On the eve of the 30th anniversary of the end of the war in Vietnam, Clear Path International is responding to a spate of new accidents north and south of the former Demilitarized Zone in Central Vietnam.
�This is a historic event marked by healing and hope in relations between former enemies,� says Martha Hathaway, executive director of Clear Path International. �But sadly, the legacy of our shared history continues to affect those who live in the former war zone of central Vietnam, particularly children.�During the month of April, Clear Path International has responded to four different accidents along the central coast in which civilians were killed or injured by unexploded ordnance left over from the war, Hathaway says.
In just four months since Jan. 1, 2005, local hospitals reported 28 accidents involving landmines or unexploded ordnance in four provinces, killing five people and injuring 30. Twenty-four of the victims were children.
Clear Path Intenational is a U.S.-based 501 C 3 nonprofit with offices in Vermont and Washington State. It serves landmine accident survivors, their families and their communities in Southeast Asia. Since 2000, the organization has provided a range of medical and social services to these and 1,500 other survivors of accidental explosions in 13 provinces in Vietnam.
�There are thousands of previously injured landmine survivors who still need our help and the hidden remnants of war claim new victims every week,� Hathaway says.
�While we reflect on the peace that has reigned between the United States and Vietnam for three decades now, let�s support those whose lives and dreams are shattered by the war�s destructive legacy,� she says. �For many families in central Vietnam, the war simply isn�t over.�
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