DESPITE an international effort to clear land mines in Cambodia, the casualties from them still saw an increase of over 40 per cent this year.
The Cambodian Mine Action Authority said there were 71 casualties from January to October this year due to land mine and unexploded ordnance incidents.
It said 11 people died, 47 were injured and 13 had to undergo amputation.
Compared with the same period last year, there was a 42 per cent increase of casualties. There were 50 casualties from January to October last year.
During that time, eight people were killed, 31 people were injured and 11 underwent amputation.
According to The Khmer Times, the CMAA reported that from 1979 to October this year, 19,779 people have been killed, 36,023 injured and 9,047 amputated due to landmine and unexploded ordnance incidents.
It said that from 1992 to October this year, 1,910 square kilometres of land were cleared of land mines and explosive remnants of war (ERWs).
“More than one million anti-personnel mines, 25,153 anti-tank mines and about three million items of ERWs were found and destroyed,” the CMAA report said.
Last month at the signing of a mine action agreement between Australia, UNDP and the government, CMAA first vice-president Ly Thuch said regional and internal conflicts from the 1960s to late 1998 left Cambodia as one of the most land mine and ERW affected countries in the world.
He said with support from the international donor community, the United Nations and development agencies, the government has been able to clear land mines and ERW contaminated land.
These now-safe lands have opened up for productive uses and economic opportunities. Thousands of vulnerable and low-income communities have benefited from the development.
“The government of Cambodia is committed to making Cambodia mine-free by 2025. We strongly hope that from 2026 onward, no Cambodian is killed or injured by land mines,” Thuch said.
To achieve a mine-free Cambodia by 2025, he said strong commitment was needed from international donors, the government, private sector and also individuals.