YouTube: Princess Diana in Angola Raising Landmine Awareness

Whenever I tell people about Clear Path International's work with landmine and bomb accident survivors, invariably Princess Diana's name comes up and they ask me if I ever met her! No... sadly, the princess died about 6 months after my wife and I got involved in the landmine movement with a small program based on Bainbridge Island, Washington.

With all the celebrities and spokepeople that have come and gone in mine action... everyone still thinks of Princess Di as the patron saint of the movement.

On this, the ninth anniversary of her death, I found this video on YouTube of her in Angola.

UN Humanitarian chief condemns use of ordnance against Lebanon as �immoral�

from The AP Newswire:

UNITED NATIONS - The U.N. humanitarian chief on Wednesday accused Israel of �shocking� and �completely immoral� behavior for dropping large numbers of cluster bombs on Lebanon when a cease-fire in its war with Hezbollah was in sight.

Jan Egeland said Israel had either made a �terribly wrong decision� or had �started thinking afterwards.� The remarks were unusually harsh even for Egeland, who often ignores an unwritten rule that U.N. officials should not criticize member states too severely.

�What�s shocking and I would say, to me, completely immoral is that 90 percent of the cluster bomb strikes occurred in the last 72 hours of the conflict, when we knew there would be a resolution,� Jan Egeland said at a news conference.

Read the rest of this article here.

US Munitions Still Deadly in Vietnam

On Aug. 13, in the Hoai An district of the central province of Binh Dinh, four 13- to 15-year-old boys died after they found a U.S.-made M79 rifle grenade and broke it open to get the gunpowder. The grenade exploded, killing three of the boys on the spot and seriously wounding the other. The wounded boy later died on the way to the hospital.

The deaths of the four boys can be added to the long list of victims of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Vietnam. It also exposes the need to educate civilians about the danger of UXO. In the same province, in 2004, seven people died when they broke open a 105-mm cannon round. Neighbors told local authorities that they had hoped to sell the gunpowder to fishermen.

Landmines and UXO are considered one of the factors hindering the rebuilding of Vietnam. Statistics released by the U.S. Army show that about 15 million tons of bombs, landmines, and munitions of all kinds were used during the Vietnam War. Of those, about 15 to 20 percent failed to detonate on impact and continue to pose a danger to the population.

No official national aggregate statistics exist on landmines and UXO, but it is estimated that the number may reach 800,000 tons, covering nearly 7 million hectares of land (about 20 percent of Vietnam) with an average density of 46 tons per square kilometer, or 280 kilograms per capita. The Peace Trees, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) in Vietnam, said there is now more than 5.3 million UXO in the ground. The most common types of UXO found in Vietnam are M79 rifle grenades and BLU cluster bombs.

According to a report released by the Vietnamese Ministry of Police, since the end of the war in 1975, abandoned U.S. munitions killed more than 38,000 people and wounded more than 100,000. Accidents often happen when people are clearing land for cultivation, collecting scraps for reprocessing, or attempting to retrieve the gunpowder from munitions.

Read the rest of the story here.

Wolf Brolley Travels Along the Thailand - Myanmar Border

About four hours north out of Chiang Mai (Thailand's second largest city) there are some roads that wind up and up and up; round and round and round (if you're in the back of a Thai pick up staring up at the sky through the canopy of the tall conifers and occasional remaining hardwood trees, the hairpin turns make the sky twirl vortex-like). These roads bring you closer and closer to the border area between Thailand and the Shan state of Myanmar. It is an area of conflict and hardship. It is an area of determination and loss. And if we (CPI) are heading up there (after a two year absence -- last year there was too much military action to consider the trip), that loss will likely include the limbs of Burmese refugees. For those unfamiliar with the very basic facts: a number of the ethnic minorities of Myanmar are subjected to forced labor, prostitution, and enslavement. If they protest, they are hunted down by the military in the jungles as they flee from their villages, their ancestral lands. Their villages and subsistence crops are burned to the ground and the land is mined. Those that are fortunate enough to survive make it across the Thai border and end up in refugee camps. But their suffering is far from over: they are not granted refugee status ~ they have no legal status, no freedom to leave the camps, no ability to earn a living. Their choice is life behind barbed wire or death.



We arrived at a refugee camp whose name would translate as "Happy Hill" outside of a mostly Shan settled town called Peng Lo. There are a number of military check points to clear ~ they are ok with folks visiting the local Shan orphanage ("Mary's orphanage"). Two years ago, the camp inmates had been living in very rough conditions, beneath blue tarps high in the Thai mountains. At that time, we were informed that just two weeks prior to our arrival, the camp had been shelled and bombed (makes perfect sense: it's far easier to wipe out a group of people that are all collected conveniently in a group behind barbed wire then when they are dispersed, invisible in the jungle...) -- within Thai borders! There had been about 300 inhabitants and life was far from easy in the muddy and saddening camp. This year (after visiting the wonderful, small Shan orphanage in the same village) we found a fairly well built, considerably larger (now 600 inhabitants) camp. The ground was still all mud and stone, but there were thatch roofs to the homes, there was a class room with very earnest pupils struggling to pronounce English words. We sat under one of the thatch roofs sipping tea with the camp council's director. i asked if the camp would continue to grow, "Only by births" (within the camp). Over the border, in the surrounding land their were no more civilians, only landmines, soldiers and devastation.



Back when we left Phnom Penh, i had split off from the rest of the group to join a dear Cambodian friend and remarkable man, Samel, pay respects at the funeral of his friend's father on the east coast. He was also making the journey to Sihounakville to bring his mother some medications. From this eastern edge of his country, we would immediately turn around, drive back into Phnom Penh and continue on to the second largest city (Battambang) near the western border to rejoin the others. Samel was making this second journey simply because helping the poor, the disadvantaged, the suffering population of his country is so close to his heart. Whenever we have come to Cambodia he is there in any way possible for us. He was 5-6yrs old when the Khmer Rouge swept to power and imprisoned, worked and starved millions to death. The drive was, uhm, adventurous. There are no lighted roads, it was raining, and we had to make good time. "No, there are no speed limits in our country. In fact, i'm working on draft legislation for that matter right now..." The speedometer bordered on triple digits as we pulled blindly into the oncoming lane around the spraying wheels of heavy transport trucks. There are times when the Buddhist practice of non-attachment comes a little easier...



We left Chiang Mai on bus for the six hour journey to Mae Sot ~ on the western border between Thailand and Myanmar. We boarded a very pleasant modern upscale bus, travelled about 5 blocks, pulled into a parking lot and were herded on to a creaking hulk with wobbly fans and bench seats. Oh well. It was a long haul -- seemed like the last three or four days had been all spent with the dulling whine of wheels on rough roads in our ears and minds. Here in Mae Sot we help to support the Prosthetic clinic at the Mae Tao Clinic (please google it) and we also support the "Care Villa" -- a kind name for a plaited bamboo and thatch hut in the Mae La refugee camp that houses landmine survivors that need a higher level of care. Many of them are double amputees that were also blinded by their encounter with the munitions. They are yet another mind expanding, heart breaking group of individuals -- many of them are musical and have performed for us in the past (watch for a possible disc from CPI of landmine survivor/performer music).



Visiting Mae La is a tremendous experience. It is a vibrant place of life: there are people going to places of worship, there are kids playing sports, there are classrooms ringing with kids reciting. It is huge: 50,000 inhabitants and it has been in existence for roughly 16yrs. One can get the impression that life isn't so bad -- they have medical care (MSF-- medicins sans frontiers/doctors without borders), spiritual centers, schools... And yet, and yet, as we drove away last year there was a line of small kids, toddlers, little tikes whose tiny hands wrapped around the wire -between the cutting barbs- to watch us leave. This is a generation that lives and breathes the knowledge that there are people -themselves- that will never leave, can never leave; and there are those -us- that drive away at will. i hate that. i hate that kids grow up within such a reality. i hope that in some way they learn that people want to change that. That people care and are working to change that.

Thanks,

wolfgang brolley

Clear Path International Introduces Hippos to Cambodia

The hippo never was indigenous to Cambodia. As far as we can tell from our natural
history research, the large slick round animal comes from Africa. But that didn't
stop us from introducing it to the young patients at the Angkor Hospital for
Children in Siem Reap.



Our hippo donation came in the form of a pediatric exam table given to Clear Path
by the Group Health Cooperative of Seattle last year along with about five
container loads of other medical equipment and supplies the large health care chain
no longer needed, ranging from OR tables, anesthesia machines, x-ray equipment,
gurneys, exam tables, crash carts and so on.



Much of the Group Health donation went to the earthquake region of Pakistan and to
a hospital in El Salvador, but we set many of the pediatric items aside for the
children's hospital, thanks to a shipping grant from Universal Aide Society in
Canada. Snoqualmie Valley Hospital also contributed items to the shipment. The
other items we sent to Cambodia include an incubator, billy warmer, pediatric
gurneys, an infant scale, cribs and surgical supplies.



Though the incubator and warming light may have greater practical healing power,
the hippo was by "the biggest hit" among the children at Angkor hospital, said
David Shoemaker, executive director. "It's being used all the time."



But the staff seems to like almost as much. When we toured the hospital and were
introduced to everyone, Shoemaker only needed to say "these are the people who
gave us the hippo" and there was an immediate smile and recognition!



The Angkor Hospital for Children is a bustling place in the center of Siem Reap,
tucked between the Center market and some big hotels. It was started by a Japanese
photographer who frequented the nearby temples of Angkor Wat and discovered the
plight of the area's children suffering from HIV/AIDS, malnutrition, tropical
diseases, tuberculosis, polio and other serious conditions. The hospital staff,
which includes international volunteers, sees an average of 300 children per day
and its annual patient load is up to 70,000.



Although somewhat overwhelmed by its load drawn from Siem Reap and surrounding
provinces and an active outreach program, the hospital is so well run it is now
training doctors, nurses and specialists in the government-funded public health
sector.



Impressed with facility when I visited it last year, I decided to set aside the
pediatrict items donated to us in the Seattle area with the help of a nurse from
the Mukilteo area who had also visited to hospital. When I came across the hippo at
Group Health I thought of the hospital immediately.



Little did I know it was going to be so popular that the hospital decided to buy
several other exam beds shaped like animals, including an elephant, Shoemaker
said. The elephant will delight the kids as well, though it may not surprise them
as much as the hippo for we all know the lumbering large-footed, big-eared collosus
with the trumpeting trunk is indigenous to Cambodia and regularly is seen at
Angkor Wat giving rides through the park.

Unexploded Cluster Bombs Prompt Fear and Fury in Lebanon

A child plays in the streets of Aitta Shaaba, a village riddled with cluster bombs. Photograph: Scott Peterson/Getty

Four dead as mine-clearing teams fear death toll from Israeli weapons could soar

Declan Walsh in Yahmour
Monday August 21, 2006
The Guardian




When the guns went silent in Aitta Shaab, a war-ravaged village close to the Israeli border, three children skipped through the rubble looking for a little fun.

Hurdling over lumps of crushed concrete and dodging spikes of twisted metal, Sukna, Hassan and Merwa, aged 10 to 12, paused before a curious object. Sukna picked it up. The terrifying blast flung her to the ground, thrusting metal shards into her liver. Hassan's abdomen was cut open. Merwa was hit in the leg and arm.

"We thought it was just a little ball," said Hassan with a hoarse whisper in the intensive care ward at Tyre's Jabal Amel hospital. In the next bed Sukna, a ventilator cupped to her mouth and a tangle of tubes from her arms, said even less.

Read the rest fo the story here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1854715,00.html

Four Children Killed by Explosive In Vietnam

Last week, on August 13th, while looking after their families' cows, four children (ages 12, 13 and two at 15 years old) living in Hoai An district of Binh Dinh province, Vietnam picked up an explosive left over from the Vietnam war and tampered with it.

All four were killed.

Clear Path International staff in Vietnam is working with the families to find out more about the incident.

YouTube Video: If Some Bombs Are Smart Then 'Cluster Munitions Are Destructive Morons'

This YOUTUBE video from Canada's CBC NEWS shows the dangerous nature of cluster bombs in warfare. Many of the injuries/deaths from unexploded bombs we see in Vietnam are the result of cluster bombs left over from the Vietnam war.

Kabul, Afghanistan Photos Posted to Flickr

Clear Path International's executive director Martha Hathaway and board member and co-founder Kristen Leadem just returned from a trip to Kabul, Afghnaistan. They were there on a fact findng trip for the US Dept of State's Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement.

They have uploaded their photos to our Flickr.com page. You can see their pictures here
http://flickr.com/photos/cpi/tags/afghanistan/



CPI's Kristen Leadem is shown the landscape on a hilltop in in Kabul.

Clear Path International's First Study Trip to Laos

Ever since James, Martha, Kristen and I started Clear Path International nearly six
years ago, I have wanted to go to Laos. Now I finally had a chance to do so, as we
sandwiched three days in between our project visits to Vietnam, Cambodia and the
Thai-Burma border.



It was our work in central Vietnam that inspired me to go to Laos. Along Vietnam's
coast -- to the north and south of the former Demilaterized Zone at the 17th
parallel -- we support what we call "landmine accident survivors" who are really
UXO victims. That stands for "unexploded ordnance" and it includes a whole range of
explosives, such as cluster bombs, mortars, rockets, phospherous grenades and so on.





During the Indochina War, the same explosives were used in Vietnam and Laos. All
along the Lao border with Vietnam ran the Ho Chi Minh trail and it was bombed by
U.S. forces for years, making Laos the most bombarded country in the world. And
although Laos' population is only a fraction of Vietnam's, the UXO problem there
continues to claim new casualties at a disturbing rate.



Accurate figures are hard to come by, but rough estimates put the number of UXO
survivors in Laos at about 2,500, with 140 new accident survivors joining their
ranks each year.



Needless to say we learned a lot from our three days in Vientiane, the Lao capital,
thanks almost exclusively to Mike Boddington of COPE, the Cooperative Orthotic &
Prosthetic Enterprise, who hosted us and put us in touch with key players in the
area of survivor assistance.



COPE brings together brings together organizations that work in the field of
mobility disability in Laos. These include the National Rehabilitation Center of
the Ministry of Health, World Vision, Association for Aid & Relief Japan and the
Leprosy Mission International of Singapore.



We toured the National Rehabilitation Center on our second day in Laos. It was a
Friday and things were a bit slow, but that was just as well because it gave us
plenty of time to look at all of its departments without having to disturb many
patients.



The NRC assists all persons with disabilities, a number of them are landmine/UXO
survivors. More importantly, the NRC and COPE run four other prosthetics and
orthotics centers in the provinces of Luang Brabang, Xiang Khuang, Savannakhet and
Pakse.



All these provinces have a high concentration of UXO survivors that benefit from
the centers' services. In 2004 and 2005, COPE provides physical mobility services
to 1,487 and 1,268 patients throughout Laos respectively.



A number of NGOs, such as World Vision, World Education and Handicap International
also provide additional community-based rehabilitation services ranging from
emergency medical care to vocational training -- much the same as Clear Path does
in central Vietnam.



But these NGOs assist all persons with disabilities and only cover certain
provinces, leaving gaps in aid to UXO survivors elsewhere.



At this time, it's not our intention to start up services in another country. We
have our hands full in Vietnam, Cambodia and along the Thai-Burma border. But
meeting with Mike and the NGOs inspired us to look for small ways to be helpful and
to return in the not-too-distant future to visit the provinces, particularly the
heavily bombed ones up against the border with Vietnam.



So we told Mike we would arrange for a shipment of medical equipment and supplies
to better outfit and provision the National Rehabilitation Center in Vientiane,
which is otherwise well organized and productive. It needs beds and it can use
plaster casting strips, just to name a few items. In the coming weeks, CPI hopes to
get a wish list from the NRC to start setting items aside for it.



Meanwhile, we intend to stay in touch with the folks we met in Laos to make sure
that whatever we decide to do fits in with the needs of landmine survivors and
complements the work already done by other NGOs there.



On this first trip to Laos, we succeeded in collecting initial impressions and
ideas. But I am already looking forward to going again next year and exploring this
laid-back but ruggedly beautiful country more.

Cambodian Wall Carvings and a Leaf Virtuoso

When our plane touched down on the airstrip in Paksay, Laos there was no doubt about being in a different world. Those of us that were in-transit to Siem Reap simply exitted the plane and hung out wherever we were so inclined. You could circle the plane, you could wander over to the fuel truck, you could do laps up and down the runway, i suppose... When it was time to be on our way, someone from the crew yelled, "OK, let's go!" i have to say ~ that's my kind of travel. We left in the rain and, for once, left the rain behind us. For anyone that has been following us, you'll understand that something less than 100% humidity -- esp. the kind that obscures even highspeed wipers -- was welcome like a cool breeze.

On landing in Siem Reap the Cambodian sun hit us hard and strong. There is something about the Cambodian atmosphere that lets all the UV rays in and adds a little something to boot. i have never been here when the rays have been anything short of brutal. Lack of tree cover, of canopy probably has something to do with it. We travel through areas that support maybe 1 tree per acre. In these same areas the locals tell us that ten years ago you couldn't see the sky for the density of the forest -- there had been rhinoceri and big cats. Cambodia is in for some very tough times environmentally -- the floods will continue to erode the top soil into a memory. The seasonal floods already have a deadly effect in that the UXO that are scattered everywhere (mostly mines) will shift with the waters, so that a paddy/field that was safe can become deadly.



Today we ventured out to view some of the more distant parts of the Angkor Wat area. Our guide book wisely advised that for "NO REASON should one wander off the path: the area is MINED!" Wonderful, but blisteringly hot would be a fair description. We followed a river bed up and into the mountains, spying the occasional rock carvings from nearly a thousand years ago and only discovered 10yrs ago. Returning through the main temple complex area, we took in Banteay Samre. This is a quiet, miniature of Angkor Wat itself. The day was almost done, the sun setting (gratefully, all the crowds were hugamug up on the main sunset viewing temple), and we had the whole temple to ourselves. i was circling an outer wall of the temple and saw Imbert approached by an amputee. He was heavily tattooed and clearly ex-military. His name was Won (sp?) and had stepped on a landmine in the area that we had just left... We managed some well intentioned, but woefully inadequate phrasebook pointing communication and left bowing in humble respect and well wishing.

My eyes are always drawn into the shadows, into the areas that don't match the rest of the picture. Through the undergrowth, i could see some figures in the trees -- a small gathering/hanging of hammocks. Despite some minimal risk, i'm always drawn to discretely investigate (to the great consternation of one of my Cambodian friends, last year i wandered off with an inebriated and very friendly Angkor policeman to his little forest shack for some cross cultural exchange...) situations. i had the sneaking suspicion that they might be musicians, and if so, it was likely that they might be landmine survivors. Bingo. i chatted with a couple of them, indicating that i would be interested in hearing them play. They were happy to oblige -- at first there were only four of them, then a woman with finger cymbals and vocals, then a hand drummer, then a fellow that masterfully played every melody on a leaf that he picked up. Soon the full 8-9 member band was playing with full heart and soul. Their music carried out to the path to the temple and a decent sized audience collected. One of the musicians approvingly raised an eyebrow at me and i put my hands together in acknowledgement that it was all that was deserved. i lost track of the people that bought their cd they had stacked up on a little box in the dirt. They would eat well tonight. i was happy.



We leave this bustling and shockingly rapidly growing town for Phnom Penh tomorrow, and from their will make our way overland to Battambang, Cambodia's second largest city. Clear Path is helping to establish a rice mill to help the survivors of this region have a viable industry/vocation that will also rebuild their place in the community. Stay tuned. From Cambodia we will be visiting the Thai/Myanmar borderlands.

Best wishes to one and all,

wolfgang brolley

Phuong: Bomb Survivor - Track Star

I recognized her as soon as i saw her. At the first instant, i was slightly confused because i thought that we were visiting a different Clear Path beneficiary. My mind had decided that we were going to visit a family that had taken part in a pig bank program that CPI supports for survivors, but here was this vibrant young woman smiling brilliantly from her small home. i knew that i had met her before and i had a hazy recollection of zipping around sandy backroads on a moped with her... As we piled out of our vehicle i knew that it was Phuong, our track star -- there was no mistaking her. And for her achievements, she really ought to be as easily recognized by the rest of Vietnam. Last year when i had the pleasure of buzzing around with her, she had been a Clear Path outreach worker in her region, and we had been visiting other remote survivor/beneficiaries.

Now, in her home with her gentle, curious and beautiful son, Minh, i got to hear her story in detail. She was seventeen, she was working in some flooded rice paddies only 500 yards from where we sitting. An ill fated step placed her left foot on an explosive device. The blast blew her on to her back; the shock of it rendered the injury momentarily painless. Instinctually she attempted to stand back up on her shattered foot and ankle, and immediately pitched forward on to her face back into the muddy water. In this tragedy it was her good fortune that her father was nearby. He gathered her up on to his back and carried her out of the flooded paddies. When they got to a hospital, the doctors had nothing to repair -- the destruction was too great. Amputation was all that could be done. Severe infections from the paddy water kept her in the hospital for months. Eventually she recovered and returned home to work.

The explosion had shattered not only her limb, but also her self-esteem. As we sat listening to her story, i wondered where her husband was and why i didn't remember ever hearing about him. She explained: she knew in her heart and soul that she wanted to raise a child -- to be a mother, but just as certainly she believed that no good man would ever again find her attractive enough to marry. Understand Phuong radiates life, she is fit, and her totally spontaneous smile warms your entire heart. She is truly a beautiful person. Tragically -criminally- the landmine had robbed her twice. Phunong did what she felt she had to do -- she had her child out of wedlock. And he is a gem.

Phuong is thirty now. About three years ago, she heard about a local race for disabled athletes and decided to enter -- using her standard issue prosthetic limb. And she blew past the rest of the field. The race organizer looked at the prosthesis that she had run on and told her to try a sports model that his organization happened to have -- it didn't fit her correctly, but she ran with it anyway and took the gold in the competition. She found an expert Prosthetist in Hanoi and had it fit to her residual limb. It is hers to keep as long as she continues to medal. This September she will be competing in the Vietnam national trials for para-athletes and has the chance to represent Vietnam internationally in the Paralympic games. Her physical prowess, bravery and discipline have enabled her to cobble together all the small awards from her many track and field triumphs so that she could purchase the small house that she and Minh live in. Phuong runs the 100 meter dash, the 4x100, the 4x400, and competes in the long and high jumps as well. The only coaching she gets is from a sports organization director -- not even an actual track coach. She gets only three weeks notice before a competition and is expected to train intensely within that time to prepare the next race. She is in need of a new prosthetic foot, but has no means to afford the better models now available in the States. If you would like to know how to help us support Phuong's obtaining a new prosthetic foot please contact me (wolfbrolley@yahoo.com) -- i'll be working in SE Asia for a couple of more weeks, but will be on that project when i return.

Phuong's wins in Vietnam are truly for all of her fellow UXO (unexploded ordinance) survivors - as well as for all disabled and challenged athletes. We counted up all the gold and silver medals that she had stashed away in a battered suitcase, but came up a few short of how many she said she had won so far. Bashfullly, reluctantly she confided that when athletes from other teams come back empty handed from a competition, she gives them one of her medals so they have something to show their community. This is Phuong through and through. Amazing.

wolfgang brolley

Soldier Killed by Soviet-Era Landmine in Afghanistan

Landmines and unexploded bombs remain active for decades after wars end. The story below is a sad reminder of the potency of the explosive remnants of war:

Afghanistan: Soldier killed in mine blast

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A coalition soldier was killed in southeastern Afghanistan when his vehicle struck a Soviet-era mine, U.S. military officials said in a statement Thursday.

"Today, coalition forces mourn the loss of one of our fine, brave warriors," said Brig. Gen. James Terry, Combined Joint Task Force deputy commanding general - operations.

Military officials said recent rains in Paktika Pronvince exposed the old mine, noting that the current insurgency was not to blame for the blast.

"This tragic incident serves to remind our troops that Afghanistan remains a dangerous region due to many years of war, and it's time for reconstruction," said Terry.

Visiting with Survivors, Kids First Village, and the Cam Lo Blind Association

Our initial beneficiary contact yesterday came with arriving at the Clear Path offices first thing in the morning. Ok, actually our first activity was having banh mi om let pho ma ~ Vina for scrambled eggs with cheese on a mini-baguette ~ and a shot of jet fuel. Jet fuel is "caphe sua": remarkably strong drip coffee that forms a black half inch atop the viscous white layer of condensed milk in the bottom of our ubiquitous poka-dotted juice glasses.

With a Vietnamese caffeine sparkle in our eyes we encountered Lang, who is a double below elbow double amputee. He lost his hands and wrists in 1975 while helping his mother picking up bundles of cut grass. Ignorant of the explosive device that to lay hidden on the ground under the grass, he gathered it as well. The simple contact of his innocent hands set off the device. Since that time, he has found a passion for swimming and is now a multi-gold medal winner and has won top honors at the Asian Paralympic Games. Lang's quiet strength emanated like a force of nature. Beyond swimming, his grace with pensmanship would totally put to shame my own best, careful attempts, and his comfort bicycling (ironically including using "hand" brakes) would set an example for any able bodied individual.

From the office, we bounced over a few awash backroads to the Kids First Village. This sprawling compound is an expression of a grand vision in helping disabled children -and "disabled" may include socio-economic disablement. The plan is for a number of NGO's to operate semi-independently under the umbrella of Kids First.

Lean and tall, craggily weathered, long term Dong Ha resident John Ward, directs the Village. His plan is to fill these brand new spacious buildings with a hospitality industry and culinary arts training school, a mobility clinic for children with physical challenges, a wheel chair production facility, and a medical clinic for impoverished. To call it a big project would be dangerously understating the challenges ahead, but without a strong vision, without a dream big enough this facility might not attract the attention, enthusiasm and financial support that these children deserve and desperately need.

The idea of "contrast" as a theme for the day became exquisitely clear with the comparison to our next stop: the Cam Lo Blind Association. This organization operates out of a thiry year old set of decrepit buildings -- in places the ceilings are collapsing into the few rooms of their aged building. Several support pillars have completely lost their cement -- they have eroded down to dangerously bare rebar. Floors are cratered and heavily puddled. They train local blind individuals to make natural fiber brooms, toothpicks (and no meal table in Vietnam is without a container of toothpicks), and incense for temples and homes. The Association has strong connections with in the community ~ they cannot make enough brooms for the demand. The local temples are committed to supporting them through the purchase of their incense. These people have done their research and carry out a wonderfully simple, humble, grass roots program that is succeeding strongly.

Clear Path has a poignant personal connection to the Cam Lo Blind Association because two of its beneficiaries ~Thien, 34y/o and Huyen,22y/o~ are both land mine survivors. She lost total vision in one eye and 70% in the other, Thien is totally blinded and lost all the fingers on his left hand. The surgeons were able to reconstruct the remaining palm structure by splitting it down the middle to enable some degree of manual opposition and manipulation.

Thien possess the most arresting eyes of any being i've ever met. Like a magnet, the undimmed brilliance of his heart and soul unexpectedly and irresistably command eye contact. His stellar ('star-like' in that he emits infinitely more light than he consumes) quality is perfectly and beautifully matched by the careful, tenderness that Huyen effortlessy wraps around him. Any of life's sharp edges that manage to find their way through her powerful layer of loving protection, find his seamless, selfless smile of wonder. We went with the two of them to the small, damp room they share in his parents' very modest home. Thien offered to demonstrate his broom making skill while his mother harvested a mammoth jack fruit from one of their trees.

Thien's equipment: one bamboo staff, one bundle of stiff bristle fiber, and a length of tough nylon monofilament. He squatted down comfortably and his limbs began to dance; all four moving, bracing, tying, spreading,. His mouth stepped in whenever the missing fingers were needed -- pulling things tight with teeth as he steadied with his hands, or holding a loop while his hands tied another knot. We were silent in our awe. Communally, we realized that not one of us, with all digits and both eyes could even come close to making such a durable, beautiful product.

Again and again those of us on this trip are given so much more than we can ever return. Thank you Lang,Thien and Huyen.

Heavy Rains in Central Vietnam

For those of you reading this blog to follow Imbert, Wolf and Lori's journey, there may be a pause in updates.

Dong Ha (where they currently are staying in the Vietnam headquarters of Clear Path International) is experiencing HEAVY rainfall.

There is a story about the rain here.

Rats Detecting Mines in Mozambique (video from the BBC)

Experts in Mozambique have trained rats to detect landmines to help save human lives.

The new mine detecting team hope to clear the country of landmines by 2009. Adam Mynott reports from Mozambique.

One Swift, Powerful Kick Through the Uprights

We are savoring the rainy interlude here in Hue that allows for a bit of catch up on email, journaling, and musing.

Yesterday, we travelled from Da Nang to Hue via a detour to the old city of Hoi An. We spent an enjoyable couple of hours strolling through the extensive street market in Hoi An. Markets always bring me to the ground floor of the local experience -- they are so filled with aromas: spicy, punget, human, fish, fruit. They are filled with the noises of commerce, haggling, banging, chopping, yelling. They are filled with the reality of people interacting in ways meaningful, real, traditional and efficient. The old women are snoozing beneath their conical hats. The young people are checking out electronics or new clothes. Families are slurping noodles, squatting on benches. It transports me and humbles me. i never miss the chance to stroll up and down the dark passage ways between all the various stalls.



After a fine lunch at the Blue Dragon (which supports education for at risk kids in Vietnam -- there is a great theme to our travel here in Vietnam in that so many of the places that we visit for meals and necessities are supporting causes: of training street kids in the food industry ~Wa Xua in Hanoi, education in promoting helmet compliance for motos and bike drivers/riders, etc... at least it's compassionate, humanitarian tourism) we backtracked through Da Nang to pass through the six kilometer Hai Van tunnel. Duc, CPI's fabulous and meticulous logistics director and Vietnam's best driver, brought us into Hue so that we could visit two Clear Path beneficiaries.

Our first visit was with young Nghia. I had the privilege of meeting him and his family on last year's trip. He had been a recent victim of a mortar explosion that had blown off both of his feet and his left hand and wrist. At that time, he was very withdrawn and depressed, feet and arm bandaged and wrapped post amputation. The horrendous devastation of the destructive explosion had been equally painfully obvious on the drawn faces of his parents.

As Duc negotiated his way through the back roads of Hue, uncharacteristically, he brought us to a very sudden stop. "There he is!, There's Nghia!!!" He was excitingly pointing to a group of young local guys kicking a red plastic soccer ball around. Unbelievably, there was Nghia kicking the ball with force right at the improvised goal: a stick going across two small trees. We piled out enthusiastically - surprising everyone. In his blue jeans, not even my professional, clinical eyes would have guessed -or perhaps even believed- that this solidly healthy, athletic young man (he's 14 this year) could be a triple amputee. There is the slightest sense that maybe he's minimally more bowlegged than the average Joe, but otherwise one simply sees brilliant, vibrant, physical, thriving life. Together, we all wandered up the lane to Nghia's home where his obviously proud parents poured tea for all of us. Duc and Son (CPI's marvelous medical liaison specialist) helped us to find out how Nghia was doing He was just about to re-enter school, they translated. We enquired if he had any special needs that we could help with. Nghia indicated that all was well; i asked if there was anything that he was having problems with physically (though, after watching his football performance, i doubted it...) Nope, he was doing everything he wanted to ~ except for riding a bike. [and i will soon be correcting that] A bit concerned, i asked if he was the only amputee in his class. He quickly shook his bashfully smiling head. This meant that not only would he not stand out in his school (one in five landmine/UXO survivors are children -- CPI has helped greater than 2500 since it began its mission), but there were companions that would benefit from his example of complete recovery, and especially the strength of his spirit.

If there are ever moments of doubt, of self questioning: Are we doing something? Is what we're doing making a difference? Is what we do changing how someone gets through life? Nghia puts them completely, inarguably to rest with one swift, powerful kick through the uprights.
Thanks, Nghia.


wolfgang brolley rpt
CPI Rehab Advisor

CPI Canada Director Reaches Vietnam

Hi,

My name is Lori and this is my first trip with CPI as Director of Canada Chapter visiting some of the project sites in Asia. Below are my experiences / accounts about this trip as I travel from North Vietnam to Central Vietnam then to Laos, Cambodia and Thai Land. These trips are to see first hands at the generousity of the people in North America extend to CPI beneficiary.

Below is a brief breakdown of our trip so far.

The trip initially started slowly due exhaustng after long commuting times (approx. 18 hours in combined flight times and waiting at airports. )
Our first morning in Hanoi was beautiful. People wake up early in Asia to take advantage of the cool morning air vs the humid and hot temp. by 10 - 11 am. In Ha Noi, we then travel via train to Hoi An. The train was an experiences itself and extremely long and uncomfortable. There was some moment I had doubt as whether I can do the whole trip. However, the following visits just somehow overshadow everything when I realized how fortunate I am and see the good work of CPI and knowing that I am part of the work.

From Ha Noi, the capital of VN we travel south to Hoi An to visit the CPI beneficiary hospital. We got a visit tour of the Danang orthopedic and rehabilitation Center. It was very touching to meet the beneficial of CPI and see that the equipments we received in kinds from donors put to good work such as the patients beds, C-Arm machine, and respirator machines and many more. Some of the special moments was meeting an CPI beneficiary that just come out of a hip surgery which corrected her legs so she can walk straight. Our CPI beneficiary was a uxo victim at a young age. She was a casualty of other kids playing around with the bomb without realize it still active when they throw it toward her direction. She was walking / pushing with constant pain with her bend knee due to tissue regrowth improperly because of not having access to medical. With CPI help, we assisted her medical expenses and set up a victim family planning service that comprehensive to the future of the family and our receipient.

During our tour, we encounter a 26 years old female that we sponsor out of our own pocket at the spot for a surgery that could help her walking straights. The cost of the surgery is inexpensive for us but something that would be a life changing experiences for our beneficiary. It was so touching to see that our donation enable her access to immediate surgery and we was able to witness such surgery.

The emotion I felt at the time just humble and once again reinforce at how lucky each of us are in N. America with our daily life.

From there, we travel to Hue via car passing the marble mountain, the famous China beach and the new tunnel that is 6K long. In Hue we meet up with Nghia. Nghia is another CPI beneficiary a year ago. He is a third generation of UXO victim due to working in the rice field. Nghia was 14 years old when he lost both his legs and one of his hand. Today when we saw him, he was playing soccer and regain some of his childhood along with looking forward to return school in September.

Next, we travel down the road and meet a new CPI beneficiary, Son. Son is a father of 2 young daughters and was the main bread earner. The accident taken place while he was bush clearing in the forest for timber on the Laos border for a living. The hidden bomb blinded his right eyes, 90 % of his left eyes vision and take away four of his five left fingers. CPI is currently helping his medical expenses and working with the family for the comprehensive family planning.

Today is Sunday, we get a day of resting and looking for internet access. It was a very limited but we just glad to get on.

Bye all for now and I look forward to my stage of the trip to Dong Ha, CPI's Headquarters.

out of now,

Lori

Mines Advisory Group Makes Emergency Appeal for Lebanon

Please note the following emergency appeal for assistance from Mines Advisory Group for their live saving work in Lebanon

EMERGENCY APPEAL � LEBANON

Of the estimated 4,000 bombs dropped daily during the current conflict, around 10 per cent of them will fail to detonate posing a major threat to those returning home or trying to rebuild their lives. Unexploded weapons that litter towns and cities cause death and injury long after the conflict ends. Right now, UK-based MAG has 80 members of staff in Lebanon ready to remove and destroy this threat so if you want to do something MAG urgently needs your help to prevent further loss of life. Please act now and make a donation. Call 0800 0723 999 or visit www.magclearsmines.org

Cheques should be made payable to MAG and sent to:
MAG Emergency Appeal
47 Newton Street, Manchester, M1 1FT, UK.


Every penny of your donation will help to save lives. Thank you.

US Department of State to MATCH Donations To Clear Path!

The U.S. State Department has announced it will match up to $60,000 in contributions made by any grassroots and private-sector donors to Clear Path International�s landmine accident survivor assistance work in central Vietnam.
The matching period will last at least through the rest of 2006. This means contributions sent by mail or on the organization�s website will be eligible for the match from the State Department.

The dollar-for-dollar matching challenge was one of two grants for Clear path International announced by the State Department�s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement. The government agency said it would also contribute $75,000 towards Clear Path�s initiative to construct a rice production facility in Cambodia where hundreds of landmine victims will learn farm-based skills in the coming years.


�This is very exciting news for us,� said Martha Hathaway, Clear Path�s executive director. �It�s the first time we have received assistance for our humanitarian work from the government.�
Since it was founded in 2000, Clear Path International has assisted more than 3,000 landmine accident survivors in Vietnam, Cambodia and along the Thai-Burma border, and it has sent 60 containers of medical equipment and supplies to hospitals in 22 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
All that work during the past six years was funded by individual grassroots donors, charitable foundations, churches, businesses and service clubs, Hathaway said.
�The State Department�s announcement of the matching challenge recognizes the strength of our grassroots and foundation support,� she said. �Now, private-sector donors know their contributions will have an even greater impact because of the government match.�
The $75,000 grant for the Cambodia rice mill project does not require a match from private-sector contributors. The rice mill has already received major private-sector funding from the McKnight Foundation in Minneapolis and the United Nations Association USA�s Adopt-A-Minefield program. Clear Path has now raised $280,000 of the $325,000 needed for the mills completion.
To make a contribution to Clear Path International, please visit www.cpi.org.

Senators Seek to Block First U.S. Landmine Production in 9 Years

(Washington, DC, August 1, 2006) The U.S. Campaign to Ban Landmines, a coalition of 500 U.S.- based religious, community, and human rights organizations, today welcomed the introduction of the Victim-activated Landmine Abolition Act of 2006. This important legislation, introduced by Senators Patrick Leahy (VT), Arlen Specter (PA), and others, would block Pentagon efforts to develop and produce the first new U.S. victim-activated antipersonnel landmines in nearly a decade.

"We fear that the U.S. restarting production of victim-activated weapons may provide an excuse for other nations that continue to use indiscriminate landmines," said Joe Volk, Executive Secretary of the Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers). "If the most advanced military in the world continues to claim that it needs these weapons, why shouldn't everyone else?" Volk continued.

Instead of joining the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty banning use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of antipersonnel mines, President Clinton initiated a research and development program within the Pentagon to identify possible alternatives to antipersonnel landmines in order to "end reliance on [antipersonnel mines] as soon as possible."

The goal of the research and development program was to find a discriminate alternative to the antipersonnel mines. After ten years of research, the alternative weapons will soon be ready for full production. Unfortunately, current plans for the weapons look a lot like the conventional landmines.

"Congress should ensure that at a minimum the Pentagon is not spending hundreds of millions of dollars on new weapons that are unable to distinguish between the boot of a solider and the foot of a child," said Scott Stedjan, Coordinator of the U.S. Campaign to Ban Landmines.

The "Victim-activated Landmine Abolition Act of 2006" would prohibit the procurement of landmines or other weapons that are designed to be victim-activated in any circumstance. It would ensure that all new U.S. munitions can only be detonated in response to an intentional act by a person.

"Senators Leahy and Specter must be commended for this important piece of legislation. More than 150 nations, including the U.S.'s closest allies, have banned antipersonnel mines forever. The U.S. should not be getting back into the business of producing and using these indiscriminate weapons," said Jody Williams, co-laureate of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize with the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

While the United States has yet to sign the 1997 Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty, it has abided by many of the treaty's provisions. The U.S. has not used victim-activated antipersonnel landmines since the first Gulf War in 1991, has not exported mines since 1992, and has not produced mines since 1997. The production of new victim-activated mines would be a dramatic step away from previous U.S. practice and the Ottawa Treaty.

***

The U.S. Campaign to Ban Landmines (USCBL) is a coalition of approximately 500 U.S.-based human rights, humanitarian, faith-based, peace, veterans', medical, development, academic, and environmental organizations dedicated to a total ban on antipersonnel landmines. It is one of 90 country campaigns that form the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), winner of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize. The USCBL is coordinated by the Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers), a Quaker peace lobby based in Washington, DC. For more information, go to www.fcnl.org or www.banminesusa.org.