News

• 29 November, 2024
• Posted by: EuroCham Cambodia

 

This week, EuroCham's Senior Communications Officer and Market Analyst, Stew Post, sat down with Senior Minister H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch, First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA). During the interview, H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch shared insights into Cambodia's leadership role in mine action, its achievements over the years, and the outcomes of the Fifth Review Conference of the Ottawa Convention, which Cambodia hosted for the first time in Asia.

The Senior Minister reflected on Cambodia's progress, the importance of collaboration with donors and the private sector – CMAA and EuroCham have signed an MoU together – and the nation's commitment to achieving a mine-free world. He highlighted key milestones, including the Siem Reap-Angkor Political Declaration and Action Plan, which emphasise global cooperation, victim assistance, environmental considerations, and gender inclusion in mine action.

Stew: The fifth review conference in Siem Reap was the first time an Asian country hosted the event. Do you think that this choice, and Cambodia's place as the president this year, reflects the efforts of CMAA over the decades and is a testament to the work that you've done? 

H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch: Yes, I think it reflects what we have done over the years. Not just CMAA, but all the parties involved. It's an honour, it's a privilege, and it's a responsibility for Cambodia to lead the Ottawa Convention for the first time in Asia because the goal of the Convention is to end people’s suffering. 

Cambodia has been, and continues to be, a victim of mines. We have lost around 65,000 people, injured or killed, and in the 90s, we used to experience over 4,000 casualties per year. Now, it’s down to less than 100 per year thanks to the progress made with the support of our donors, communities, friendly countries, the private sector, and our government efforts. 

So, with this shared responsibility in our hearts, we are happy to take over the Convention for one year. And this year is a special year because it's a Fifth Review conference, so every five years the Convention meets to work on what has been done in the past and then develop new action plans for the next 5 years. 

Stew: What were the key points of the summit and how do you think that these types of international gatherings can support the goal of achieving a mine-free world? 

H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch: For this conference, we produced important documents to guide our Convention. First was a political declaration, the Siem-Reap Angkor Political Declaration. This is a commitment to a mine-free world, of course, but at the same time it is an appeal to assist mine victims worldwide and an appeal to nations to stop using mines and to stop producing mines. 

Besides that, we have the Siem Reap-Angkor Action Plan. We have received a lot of inputs from all stakeholders over the years and we now have 48 actions. What is special this year is that environment and gender in mine action are a big part of the plan. Climate change is also a big deal for us. We need to preserve our environment, so this is reflected in the action plan. 

What was also important this year was what we call a “voluntary trust fund” to support the mine action sector. This was the first time that we put this in our action plan because we want better coordination of resources. We do not want our wealthy donors to go only to one specific country or place. Right now, there is a lot of support for Ukraine, but in Africa, in Asia, we also need support. We need to coordinate better so that they can all finish their jobs. Importantly, this gathering was not just a diplomatic gathering, but a gathering of inspiration, of commitment, and of hope.  

Stew: Cambodia has been dealing with unexploded ordnance for decades, but it's still an issue that impacts millions of people around the world. Do you think that some of the work and the efforts that have allowed CMAA to be successful can serve as kind of a guide for actions in other countries? How so? 

H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch: I think over the past 30 years, Cambodia has demonstrated our ability to effectively address the contamination in this country and we have achieved a lot of success on this.  

The first important factor which has brought success to our mission is our government’s commitment. You need a strong commitment from the leadership of the country and our leaders had the vision to put all our mine-action priorities in our national development plans and strategies. 

The second factor that has brought success to our work is our organisation. AT CMAA we have the government Chief of Staff, who leads and manages the sector. Then we have provincial organisations run by governors or vice governors. It’s a bottom-up organisational structure but it’s a down top approach with regard to our planning and the prioritisation process. 

Another important element is the coordination mechanism. Every one or two years, we have technical working groups where we involve donors, we involve operators, and the government receives recommendations to update the progress of our work. 

Then, of course, there are our deminers. We have over 5,000 deminers now operating in the country; some of them are young women. These hardworking women and young men, they are trained, they deploy, and they work efficiently, so we are very grateful to our operators. 

Over the years, this has become a national issue, a national commitment to mine action in this country. We are now at a point where we can proudly share our experiences with others. We have trained [groups in] Colombia, a few countries in Africa also, and in Ukraine recently, we trained them here and we sent our experts to train them abroad. 

Altogether I think the success in Cambodia is a joint success. A joint success from the government side, from the people, from our friendly countries, and with support from the private sector as well. 

Stew: CMAA has a Memorandum of Understanding with EuroCham. How do you think that these types of agreements of cooperation with the private sector can support the work that your group does? 

H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch: We value the contributions from the private sector. They invite investment to help build a stronger economy and support better lives for our people. The private sector can support victim assistance by helping families to get jobs and help young kids to go to school; to rehabilitate the community for better lives.  

However, our actions have many elements, many components, that we can collaborate on. Besides clearance, there are also victim assistance programs. There are many survivors that need artificial limbs – 40% of still do not have their first artificial limbs. And these limbs, from one year to the next, need to be repaired or replaced completely.  

We also need to inform the people about the danger of landmines. In the past we have received some support to install signboards next to schools and next to at-risk communities. We put a phone number [to report mines] and we put a message of caution. We also put the sponsor’s logo, to give them recognition.  

I have also heard that some banks have introduced microfinance programs to assist people with disabilities at health and rehabilitation centres. They provide some small equipment so that survivors can learn to walk or support the provision of artificial limbs. I think these are all projects that we could help mobilise with the support of the private sector.  

Stew: During your seven-year tenure, what are some of the achievements that you're most proud of? What do you hope will be the long-lasting impacts of your work here? 

H.E. Dr. Ly Thuch: I think first, in everything that you do, you must put your heart into it. Over the past 30 years of my public service, I've always worked in social sectors, human sectors, rural development, and so on.  So for me, a life saved is a good achievement. A mine found and destroyed is a good achievement. I feel so happy when I received news that we have destroyed such a large number of mines. 

And when we can help persons with disabilities, those who lack a limb [from mines], it's my privilege; it's my honour. I feel so happy when I see those people, now they can move, now they can walk, now they can dance.  They inspire me every time I go to visit them in rural areas, up the mountainside in their own communities. It's my freedom.