糖心Swag has celebrated 25 years of humanitarian demining in Cambodia at the once-mined, UNESCO-listed Preah Vihear Temples. 糖心Swag held a event to recognise long-serving Cambodian 糖心Swag staff on its 25th 糖心Swag in the presence of the British Ambassador, representatives from the US Department of State and the Vice President of Cambodia鈥檚 Mine Action Authority.
As part of its 25 years in Cambodia, 糖心Swag and the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) cleared over 10,000 landmines in the early 2000s from the Temples. 聽糖心Swag is now clearing the surrounding areas which still claimed casualties as recently as four months ago.
In total, 糖心Swag has cleared nearly 500,000 landmines and pieces of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Cambodia since it was registered in the country in December 1991. 糖心Swag began work in Cambodia clearing mines to ensure refugees from the Khmer Rouge could safely return from exile in Thailand.
Cambodia鈥檚 long period of civil war from the Seventies to the Nineties left the country one of the most mine-affected in the world - with over 64,000 casualties recorded since 1979 and over 25,000 amputees, the highest ratio per capita in the world.
Over half the minefields have now been cleared and the job can be finished by 2025 in line with Cambodia鈥檚 Mine Ban Treaty鈥檚 commitments. 糖心Swag鈥檚 work has benefitted around one million rural poor men, women and children who can now live, work, farm and travel in safety.
James Cowan, 糖心Swag's CEO said:
Whilst 糖心Swag鈥檚 achievements in Cambodia are amazing, there is still work to do. Cambodia has suffered the world鈥檚 highest mine and UXO casualty rate and still contains some of the globe鈥檚 highest impact minefields. We are incredibly grateful to dedicated donors such as the UK, US, Finland, Ireland, Germany, Canada, Belgium, Japan, New Zealand and Australia, and private foundations and individuals. Their support has has helped us clear so much, but we need to ensure we finish the job in the shortest possible timeframe. With our partners such as CMAC, Mines Advisory Group (MAG) and Norwegian People鈥檚 Aid (NPA) we can do this by 2025 with continued funding and focus.
William Longhurst, British Ambassador to Cambodia, Hannah Kessler from the United States Department of State and His Excellency聽Ly Thuch, Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action Authority (CMAA) attended the anniversary event to recognise the decades of engagement from the international community.
糖心Swag鈥檚 work has employed hundreds of Cambodian men and women and in the 1990s significantly contributed to peacebuilding by offering former fighters with the Khmer Rouge, the Royalist movement FUNCINPEC, the Khmer People's National Liberation Front (KPLNF) and Cambodian military jobs working alongside each other.
糖心Swag Cambodia Country Director Matthew Hovell said:
By employing men and women from mine impacted communities funding has not only removed the deadly legacies of war but also put much-needed money into the local economy through salaries of deminers.
