Visiting Clear Path Partners in Hue, Vietnam

CPI Executive Director Kiman Lucas visited with our partner organization in providing victim assistance in central Vietnam's beautiful city of Hue.

Cluster Bomb Kills Vietnamese Farmer

The accident that took Chinh's life occurred less than two weeks after delegates, diplomats and aid workers from around the globe met in neighboring Lao PDR to further their attempts to eradicate cluster munitions.

Seattle Man to Run 300K for Landmine Victims

A Seattle physical therapist will compete in one of the toughest footraces on the planet while raising funds to help landmine accident survivors.

Hearts and Mines: A documentary on the work of Clear Path International

All of us at Clear Path are thrilled to see the new trailer for HEARTS AND MINES the documentary by Dr. Joan Widdifield, a long-time CPI supporter. Hearts and Mines follows the CPI Vietnam staff as they work with landmine and bomb accident survivors and their families.

In Afghanistan, Goats Provide Livelihood for Landmine Survivors and More

In Clear Path's first survivor assistance project outside Kabul, 18 beneficiaries in the eastern city of Jalalabad received goats and animal husbandry training from CPI's local Afghan partner, Afghan Disabled & Vulnerable Society.

Clear Path International now Independent, Expanding in Afghanistan

After two years as a subcontractor in Kabul, Clear Path International is now a full-fledged independent grant recipient of the U.S. Department of State with a growing vision for aid to landmine accident survivors and people with disabilities in Afghanistan.

Landmine Surivivor Farmers' Co-op in Cambodia Doubles in Size

Life was a struggle for Ream Luong before he joined the farmer's cooperative set up by Clear Path International and its partner in one of Cambodia's most heavily mined regions. This spring, the partners doubled the co-op to 150 households from 75, expanding an enterprise that's helping many landmine accident survivors succeed as rice farmers.

Back To School: Nearly 500 Vietnamese Landmine Families Receive Clear Path International Support to Send Their Children Back to School

Mothers get teary-eyed when their kids return to school after the summer. But the tears Tran Phuong Nhu's mother shed outside her daughter's classroom were not from a typical sense of pride and separation. As she watched the eight-year-old girl go inside wearing her best uniform, she could not help think of her husband who is still in critical condition at the Quang Tri General Hospital from a landmine accident that happened in late July.

Clear Path International Provides The Gift of Hands for the Landmine Survivors at Care Villa

Since we began supporting the Care Villa in 2002, we at Clear Path have dreamed of providing prosthetic hands for the amputees we serve there. Many of them have lost one or both arms in a landmine explosion and are wholly dependent on others for their care. Almost every time we visit our Karen friends at the giant sprawling Mae La refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border, we are asked for a device that will allow the men to use their upper limbs.

Dutch Charity "Stichting Mensenkinderen" Awards $140,000 to Clear Path International

Dutch charity "Stichting Mensenkinderen" (www.mensenkinderen.nl) has given a grant for 100,000 Euro ($140,000) to Clear Path International for its humanitarian mine action work in Vietnam and Cambodia.

US State Department Funds Clear Path International Programs in Vietnam & Cambodia

The largest grant of $127,000 will be used to fund efforts that assist survivors of accidents with landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) in central Vietnam. The second grant of $50,000 will be used for CPI's rice mill enterprise for landmine survivors in Battambang, Cambodia, where its beneficiaries receive training, microcredit and crop processing services.

CPI Starts Year of the Buffalo with Pig-breeding Project For Landmine Accident Survivors in Vietnam's Gio Linh

In the new lunar Year of the Buffalo, Clear Path in Vietnam began its activities supporting landmine and bomb accident with a pig-raising project in the coastal commune of Gio Hai in Quang Tri Province's Gio Linh District.

Clear Path International Releases Annual Report

In the period covered by the report, the U.S.-based organization with offices in Vermont and on Bainbridge Island, Washington, assisted 6,325 beneficiaries in Afghanistan, 1,679 in Vietnam, 929 in Cambodia and 538 on both sides of the Thai-Burma border.

Clear Path International Beneficiaries in Vietnam Become Deminers Thanks to Mines Advisory Group

As part of its partnership with Clear Path International, Mines Advisory Group in Vietnam has started to recruit CPI-supported landmine accident survivors or their family members to train them as clearance technicians.

Clear Path Featured in Journal of Mine Action

The latest edition of the academic periodical Journal of Mine Action published by James Madison University features a cover photo and an in-depth article about the work of Clear Path International in central Vietnam. Co-authored by Ari Perlstein, a medical student at the Oregon Health & Science University, and CPI co-founder Imbert Matthee, the article highlights the persistent problem of UXO (unexploded ordnance) accidents in a region which ranks among the most mine-affected in the world.

Thai Burma Border Landmine Survivor Assistance Program Page Updated

We have updated our Thai-Burma border project page. Check it out here....

YouTube: Myanmar's Landmine Survivors at the Mae Tao Clinic

The military regime's ongoing repression in Burma (Myanmar) kills and maims hundreds of civilians each year through the use of landmines. Planted throughout ethnic territories, landmines are used to quell insurgent rebel armies, but more often kill civilians, especially children

Reuters: Landmines threaten Iraqis and hamper development

Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said the mines were spread across about 4,000 minefields left across Iraq after the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, the first Gulf War in 1991 and the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein.

Landmines and UXO kill and maim hundreds in Afghanistan in 2007

Most victims are males aged 1-26, largely from the insurgency-affected southern provinces where the worsening security situation has hampered de-mining activities.

Young & Rubicam Creates Radio Spot to Support Landmine Victims: Tell us what you think!

All of us at Clear Path International are grateful to Young & Rubicam Malaysia for creating a 35 second radio spot for CPI. Please click "read more" to listen it and let us know what you think.

A Certificate of Merit Awarded to Clear Path in Vietnam

I don’t often write about ceremonies. Most of the time they’re just for looks, photo ops, grip and grins. When you have an all-hands-on-deck agenda to get things done, fluff and puff can be kind of a nuisance. But the recent presentation to CPI of the Certificate of Merit from the Provincial People’s Committee of Quang Tri was different to me. It was a real milestone in our seven-year history as a humanitarian mine action organization.

13-year-old Boy Blinded by Burma Army Landmine

From the Free Burma Rangers website: On 19 November, 13-year-old Saw K'Tray Soe detonated a landmine while gathering bamboo soot leaves to make a roof for his family's house. The mine blew up in his face, severely injuring his eyes...

Good News, Bad News For Mine Clearance In Countries Where Clear Path International Has Assistance Programs

Although increased funding and fewer casualties were reported in 2006, many countries are not on course to meet their Mine Ban Treaty clearance obligations, says a new report from the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

YouTube: Thank you, Martha!

This video was shown on the 10th anniversary Celebration of Martha Hathaway's work with landmine and bomb survivors in Vietnam, Cambodia, Afghanistan and the Thai-Burma border.

Senator Leahy Honors Clear Path | Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion Perform to a Sold Out Crowd

10th Anniversary of Public-Private Partnerships at US Dept of State's Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement

Ten years ago an initiative was begun at the US Department of State that would energize the mine action community in a creative and exciting way. In October of 1997 the State Department initiated the Humanitarian Mine Action Public-Priivate Partnership Program. Clear Path has benefitted greatly from the program as have 56 other NGOs.

AP: Villagers flee Myanmar’s deadly landmines

A Human Rights Watch report in December last year accused the military of planting mines around rice crops and routes to fields in an effort to hamper the annual harvest, effectively starving the people off their land.
It also said that Myanmar’s soldiers had used civilians as human mine sweepers, forcing them to walk in front of troops through landscapes possibly laced with the deadly ordnance.

Sarah Lee Guthrie and Johnny Irion with Senator Patrick Leahy Benefit Clear Path International!

Sarah Lee Guthrie, the granddaughter of Woody Guthrie and the daughter of Arlo, will be returning to perform in Southern Vermont with her husband, the critically acclaimed Johnny Irion on Saturday, October 13th at Long Trail School in Dorset, VT. Speaking before the event will be long-time Clear Path supporter and landmine advocate, Senator Patrick Leahy.

Esquire: The Devil in the Dirt

There are so many landmines in Afghanistan, the country is literally about to blow. But removing these mines is no easy task.

Rutland Herald: CPI continuing to grow its reputation as a force for humanitarian relief

By PATRICK McARDLE Herald Staff
DORSET - Clear Path International is continuing to grow its reputation as a force for humanitarian relief with new developments this year in Afghanistan and Slovenia.

Iraq: Which minefield should we clear next?

I could go on and speak to the villagers to ask about the benefits of the mine clearance but I didn't need to. Sitting right in front of me were five - very cute - reasons to clear this minefield. I didn't need to speak to their parents to know that they didn't want their children growing up alongside the Valmaras - or any other mines for that matter.

Shell explosion kills 3 family members in Vietnam

The explosion occurred at the victims' house in Duy Xuyen District on Tuesday afternoon when the 31-year-old man named Pham Van Thang was trying to break the shell for scraps. His wife, standing nearby, and the child held in her arms were killed on the spot.

O & P Edge: CPI Clearing the Way for a Safer Future

The bulk of (Clear Path International's) work is deadly serious. With programs in Vietnam, Cambodia, along the Thai-Burma border, and now Afghanistan, the realities of war—even wars that ended more than 30 years ago—could not be any more dramatic. Dealing with the everyday horror can be overwhelming, but Matthee recalls a moment that makes even the most trying days seem worthwhile.

Landmine explosion in Vietnam kills 3 children

The children collected the landmine while tending their buffaloes and tried to smash it open when it exploded.

Clear Path International, International Trust Deal offers new hope for landmine, bomb survivors in Vietnam

The agreement's first proposal commits ITF to raise $230,000 from among its 27 government and private-sector donors to match the funds Clear Path is raising from the US State Department and US-based private-sector

Man Learns to Walk Again After Losing Limbs to Decades-old Bomb in Vietnam

The accident occured at about 11:00 a.m when Thi was digging up a tree stump. In close distance, Vinh was bending down, pulling fallen branches away. A loud explosion woke up the quiet forest as Thi’s pick hit the ground. The ordnance was subsurface and thus, nobody knew what it was; but the powerful blast knocked two men down on the ground.

Elephants "Learn" to Avoid Land Mines in War-Torn Angola

"Maybe they are able to smell the mines," Whyte said. "They move about with their trunks right on the ground, and it could be that they pick up the scent in this way.

"But they are also intelligent animals which move in groups. Maybe they learn to avoid places where they see other elephants get blown up."

Clear Path Burma Site: Landmine death toll rises in Karen state

Saw Eh Thamwe, the coordinator of the clinic’s mine victim department, said that the clinic had treated 16 people injured by landmines in June alone and that increased tensions between the Karen National Union and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army were to blame.

“This year has the highest number of land-mine cases due to intensified fighting. in previous years, there were as few as ten landmine cases a year but in the first six months of this year we had 30 cases,” Saw Eh Thamwe said.

Reuters: Decade after Diana campaign, few use landmines

Ten years after the death of Princess Diana and the first global treaty against antipersonnel landmines, experts say only a handful of rebel groups and perhaps one state dare use what has become a pariah weapon

Jody Riggs: Burma’s situation is real!

This is not history! That is what continues to ring in my head. My name is Jody Riggs and I am a student prosthetist from Canada. The atrocities that I am reading about and the repercussions that I am witnessing are current events, happening just over those hills and across the Moei or the Salween river in Burma.

In Another World, You Are An Illegal Refugee With Nothing To Your Name

The Mae Toa Clinic on the Thai-Burma border is founded and run by refugees. The prosthetics department manager is an astounding and committed man. He does not make money and will never be able to buy his family a truck, or a home, or a vacation. His workshop lacks government funding and only survives by donation and outside funds.

Rice Mill Project Fires Up in Rural Cambodia!

Its not often that I actually get giddy by someone firing up a big 'ol diesel powered generator, but that's the emotion I settled upon as the most appropriate description, when they cranked up the rice mill the first time for me. Its not often, come to think of it, that I would even recognize a diesel powered generator or any of the multitude of tools and metal appliances which go into making a rice mill. And, yet, throughout the last few months, I've become more familiar with all things rice related than I ever thought possible.

Clear Path International to Assist Afghan Landmine Survivors As Part of U.S. Department of State Contract

KABUL, Afghanistan – Clear Path International (CPI), a U.S.-based humanitarian mine action nonprofit organization, has received a multi-year contract from DynCorp International to start a landmine survivor assistance program in Afghanistan on behalf of the U.S. Department of State.

Clear Path International Issues Micro Loans in Rural Cambodia

Last Friday, Clear Path International and our Cambodian partner, Cambodian Volunteers for Community Development, issued micro loans, for the second time, to our farmer cooperative members, many of them landmine / UXO survivors, all of them desperately impoverished rice farmers.

United States Campaign to Ban Landmines Expands Its Mandate to Include Cluster Munitions Advocacy

From the USCBL: We are pleased to inform you that the Steering Committee of the US Campaign to Ban Landmines recently agreed to expand the mission of the coalition to include advocacy toward a prohibition on the use, production, and transfer of cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians.

Traveling to the Clear Path International Vocational Skills Training Site for Landmine Survivors in Battambang Cambodia

I don't know that I will ever get tired of staring at the distinct shade of green specific to a crop of rice. If I worked for Crayola, I would make a crayon and call it "rice". It would be the best green ever.

Dutch Rehab Hospital Signs Agreement To Support Landmine Survivors on the Thai-Burma Border

Under a two-year agreement, the Dutch hospital will provide $30,000 in funding and facilitate the involvement of its professional rehabilitation specialists as volunteers in eastern Thailand where CPI has an active program fabricating prosthetics, offering physical therapy and providing full-time care for landmine accident survivors from Burma.

Memorial Day in The United States: Project Healing Waters

Recently I have been working a bit with an organization called Project Healing Waters. PHW helps disabled veterans learn to fly fish and tie flies and aspires to give them new hope in their struggle to overcome their disabiilities.

War Era Bombs Injure 2 Year Old and 72 Year Old In Vietnam

Accidents involving unexploded ordnance injured civilians ranging in age from 2 to 72 this last week in central Vietnam's former DMZ.

YouTube: Bombhunters Now Available on DVD

Great news! I just got an email from our good friend Skye Fitzgerald who produced the film BOMBHUNTERS about scavengers of live bombs in Cambodia. The film is now available in DVD.

YouTube: Cluster Bombs, A Weapon out of Control

A Human Rights Watch video showing how cluster munitions have endangered civilian populations from the Vietnam era through current conflicts in Iraq and Lebanon.

Vietnam sits atop 600,000 Tons of Landmines and Bombs

According to Vietnam's Bomb and Mine Disposal Technology Centre (BOMICEN) at the Engineering Command, 600,000 tons of war-time bombs and explosives currently lie under the ground throughout Vietnam.

Young Man Loses Hand to Vietnam War Era Bomb

18-year-old Tran Van Khoa was injured by an explosive remnant of the US-Vietnam war at 8h a.m on March 26th 2007 in Trieu Ai commune, Trieu Phong district of Quang Tri province.

Flickr: Children of War Photo Pool

From war zones all over the world, the images show children acting like children (or trying to) while the adults around them act like monsters.

Well Known and Controversial Citizen Deminer, Aki Ra, Retires... or not

He says that he will soon move his Cambodia Landmine Museum on the river near Angkor Wat to a new facility near Banteay Srei temple where he and his wife Hourt will start a new quieter life.

Israeli cluster bombs cause surge in demand for Prosthetics

Prosthetic limb-fitting centers in southern Lebanon are struggling to cope with the rising toll from the one million unexploded cluster bombs left over from last summer's Israeli offensive on the country.

Video: Elephant Landmine Survivors on the Thai-Burma Border

Not all landmine survivors are human. Many elephants,including baby elephants, are injured by mines while working in the jungles on the tense Thai-Burma border.

Clear Path Newsletter Available in PDF

The 2007 Winter/Spring CPI Newsletter is now available online. Read about our recent matching campaign with the US Dept of State, how we introduced a hippopotamus to Cambodia, and updates from Chi and Lobke, two of our representatives on the ground in Southeast Asia!

YouTube: Lost Arms to Grenade in Vietnam, Now He Swims and Rides his Bicycle

Mr. Lang was working with his parents in a potato field in 1976 when he saw a bright yellow device (M79 grenade). He picked it up and the device detonated in his hand. He lost two arms just below elbow.

Lobke's Story: It All Began Last Year

When I encountered many amputees (mostly landmine or UXO victims) in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, the picture couldn’t be much clearer. I wanted to work with landmine accident survivors. That was what I wanted to do. And that was exactly what I was going to do.

Seattle Post Intelligencer: Cluster bombs leave a lethal legacy

Given their high failure rates and controversial deployment, there is a growing movement afoot to restrict the use of cluster bombs. It's time to end the kind of post-conflict suffering I see every time I travel to Southeast Asia for Clear Path International.

Reuters: Hidden Bombs Stalk Vietnamese as States Seek Treaty

"It is sinful that the war has an impact after all these years, that the bombs and the landmines are still there," the boy's distraught father, Pham Van Cuoi, said in the family's small concrete dwelling.

Bombs Injure Three Boys, Kill One Over Tet Holidays in Central Vietnam

Both Son and Cong knew what cluster bombs were since they had seen many before. However, this was the first time they found one half of a bomb: a hemisphere, not a complete steel sphere. They could see the yellow TNT exposed and a round metal section at the center of the explosive.

BBC Series: Saving Lives on the Burmese border

A building at the back of the clinic houses a (Clear Path International funded) workshop for Maw Keh and his team, who construct prosthetic limbs for the many landmine victims in the region - a legacy of the long conflict between government and rebel soldiers.

YouTube: Improvised Explosive Devices of the Vietnam War

A fascinating video on how unexploded US ordnance was used in Vietnam by North Vietnamese forces. Considering how much ordnance is STILL on the ground to this day, there must have been no shortage of the stuff.

Rick Gunn Visits, and Photographs, Clear Path in Vietnam

"Vinh was planting trees on his land," his doctor explained. "That's when he swung his pick into an unexploded bomb."...I cringed..."It might take a while," the doctor concluded, "but Vinh will learn to walk again."

Claymore Camera makes a dumb mine much smarter

From Gizmag.com: "This innovative and inexpensive product is a great tool to avoid the loss of innocent lives by mistake, solving the problem of not knowing what the mine is detonated against, but, above all, it turns regular dumb mines into intelligent mines which represents a revolutionary progress in minefield technology."

2005 - 2006 Landmine/UXO Victims in Central Vietnam

Chi of the Vietnam office compiled the last two years of UXO accident rates in central Vietnam and has posted his findings here. From 2005 to 2006, Clear Path Vietnam responded to 209 UXO accidents.

Clear Path YouTube Video Reaches 10000 Views

We produced this 7 minute video a few years ago with NPR's Corey Flintoff as narrator and the Grateful Dead's Mickey Hart donating the music.

Thai Burma Border: Recreational Therapy At Care Villa

I had heard them singing before. I had heard them talking before. I had heard them praying before. But I had never heard them laughing. The guys of the Care Villa; a special group of mostly young men, severely handicapped due to landmine accidents.

CNN and YouTube: Cambodia's poor scavenge for mines

This story is not news to anyone who reads this blog, or folks who have seen Skye FItzgerald's film BOMBHUNTERS. CNN is reporting on unexploded ordnance scavengers in recognition of LANDMINE AWARENESS DAY in Cambodia.

Remnants of War: Sara Smits in Syracuse University Magazine

"I’m fueled by the memories and knowing there are people who are struggling with the issues surrounding landmines.” She finds purpose in her research and does speaking engagements to raise funds for Clear Path. “They do amazing work,” Smits says. “I want to somehow give back to the people who gave me so much information and so much inspiration.”

Pollution: Landmines Are a Global Health Problem

Pollution. Consider for a moment what the word means. If it's defined as "the presence in the environment of any substance of sufficient concentration to be harmful to humans or cause long-term damage to the natural environment," landmines fit the bill.

Thai Burma Border: The Circle of Inspiration

The idea was there: we cannot give these guys back their hands, their eyes, their lives the way it used to be. But we can encourage them to bring back a little joy, a bit of fun, some challenges and to make one day a bit different than the other.

Thank you, Senator Leahy

Yet again I am so proud to be a constituent of yours. As a volunteer for Clear Path International, I have witnessed first hand the devastating effects of cluster bombs.

Thai - Burma Border: At 21 Years Old, Another Life Shattered

Sometimes you can hear the shootings, explosions, panic, but today it is very quiet....Then we receive a phone call. One of the girls that we dropped yesterday for the mine risk education mission has stepped on a landmine. I remember her face; she was sitting next to me in the truck.

One Boy Killed, One Man Loses Hand In Accidents Involving Ordnace in Vietnam

One man lost a hand and a boy his life in two accidents with unexploded ordnace in central Vietnam this week.

Year of the Pig: A Year of Ease?

The Lunar New Year’s Eve is on February 16th, 2007. February 17th is the first day of the year of the Pig. Many Vietnamese believe that this would be a year of ease. We hope that is what the Pig will bring for 2007.

Five Years & 150 Students Later: Life After Our Center in Kampong Cham

Eighty-seven of the 120 who graduated are now successful small-business entrepreneurs, 20 have found employment with local companies while 13 work for one of Cambodia’s many non-governmental organizations.

Landmine Hopscotch in Malaysia

Our new friends at TBWA-ISC\Malaysia in Malaysia contacted us sometime ago and asked to donate an ambient ad campaign in our benefit to be run in Kuala Lampur.

Tampering With Live Bombs to Sell the Scrap Metal– A Deadly Job

The first step was to separate the nose section (section with the fuse in it) from the rest of the bomb. Like one would cut off a tiny rotten end of a banana, but this was done with a blowtorch. They cut the conical section off the bomb so they could sell the steel casing.

Five Children Injured in Cambodia Land Mine Blast

"They found the two mines in a black plastic bag behind their village and thought that it was make-up powder boxes. They hit them with a stick in order to take off the shells and sell them to waste-pickers. They then exploded,"

CPI Vietnam Responds to Its First Accident of 2007

Just as I entered the office this morning Duc, our logistic officer, announced that he received a phone call last night reporting of a new accident happened earlier in the day (January 8th). One person was killed on spot and another 12 year old boy was seriously injured

Vietnam receives mine-clearing gear from United States

HA NOI — The United States yesterday donated nearly US$1 million worth of equipment to locate and clear landmines and unexploded ordnance to the Centre for Bomb and Mine Disposal Technology (BOMICEN). The equipment will reinforce the centre’s capacity to deal with explosive hazards that have remained after thirty years of conflict.

Vietnam: Clear Path Responded to 88 New Victims of Bombs, Landmines and other Munitions in 2006

As the report shows, nearly 40 percent, or two out of five, of the victims were children (under 18). Thirty-six victims died from their wounds, which were caused by landmines, cluster bombs, mortars, phosphorous grenades and other explosives still left over from the war.

A Judy Collins Christmas in Vermont ... how sweet it was

Some stars shine brighter than other stars, and Judy Collins' star was shining brightly, brilliantly, as she shared her light with all those lucky enough to be in the sold out audience Sunday at the Judy Collins Christmas Benefit for Clear Path International at the Dorset Playhouse.

Bombs kill one boy, injure another in Central Vietnam

Central Vietnam- Explosive remnants of the Vietnam War have claimed their latest victims in Central Vietnam killing a 14 year old boy and injuring an 18 year old in two incidents over the past week.

Rutland Herald: Small Vermont organization having big international impact

James Lawrence, director of partnership programs for the State Department's Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, said government officials have begun to seek out partners in the private sector who can assist people whose lives have been altered by land mines. "Clear Path has good local support, low overhead, they provide direct support to the people who need it. That's just the kind of things we look for," he said.

Manchester Journal: Judy Collins to Benefit Clear Path International

The concert will benefit Clear Path International, an organization born out of wanting to make the world a better place. They reach their philanthropic help, loving arms and compassionate energy all the way to Vietnam, Cambodia, the Thai-Burma border and most recently to Afghanistan serving the victims, survivors and the families of landmine and unexploded bomb accidents.

CPI Group Trip: The First Days are the Hottest Days

The group on our trip through the jungle on day 3. Hello from Dong Ha Town, Quang Tri Province, Vietnam! This region is one of the most heavily bombed areas in the history of the world. More bombs were...

A New Addition to the Clear Path Family

The Clear Path International family just got a little bigger... CPI beneficiary Ho Thi Ha has had a baby boy!

Vietnam: Explosive Remnants of War Incident Report from January 2006 to September 2006

Over the last year Clear Path International's Vietnam staff has been working to create a database for reporting on accidents involving explosive remnants of war that are reported to us and to which we have responded to give assistance. These reports are only the incidents to which we (CPI) have responded and are not representative of the country as a whole. In this blog we post our first report.

Three Men Dead: Wartime ordnance continues to kill in Vietnam

Three men were killed in Vietnam’s southern Dong Nai province Thursday while sawing an unexploded US artillery shell left from the Vietnam War 30 years ago. Two of the middle-aged victims, Nguyen Van Hanh and Nguyen Van Nam, who were killed by the 105mm shell, earned their livelihoods by searching for and selling American wartime ordnance, according to a source.

'After the War…the Killing Continues' Photo Exhibit on Bainbridge Island, WA

Photojournalist Erin Fredrichs accompanied a small group from Clear Path International on a three-week tour of its landmine survivor assistance programs in Southeast Asia last year. The compelling and deeply moving photographs Fredrichs took are now on display at Grace Episcopal Church on Bainbridge Island, Washington (near Seattle) through mid October. The pictures are a selection from Fredrich’s Master’s thesis project, “After the War…the Killing Continues,” towards her degree at Ohio University.

Vietnam: Four Year Old Girl and Father Killed, Others Injured by War Era Ordnance

Another heartbreaking report from our staff in central Vietnam 1. (Ho Vien Khan, born in 1948 and Ho Thi Thia, born in 2002) An accident happened to a man and his daughter on August 5th 2006 in Hong Trung commune,...

Clear Path assists UXO affected children with scholarships

On the occasion of the new school year 2006-2007, Clear Path International and its local partner, the Section of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (SoLISA) of Vinh Linh district organize a scholarship granting ceremony at the district people’s committee office.

Vietnam: Three Children Killed, Five Injured in Two Accidents with War Era Bombs

The accident happened at 5 p.m., in the front yard of Mrs. Vo Thi Ha’s, a local scrap dealer in Cam Nghia commune, Cam Lo district.

Cambodian resurrection: Land-mine victims forge a new pride in an unforgiving atmosphere

From Straight.com of Vancouver, British Columbia Cambodian resurrection: Land-mine victims forge a new pride in an unforgiving atmosphere By roberta staley Publish Date: 7-Sep-2006 San Suo hops down the rough wood ladder leading from the doorway of his one-room house,...

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,...

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...

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....

Love Story of a Blind Couple_The Last Chapters

HOW DID WE KNOW ABOUT THEM Things started back in April 2006, when we deployed one of the first procedures of a project circle: Home assessments. These, generally speaking, are visits to each and every Landmine/UXO affected households to obtain...

Love Story of a Blind Couple_Chapter 4

HOW THEY MET Again, this chapter is written by Nhi. Thanks for a beautiful piece of work, Nhi. It was one August morning 5 years ago, Thien kept twiddling the broom that he’d just finished since that was the first...

Love Story of a Blind Couple_Chapter 3

THE GROOM’S STORY This chapter is written by Le Thi Yen Nhi, CPI project officer. Thank you Nhi for sharing the chapters with me. Thien at the broom workshop Pham Van Thien was born in 1972 in a big and...

Love Story of a Blind Couple_Chapter 2

THE BRIDE'S STORY Huyen's parents are wounded war veterans who survived from all those fierce battles around the former DMZ. After the war they returned to Mai Loc, resettled in the area that they both knew very well and did...

Love Story of a Blind Couple

THE WEDDING PARTY A wedding party was held on July 2, 2006 in Mai Loc village, Cam Chinh commune, Cam Lo district, Quang Tri province. The wedding was so special, for the bride and groom were both blind. Nearly half...

Family Catastrophe: Three Children Killed, Three Wounded

On May 30th, 2006, a terrible UXO related accident happened in central highland of Vietnam. Six children from 2 to 11 years old were killed and injured by a cluster bomb explosion. The accident happened in Kong Chro district, Gia...

One Dead, One Injured in Vietnam from War-Era Bombs

I hope later Chi will post more on these incidents (Chi, if you read this before we reach other, please do), but for now here is an email to me from Toan "Skinny" in Central Vietnam: Hi James, I am...

Clear Path's Outreach Worker - Medal Winner in PARAGAMES

Returning home from the 3rd regional PARAGAMES in Philippine, Le Thi Hoai Phuong, an UXO Survivor/a CPI’s Outreach Worker/a Class F44 Female Athlete had brought home 4 Gold medals and a Silver one, bringing her medal collection up to 24...

Great News from Vietnam

Chi posted yesterday a video of our 14 year old friend Nghia walking. I first wrote about Nghia on this blog in March of 2005. He was injured by a bomb left over from the US-Vietnam War while I was...

Boy Who Lost Legs Gets on His Feet

Ho Van Nghia, a 13-year old boy in Hue city, Viet Nam lost his legs and a hand in an UXO accident in March 2005. After going through long term treatments and rehabilitation, he now can get back on his...

Father of Five Killed in Vietnam

This just in from our office in Quang Tri Province, Vietnam: (Truong Quoc Dung-aged 40) A horrible accident happened to a 40-year-old man in Gio Linh district of Quang Tri province at 16h on Dec 27th 2005. Unknown ordnance suddenly...

A Lucky Boy In Central Vietnam

This report came in a couple weeks ago from our office in Central Vietnam: An accident happened to an eight-year-old boy (Nguyen Chi Luong-born in 1997) in Phu Loc district of Thua Thien Hue province on the ending days of the year 2005. It was on Dec 13^th when the boy came home from school. He saw unknown ordnance on the way and picked it up (It was reported later that it is a fuse). Because of curiosity, he tried to tamper it. And then came the explosion at 5 p.m. The boy received a lot of fragments on the chest and two arms and lost 2 fingers in the left hand. Luckily, no other kids were involved the that accident. The boy was then taken to the local health center and first aid and thereafter transferred to Hue Central Hospital for intensive care and treatment. He had two surgeries for skin transplant already.

August 25: One man killed, house down to ashes

The phone rang just as we enter the office after lunch break. Another UXO accident had just happened in Vinh Lam commune, Vinh Linh district. The informant just briefed that it was a serious accident involved a man killed...

Father of Five Killed by Bomb in Vietnam

Sounds of lament could be heard from a distance. Neighbors were quietly preparing for the funeral. An altar was set up right at the main entrance to the living room. A green curtain separates the altar from a bed...

US-Vietnam War Continues to Claim Lives, Limbs In Central Vietnam

QUANG TRI, Vietnam - August 22 - The US-Vietnam War continues to claim lives and limbs here in Central Vietnam. Bombs that lie scattered across the landscape detonate on a regular basis killing and maiming adults and children on a...

BOY LOST HAND AND EYE IN WAR-ERA UXO ACCIDENT

The explosion badly injured Quan. He lost the left hand, left eye and two fingers in the right hand. In addition, he was seriously injured in his chest and two legs. After the accident, he was taken to Quang...

A Destructive Blast Occured in Central Viet Nam

The place looked as if there was a strong typhoon had just gone through: trees with torn up leaves; broken bricks, roof tiles scattered around as two third of the house was demolished. There was not even enough space...

Cruel Summer: Bombs of Vietnam War Continue to Kill and Maim

Cluster bombs and other ordnance left over from the Vietnam War continue to kill and maim civilians in Vietnam 30 years after the war ended here. Below is a brief on just some of the accidents that occured in Central...

A Day in the Life of CPI's Duc and Chi

Chi and Duc work in our office in Vietnam and work with beneficiaries in their homes. We call these visits "field trips" and sometimes the travel can be quite far. Chi has filed this report. After one and a...

Compassion in our In Box

These notes were in our email box today in response to a recent death in Vietnam: "Clear Path is answering a call that struggles to be heard above the clamor of a greedy and often indifferent world. I and many,...

Man Killed By Vietnam War Era Bomb

A 41 year-old man was killed by a Vietnam War-era piece of ordnance on July 22nd, 2005 in the Vinh Linh district of Quang tri province, Vietnam. Nguyen Cuu Lam dicovered the bomb while working in the fields and was...

An Update on Ha

Ha is one of our beneficiaries who has needed multiple operations. The entry below is from Toan who just visited Ha at the Da Nang Orthopedic & Rehabilitation Center (DNORC). Read more about Ha's story here and see more...

Boy, 14, Found Dead from US-Vietnam War Era Explosive

Quang Tri Province, Vietnam- A young boy was found dead by his mother last week after he failed to return home from farming peanuts early in the morning on July 8, 2005.

Man Injured By Explosive in Vietnam

(Vo The Vinh, aged 46) An accident happened to a 46 year-old man in Gio Linh district of Quang Tri province at 10h a.m on Saturday, June 25^th . A piece of ordnance detonated while he was gardening outside his...

June Proves Dangerous in Vietnam

This report comes from our Vietnam office: Pls find below the info of new accidents that we responded in June: 1. (Nguyen Si Phu-aged 12; Phan Thanh Hieu-born in 1993) An accident happened to a boy in Bo Trach district,...

Landmine Kills Father and Injures Daughter in Vietnam

Due to economic hardhip, many people in former war zones in SE Asia tamper with unexploded ordnance (UXO) tampering to sell the metal and the TNT. Below is the most recent story involving tampering that resulted in death and injury...

Video: Mother of two is lost to Bomb

This accident was reported here last month, but Chi from the Vietnam ofice just put together a video of the visit with the family. Click the button below to see the video. He has also sent in a report which...

Boy, 12, Killed by Cluster Bomb in Vietnam

Quang Binh Province, Vietnam- A boy has lost his life after discovering a piece of unexploded ordnance in Central Vietnam. Nguyen Si Phu, 12, had found a cluster bomb while playing near his aunt's home on May 29, 2005....

Weekly Update: Good and Bad News

This week's update from the Vietnam office: "CPI receive the info of one new accident by CPFC Duc Pho District of Quang Ngai in this reporting period: One killed and one injured as below:Two men left their home and went...

Vietnam Accident Report

While clearing out some old emails today I found this report from an accident involving ordnance that resulted in a fatality in 2003. Most impressive is the professionalism of the CPI Vietnam staff. Most tragic is that this is not...

Story from the Field

Adopt-a-Minefield has posted a story written by Chi of our Vietnam staff to their website. Read the story here....

Rice Farmer Injured In Vietnam

On April 27th, a 20 year old Rice Farmer in Dakrong district of Quang Tri province was injured by a piece of ordnance left over from the Vietnam War while he was scattering rice seeds. He was using a metal...

Bomb Accident Injures Two Men in Vietnam

Two farmers in their twenties were severely injured by a Vietnam War era bomb in Huong Thuy district of Thua Thien Hue province on May 11th 2005. The two were planting eucalyptus trees in a hilly area less than a...

Bomb Explosion Kills Two Children in Vietnam

Thanks to Hugh Hosman for forwarding us this report. CPI staff will repsond in the coming days and we will have an update. Source: Agence France Presse -- English May 16, 2005 Monday 5:40 AM GMT LENGTH: 184 words HEADLINE:...

Woman Killed in Vietnam by War-Era Bomb

A piece of explosive ordnance left over from the Vietnam War killed a 24-year-old mother in Gio Son commune, Gio Linh district of Quang Tri province on May 1st, 2005. Tran Thi Tuyet and her husband were clearing vegetation in...

Vietnam War's Painful Legacy

I have written a lot here about the young boy, Nghia, who found a bomb in Vietnam and lost his lower legs and one arm while tampering with it in March. The San Jose Mercury News has written about him...

UPDATE: Video of Nghia at Home

When I was in Vietnam a month ago, I wrote of a sweet, young boy who had found a piece of ordnance and tampered with it. The result was that he lost two legs and an arm... Our phenomenal staff...

Cluster Bomb Kills Man in Vietnam: Video

Two days ago on April 18 in Dong Ha, Quang Tri Province Vietnam, 24 year old Nguyen Van Chung was hunting for scrap metal. He accidentally uncovered a piece of ordnance with his hoe and was killed almost immediately from...

Update: Injured Boy, Nghia, Returns Home

Just before I left Vietnam on my most recent trip, there was a terrible accident involving a young boy named Nghia (see posts here and here). Nghia had found a piece of ordnance and was tampering with it to get...

Three Girls Killed by Vietnam War-era Bomb

The CPI VN staff just received word on this and sent it here... it happened about 2 weeks ago... they are responding today. Source: Agence France Presse -- English Three girls aged between 10 and 12 were killed and two...

Another Close Call in Central Vietnam

I wrote in an earlier post that over the past few weeks our Vietnam office has been receiving more reports than usual of accidents involving unexploded ordnance (UXO) also known as explosive remnants of war (ERW). Just this morning the...

Lucky Kids

Fortunately, not all accidents involving ERW (Explosive Remnants of War) are fatal. Some cause only minor injuries. The children in the excerpt from the Vietnam office's email to me below are extremly lucky. Other children have not been so lucky....

Accident Reports

Every week, depending on the accident rate in Vietnam, I get reports from our Vietnam office. These reports are briefs on incidents that have occured and to which we have responded involving accidents with unexploded bombs. I am posting the...

Accident in Vietnam Wounds Farmers

I am currently in Taipei and running to catch my flight. I wanted to post this video Chi produced on the last days of my visit. CPI VN STAFF: I miss you already. You do incredible work. See the film...

Why I am Here

This entry was originally written for Tom Peters' blog at www.tompeters.com. Here is my post to Tom's blog: As I mentioned in my last post, I am in Quang Tri Province in Central Vietnam. This region received the heaviest sustained...

A Child's Joy, A Mother's Sorrow

Posted by Terri The time I am spending here seems to be speeding along. Yesterday I spent the day in the office working with Phuong, Nhi, Toan, Chi and Duc. The Clear Path office is located off the beaten path...

Quang Tri General Hospital, Vietnam

This morning James and I accompanied CPI staff members, Phuong and Duc, to visit two beneficiaries hospitalized here in the hospital at Dong Ha Town. This was my first time to actually witness CPI's direct contact with patients. Each staff...

Bombhunters Movie Update

Filmmaker Skye Fitzgerald has been documenting scrap metal collectors that disable bombs for meager profits in South East Asia. (You can read more about CPI and scrap metal collectors in National Geographic and on Brita's Blog). His film is titled...

Seven Days Article & Tenafly New Jersey

Many thanks to SEVEN DAYS of Burlington for their great piece on CPI. It is so cool when a reporter takes a genuine interest in our work and does such a thoughtful piece. Usually I do not submit such graphic...