Cambodia

Mine Action

Last updated: 28 November 2013

Contamination and Impact

The Kingdom of Cambodia is affected by mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) left by 30 years of conflict that ended in the 1990s.Thefull extent of contamination is not known. A Baseline Survey (BLS) of Cambodia’s 124 mine affected districts completed in 2012 found a total of 1,914.81km² of mine and ERW contamination, and was extended in 2013 to cover all landmine and ERW contaminated districts.

Baseline Survey: 2012

Hazard

Area (km²)

Antipersonnel and antivehicle mines

1,173.25

ERW

741.56

Total

1,914.81

Mines

Cambodia’s antipersonnel mine problem is concentrated in, but not limited to, 21 northwestern districts along the border with Thailand, which accounted for more than 90% of casualties in the three years to 2009. Contamination includes the 1,046km-long K5 mine belt installed by the Vietnamese-backed government in the mid-1980s to block insurgent infiltration, which ranks among the densest contamination in the world with, reportedly, up to 2,400 mines per linear kilometer.[1]

Cambodia’s 2009 Article 5 deadline Extension Request estimated mined areas needing full clearance at 648.8km² and the National Mine Action Strategy released   2010 identified a further 1,097.8km² of suspected land to be released “through baseline survey and technical survey.”[2] Survey of mined areas as part of the BLS identified a total of 1,005.74km² affected to some degree by antipersonnel mines, of which 650.82km² (65%) was “land containing scattered or nuisance” antipersonnel mines. A further 66.07km² was contaminated by antivehicle mines.[3]

Antivehicle mine casualties consistently cause more casualties than antipersonnel mines, including some casualties from incidents that occurred outside land identified as contaminated by the BLS, prompting the Cambodian Mine Action and Victims Assistance Authority (CMAA) to call on local mine action planning units to pay attention to areas such as old road alignments that may have antivehicle mines.[4]

Casualties by device in 2009–2012[5]

Device

2012

2011

2010

2009

Killed

Injured

Killed

Injured

Killed

Injured

Killed

Injured

Antipersonnel mines

2

27

5

28

10

53

8

66

Antivehicle mines

23

14

11

57

29

49

13

23

ERW

18

102

24

80

32

113

26

107

Total

43

143

40

165

71

215

47

196

Cluster munition remnants

The United States (US) dropped at least 26 million explosive submunitions on Cambodia during the Vietnam War, mostly in eastern and northeastern areas bordering Lao PDR and Vietnam. The bombing is estimated to have left between 1.9 million and 5.8 million cluster munition remnants, including unexploded BLU-24, BLU-26, BLU-36, BLU-42, BLU-43, BLU-49, and BLU-61 submunitions.[6]

The BLS of 21 districts identified 990 suspect cluster munition-contaminated areas covering an area of 489.22km², but that figure was expected to rise as the survey continued to other districts not included in the BLS until 2012 when it was expanded to cover all ERW, not just landmines.[7] The CMAA’s casualty data identified one victim of a cluster munitions incident in 2012.[8]

The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) and Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) conducted an ERW survey in eastern Cambodia focused on determining the extent of cluster munition remnants contamination more precisely than the BLS. In 2012, surveyors covered 15 suspected hazardous areas totalling 9.5km² and reducing these to confirmed hazards covering 3.08km²; in 2013 NPA started conducting survey and clearance with two teams, finding mainly BLU-24, BLU-26 and some BLU-61.[9]

Other explosive remnants of war

In its coverage of the most mine-affected districts, the BLS recorded 310.93km² of ERW contamination, not including cluster munitions.[10] The expanded BLS, including coverage of districts close to the borders with Vietnam and Lao PDR that were heavily bombed at the time of the Vietnam War, was expected to add to this estimate.

The US dropped more than a million tons (one billion kilograms) of general-purpose bombs during the war, mostly in eastern Cambodia. In other parts of the country, operators encounter mainly land-fired ordnance, including artillery shells, rockets, and mortars.[11] This contamination has for some years caused most of the ERW casualties.

Mine Action Program

Key institutions and operators

Body

Situation on 1 January 2012

National Mine Action Authority

CMAA

Mine action center

CMAA

International demining operators

NGO: HALO Trust (HALO), Mines Advisory Group (MAG)

Commercial:BACTEC, VIKING, D&Y

National demining operators

NGO: CMAC, Cambodia Self-Help Demining (CSHD)

Government: RCAFNational Center for Peace Keeping Forces, Mine and ERW Clearance (NPMEC)

International risk education operators

Handicap International-Belgium (HI-Belgium), MAG, Spirit of Soccer

National risk education operators

National Police, Ministry of Education, World Vision Cambodia, Cambodian Red Cross, CMAC

The CMAA, set up in September 2000, regulates and coordinates mine action, responsibilities previously assigned to the CMAC.[12] The CMAA’s responsibilities include regulation and accreditation of all operators, preparation of strategic plans, management of data, quality control, coordination of mine/ERW risk education, and victim assistance.[13] Prime Minister Hun Sen is the CMAA President. A senior government minister, Minister of Post and Telecommunication, Prak Sokhonn, who is also CMAA vice-president, leads the dialogue with donors as the chair of a Joint Government-Development Partners’ Mine Action Technical Working Group.[14]

The CMAA’s management is overseen by its Secretary-General, Chum Bun Rong, who was appointed in December 2008.[15] A sub-decree (No. 92), issued in August 2009, specifies that CMAA has five departments: regulation and monitoring, socio-economic planning and database management, mine victim assistance, public relations, and general administration.[16]

CMAA guidelines and criteria for planning and prioritization, which came into effect at the start of 2012, seek to integrate clearance more closely with broader commune development plans. They specify that priority is given to clearing hazardous area polygons identified by the BLS and where there have been casualties in the past five years. The guidelines also include a provision for the CMAA to give guidance and direction to the relevant Mine Action Planning Unit (MAPU) on the criteria that define clearance priorities.[17] CMAA guidelines also call for MAPUs and operators to deploy 75% of assets to communes identified as priorities leaving the remaining 25% available for other tasks.

Cambodia’s National Mine Action Strategy 2010−2019 set four general goals:

·         reduce mine/ERW casualties and other negative impacts by allocating demining assets to the most impacted communities;

·         contribute to economic growth and poverty reduction, by supporting development priorities, access to care for survivors, and the land rights of intended beneficiaries of clearance;

·         promote international and regional disarmament and stability by supporting the Mine Ban Treaty, and adhering to the Convention on Conventional Weapons’ (CCW) Protocol V;

·         ensure sustainable national capacities to adequately address the residual mine/ERW contamination.

However, Cambodia planned to review its demining workplan in light of the findings of the BLS and to present a revised plan to the Meeting of States Parties in December 2013.[18] On the basis of results so far, CMAA estimated the total cost of completing mine clearance in Cambodia at US$450 million, a figure later revised down to $440 million.[19]

MAPUs in Cambodia’s eight most mine-affected western provinces and seven mainly ERW-affected eastern provinces are responsible for preparing annual clearance task lists, working with local authorities to identify community priorities and in consultation with operators. The MAPUs in eastern provinces are less experienced than those in the west, but many are short of resources from vehicles to office computers. The task lists are reviewed and approved by Provincial Mine Action Committees and the CMAA. In provinces without MAPUs, mine action is coordinated with provincial authorities.

UNDP has supported the CMAA through a “Clearing for Results” program that started in 2006, awarding contracts for clearance by a process of competitive bidding. In practice, international NGO operators have felt unable to compete with the square meter clearance costs bid by national operators—CMAC and NPMEC—that have lower equipment overheads and, apart from a $400,000 contract awarded to HALO for work on the BLS in 2011, they have largely stayed out of the bidding.[20] In 2013, the program awarded two contracts to CMAC for clearance of 8.9km² in Battambang and 4.93km² in Bantheay Meanchey province worth respectively $1.4 million and $0.95 million. A third contract was awarded to NPMEC for clearance of 2.59km² in Pailin at a cost of $0.55 million.[21]

The first phase ended in March 2010 and a second phase started in January 2011 advised by UNDP but under national management. Project priorities included strengthening CMAA management and technical capacity, conducting the BLS, and promoting cost-effective approaches to land release through competitive bidding for clearance contracts.[22] The program planned expenditure of $24 million over five years between 2011 and 2015 and as of May 2013 had received commitments of $22 million.[23]

Land Release

Cambodia is concerned by decreasing levels of international donor support for its mine action program but continues to show increasing productivity, helped by more emphasis on survey and clearance of antivehicle mines.

The total amount of land released by survey and clearance in 2012 reported by the CMAA amounted to 71.46km², 11% more than the previous year. This included 64.84km² released through mined and battle area clearance (BAC) and 6.62km² through survey.[24] CMAA data did not include a reduction of 6.42km² in the size of cluster munition hazards surveyed by NPA in 2012.[25]

Five-year summary of clearance

Year

Mined area cleared (km2)

Battle area cleared (km2)

Total area cleared (km²)

2012[26]

53.66

11.18

64.84

2011

37.85

17.14

54.99

2010

29.69

21.30

50.99

2009

33.46

9.37

42.83

2008

32.63

3.16

35.79

Totals

187.29

62.15

249.44

Survey in 2012

Operators completed survey of 124 districts included in the original BLS focused on landmine contamination in 2013 which identified antipersonnel mine contamination over some 151.64km² in addition to 891.73km² of scattered antipersonnel mine contamination and 68.19km² of antivehicle mine contamination.[27] Survey capacity came mainly from CMAC, which conducted the BLS with 10 teams in 2012, mostly in central and eastern provinces. HALO deployed seven teams on the BLS in January 2012 but had to suspend its participation because of lack of funding until August. Overall, HALO surveyed 129.93km² of mine- and ERW-suspect land in 2012 and cancelled 6.1km².[28] In addition, MAG had two teams working on the BLS in 2012 that conducted survey in Sihanoukville, Koh Kong, Kampong Cham, and Ratanakiri Provinces.[29]

BLS result for 124 districts[30]

Classification

Area (m²)

A1       Dense antipersonnel mines

63,894,629

A2       Mixed antipersonnel and antivehicle mines

78,601,787

A2.1    Mixed dense antipersonnel and antivehicle mines

9,154,925

A2.2    Mixed scattered antipersonnel and antivehicle mines

216,840,425

A3       Antivehicle mines

68,187,332

A4       Scattered or nuisance mines

674,882,897

Total

1,111,561,995

Survey of the 124 original BLS districts also identified a further 803.25km² of ERW contamination, including 492.66km² of contamination by cluster munition remnants, and CMAA decided to extend the survey to cover remaining districts to capture all forms of ERW contamination.[31] Rattanakiri province, one of Cambodia’s most heavily bombed provinces, had not been included in the original BLS because it had no mine contamination. Operators noted the survey questionnaire needed amendment to better address ERW contamination.[32]

In the meantime, NPA, working with four teams seconded from CMAC, conducted its cluster munitions remnants survey in eastern Cambodia covering 15 suspected hazardous areas with a total area of 9.5km² in Kratie province, reducing them by two-thirds to confirmed hazardous areas covering 3.1km².[33]

Mine clearance in 2012

Cambodia reported accelerating mine clearance in 2012 with the amount of land cleared rising to 53.66km² in 2012, up 45% on the result for the previous year and 75% the level two years earlier, although operators recorded substantially lower numbers of items cleared.

Mined area clearance: 2012[34]

Operator

Total mined/battle area cleared (km2)

Antipersonnel mines destroyed

Antivehicle mines destroyed

Submunitions destroyed

UXO destroyed

CMAC

35.15

10,466

352

34

7,874

CSHD

0.62

928

1

0

514

HALO

12.54

5,767

115

0

732

MAG

2.45

2,943

170

4*

4,960

NPMEC

2.90

884

2

0

370

Total

53.66

20,988

640

38

14,450

UXO = unexploded ordinance; * Destroyed by the BLS teams

Much of the increase in land released through clearance was claimed by CMAC, the biggest of the humanitarian demining operators, which finished 2012 with more than 1,000 deminers and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) technicians supported by 32 mechanical teams and 16 mine detection dog teams with more than 150 staff. CMAC attributed a near 40% improvement in its mined area clearance in 2012 to application of updated land release procedures and to deploying more mechanical assets, including brush cutters and Ebinger detectors modified for deep search for antivehicle mines.[35]

HALO, maintaining capacity at the same level as in 2011 with a staff of 1,017, including 788 deminers, also recorded a hefty 50% increase in area cleared in 2012. It achieved this mainly by a greater focus on antivehicle mines cleared with large loop detectors, a faster process than manual clearance of antipersonnel mines. Although clearance of antipersonnel mine-affected land remained close to the previous level at 3.58km² in 2012 against 3.9km² in 2011, HALO cleared 8.96km² of antivehicle mine-affected areas in 2012, compared with 5km² in 2011 and 1.8km² in 2010. In the first two months of 2013, however, HALO also identified 5.8km² of previously unrecorded mine hazards affected mainly by antivehicle mines. During 2012, HALO’s roving EOD teams destroyed 2,222 antipersonnel mines and 86 antivehicle mines in addition to 309 items of UXO and 8,222 items of stray ammunition in addition to small arms and ammunition. In the next two years, HALO planned to expand EOD operations.[36]

MAG’s clearance of mined land increased slightly in 2012, attributed to more use of mine detection dog teams in conjunction with mechanical assets and the acquisition of a number of Handheld Standoff Mine Detection System (HSTAMID) detectors. MAG conducted “development-enabling” clearance in Battambang and Bantheay Meanchey provinces and in Pailin on the Western border with Thailand, working on a number of projects that it said did not necessarily have a high threat but had significant post-clearance development impact. It also established a risk reduction project in conjunction with CARE in the northern province of Rattanakiri, hoping to attract support to resurrect EOD teams that it was forced to stand down in 2011 because of financial cuts. In addition to area clearance, spot tasks undertaken by MAG in 2012 resulted in destroying 6,524 UXO items.[37]

The CMAA reported that it accredited four more NPMEC demining platoons in 2012, bringing its total accredited capacity to 13 platoons and two EOD teams.[38] So far, however, the only NPMEC clearance contributing to a reduction of Cambodia’s recorded mine contamination has been through contracts awarded through the Clearing for Results program on tasks in the western district of Pailin which have involved only a small number of platoons. No information is available on other clearance or verification work NPMEC has reportedly conducted on behalf of the government or state entities.

Battle area and cluster munitions clearance in 2012

CMAC has in recent years been more active in eastern Cambodia, conducting BAC since relocating its Demining Unit 5 to Kompong Cham province two years ago. In 2012, CMAC reported clearing 5.73km², in the process destroying 1,799 items of UXO and 681 cluster munition remnants. In addition, it reported clearing 34 cluster munition hazards covering 5.45km², destroying a further 549 cluster munitions and 659 UXO items.[39]

In the last two years, NPA focused on developing survey of cluster contaminated areas in association CMAC, but in March 2013 started training two NPA teams, each with five women deminers and supported by five other staff, proposing to deploy teams for clearance in Rattanakiri province in the second half of the year.[40]

Compliance with Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty (and in accordance with the 10-year extension granted in 2009), Cambodia is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 January 2020.

Cambodia’s national strategy for 2010−2019, which was released in 2010, called for demining operations to clear some 648.8km of mined land and to release 1,097.8km of suspected land “through baseline survey and technical survey.”[41] With completion of the BLS in 2013, Cambodia was due to present an updated strategy for achieving its Article 5 goals.[42] That had not been released as of August 2013.

After completion of the BLS in the 124 mined districts originally proposed for survey, the CMAA opted to extend the survey to all forms of ERW contamination and similarly proposed to broaden its operational plan to deal with all forms of ERW. The CMAA believes funding will be a key determinant of whether or not it is able to complete clearance within its extended Article 5 deadline. Through application of new land release methods, CMAA believed completion may be achieved at less than the $455 million estimate set out in its Article 5 deadline Extension Request.[43] The outlook for donor support, however, looks uncertain, particularly after 2015, as does the government’s willingness to increase funding for humanitarian mine action.

Other risk factors identified by the ICBL included border tensions between Thailand and Cambodia that have halted demining activity in some border areas. A Cambodian-Thai joint working group agreed in principle in 2012 to clear landmines from a contested border area in Prey Vihear and assigned the Thailand Mine Action Centre and the CMAA to plan a joint demining operation.[44]

Quality management

The CMAA is responsible for quality management, operating six quality assurance teams: two teams are based in Battambang, two in Bantheay Meanchey, one in Siem Reap, and one in Kampong Cham, concentrating on clearance operations.[45] The CMAA reports that two other quality control teams have deployed since 2011. A UNDP-funded advisor supporting quality management left at the end of 2012 and as of September 2013 had not been replaced.[46]

Safety of demining personnel

Operators did not report any demining accidents in 2012.

 



[1] HALO Trust, “Mine clearance in Cambodia–2009,” January 2009, p. 8.

[2] “National Mine Action Strategy 2010−2019,” Government of Cambodia, 2010, p. 5.

[3] Data received by email from Eang Kamrang, Database Manager, Cambodian Mine Action and Victims Assistance Authority (CMAA), 11 April 2013.

[4] Interview with Prum Sophamonkol, CMAA, Phnom Penh, 19 March 2013.

[5] Compiled by the Monitor from Cambodia Mine Victims Information System (CMVIS) casualty data for 2012, received by email from Nguon Monoketya, CMVIS Officer, CMAA, 14 March 2013, and revised data received by email from the CMAA, 16 October 2013.

[6] South East Asia Air Sortie Database, cited in Dave McCracken, “National Explosive Remnants of War Study, Cambodia,” Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) in collaboration with CMAA, Phnom Penh, March 2006, p. 15; Human Rights Watch (HRW), “Cluster Munitions in the Asia-Pacific Region,” October 2008; and Handicap International (HI), Fatal Footprint: The Global Human Impact of Cluster Munitions (HI: Brussels, November 2006), p. 11.

[7] “BLS Statistics by Land Classification,” data received by email from Eang Kamrang, CMAA, Phnom Penh, 11 April 2013.

[8] Email from Nguon Monoketya, CMAA, 14 March 2013.

[9] Email from Bunhok Ly, Information Management Officer, NPA, Phnom Penh, 18 July 2013.

[10] “BLS Statistics by Land Classification,” data received by email from Eang Kamrang, CMAA, Phnom Penh, 11 April 2013.

[11] Interview with Dave McCracken, Consultant, NPA, Phnom Penh, 21 March 2006.

[12] CMAC is the leading national demining operator, but does not exercise the wider responsibilities associated with the term “center.” Set up in 1992, CMAC was assigned the role of coordinator in the mid-1990s. It surrendered this function in a restructuring of mine action in 2000 that separated the roles of regulator and implementing agency and led to the creation of the CMAA.

[13] Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD), “A Study of the Development of National Mine Action Legislation,” November 2004, pp. 64–66.

[14] Email from Pascal Rapillard, Policy and External Relations, GICHD, 4 September 2009.

[15] Sam Rith, “Demining head loses two posts in reshuffle,” Phnom Penh Post, 30 December 2008..

[16] Elayne Gallagher, “Cambodian Mine Action Authority, Capacity Assessment–2009, Draft Final Report,” 16 December 2009, p. 10.

[17]Statement of Cambodia, Eleventh Meeting of States Parties, Phnom Penh, 30 November 2011; interview with Melissa Sabatier, Mine Action Project Adviser, UNDP, Phnom Penh, 25 April 2011; and telephone interview Melissa Sabatier, UNDP, 3 August 2011.

[18]Statement of Cambodia, Twelfth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 5 December 2012.

[19] Statement of Cambodia, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Geneva, 28 May 2013; and email from the CMAA, 16 October 2013.

[20] Interviews with Cameron Imber, Programme Manager, HALO, Siem Reap, 22 March 2013; and Alastair Moyer, Country Programme Manager, MAG, 14 March 2013.

[21] Email from Prum Sophamonkol, CMAA, 12 March 2013.

[22] Interview with Melissa Sabatier, UNDP, Phnom Penh, 25 April 2011.

[23] Interview with Keita Sugimoto, Mine Action Project Adviser, UNDP, Phnom Penh, 19 March 2013.

[24] Compiled from data received by email from Eang Kamrang, CMAA, 11 April 2013. CMAC reported releasing 9.76km² through technical survey, 3.14km² more than the amount CMAA recorded as released by survey.

[25] Interview with Jan Eric Stoa, Programme Manager, NPA, Phnom Penh, 18 March 2013; and email from Bunhok Hy, Information Management Officer, NPA, 18 July 2013.

[26] BAC data includes CMAC’s BAC result and its reported clearance of cluster munition contaminated areas.

[27] BLS Final Results, received by email from CMAA, 16 October 2013.

[28] Email from Cameron Imber, HALO Trust, 23 February 2013.

[29] Email from Alastair Moyer, MAG, 14 March 2013.

[30] Data received by email from CMAA, 16 October 2013. Compared with preliminary results, the final results record significantly lower areas of “land contaminated by mixed AP [antipersonnel] and AT [antitank] mines” (A2) and much larger areas of “land containing mixed scattered AP and AT mines” (A2.2). BLS results reported in April 2013 identified contamination on land classified as A1 as 58.79km2, A2 as 264.73km2, A2.1 as 1.19km2, A2.2 as 30.19km2, A3 as 60.07km2, and A4 as 674.88km2.

[31] Interview with Prum Sophamonkol, CMAA, Phnom Penh, 19 March 2013.

[32] Interviews with demining operators in Cambodia, 18–21 March 2013.

[33] Interview with Jan Eric Stoa, NPA, Phnom Penh, 18 March 2013; and email from Bunhok Hy, NPA, 18 July 2013.

[34] Compiled by the Monitor from data received by email from Eang Kamrang, CMAA, 11 April 2013.

[35] Interview with Oum Phumro, Deputy Director General, CMAC, Phnom Penh, 20 March 2013; and email from Oum Phumro, CMAC, 8 April 2013.

[36] Email from Cameron Imber, HALO, 23 February 2013; interview with Cameron Imber, HALO, Siem Reap, 21 March 2013; and email from Matthew Hovell, South East Asia Desk Officer, HALO, 17 October 2013.

[36] Email from Alastair Moyer, MAG, 12 March 2013.

[37] Ibid.

[38]Statement of Cambodia, Twelfth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 5 December 2012.

[39] Email from Oum Phumro, CMAC, Phnom Penh, 8 April 2013.

[40] Interview with Jan Eric Stoa, NPA, Phnom Penh, 18 March 2013.

[41] “National Mine Action Strategy 2010−2019,” Government of Cambodia, 2010, p. 5.

[42]Statement of Cambodia, Twelfth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 5 December 2012.

[43] Interview with Prum Sophamonkol, CMAA, Phnom Penh, 19 March 2013.

[45] Interview with Mark Russell, Technical Specialist, UNDP, Phnom Penh, 4 April 2012; and email from Keita Sugimoto, UNDP, Phnom Penh, 12 July 2012.

[46] Email from Prum Sophamonkol, CMAA, 16 September 2013.