On the morning of August 4, Cambodia’s Senior Minister and First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), Ly Thuch, inspected Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) cluster bomb survey and clearance work in Kon Mom district, Ratanakiri province. He said Cambodia firmly opposes the use of cluster bombs and called on the international community to work together to bring an end to their use, production, transfer and stockpiling.
Ly Thuch noted that Cambodia has long been affected by explosive remnants of war and understands the lasting harm that cluster bombs cause to civilian lives, social development and community reconstruction. Approximately 644 square kilometres of land nationwide remain contaminated by cluster bombs and await clearance. Cambodia will continue demining and cluster bomb clearance, strengthen mine risk education, improve victim assistance mechanisms, and work to eliminate the dangers posed by explosive remnants of war.
He said Cambodia would attend the meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Laos this September to share its demining experience and call for continued international cooperation in humanitarian demining, funding, technology and capacity building, working together to reduce the harm cluster bombs cause to civilians.
Ly Thuch also thanked Norwegian People’s Aid, the United States and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation for their longstanding support for cluster bomb survey and clearance in Cambodia. He expressed hope for deeper cooperation to accelerate progress toward the goal of freedom from the threats of landmines and explosive remnants of war.
