By:
• Sao Phal Niseiy

• November 24, 2024 , 4:58 PM

SIEM REAP — Thousands of people, including government and civil society representatives as well as mine victims from around the globe, participated in a solidarity march in Siem Reap Province on Nov. 24, advocating for a landmine-free world.

In the event’s opening speech, Ly Thuch, first vice president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), said that the march was crucial to demonstrate solidarity and unity in fostering a mine-free society and achieving a peaceful and safe world.

“I see parents, community leaders, and friends coming from all over the world: You are not only participants in the march, you are the heart of the mission,” said Thuch, who has served as president of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention in 2024. “We are moving toward a future where every child can run free, every farmer can farm without fear, and our communities can grow safely.”

The mine-free world march took place just a day before the start of the fifth review of the Ottawa Convention, which Cambodia will host on Nov. 25 to 29.

Adopted in Ottawa, Canada, in 1997 and gone into force in 1999, the convention seeks to eradicate anti-personnel landmines globally.  This international agreement is formally called the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and their Destruction, often referred to as the Ottawa Convention or the Mine Ban Treaty.

Representatives of 164 countries are expected to gather to review in Siem Reap the effective implementation of this convention, and especially progress made on the clearance and destruction of landmines. The conference is anticipated to adopt an action plan and a political declaration for the next five years.  

Mey Meth, a 17-year-old landmine survivor who lost his right arm when he was 11, traveled from Keas Krolor District in Battambang Province to show his solidarity with the other marchers in demanding global attention to the impacts of landmines. 

“I joined the march because I don’t want more victims like myself in the future,” said Meth, who is a member of the nongovernmental Kdei Karuna Organization.

“What I really want to see is the world free of landmines,” he said.

Chris Moon, a former British Army officer, a landmine survivor, and now an international motivational speaker, also took part in the march, hoping the march would help boost efforts to eliminate landmines in Cambodia and around the world.

“We want to rid the world of landmines,” he said. “This is complex, but just look at Cambodia's process; it has changed so much. The progress is impressive.”
 

Moon came to Cambodia in 1993 and served in mine clearance work for two years. However, he lost his right arm in 1995 in Mozambique when he moved from Cambodia to run a mine-clearing program there.

“I came here in 1993, and now I see the country is hosting the landmine conference,” Moon said, adding that this showcases the impacts of global solidarity to tackle landmines. “So, I expect and hope that we will continue the efforts to eliminate landmines,” he said. “In my lifetime, I hope to see Cambodia without landmines.”

Though he lost his limb to a landmine, Moon remains thankful for the life he has now, encouraging other victims to focus on what they can do and every individual to be kind to each other.

Moon was awarded the Order of the British Empire by Great Britain for his work. “I focus on what I can do and don’t care about what I can’t do,” he said. “This teaches me about the nature of human relationships, interdependence, and helping each other: That is how we can create a better world.”

Another participant in the march was Zoran Jesic, who had flown almost 9,000 kilometers from Bosnia and Herzegovina to attend the review of the Mine Ban Treaty. As a landmine survivor, he now works with the Amputees Republike Srpske (UDAS), an organization that supports landmine victims, amputees, and members of their families.

Jesic explained that his participation in the march was mainly to show solidarity in demanding an end to the continued use of anti-personnel landmines.

“I participated as a mine survivor as I am wearing a prosthetic leg,” he said. “But I need to send a message to the whole world about how important it is to stop the use of landmines, destroy stockpiles, and give support to the mine victims.”

The use of landmines in Ukraine: terrible news for people

Despite the effectiveness of bringing states together to address the complex issues of the use of landmines against people, many major and powerful nations, such a China, India, Russia and United States have not ratified the convention, arguing that anti-personnel landmines are essential for protecting their troops and strategic areas.

While Cambodia is hosting the review of the Ottawa Convention to push for a global effort to end landmine use, US President Joe Biden approved sending anti-personnel landmines to Ukraine this week, ramping up his support for that country in his final days in office.

Jesic, who lost his limb in 1994 during the Bosnian war as an army officer, expressed his disappointment over the provision of landmines in the Ukraine-Russia war, and with the involvement of the major countries.

“It is a terrible news,” he said. “Unfortunately, we have to go back and deal with the new problem of landmines. Ukraine is a state party to the convention, and they should not be down like this.”

Landmines are among the most horrible weapons that should never be used in war, as the victims are mostly civilians, Jesic said. “As mine survivors, we have to appeal to the world and take the opportunity to demand state parties to end the production and help mine survivors,” he said.

The United States decision on Nov. 20 to transfer internationally-banned anti-personnel mines to Ukraine received waves of criticism. This is because it not only goes against its own U.S. Anti-Personnel Landmine Policy but also pushes Ukraine to breach international law as a party to the Ottawa Convention.

For Chris Moon, major countries' ongoing use of landmines is fundamentally wrong, considering that landmines have long-lasting impacts on populations, as exemplified by what happened in Cambodia.

 “These landmines have stayed in the ground and killed and maimed people for many years after the fighting had stopped,” he emphasized.