Int'l Day for Mine Awareness & Assistance in Mine Action

On 3 April 2007, the UN General Assembly declared April 4^th the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. Events are planned around the world to raise awareness about landmines, explosive remnants of war and progress toward their eradication. 

According to Viet Nam’s Ministry of Defence Technology Centre on Unexploded Ordnance and Landmine Disposal (BOMICEN), around 600,000 tonnes of war-era ordnance remain in the ground throughout Vietnam, contaminating 6 million hectares of land.

Around the world, landmines and explosive remnants of war continue to kill or injure as many as 15,000 people a year. The overwhelming majority are civilians who trigger these devices years or even decades after a conflict ends. In some countries, such as Afghanistan, the majority of victims are under the age of 18.

“Events on April 4 will help renew public and media interest in mine action,” says UN Mine Action Service Director Maxwell Gaylard. “We must keep the cause high on the global political agenda if we are to maintain the momentum achieved toward a world free from landmines and explosive remnants of war.”