks.
Clearance of 41.7 million square meters of land in 2003 is 20% more than in the previous year but much stronger donor commitment to mine clearing agency projects are needed for Cambodia to achieve its Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty target of clearance by 2010. The number of mine/uxo accidents fell slightly in 2003 but the first eight months of 2004 have seen the first upward trend in many years. Cambodia has a mine action co-operation authority. Monitoring of the landmine treaty implementation is done each year and shows the problem still to be addressed is extensive.
Soth is one of the “mine incident statistics”. He lost both his arms. A very lively thirteen years old he had never had the chance to go to school in his mine affected areas of Prey Thom. Now, without arms, he is learning to write and read at Arrupe Centre, Battambang. Instead of zones with no school, he wants zones with no mines. So does Sam Oeun, who lost both her legs when she was three months pregnant.
(ii)
Key
Issues
Speeding
up mine clearance: Support for clearance of mined areas should occur
immediately. Task selection, prioritisation and planning should be
undertaken locally near mine-affected communities. The effectiveness and
efficiency of efforts will improve coordination at both the local and
national level through involvement of mine clearance operators and affected
communities. Current management tools, such as the
Information Management System for Mine Action, and the
International Mine Action Standards should be simplified in order to be
of benefit to national authorities. Providing
multi-year funding to mine action programmes, makes them more sustainable
and effective.
Issue: Victim Assistance: Victim assistance must be integrated into national health, rehabilitation and development policies. Reintegration of survivors must be seen as assuring human rights and changing society. Reintegration must aim to achieve what survivors say in most important to them. In Cambodia this means access to opportunities to earn a living, shelter, education and affordable health.
(iii)
Recommendations
Recommendations for the Government:
Decentralise planning of mine clearance to the mine affected areas in collaboration with mine operators and affected communities, facilitated by data from CMAA.
Pass the Disability Law and insist that all employers include disabled among their staff.
Recommendations
for Donors:
Fund mine clearance in Cambodia so that the 2010 mine free target is reached
Listen to the voice of survivors and mine affected communities and fund programmes that ensure their basic human rights to food, shelter, health and education.
Recommendations for NGOs:
Use cost effective methods to clear areas that will most help existing and future communities.
Ensure that the bulk of victim assistance funding goes to survivors themselves.
For more information on the issues raised in this paper, please contact:
Cambodia Campaign to Ban Landmines, Tel: 855 23 880 455, Email: camban@online.com.kh