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Title – Living among the remnants of war
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 13th June 2008
Mention the Laos war and most people will look at you blankly, mention just the word Vietnam and people will list film after film and song after song at you; many will even now give you their opinion on the conflict there and the US involvement in that country. That makes the following statement so unbelievable:
Sadly the readily available source of metal that the systematic bombing campaign left behind has been far too tempting to leave untouched and as in so many parts of the world the locals have seen this ‘bonanza’ and exploited it. This does provide the most wonderful images for visitors and gets cameras clicking wildly; but the darker side it causes injury and death that massively outweighs the benefit.
Unfortunately visitors to Laos can through ignorance unwittingly add to the existing problems. Souvenirs made from this scrap metal can be bought in local markets and shops and tourist think they make a good talking point once back home. The sad fact is that perpetuating this trade means that locals will seek out the scrap to make into these souvenirs placing them in further danger. We would certainly recommend that you buy local goods to take back with you, but think about the consequences of what you buy. Avoid those items that cause harm to the local population, local environment and steer well clear of items made from animals or plant that may be prohibited when you return home or travel on to your next destination.
Whatever you do, if you are travelling in Laos don’t pick up, touch or attempt to take home any of this type of ‘scrap’; stories of tourists boarding planes with souvenirs that turned out to contain unexploded munitions are not unheard of in Laos. You don’t need to be an expert to figure out what the consequences are of attempting to take such items onto a flight…
Our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop examines aspects of personal safety, Travel Safety and Ethical and Responsible Travel giving you the perfect head start when you are planning your gap year or career break to any part of the world.
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 13th June 2008
Mention the Laos war and most people will look at you blankly, mention just the word Vietnam and people will list film after film and song after song at you; many will even now give you their opinion on the conflict there and the US involvement in that country. That makes the following statement so unbelievable:
In this relatively ‘small’ country with no significant infrastructure and covered in jungle they ‘inadvertently’ got involved in a war and yet never received the focus given to their neighbour whose name will be a by-word for a war for many years to come. The Laotians have been paying the price ever since, as unexploded munitions still litter the country and regularly result in serious injury and death to the Laotians.‘Laos is the most bombed country on earth. The US dropped 2.4 million tonnes of bombs on it during the Vietnam war – more than the allies dropped on Germany and Japan combined in World War II’
Sadly the readily available source of metal that the systematic bombing campaign left behind has been far too tempting to leave untouched and as in so many parts of the world the locals have seen this ‘bonanza’ and exploited it. This does provide the most wonderful images for visitors and gets cameras clicking wildly; but the darker side it causes injury and death that massively outweighs the benefit.
Unfortunately visitors to Laos can through ignorance unwittingly add to the existing problems. Souvenirs made from this scrap metal can be bought in local markets and shops and tourist think they make a good talking point once back home. The sad fact is that perpetuating this trade means that locals will seek out the scrap to make into these souvenirs placing them in further danger. We would certainly recommend that you buy local goods to take back with you, but think about the consequences of what you buy. Avoid those items that cause harm to the local population, local environment and steer well clear of items made from animals or plant that may be prohibited when you return home or travel on to your next destination.
Whatever you do, if you are travelling in Laos don’t pick up, touch or attempt to take home any of this type of ‘scrap’; stories of tourists boarding planes with souvenirs that turned out to contain unexploded munitions are not unheard of in Laos. You don’t need to be an expert to figure out what the consequences are of attempting to take such items onto a flight…
Our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop examines aspects of personal safety, Travel Safety and Ethical and Responsible Travel giving you the perfect head start when you are planning your gap year or career break to any part of the world.
Please visit our website at http://www.safegapyear.com/ or join us on Facebook. For a complete list of Blog entries visit our National Press Archive page.
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