Volunteer Opportunity

Fall 2010

Project Coordinator – Twin Cities, MN

Legacies of War was founded in 2004 to raise awareness about the Vietnam War-era bombing in Laos, to provide space for healing the wounds of war and to create greater hope for a future of peace. The organization uses art, culture, education, and dialogue to bring people together and create healing and transformation out of the wreckage of war. For more information, visit www.legaciesofwar.org.

From September 30, 2010 to October 26, 2010, Legacies will join Intermedia Arts and Refugee Nation in collaboration with the Lao American Assistance Center of Minnesota to bring the Legacies of War National Traveling Exhibition to the Twin Cities. The exhibit, which has traveled to over 10 cities and internationally, will feature historic drawings, written and oral presentations, and components from the local community.

The volunteer will have a unique opportunity to work with an international team of individuals to make a significant contribution to the exhibition and community programs in the Twin Cities.

DESCRIPTION & QUALIFICATIONS
Legacies of War seeks an intelligent, dynamic and passionate Project Coordinator for its exhibit and community programs in Minnesota this fall. This person will work directly with the executive director and curator in meeting project goals and tasks. This position requires an individual with strong collaboration, good communication, and time management skills. We seek extremely organized (we like obsessive, compulsive types) and a self-starter.

Must have working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel spreadsheets, and the Internet. Knowledge of InDesign and Web page design is a plus but not required. Professionals and graduate students preferred; mature undergrads are welcome to apply.

RESPONSIBILITIES
● Assisting curator, a renowned national artist, with the MN exhibit at Intermedia Arts.
● Coordinating community discussions, workshops and events.
● Crafting media or marketing materials.
● Performing administrative tasks as needed.
● Preparing mailings and other project materials for meetings.

The position requires 10-15 hours a week. The volunteer opportunity will run from September 1, 2010 through October 30, 2010. Send inquiries, resume and cover letter to Ms. Channapha Khamvongsa at channapha@legaciesofwar.org by August 20th.

VIENTIANE, 5 August 2010 (IRIN) – A new cluster bomb ban has finally come into effect, but 37 years after the last US bomb fell here, Laos – the world’s most affected country – still feels the impact of unexploded ordnance (UXO) across all sectors of society.

“The UXO problem now constitutes an impediment to socio-economic development in our country. We cannot carry out our development projects and poverty eradication without getting the UXO out of our land,” Saleumxay Kommasith, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told IRIN.

According to Lao government statistics, US forces dropped more than two million tonnes of ordnance between 1964 and 1973. Each year, about 300 people are killed or wounded in UXO accidents.

John Dingley, UN Development Programme (UNDP) senior technical adviser to UXO Lao, the national clearance operator, said the costs of clearing agricultural land were roughly US$1,900 per hectare. But in the case of land being used, for example, for schools, the search for UXO has to go deeper and that figure could more than double.

Dingley said the scale of the problem in Laos was unprecedented. “More bombs were dropped on Laos than Germany and Japan put together in the Second World War.”

Funding hopes

Laos will host the First Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions in November and will assume the presidency for the following 12 months.

The hope is that with its increased presence on the international stage, further funds will go to Laos. A UXO trust fund has been set up by the government and UNDP in Laos to manage the resources for the UXO sector.

The convention, effective on 1 August 2010, and signed by 107 states and ratified by 37, bans the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of cluster munitions. Most importantly for Laos, the treaty has a strong focus on assisting those affected and calls on all states to clear land within 10 years.

Dingley believes the 10-year timeline for Laos is not realistic, although the convention does give clearance projects a fresh impetus.

“It means we can set a bunch of targets, for example, we can aim for something like all agricultural land [to be] cleared in 10 years and so we can really [go] to the donors and say help us to do this, help us achieve a target. But in order to achieve that… money is the big issue,” he said.

The UN in Laos says UXO is hindering the country’s attempts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and its target of no longer being a least developed country by 2020.

Cleaning up

UXO Lao has cleared almost 24,000ha of land since 1996, while from 2006 to 2008, it cleared 93ha of land for an International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Rural Livelihood Improvement Programme in southern Laos, opening up fields for rice cultivation, constructing a new school, dispensary and roads, in addition to ensuring access to safe drinking water.

According to government figures, all 17 provinces of the country – and 25 percent of villages – are still contaminated with UXO.

For one of the main drivers of the economy, the mining industry, the search for UXO often goes to a depth of 16m.

“UXO presents a unique threat to operations. In 2008, we cleared 100,000 bombs from an area of roughly 3,500ha,” said Richard Taylor of Minerals and Metals Group (MMG), a mining company that has spent up to $3 million a year over the past decade to clear land for its projects.

See the original article here

PRESS RELEASE

Legacies of War joins international community to celebrate Entry Into Force of Convention on Cluster Munitions

Group calls on U.S. to attend the First Meeting of States Parties in Vientiane, Laos in November

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 3, 2010 – Legacies of War joins the thousands of cluster bomb survivors in Laos and around the world to celebrate the Entry into Force of the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The Convention on Cluster Munitions is the most significant disarmament and humanitarian treaty in more than a decade; 108 countries have signed the treaty and 38 countries have ratified it. Lao PDR, the most heavily bombed country, per capita, in history, and one of the first countries to sign the treaty, will host the convention’s First Meeting of State Parties in Vientiane, Lao PDR, in November 2010.

“We are pleased that the First Meeting of States Parties will be held in Laos, which accounts for the most cluster munitions casualties worldwide, as a result of massive U.S. bombings during the Vietnam War-era. We would encourage the U.S., who hasn’t signed the treaty, to attend this historic meeting in November,” said Brett Dakin, Board Chair of Legacies of War.
On average, the U.S. spends $2.7M per year, compared to the $17M per day (today’s dollars) it spent during the 9 years of bombing (1964-1973). “Legacies of War is calling for an increase in U.S. funding to $10M per year over the next 10 years in order to make a significant dent in the current cluster bomb problem in Laos and save thousands of lives in the future,” Dakin added.

The meeting will create an action plan to be used by all states to complete the legal obligations of the treaty, including support for clearance, stockpile destruction and victim assistance.

As a lead up to the First Meeting of States Parties, campaigners around the world are holding public events in August to mark the official Entry into Force of the treaty. On August 1, the “Beat the Drum” campaign featured drumming events in 70 countries to welcome the treaty into force and highlight the treaty’s significance in communities affected by cluster bombs. Although the United States has not signed the treaty, events are being held around the country to participate in the international campaign. In Portland, OR, drumming circles, student groups and local musicians will join forces for a large drumming event on August 14.

Cluster bombs have a devastating effect on civilian communities as many bombs fail to detonate at the time they are dropped. Laos has been hit particularly hard by cluster munitions, which have killed or maimed as many as 50,000 civilians since 1964 (and 20,000 since 1974, after the war ended). Each year, there are 300 new casualties in Laos; 40 percent are children.

About Legacies of War

Legacies of War (www.legaciesofwar.org) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise awareness about the history of the Vietnam War-era bombing in Laos and advocate for the clearance of unexploded bombs, to provide space for healing the wounds of war, and to create greater hope for a future of peace.

Contacts

Channapha Khamvongsa, Executive Director, Legacies of War
Cell: (703) 868-0030 Email: channapha@legaciesofwar.org

Brett Dakin, Board Chair, Legacies of War
Cell: 347-268-8598 Email: bdakin@post.harvard.edu

By Jared Ferrie, Correspondent
posted August 1, 2010 at 12:28 pm EDT

Khangphaniena Village, Laos —

The young woman brushes her metal detector over coarse, dry grass in a field near a primary school. Against the sound of children playing, the machine beeps as she searches for unexploded bombs dropped by American aircraft four decades ago.

Most of those were cluster bombs – shells that open midair scattering tennis-ball-sized “bombies,” as they are known all over Laos. About 30 percent of them failed to explode upon impact, and instead remained buried in the earth. On average, one person a day is injured or killed in some part of the country by unexploded ordnance.

Cluster bombs affect about two dozen nations, from Afghanistan to Zambia. But it was Israel’s use of the weapon in Lebanon in August 2006, causing more than 200 casualties over the following year, that spurred members of the international community to act.

On Aug. 1, the Convention on Cluster Munitions comes into force under international law. Countries that have ratified the treaty will be required to cease production of cluster munitions, dispose of stockpiles, and clear contaminated areas. The first gathering of the 106 member states will be held in the Laotian capital in November.

Why the US won’t sign the treaty

Neither Israel nor the United States will attend. In fact, the US, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Brazil, and Israel are not signatories to the treaty. The US, among others, has argued that cluster bombs are an effective military tool that saves their soldiers’ lives. The US has also argued that it’s shifting to “smart” cluster bombs that self-destruct or deactivate, reducing the risk to civilians.

Laos, the most bombed country in the world per capita, strongly backs the treaty. Between 1964 and 1973, the US dropped more than 2 million tons of ordnance in a campaign kept hidden from Congress and the public. Since then, about 20,000 civilians have been maimed or killed by unexploded bombs, according to Legacies of War, a Washington-based group that raises awareness about America’s “secret war” in Laos.

Clearing the fields of Laos

Ping Souvanton’s brother was one of those victims. She now works for Mines Advisory Group, and leads the all-female team clearing this field outside the school in central Laos.

A few years ago, while farming with his parents, Ms. Souvanton’s 9-year-old brother struck a “bombie” with his hoe. He died in the explosion.

“It makes me angry,” she says in an interview at the school site. “Even though the war is over, the bombs still kill people.”

The country has also suffered huge economic losses, says Maligna Souvignongs, who heads the government agency that oversees bomb clearance. Laos is primarily an agricultural economy, and development has been hindered by the lack of access to farmland contaminated by cluster bombs.

“Those contaminated areas coincide with the poorest districts of the country. So if you would like to eradicate poverty, you have to clear those areas. If you would like [people] to produce enough food to feed their family, you have to clear land,” he says.

Mr. Souvignongs estimates it will take Laos 100 years to rid itself of unexploded ordnance at the current rate. And he points out that international funding for clearance fell last year.

But he is optimistic that more funding will become available after the treaty comes into effect. He adds that though the US has not signed the treaty, it could increase clearance efforts.

Money for bombs, but not for cleanup?

Indeed, figures show a dramatic contrast between the amount the US spent bombing Laos and the amount spent clearing away their lethal legacy. The US currently contributes about $5 million per year to cleanup efforts. Every single day for nine years it spent about $17 million (in today’s dollars) bombing Laos, according to Legacies of War.

More American diplomats and politicians are beginning to agree that their government owes Laotians much more than it has provided. On July 15, five former US ambassadors to Laos sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urging her to increase funding for clearance efforts. “Only steady US leadership and additional resources will ultimately bring this sad and unfortunate legacy of the Vietnam War to a safe and honorable conclusion,” the ambassadors wrote.

On April 22, Congress held its first hearings into unexploded ordnance left over from the bombing of Laos. Channapha Khamvongsa, the executive director of Legacies of War, testified, calling for the US to commit $10 million annually over the next 10 years.

“I hope the US will do the right thing and address this problem once and for all,” Ms. Khamvongsa says.”

See the original article here

Moldova’s Ministry of Defence destroys cluster munition stocks in a controlled explosion at Bulboaca training ground, 29 July 2010. Photo credit: Asle Huse/NPA

Campaigners celebrate as Convention becomes binding international law

(London, 29 July 2010) – The Convention on Cluster Munitions takes effect on Sunday, 1 August 2010, when it becomes binding international law in countries around the world. In dozens of countries, campaigners from the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) will join UN agencies, governments and international organisations in events celebrating the swift entry into force of the most significant disarmament and humanitarian treaty in over a decade.

“Campaigners around the world are celebrating a triumph of humanitarian values over a cruel and unjust weapon,” said Thomas Nash, Coordinator of the CMC. “At a time when concern over civilian deaths in conflict is in the news, this treaty stands out as a clear example of what governments must do to protect civilians and redress the harm already caused by cluster bombs, by assisting victims and making land safe.”

Adopted in Dublin on 30 May 2008 and opened for signature in Oslo in December 2008, the Convention bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions and calls for the destruction of stockpiles within eight years, clearance of cluster munition-contaminated land within 10 years, and assistance to cluster munition survivors and affected communities. On 1 August, all of the Convention’s provisions become fully and legally binding for states that have joined.

“Nations that remain outside this treaty are missing out on the most significant advance in disarmament of the past decade,” said Steve Goose, director of the Arms Division at Human Rights Watch and CMC co-chair. “If governments care enough about humanitarian law and protecting civilians from the deadly effects of armed conflict, they will join immediately.”

To date, 107 countries have signed the Convention and 37 have ratified. Among them are former users and producers of cluster munitions, as well as countries affected by the weapons. The international stigma against cluster munitions is already taking root and the last confirmed use of cluster munitions in a major armed conflict met with international condemnation when both Russia and Georgia used them in the conflict over South Ossetia in August 2008.

“Work is already under way to implement the Convention’s provisions, which shows that states are serious about ending the civilian suffering caused by cluster bombs and helping survivors and affected communities to enjoy their full human rights,” said Marion Libertucci, advocacy officer at Handicap International and CMC co-chair.

In recent weeks, Moldova and Norway destroyed the last of their cluster munition stockpiles, joining Spain, which eradicated its stockpile last year. Nearly a dozen other states have begun destruction, including the United Kingdom, a major former user and producer of the weapons. In December 2009, Albania completed clearance of cluster submunition contamination on its territory, the first signatory country to do so.

The CMC calls on all governments to attend the First Meeting of States Parties to the Convention, which will be held from 9-12 November in Lao PDR, the world’s most cluster-bombed country. This key meeting will lay the foundation for future work on the Convention by bringing together for the first time states parties to the treaty, UN agencies, international organisations, civil society, and cluster bomb survivors. Governments will share progress to date and draw up plans for action to implement the treaty’s lifesaving provisions within the established deadlines.

“Only a few years ago, many people said it was an impossible dream to ban cluster bombs,” said Branislav Kapetanovic a CMC spokesperson who lost all four limbs to a cluster submunition during a clearance operation in Serbia. “What this treaty shows is that ordinary people, including cluster bomb survivors like me, can be a part of extraordinary changes that bring real improvements to people’s lives all over the world.”

Since its founding in 2003, the CMC has worked as a global network of civil society organisations and cluster bomb survivors in collaboration with governments, UN agencies and international organisations to negotiate and promote universal adherence to the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

CMC campaigners are holding events in around 75 countries on all continents and on board a ship in the Arctic Ocean to mark the Convention’s entry into force and “beat the drum to ban cluster bombs,” including drumming sessions, film screenings, panel discussions, football games, and photographic exhibitions. Click here for a list of worldwide events.

CMC Web site

29 Jul 2010
Source: MAG (Mines Advisory Group)

The upcoming ban on cluster munitions, which will enter into force on 1 August, has not lessened the need for unexploded ordnance (UXO) clearance to continue.

Santi (or Ti) is an 11-year-old boy from Nathong village in Xieng Khouang province. He survived a serious UXO accident in June.

“One day, a few weeks ago, my father asked me to go to block off the stream that brings water into our paddy field,” he explains. “After I finished that, I went back to digging our vegetable plot. I tried to remove a small bush by pulling it out, but that didn’t work. So then I used my spade to dig it out. Suddenly I heard an explosion and at the same time I fell down unconscious.”

As his family had no vehicle, it took more than two hours to get Santi to the provincial hospital in Phonsavanh. He had struck a cluster bomb submunition, known locally as a bombie. When it exploded, metal fragments similar to ball bearings were sent tearing into his right arm, stomach and legs. Most of his teeth were knocked out by the blast.

Dr. Somsavay, the head of the hospital, says that his staff alone deal with an average of two UXO casualties every week. According to the country’s National Regulatory Authority, in the whole of Lao PDR there were around 300 UXO casualties a year for most of the last decade.

Santi is amongst the 60 per cent or so of accident victims who survive, but his injuries are extremely serious. “Santi only has a small chance of keeping his arm, but we will do our best,” said Dr. Somsavay.

For more on MAG’s work in Lao PDR, visit www.maginternational.org/laopdr.

See the original article here

July 29, 2010

By Karen J. Coates,  MinnPost

July 26, 2010

Click here to view the embedded video.

War-torn Laos Football Team Win Major Football Trophy

GOTHENBERG, Sweden, July 25, 2010 PRNewswire: An Under-18s football team from Laos, one of the poorest countries on Earth, have been awarded a key trophy at the world’s largest youth football tournament.

The Laos football team, who are the first football team in the history of Laos to ever play in any European football tournament, have been awarded the Fair Play Cup, in recognition of their outstanding record for good sportsmanship, and having also reached the Under 18s B semi-finals, following many great victories, including those against teams from the United States (2-1), Brazil (5-0), Sweden (3-0), Hungary (2-0) and Scotland (3-2).

Laos is widely recognized as the most bombed country in the world, following blanket bombing by American forces during the Vietnam War. One in five children dies before the age of 5, many through malnutrition. Thousands more are also killed or injured by the tens of millions of unexploded bombs that remain scattered, undetected but live throughout the Laos countryside.

The Gothia Cup is recognised globally as the World Cup for Under 18s football, and this year involves 1,567 teams from 71 nations, and more than 4,500 games. Dennis Andersson, Chairman of the Gothia Cup presented the team with the award live on national TV at a closing ceremony broadcast from the 25,000-seater Gamla Ullevi stadium.

Gareth Carter, organizer of the trip, said, “We’re delighted to have been able to take this team from the jungles of Laos to the world’s biggest youth football tournament, see them play great football, beating teams that tower above them and who often benefit from infinitely better modern facilities. For them to be honored in this way before they go back to Laos is fabulous.”

The team’s coach, Manophet Mouidouangdy, whose job was managing munition clearance in Laos, died tragically just before the tournament and the boys saw the tournament as an opportunity to play in his memory, as well as a historic moment for Laos, this being the first time Laos have had a team playing in Europe.

Laos’s official team name is the English Development School (EDS) Laos Football Club, which is based in Phonsavan, in North West Laos. This is the area of Laos most badly affected by the legacy of the Vietnam War. Between the ten years between 1964 and 1973 one B-52 bombload was dropped on the country every eight minutes, 24 hours a day.

Team captain, Xay Savard, aged 18, said, “It has been amazing to come to Europe and we are so very happy to win this award and to show the world
how Laos people play football and how good we can play.”

Laos top goal scorer, Thai Yang, also aged 18, said, “I am very happy and very proud of my team and my country. I would like to thank the Swedish people, organizers and sponsors. I am honoured to be here.”

The Laos team had many new experiences on this historic trip. None of the team had ever even flown on an aeroplane before. None of them had ever even seen the sea, but on this trip got to swim in it for the first time. Nor had they ever played on a proper football pitch before as their home pitch is primarily used for cattle grazing.

The team were supported by the local Laos community, who brought them Laos food before and after every match. The football team were unable to eat any local or junk food in Gothenburg, as it made them sick every time. One Laos player commented, “I ate a beefburger for the first time here, and if I did that often I think I would change shape and be very unhealthy.”

A full length documentary feature film is being made of the team’s successful trip, which will be released worldwide in 2011. View the full trailer of the film here:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Laos Participation in the tournament was made possible through sponsorship from Sony Ericsson and Stena Line. The Laos team return to their country on the evening Sunday 25th July and can be interviewed before or after this time.

SOURCE The Gothia Cup

July 25, 2010

NHK World; Japan

*Correction: Over 100 countries have signed the Treaty to Ban Cluster Munitions, 38 countries have ratified the treaty.