Hong Kong action film star Jackie Chan (R) looks on as a Cambodian girl makes a presentation with a landmine sign during the movie star's 2005 visit to a landmine zone in the city of Pailin. Landmines remain one of the biggest obstacles to Cambodia's development, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Monday at the start of a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the international Ottawa Treaty mine ban treaty.(AFP/File/Khem Sovannara)PHNOM PENH (AFP) - Landmines remain one of the biggest obstacles to Cambodia's development, Prime Minister Hun Sen said Monday at the start of a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the international mine ban treaty.
Hundreds continue to be killed or maimed each year in Cambodia, where millions of mines or pieces of unexploded ordnance remain scattered across former battlefields.
"Landmines are still one of the biggest issues for us and they are threatening Cambodian security and development," Hun Sen said, adding the government would continue to destroy its stocks of mines.
Landmines were a key weapon in Cambodia's decades-long civil war which ended in 1998, and were often laid indiscriminately in large swathes of forest or field.
"We don't need any more weaponry. We need to clear these from our country," the premier said.
Delegates from Southeast Asia, Europe and the Middle East are also attending the three-day Ottawa Treaty conference, which will focus on how landmines affect development.
"Landmines are a development issue, and cultivating partnerships in mine action is vital in order to overcome the challenges mine-affected countries face," said Canada's ambassador to Cambodia Donica Pottie.
Several foreign demining groups have worked with the government's own ordnance agency since 1992 to clear Cambodia's minefields.
But the work is extremely slow, and roughly 2,900 square kilometres (1,119 square miles) of mine-infested land remains.
Cambodian demining officials say they hope to have Cambodia largely cleared of mines by 2020, but add donor disinterest is threatening their efforts.
Last year, the government's Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) lost a fifth of its foreign funding, which has been decreasing steadily since 2004, CMAC director general Khem Sophoan told AFP earlier.
Six of the Association of South East Asian Nation's (ASEAN's) 10 members, including Cambodia, are among the 153 countries worldwide to have signed the Ottawa treaty.
Hundreds continue to be killed or maimed each year in Cambodia, where millions of mines or pieces of unexploded ordnance remain scattered across former battlefields.
"Landmines are still one of the biggest issues for us and they are threatening Cambodian security and development," Hun Sen said, adding the government would continue to destroy its stocks of mines.
Landmines were a key weapon in Cambodia's decades-long civil war which ended in 1998, and were often laid indiscriminately in large swathes of forest or field.
"We don't need any more weaponry. We need to clear these from our country," the premier said.
Delegates from Southeast Asia, Europe and the Middle East are also attending the three-day Ottawa Treaty conference, which will focus on how landmines affect development.
"Landmines are a development issue, and cultivating partnerships in mine action is vital in order to overcome the challenges mine-affected countries face," said Canada's ambassador to Cambodia Donica Pottie.
Several foreign demining groups have worked with the government's own ordnance agency since 1992 to clear Cambodia's minefields.
But the work is extremely slow, and roughly 2,900 square kilometres (1,119 square miles) of mine-infested land remains.
Cambodian demining officials say they hope to have Cambodia largely cleared of mines by 2020, but add donor disinterest is threatening their efforts.
Last year, the government's Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) lost a fifth of its foreign funding, which has been decreasing steadily since 2004, CMAC director general Khem Sophoan told AFP earlier.
Six of the Association of South East Asian Nation's (ASEAN's) 10 members, including Cambodia, are among the 153 countries worldwide to have signed the Ottawa treaty.
1 comment:
Claim to win sympathy and aid. The reality is different. I'm almost certain of that.
LAO Mong Hay, Hong Kong
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