The land of heroes
Our heroes
Our land
Cambodia Kingdom


Monday, January 01, 2007

Cambodian mine victim, clearing land to save others


Last Updated: 2:34am GMT 02/01/2007

Landmine casualties in Cambodia, one of the most mine-contaminated countries in the world, have halved, according to figures released yesterday. For years more than 800 people a year have been killed or injured by landmines and unexploded ordnance in Cambodia, which is littered with explosives laid and dropped in the wars of the 1970s and 1980s.

Khoeun Sokhorn, Cambodia’s only female amputee deminer, shows how she prepares ground before removing mines. However, in the first 11 months of 2006 that figure fell to 418, a drop of 50 per cent on the same period last year. Rupert Leighton, the country manager of the Mines Advisory Group (MAG), said more land was being cleared and police were enforcing a ban on trade in ordnance for scrap.

"The objective by 2012 is to reduce casualties to zero," he said. "We are going to work our damnedest to make it happen." The British-based organisation has cleared 3.8 million square metres of land this year, an increase of almost a quarter on 2005. It uses locally-recruited teams to clear their area, and such employees include Khoeun Sokhorn, 24, the only known female amputee deminer in the country. She is from Ouchheu Krom in Pailin province, a Khmer Rouge stronghold for decades. Her MAG team have cleared more than 9,200 square metres in an area where 18 families live, and 15 people have been killed or injured by mines.
So far they have located 91 mines and 25 items of unexploded ordnance. Most of the weapons found are Chinese-made items laid by the ultra-Maoists and craters left by their detonations are scattered among the fruit trees in an orchard. "I want all the mines in my village to be cleared because I want my relatives to be safe, not to be injured like I was," said Khoeun Sokhorn. She was walking to Thailand to find work when her right foot sunk deep into the mud of a flooded path and triggered an explosion.
"There was a big bang and I didn't know what had happened – I didn't feel any pain," she said. "When the smoke cleared I tried to walk and I fell over and asked somebody what happened."
Her foot had been blown off entirely, most of her calf was a bloody mess and within half an hour she was in agony. "I wanted to die," said the mother of a two-year-old daughter. "Giving birth is not as painful as that and is just pain for a few days. My leg hurt for two months."
It was amputated just below the knee, but the wounds were not only physical. Unable to work, she stayed at home while her mother laboured on a corn farm to make up for her lost wages, and her husband left her. "I couldn't go out to do anything. I felt ashamed. My husband's relatives told him to get a divorce and promised to get him a new wife who is not an amputee and can work. I felt very angry. I think maybe nobody will want to marry me because I'm an amputee. Now I feel very happy to get a job with MAG."
While MAG spends tens of thousands of pounds to equip its units – their metal detectors cost £1,500 - employing staff from within affected regions cuts running costs so that more land can be cleared with the same funding.
Read more!

Vietnam-Cambodia-Thailand tours to open


16:14 01/01/2007

Land and sea tours linking Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand are expected to open in the first quarter of 2007, said Le Minh Hoang, director of Kien Giang Southern Province’s Tourism Department.

Phu Quoc Island
The land tour will begin from Rach Gia city of Kien Giang province through Xaphia border gate of Ha Tien to Sihanoukville city of Cambodia and end in Kathaburi province of Thailand.
The sea tour by high-speed cruise ships will start from Rach Gia city to Phu Quoc island of Vietnam and end in Kathaburi province. A recent survey says that travel firms of Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand have agreed on the land and sea routes.

A survey trip with the participation of travel officials, experts and firms will be made in the first quarter before officially opening the new tours. The Kien Giang provincial tourism sector will co-ordinate with Hoa Binh Travel Firm and Mai Linh Taxi to use caravans to take tourists by land.
These tours will be opened because “The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism has planned to turn Kien Giang province into a national tourism site due to its great tourism potential,” explained Mr Hoang.

He added that the Government has agreed to build Phu Quoc into a national and international eco-tourism site. Therefore, new tours are hoped to contribute to taking foreign tourists to the Phu Quoc Island in particular and Kien Giang in general.

Besides, there are about 40% of Vietnamese people residing in Sihanoukville city and Kathaburi provinces, who have high demands of travelling to Vietnam, Mr Hoang said.

New tours to Thailand and Cambodia are expected to help Kien Giang attract more 22-25% of tourists to the province next year. The provincial tourism sector plans to draw 600,000 tourists in 2007, 22% higher than that of 2006.

(Source: ND)
Read more!