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The Royal
Government
of
Cambodia
has
continued
to
be
one
of
the
most
active
supporters
of
the
international
movement
to
ban
landmines.
This
was
confirmed
in
1997
when
Cambodia
became
one
of
the
signatories
to
the
Ottawa
Convention
on
the
total
ban
of
landmines
-
one
of
the
most
effective
and
widely
supported
international
conventions
ratified
through
the
United
Nations.
Through
tireless
efforts
by
the
Government
and
the
Cambodian
Mine
Action
Centre,
with
generous
support
and
contributions
from
donor
countries,
CMAC
has
been
able
to
free
hazardous
areas
of
mines
and
UXO
totaling
to
more
than
106
square
kilometres
from
1993
to
May,
2003.
CMAC
has
found
and
destroy-
ed
over
181,659
anti-personnel
mines;
3,514
antitank
mines
and
750,887
items
of
UXO,
and
cleared
over
273,732,034
fragments.
CMAC's
Structure
and
Management
1.
CMAC's Structure
2.
Management
2.1.
CMAC
Governing
Council
The role of the
Governing Council is to oversee the
activities of CMAC and to give directions to
ensure conformity with government mandates.
It is also responsible for the approval of
CMAC budgets, work plans, programmes,
accounts, and reports. As the tasking,
external quality assurance, advocacy, and
other national-level responsibilities will
now fall with CMAA, the Governing Council
oversight is focused on CMAC budget,
structure and internal policies approval
that will have to conform to any national
policies and standards set by the CMAA
2.2. CMAC Executive Unit
CMAC Executive
Unit is the core body which is responsible
for demining activities. This body consists
of a Director General, Deputy Director
General and three departments: Department of
Planning and Operations, Department of
Support and Human Resources, and Department
of Finance. The focus to date for CMAC has
been on safety, effectiveness and
efficiency. CMAC still needs to develop
sound management capacity for its field
operations to further enhance the issue of
productivity.
Commitments
As a National
Humanitarian Mine Action Service Provider,
we are committed to:
-
Understanding
and
meeting
the
needs
of
the
Cambodian
people.
-
Understanding
and
meeting
the
needs
of
the
donors,
partners
and
all
key
stakeholders,
who
assist
and
cooperate
with
us
to
fulfill
CMAC
mission.
-
Understanding
and
meeting
our
obligations
as a
responsible
employer
by:
- Selecting the right people using fair and transparent process.
- Providing a safe working environment.
- Providing training and development opportunities for our staff.
- Providing appropriate equipment tools and materials for our staff to function effectively.
- Conforming to an impartial and moral code of conduct.
- Providing fair and equitable salaries and benefits to our staff.
- Providing sound leadership.
-
Creating active linkages with mine
action partners and development
agencies in Cambodia and with mine
action agencies internationally.
-
Developing and maintaining sound
policies, procedures and work
practices.
-
Measuring and publicizing our
performance in all activities and
using these measurements as the
basis for continuous improvement.
Geographically, Cambodia is located in the
South-East Region of Asia on the Gulf of
Thailand. Cambodia's neighboring countries
include Thailand to the South-West, Vietnam to
the East, and Laos to the North. The total area
of Cambodia is 181,035 square kilometers. Much
of the land is forested, mountainous, and
inaccessible due to poor infrastructure and
landmines. The history of Cambodia is very
closely attached to the history of the whole
region, which is associated with many years of
political unrest, tension, colonial and civil
wars, and international border conflicts from
time to time.>
As a consequence of these
geo-political movements, Cambodia was
engaged in many decades of wars, resulting
in loss of millions of lives, severe and
extensive damages to the economy and
national infrastructure, and above all else,
the eternal threats by long term enemies to
human lives and development - the land mines
and other unexploded ordnances, scattered
everywhere throughout the country.
Cambodia's unrest started with the World War
II, when Cambodia became a victim of
international conflicts. Bombs were dropped,
hand grenades were thrown, and bullets were
fired.
Exploded
ordnances became fragments scattered
everywhere. Unexploded ordnances remained
untouched and hidden, ready to explode. When
World War II had finished, the French
Indochina Wars came as a replacement during
the 1950's. More bombs were dropped, more
hand grenades were thrown, and more bullets
were fired. The most damaging war of all was
the war between 1970 and 1975 when 539,129
tons of air-to-ground bombs were dropped on
Cambodia. The legacy of this activity is
still evident today as it is estimated there
are thousands of unexploded bombs still
lying hidden underground.
The
North Vietnamese army laid the first
landmines in Cambodia in 1967, and continued
to do so throughout the Vietnam War period
to protect bases and supply routes, which
they established along the border on
Cambodian territory. The United States
responded with covert operations from 1969
to 1973, dropping tons of bombs and laying
mines well within neutral Cambodia.
Following
the coup by General Lon Nol against Prince
Norodom Sihanouk in 1970, war between Khmer
Rouge forces and the US-backed Lon Nol
regime brought conflict and landmines to the
rest of Cambodia. The Khmer Rouge used
landmines for military purposes and to seal
off their harsh agricultural cooperatives in
"liberated" zones. Lon Nol forces relied
heavily on mines towards the end of the war
to beef up defenses. While in power from
1975 to 1979, the Khmer Rouge used mines
extensively along the borders with Vietnam
and Thailand, turning the country into what
was called a "prison without walls". After
1979 guerrilla warfare continued. Mines were
extensively deployed by all groups across
very fluid battle lines as a weapon of
choice to protect territory, channel enemy
forces to vulnerable positions, and
demoralize communities.
Starting
in 1985, millions of mines were laid in a
600-kilometer barrier along the Thai border
under the notorious K5 conscription program.
A
major episode of mine laying followed the
withdrawal of Vietnamese troops in September
1989, in the military power vacuum that
resulted. Government forces laid an enormous
quantity of mines to hold back resistance
forces on the Thai border. Resistance
fighters in turn launched an offensive
bigger than any in the war prior to this,
and laid mines deep within the country.
Mines continued to be employed by the Khmer
Rouge and by Government forces even after
the 1993 elections. Throughout the three
decades of mine laying in Cambodia, it was
standard practice to lay much denser
minefields than necessary, and to lay them
not only in battlegrounds but among civilian
communities. Minefield location maps were
generally not drawn, and as a result, mine
laying frequently took place in
already-mined areas. Wet seasons caused
mines to move or become buried, which
further complicates the task of locating and
clearing them.
The
brief history described above is sufficient
evidence that Cambodia's mine and UXO
problem was severe and needed urgent
solutions. As a result, a demining unit
which was to become CMAC later was created
within the United Nations Transitional
Authorities in Cambodia (UNTAC) in an effort
to solve the problem. |
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