Tackling Cambodia’s landmine legacy

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Title – Tackling Cambodia’s landmine legacy
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 11th June 2008

Cambodian landmine clearance projects are undoubtedly a great success and a credit to all those people who have over the years risked their lives and often paid with their lives in order to clear the estimated 5 to 6 million landmines that were laid in that country. This figure is almost incomprehensible when you take the time to think about it and then consider the excruciatingly slow process involved in landmine clearance. That it takes the average soldier just minutes to plant a landmine and takes a trained expert such a long time to firstly discover the mine and then clear it, does lead many to believe that countries like Cambodia may never truly be clear of them and clear of the horrific injuries they now cause the innocent civilians who come across them inadvertently.

The life shattering effects of the landmine are clear to see in every corner of Cambodia, a country that suffers the highest percentage of amputees of anywhere in the world. The situation is compounded in Cambodia not only because many people are effectively self sufficient and grow their own food or work in agriculture, but also that being one of the world’s poorest countries there is a lack of state aid for those no longer able to work. Add to this the effect that the 1 to 3 million people who were killed during the Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970’s and the hole that this left in a population, the effect it had on nearly every family in Cambodia and it is not difficult to see why Cambodia lags behind some of its close neighbours in terms of the remarkable development that has occurred in South East Asia.

What is wonderful despite these three or four decades of trauma for Cambodia, is the Cambodian people themselves. It is such an open society, there is such honesty about their history, they parade it openly for the world to see and talk about it freely. They genuinely believe that this approach will stop it ever happening to them again. The overwhelming feeling you get from Cambodians is a feeling of being welcomed to their country and to their culture. You should not underestimate the positive contribution that tourism has on that country and country that in relative terms is still very new to tourism.

Landmines undoubtedly pose a danger to visitors to Cambodia, but it is relative. Mine clearance has been concentrated on areas of high population and on areas that attract large numbers of visitors, the real dangers lie in more rural areas and in the forests. But the risk remains and will remain for decades to come. Take sensible measures and listen to local advice. As travellers get more adventurous and as more remote and beautiful parts of Cambodia open up to tourism, the risk will undoubtedly rise.

Our Gap Year and Independent Travel Safety & Awareness workshop examines your destinations and the risks you will face during your gap year, career break or while travelling independently. We provide you with the tools to assess the risks enabling you to make informed decisions as you travel. Cambodia will remain heavily mined for years to come, but sticking to well used paths, regularly frequented areas and heeding local advice will allow you to experience all that this beautiful country and it fascinating ancient cultures has to offer in relative safety. Understanding the effect landmines and the Khmer Rouge still has on the people of Cambodia allows you to better understand the country and your hosts and will give you an insight that you simply will not get from a seat on tour bus round the temples of Angkor Wat.

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