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Among other things, this podcast deals with the long-term economic and social effects of unexploded ordinance and landmines on countries like Laos and Cambodia:
http://www.newint.org/radio/
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http://www.archive.org/download/RadioNewInternationalistRadioNewInternationalist_B ombsAway/radionibombsaway.mp3
Bombs away
This month last year, Israel’s military forces were attacking Lebanon. One year later, a horrifying legacy remains. Imagine walking into a field where hundreds of unexploded cluster bomblets lie – just some of the four million that Israel’s military dropped into South Lebanon in the last days of its bombardment. You know that – in this field – living and dying can change with the wind. You have seen the faces and limbs that are blown away with one wrong step. What do you do? What John Rodsted did was grab a camera, film the fields, and take the footage to the Norway Government. Within weeks the Oslo Process had begun – an international dialogue to negotiate a treaty to ban cluster bombs. John is the official photographer to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines – the team that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. Ten years later John is still campaigning against those cruel and life-destroying legacies of war – the anti-personnel bombs that fighting forces leave behind when they withdraw from conflict. To explode the argument that cluster bombs are legitimate weapons of war, he is joined in conversation with other international campaigners:
* Rae McGrath, a driving force behind the campaign to ban landmines, describes the anatomy of this successful international campaign: where to lobby, when to fight, and how to win.
* Simon Conway, the Director of the British NGO Landmine Action, who’s a global advocate effectively prosecuting both landmines and cluster bombs, translates what the politicians are saying.
* Arms traders make their money from dead bodies. Their best products are the ones that kill the most effectively. Siemon Wezeman from the Stockholm International Peace Research explains why the international arms trade continues to be brisk.
And what’s a more appropriate CD for the topics that we’ve been discussing in this program than Ceasefire. Rock meets rap in this musical collaboration from Sudan inspired by peace-talks between the Muslim North and the predominantly Christian South.
Laos remains contaminated with UXO
Laos is still considered to be the most heavily ordnance-contaminated country in the world, an official from the National Regulatory Authority (NRA) said yesterday in Vientiane .
NRA director Dr Maligna Saignavongs, along with Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Welfare Laoly Faiphengyoua, was speaking at an annual evaluation of activities relating to unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Laos .
“ Laos has the distinction of being the most heavily bombed nation on Earth,” Dr Maligna said.
Most of the weapons dropped were in the form of cluster munitions, which are designed to explode on or shortly after impact and release up to 670 smaller explosives, known locally as bombies (each about the size of a tennis ball).
About 270 million individual bombies were dropped on the country from 1964 to 1975 by American warplanes during the Indochina War.
“Over 80 million, or 30 percent, of the explosives released did not explode,” Dr Maligna said.
Much of the UXO is in the country's 47 poorest districts. The lives and prosperity of people in these areas are still threatened by the explosives that lie buried in the ground, he said.
It is estimated that more than 87,000 square kilometres are contaminated, and more than 12,000 people have suffered from UXO accidents in 13 provinces since the end of the war in 1975.
There were no reports from the NRA of fatalities last year, but 88 people were injured.
Accidents usually occur when farmers contact a buried device while working in their fields, or children play with the ball shaped objects. People collecting wood or forest products, or hunting for scrap metal, or even lighting a fire close by, could set one off.
The NRA's target is to reduce the number of victims in the thirteen provinces most affected: Attapeu, Borikhamxay, Champassak, Huaphan, Khammuan, Luang Prabang, Luang Namtha, Phongsaly, Saravan, Savannakhet, Xekong, Vientiane , and Xieng Khuang.
The authority's 10 year strategy began in 2003. Its budget this year will be US$1.2 million for UXO clearance and information campaigns as well as regulating the other organisations working in this field.
The NRA says its teams last year found and destroyed 30,132 items, and cleared 3,305 hectares of land which can now be safely developed for farming, schools, roads and new villages.
Dr Maligna said the teams spend about US$2,000 to clear each hectare of land.
Donors supporting the NRA include Japan , Germany , Switzerland , Luxembourg , Australia , England , UNICEF, and the United Nations Development Programme.
By Khonesavanh Latsaphao
(Latest Update January 18, 2008)
http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeContent_Laos%20remains.htm
It seems somewhat remarkable that the casualty figures aren't higher. That said, I wonder how many casualties and deaths go unreported in a country where the public probably have no great expectation of a government that will actually tackle the problems of remote communities or even help with people's injuries and subsequent disabilities:
88 people injured by UXO
(KPL) 88 people were injured by unexplored ordnance over the past year, according to an annual meeting of National Regulatory Authority (NRA) to resolve the unexplored ordnance (UXO).
The meeting was held on 17 January at Lao Plaza hotel, attended by Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Welfare Mr Laoly Faiphengyoua, the NRA committee from line ministries and other officials concerned.
NRA Director Mr Maligna Saignavongs said his teams have already cleared over 38,317 bombs out of total land of 3,305 ha and most of them have been destroyed.
Laos is one of least developed countries, which majority of agriculture produce areas has been covered by unexplored ordnance, said Mr Maligna.
He said that the 13 provinces in Laos were affecting with UXOs, including Vientiane, Savannakhet, Champassak, Khammuan, Huaphan, Luang Prabang, Luang Namtha, Phongsaly, Saravan, Xekong, Xiengkhuang, Attapue and Borikhamsay.
http://www.kplnet.net/english/news/edn11.htm
UXO clearance makes progress
Laos continues to destroy unexploded ordnance (UXO) to clear contaminated land and pave the way for development, the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Mrs Onechanh Thammavong, said yesterday.
But, according to some United Nations experts, the land will not be cleared within the foreseeable future, with estimates putting the timeframe for the work at more than 100 years.
“We know Laos was the most heavily bombed country in the Indochina conflict,” the Japanese Ambassador to Laos, Mr Masaaki Miyashita, said at a ceremony in Vientiane yesterday to deliver grant assistance of US$861,280 (about 8.5 billion kip) to support the work of UXO Lao in Saravan, Xekong and Attapeu provinces.
UXO Lao, the national UXO clearance programme, has so far cleared 11,865 hectares of land since 1996.
“Clearance operations have destroyed more than 801,013 unexploded devices,” said the National Programme Director of UXO Lao, Mr Bounpone Sayasenh.
The government of Japan is one of the largest donors to UXO Lao. Since 1997, it has provided more than US$4.3 million to support operations in Attapeu, Saravan, Xekong, and Xieng Khuang provinces. The Japanese government is also the largest supporter of development projects in Laos .
The latest grant assistance will enable UXO Lao to continue related activities such as surveillance and community awareness as well as the actual clearance of ordnance in three provinces, Mr Bounpone said.
Laos is one of the most heavily bombed countries in the world, suffering from intense ground battles and aerial bombardment during the Indochina War.
More than 580,000 bombing missions resulted in more than two million tonnes of bombs being dropped during the 10 year period of conflict. About 30 percent of these did not explode on impact.
Much of the ordnance is in the country's 47 poorest districts. The lives and prosperity of people in these areas are still threatened by the explosives that lie buried in the ground.
It is estimated that more than 87,000 square kilometres are contaminated, and more than 12,000 people have suffered from UXO accidents in nine provinces since the end of the war in 1975.
According to UXO Lao, the organisation employs more than 1,000 employees, of whom around 85 percent assist w ith field operations.
UXO Lao receives support from Japan , Australia , Germany , Ireland , Luxembourg , Poland , Switzerland , the United Kingdom , the United Nations and the United States of America . The programme is also funded by private foundations such as World Without Mines.
By Khonesavanh Latsaphao
(Latest Update January 25, 2008)
http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeContent_UXO.htm
Japan backs UXO Laos
(KPL) The Government of Japan has agreed to provide 2.6 billion kip to the UXO Laos for its unexploded ordnance clearance activities in the southern provinces of Saravane, Sekong and Attopeu.
The signing ceremony on financial assistance was held here on 24 January between the Director of UXO Laos Bounpone Sayasen and Japanese Ambassador to Laos Massaaki Miyashita.
The signing was witnessed by Minister of Labour and Social Welfare Mrs. Onechanh Thammavong and officials concerned.
The minister highly valued the Japan’s assistance over the past years, constituting significant contribution to the UXO clearance plan of the Lao PDR to improve the living conditions of ethnic Lao people.
Japan is one of the most significant donors for the UXO clearance in Laos.
Since 1997, Japan has provided financial assistance of 4.3 million US dollars to Laos for its efforts of UXO clearance in Xiengkhouang, Saravane, Xekong and Attopeu provinces.
UXO Laos was established in 1996 with assistance from the United Nations, international organisations and other friendly countries.
So far UXOs have been cleared from 11,865 ha.
http://www.kplnet.net/english/news/edn3.htm
Govt recognises continuing threat of UXO
More than 200 people in Laos are killed, maimed or injured by unexploded ordnance every year, and this fact was highlighted during International Day for Mine Awareness in Vientiane yesterday.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Lieutenant General Duangchay Phichit opened the day's activities at the National Rehabilitation Centre, where UXO experts and victims spoke about the ongoing problem.
Lieutenant General Duangchay, who is also Chairman of the National Regulatory Authority for UXO/Mine Action of the Lao PDR, said April 4 was approved by the UN General Assembly in 2005 as International Day for Mine Awareness.
Laos was joining other countries around the world in observing the event for the third successive year, he said.
In his opening address, Lieutenant General Duangchay told the UN Resident Coordinator, mermbers of the diplomatic corps and donor agencies about 0.15 percent of the 87,231sq km of UXO contaminated land in Laos had been cleared in the past 11 years, but this needed to increase to avoid further long-term consequences.
“Our national development will be delayed. The country will not achieve its goal of graduating from its ‘least-developed' status by 2020,” he said.
Laos is the most bombed country in the world per capita. From 1964 to 1973 more than 2 million tonnes of bombs were dropped on the country. Many of these bombs were cluster munitions that contained hundreds of sub-munitions, or bombies, and 30 percent failed to explode. Thousands remain in rice paddies and fields, around schools and markets and on roads, endangering the lives of men, women and children.
A national survey on the socio-economic effects of UXO conducted in 1996 indicated that 14 out of the country's 17 provinces are affected. About 25 percent of villages, or 87,231 sq km out of the total 236,800 sq km of land surface, are contaminated with UXO.
The government has prioritised the UXO issue and worked with domestic institutions and international organisations and governments to address the problem.
In 1995 the Lao government established the UXO Steering Committee and Trust Fund with support from the United Nations Development Programme, attracting support from the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, the USA, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Australia, Finland, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, Sweden, Republic of Korea, Ireland and international non-government organisations.
Between 1996 and 2007, 13,037 hectares were cleared. Of this, 9,767 ha are used for agriculture and 3,270 ha for other development purposes. The clearance effort destroyed 815,816 UXO items including 4,147 big bombs, 381,013 bombies, 5,753 mines, and 424,903 other kinds of munitions.
Mine risk education was provided in 7,036 contaminated villages in the nine provinces of Savannakhet, Khammuan, Saravan, Xekong, Attapeu, Champassak, Xieng Khuang, Huaphan, and Luang Prabang. According to records 1.7 million people attended these sessions.
Commercial companies have also cleared areas belonging to local and foreign development projects, such as copper and gold mines and hydropower, agricultural and industrial tree projects.
Next month more than two-thirds of the governments from around the world will be meeting to write a treaty to ban cluster munitions. Cluster munitions have been used in 23 countries, including Afghanistan , Iraq and Lebanon , but no country has been as affected by this weapon as Laos .
By Khonesavanh Latsaphao
(Latest Update April 8, 2008)
http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeContent_govt.htm
MAG and US State Department making scrap safer
(KPL) An innovative MAG (Mines Advisory Group) project to clear UXO from a foundry in Phonsavanh is now underway.
An opening ceremony for the project, which is funded by the US Department of State, was held on June 5.
The ceremony was attended by Mr. Khampien Sinuanthong, Vice-Governor of Xiengkhouang, Mr. Somneuk Vorasane, Deputy Director of the National Regulatory Authority for the UXO sector, Mr. Maikham Sivongsa, head of the Labour and Social Welfare in the province and Mr. David Hayter, Country Programme Manager for MAG Lao PDR. The foundry is the final destination of much of the scrap collected in Xiengkhouang. Villagers collect scrap metal and sell it onto local dealers, who in turn sell it onto the foundry, where the metal is melted down and made into steel rods used in construction.
The scrap collected often includes UXO, much of which is live. �After there were accidents at the foundry, the owners stopped melting down UXO and just let it pile up,� said Soth Phommalinh, MAG�s Provincial Programme Manager in Xiengkhouang.
Over 20,000 items of UXO are currently stored at the site, including cluster bomb, ammunition, rockets, grenades and white phosphorus rockets.
It is possible that if one item in one of the piles exploded, it could set off a series of detonations.
Around 45 people work at the foundry, and there are houses of local residents within sight. If there was a major accident it could result in numerous casualties. The project will clear UXO from the foundry and scrap dealers� yards, reduce the acceptance of UXO as scrap metal and provide scrap dealers with safety briefings and a reporting system for UXO.
http://www.kplnet.net/english/news/edn11.htm
See also previous post for current thread headline issue
Ban on UXO trade considered
Regulating the trade of unexploded ordnance (UXO) for scrap metal was one item being considered at a meeting in Vientiane yesterday.
The meeting focused on UXO regulations which are expected to come into force in Laos after the UXO sector working group meets in Vientiane this November.
It was attended by more than 60 representatives from government ministries, embassies and UN agencies, and opened by Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Mr Laoly Faiphengyoua.
Mr Laoly said the regulations would benefit poor people whose only source of income was the dangerous work of collecting scrap metal.
“About 50 percent of children collect scrap metal and about half of them look for it below the surface of the ground. About 30 percent of adults also collect scrap metal,” he said.
“Much of the UXO is located in Laos ' 47 poorest districts and the lives and prosperity of people in these areas continues to be threatened by explosives that lie buried in the ground.”
Every day scrap metal collectors can be seen carrying cheap metal detectors into contaminated areas looking for unexploded bombs. UXO is a major cause of death and injuries in the nine provinces which are contaminated with UXO.
According to the National Regulatory Authority (NRA), a strategy for reducing the number of UXO victims began in 2003 and will run until 2013.
It aims to increase public awareness through education. Project staff also conduct question and answer sessions, using posters, telling stories and performing puppet theatre shows in which the audience actively participates.
Laos is the world's most heavily bombed nation per capita. More than two million tonnes of ordinance was dropped on the country by American warplanes from 1964 to 1973.
Up to 30 percent of this ordinance did not explode, including millions of bomblets or “bombies” from cluster munitions.
According to an NRA report, more than 2,624 hectares of land was cleared of UXO between January and May this year. This involved the destruction of more than 40,300 ordinance items.
By Khonesavanh Latsaphao
(Latest Update July 16, 2008)
http://www.vientianetimes.org.la/FreeContent/FreeContent_Ban.htm
More women should take part in UXO clearance
(KPL) More women should participate in the field of Unexploded Ordinance (UXO) clearance and such dangerous objects are usually found in the remote areas of Laos. This was said by the Chief Executive Officer of the Max Organization at a press conference held in Novotel Orchid Hotel, Vientiane on 16 July.
For a number of years women were not normally involved in the UXO projects. That is why those few who worked in it and who were out in the field in rural areas caused the local villagers to feel embarrassed.
In order to upgrade the equality between men and women in Laos, the Lao government is giving priority to the improvement of the gender role of women in all fields and this was tabled at the national strategy plan of the Lao government.
The officials who attended this meeting were representatives from the Ministry of Labour and Social-Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, international organizations and concerned officials.
http://www.kplnet.net/english/news/edn15.htm
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