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Table of Contents
Country Reports
Lao People's Democratic Republic, Landmine Monitor Report 2008

Lao People's Democratic Republic

Mine Ban Treaty status

Not a State Party

Stockpile

Reportedly small, but not formally disclosed

Contamination

Mainly submunitions, other UXO, some antipersonnel mines

Estimated area of contamination

No credible estimate

Demining progress in 2007

Battle area clearance: 42km2 (2006: 47km2)

Mine/ERW casualties in 2007

Total: 100 (2006: 59)

Mines: 1 (2006: 1)

ERW: 57 (2006: 14)

Submunitions: 38 (2006: 31)

Unknown devices: 4 (2006: 13)

Casualty analysis

Killed: 31 (2006: 16)

Injured: 69 (2006: 33)

Unknown: 0 (2006:10)

Estimated mine/ERW survivors

At least 5,500, but likely much higher

RE capacity

Unchanged—inadequate

Availability of services in 2007

Unchanged—inadequate

Mine action funding in 2007

International: $12.2 million (2006: $13.4 million)

National: none reported (2006: none reported)

Key developments since May 2007

In December 2007, Phase 1 of the Lao Victim Information System, a historical survey of casualties since 1964, was launched. Recommendations from evaluations in 2005–2007 were integrated in the ERW risk education program in 2007, and new strategies and materials introduced.

Mine Ban Policy

The Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty. In recent years, the Lao government has expressed its intention to join the treaty.[1] Lao PDR attended the intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in June 2008, where it stated that “the Lao Government is considering the eventuality of joining the Ottawa Convention. Nevertheless, it needs the assurance from the States Parties that, once the Lao PDR becomes signatory thereof, it will not be forced to abandon or stop its current UXO clearance operations.”[2]

Lao PDR has cited the treaty’s antipersonnel mine clearance obligation as a reason why it has not acceded.[3] In February 2008, at the Ottawa Convention Implementation and Universalization Workshop held in Bali, Indonesia, it stated, “Once the Convention enters into force for Lao PDR, the Lao Government will have to devote all efforts to locate, mark and destroy anti-personnel landmines in known or suspected mined areas, which is not feasible practically, and to abandon or stop UXO clearance activities. This is the Lao Government’s understanding.”[4]

On 5 December 2007, Lao PDR for the first time voted in support of the annual UN General Assembly resolution (Resolution 62/41), calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. In explaining its vote, it said that Lao PDR “supports the humanitarian endeavors of the Mine Ban Treaty and shares the concerns of the international community on the impact derived from anti-personnel landmines. In this context, we have participated in the Treaty process including various meetings of state parties to the Treaty since its inception.”[5]

It went on to say, “The Lao Government continues to express its interest in acceding to the Treaty. However, it still needs time and resources to prepare necessary conditions that would enable the country to accede to the convention and meet all provisions prescribed therein. These conditions include, among other things, national capacity-building and raising public awareness about the Treaty among government officials and military personnel as well as local officials who have direct or indirect involvement in the implementation process of the Treaty.”[6]

Lao PDR attended as an observer the Eighth Meeting of States Parties in Jordan in November 2007, its first such participation since 2003. It stated that it “has no major difficulties with the implementation of the general obligations of the Convention” and noted that “[m]ost of the work done or ongoing by the Lao Government so far with its limited resources, in terms of Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Victim Assistance are consistent with the provisions of the Convention.”[7]

Lao PDR has used mines in the past, but officials state that it has not used them in the “last decades.”[8] Officials have stated that Lao PDR does not produce or export antipersonnel mines, and has only a relatively small stockpile.[9] In April 2007, an official said destruction of the stockpile will not be a big problem if Lao PDR joins the Mine Ban Treaty.[10]

Lao PDR is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons and its original Protocol II on landmines, but not Amended Protocol II or Protocol V on explosive remnants of war. It participated in the Dublin Diplomatic Conference on Cluster Munitions in May 2008 and adopted the final treaty text.

Landmine/ERW Problem

Lao PDR is affected by landmines but the problem is overshadowed by the world’s worst (cluster) submunition contamination, which dates back to the Indochina War of the 1960s and 1970s when it experienced the heaviest aerial bombardment in history. The United States dropped more than two million tons (2 billion kg) of bombs between 1964 and 1973,[11] including more than 270 million submunitions. Clearance teams have found at least 186 types of munition, including 19 types of submunition.[12]

There is no credible estimate for the total area contaminated in the country, which continues to lack up-to-date information on the location and impact of explosive remnants of war (ERW) contamination.[13] Lao PDR has been creating a national database that will bring together disparate sources of data. Until then, the national survey of contamination by Handicap International (HI), published in 1997, although acknowledged as out of date,[14] remains the primary data source. It found that 15 of the country’s 17 provinces—all those it surveyed—had districts significantly or severely affected by unexploded ordnance (UXO) and that a quarter of the villages in Lao PDR had a continued UXO presence, including 1,156 villages with large bombs ranging from 100 to 1,000kg.[15]

Lao PDR’s National Socio-Economic Development Plan 2006–2010 (NESDP) identifies UXO as “one of the major security challenges facing the poor communities in terms of access to land and markets. It is also a major risk, especially for children.”[16] In 2007, Lao PDR had 100 reported casualties from UXO, including 31 people killed, but almost certainly had other unreported casualties.[17]

The NESDP also observes that “there appears to be a significant correlation between the presence of UXO and the prevalence of poverty” and the UN Development Programme (UNDP) has observed that “UXO/Mine Action is the absolute pre-condition for the socio-economic development of Lao PDR.”[18] The HI survey noted that UXO contamination “limited agricultural and forest-based activities and increases the cost of rural infrastructure projects.”[19] The Nam Theun 2 hydroelectric dam, one of Lao PDR’s biggest economic development projects, spent more than US$16.7 million on UXO clearance between February 2003 and October 2007.[20]

UXO has also posed a significant threat because of its value as scrap metal. UNDP reported a sharp rise in UXO-related casualties in 2004 and commented that “the growing scrap trade, facilitated by the ubiquitous presence of cheap and effective Vietnamese metal detectors, often rented out by scrap merchants, is a significant driver of this change.”[21] In Savannakhet, Houaphan and Xieng Khouang, three of the worst affected provinces, a high percentage of UXO-related casualties are believed to be linked to scrap metal collection.[22]

All sides in the war laid antipersonnel mines, particularly along borders and around military bases and airfields. The HI survey found mines in all 15 provinces it surveyed, contaminating 214 villages,[23] and clearance operators have estimated Lao PDR may have 1,000 minefields.[24] The remote location of most minefields meant that mines had little impact, accounting for only 1% of the total items of ordnance cleared since 1996,[25] and 0.2% of items cleared in 2007.[26] A fatal antivehicle mine incident in 2007 (involving a UXO Lao-contracted tractor),[27] and the clearance of a minefield as part of an infrastructure project, indicated mines may require greater attention as economic development progresses.[28]

Mine/UXO Action Program

Coordination and management

The Lao National UXO Programme (UXO Lao), the national clearance agency established in 1996, had primary responsibility for clearance, coordinating and regulating all UXO action until 2004, when a government decree created the National Regulatory Authority (NRA). The government appointed a director in December 2005 and the NRA became operational in 2006.[29] UXO Lao, a civilian government body, remains by far the largest clearance operator in Lao PDR.[30]

The NRA’s role includes coordinating and regulating the sector, accrediting operators, setting standards, and quality management. It also has the mandate to serve as the technical focal point for matters relating to international disarmament treaties. It reports to the Deputy Prime Minister and a Board of Directors comprising key government ministries, including defense, foreign affairs, and security.[31]

The NRA employed 23 national staff and seven international advisors in 2007 and had working groups for clearance, victim assistance, and risk education, reporting to an operations officer and under the management of the NRA Director, Maligna Saignavongs, and a UNDP senior technical advisor.[32] With US Department of State funding, ArmorGroup provided a technical advisor for standards and quality management in February 2007, who has been conducting desk evaluations and accreditation of operators.[33] As well, there was an MRE Advisor provided by MAG with funding from the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission, and the Swiss Ministry of Defense provided two technical advisors to the NRA (one for the Information Management System for Mine Action [IMSMA] and one in the field of “policy and finance”).[34]

The NRA is creating a national UXO database that will include US bombing data, records of operators’ past clearance, and victim data collected in a survey undertaken in early 2008. The NRA installed the latest version of IMSMA with assistance from the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) in July 2007, but faced technical difficulties that delayed bringing it into full operation; these continued into 2008.[35]

The NRA expected to open two provincial offices in 2008, possibly in Xieng Khouang and Savannakhet, as a pilot project for opening a network of provincial offices in the 15 UXO-affected provinces to coordinate data collection and participate in preparation of provincial annual workplans.[36]

As of May 2008, the NRA had completed accreditation of two commercial operators (BACTEC and Milsearch) and an NGO, the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD). Two other commercial operators, Phoenix Clearance Ltd. and a Russian state company, EMERCOM, had applied for accreditation. UXO Lao, Mines Advisory Group (MAG), HI, and the armed forces had not yet applied, but would be formally requested to apply within the year.[37]

National mine/UXO action legislation and standards

A decade after the start of systematic UXO clearance efforts, Lao PDR’s first national UXO/mine action standards, based on the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS), were completed in English, distributed to all operators, and posted on the NRA website in December 2006. The NRA expected to submit 24 chapters of standards to the NRA Board for approval in mid-2008.[38]

Status of strategic mine/UXO action planning

A National Strategic Plan for the UXO Programme 2003–2013, “The Safe Path Forward,” adopted by government decree in April 2004,[39] laid down broad objectives for the UXO sector:[40]

  • clearance of not less than 180km2 of high and medium priority land by UXO Lao alone;
  • reduction of UXO/mine casualties to fewer than 100 per year;
  • delivering risk education training to all UXO/mine-affected communities; and
  • developing a national database on mine/UXO accidents.

However, the plan predated the creation of the NRA and has been largely overtaken by developments in the sector, including a rapid acceleration in UXO Lao clearance rates and NRA initiatives to develop the database. As a result, the NRA initiated discussions with UXO Lao and other stakeholders in March 2007 with a view to revising and updating the strategic plan.[41]

GICHD continued working in 2008 to refine a risk management and mitigation model commissioned by the NRA. This was intended to lay the basis for “a new approach to addressing the Lao PDR contamination problem” that would set new standards for assessing risk and clearance priorities, tasking operators, and releasing land more quickly to the community by accelerating clearance.[42] The GICHD model, finalized in January 2007, was initially field-tested by four operators: UXO Lao, FSD, HI, and MAG.[43] In 2008, UXO Lao and MAG conducted further trials on a revised version of the model, expected to come into service before the end of the year.[44]

Integration of mine/UXO action with development

The 2003–2013 strategic plan, acknowledging priorities established by the National Poverty Eradication Programme, set its main goal as enabling “people from the most highly impacted communities to live free from the impacts of landmines and UXO.” The plan defined three clearance priority categories:[45]

  • high: agricultural tasks, roving tasks, public service utilities, and educational facilities;
  • medium: grazing land and forest, communal facilities, government facilities and offices; and
  • low: public infrastructure, communal “profit-making” areas, tourism sites, and commercial/private business sites.

Smaller operators, both humanitarian and commercial, undertake clearance for projects that support poverty reduction programs or infrastructure projects such as hydroelectric dams. Until 2007, UXO Lao, the biggest operator, focused clearance on tasks largely determined by local community leaders on the basis of their perceived threats, without reference to national economic and social development plans or national poverty reduction strategies.[46] UXO Lao, however, responding to a government push for more support to poor areas, is increasing clearance for development agencies.[47] In 2008, UXO Lao planned to clear some 3km2 for development agencies, including 1.7km2 for the World Food Programme (WFP).[48]

Mine/UXO action evaluations

Two evaluations completed by Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) in June 2006, a Clearance System Study, reviewing performance of detector technologies, and Enhancing the Technical Survey in Sekong Province, which reviewed clearance methodologies, provided the basis for operational reforms implemented in 2007 and 2008. The studies aimed to raise UXO Lao’s efficiency by moving from the mine clearance methodology it had employed for the past decade to battle area clearance (BAC) appropriate to dealing with UXO.[49]

The Clearance System Study recommended that UXO Lao combine use of detection equipment that incorporated discrimination technology with more use of vegetation cutters, to work with two-person lane teams, and to clear land according to the recommendations of survey teams based on the assessed risk level of proposed clearance tasks.[50] On the basis of the study findings, UXO Lao started to re-equip staff with Vallon detectors, placing orders for 120 in 2007.[51]

The enhanced technical survey study found that a high percentage of sites cleared by UXO Lao yielded no UXO or mines and proposed measures to improve task selection and to focus clearance assets on contaminated land. It proposed more thorough evaluation of proposed clearance tasks using US bomb data, historical records, and interviews with villagers to determine an appropriate response, which might include cancellation of the task, deploying a roving team, or full clearance.[52] UXO Lao brought an advisor to Lao PDR in 2008 to work on developing its application in operations.[53]

As of March 2008, UNDP had issued a request for proposals to assess the progress of “the UXO sector” against the ten-year strategic plan, including a review of the effectiveness of government and donor support to the sector. The proposed review included an assessment of capacity-building in the sector in general, donor support to NGO and other operators, and recommendations on future donor support.[54]

Demining

UXO Lao, set up in 1996 and operating in nine provinces, represents the main UXO clearance capacity, with 1,009 staff in 2007, including 677 engaged in clearance and eight international advisors.[55] Other organizations engaged in UXO clearance included the international NGOs HI, MAG, and FSD; a Russian state company, EMERCOM; and three commercial companies, BACTEC, Milsearch, and Phoenix Clearance. The army undertakes clearance operations in border areas and has taken on commercial tasks linked to road development and rural electrification, but little is known about the scope or results of its activities.

Identifying hazardous areas

The survey of the socio-economic impact of UXO contamination completed by HI in 1997 remains the only comprehensive survey of affected areas. It collected detailed information from 7,675 villages determining the presence of UXO, the type of land contaminated, types of UXO observed, the number of casualties caused by UXO, and their impact on affected communities. However, it did not attempt to detail locations or assess the extent of the area contaminated, and it has not been updated, limiting its present value as a tool for planning or prioritizing UXO action.[56]

Mine and ERW clearance in 2007 and 2008

After a dramatic rise in 2006, the total amount of land cleared in 2007 decreased about 11% to 42km2 in 2007, although still more than double the 17km2 cleared in 2005. The drop was accounted for by lower area clearance results of two commercial companies, Milsearch and Phoenix Clearance. The NRA reported a total of 88,259 items of UXO cleared in 2007 (a slightly different total than from the operators, see table below), including 53,315 “bombies” (submunitions).[57] Only two operators reported clearing mines—Milsearch, which cleared 10,000m2, destroying 29 antipersonnel mines and 13 antivehicle mines, and UXO Lao, which destroyed 123 antipersonnel mines.

Battle area clearance in 2007[58]

Demining operators

BAC (km2)

UXO destroyed

BACTEC

2.8

364

FSD

0.24

1,532

HI

0.23

815

MAG

3.5

15,809

Milsearch

6.2

4,508

Phoenix

3.5

1,138

UXO Lao

25.5

63,442

Total

41.97

87,608

UXO Lao increased the area of land it cleared by one-fifth in 2007 to 25.5km2, up from nearly 21km2 in 2006. The increase reflected UXO Lao’s transition from exclusive use of 100% metal-free clearance methodology to BAC and the use of “enhanced technical survey” (ETS), giving clearance teams discretion to apply different clearance procedures on the strength of technical survey findings. ETS-trained teams were active in all nine of the provinces in which UXO Lao was working in 2007. UXO Lao also acquired new detection equipment to support the change (see above), as well as new computers to support a database upgrade to the latest version of IMSMA.[59] Roving teams did not meet their annual target (1,442 tasks) but still increased their activities, completing 1,309 tasks in 879 villages (up from 1,216 tasks in 754 villages in 2006).[60]

MAG achieved a sixfold increase in the amount of land it cleared to 3.5km2 (from 610,000m2) after increasing the number of clearance teams from five at the end of 2006 to 11 by the end of 2007, including two all-female teams. MAG’s roving teams also undertook 312 tasks in 123 villages, clearing 2,510 items of UXO, including 1,746 submunitions. MAG also operated seven community liaison teams which, among other roles, assisted in task selection and prioritization. To facilitate clearance, MAG conducts “Village Assisted Clearance,” hiring people from local communities to clear vegetation.[61]

BACTEC won a contract to undertake clearance for Sepon Gold and Copper Project, a job previously awarded to Milsearch since 1993, and began operations in August 2007.[62]

FSD, working in Lao PDR since 2006, added two new clearance sections in 2007 and, as of December 2007, had four international and 71 national staff, undertaking survey and clearance to support the WFP in three districts of Savannakhet province that are rated very poor, and in Sekong province for WFP and CARE. For CARE, FSD undertakes a mixture of area clearance, roving tasks and risk education (RE) under a five-year project focusing on a small number of villages over an extended period of time.[63]

HI started clearance as an autonomous humanitarian demining operator in May 2006 and in 2007 continued to operate in Savannakhet province with 21 personnel in three teams, supporting World Vision rural development work as well as HI target villages. HI undertook area clearance tasks on land required for agriculture or development and assigned one section for one week a month to roving tasks, visiting 19 villages and destroying 630 items of UXO, including 112 aircraft bombs. From September, HI placed operations under the management of a Lao national, replacing an international technical advisor. HI hands over land after external quality control and conducts post-clearance assessments six months to a year after completion of tasks.[64]

Milsearch-BPKP, a joint venture between Australian company Milsearch Pty Ltd and Bolisat Phathana Khet Phoudoi Group (BPKP), which works under the Lao Prime Minister’s Office, was the first operator to receive NRA accreditation in August 2007. In 2007, its major tasks included clearance for the Sepon Gold and Copper Project (until June) and work related to the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project, including clearance of dam construction sites and transmission line easements. Technical survey of one powerline easement for J-Power Consortium completed in 2007 identified an antivehicle minefield and led to clearance of a total of 35 antivehicle mines and 80 items of UXO.[65] Staff numbers vary according to the number of contracts in progress, but at its peak in 2006, Milsearch employed some 560 Lao technical staff and 22 expatriate technicians.[66]

Phoenix Clearance, registered in New Zealand, started work at the end of 2005 on clearance for resettlement linked to the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower Project under a contract running to 2008 and took on a number of other projects linked to the dam, including a roving response and community awareness program, clearing to support livelihoods, and an environmental project to restore wetlands. With a core team of about 40 technicians, increased to 200 as required for additional contracts, Phoenix Clearance also undertook clearance for building powerlines.[67]

UXO Lao continued to raise productivity in 2008, helped by continuing deployment of its new equipment. In the first five months, UXO Lao released 14.5km2 through area clearance and a further 2.1km2 through ETS, also conducting 573 roving visits. In the process, it cleared 33,636 items of UXO, including 18,603 submunitions, as well as 87 mines.[68] UXO Lao’s target for the year was to area clear 26.2km2 and release a further 4.17km2 through ETS.[69]

Mine/ERW Casualties

In 2007, there were at least 100 new mine/ERW casualties in Lao PDR, including 31 people killed and 69 injured. All recorded casualties were civilian and almost all were male (42 men and 46 boys); seven were girls and five were women.[70] One casualty was caused by an antivehicle mine, 38 were caused by submunitions and 57 by other ERW. For the remaining casualties the device was unknown.

The main activities at the time of incident recorded were farming (25) and destroying ERW (19 casualties). Only three scrap metal collection casualties could be clearly distinguished. However, handling/tampering activities (40 casualties hitting, dismantling, and playing) may be related to scrap metal collection. The antivehicle mine casualty’s occupation was recorded as “worker”; all the other casualties were recorded as “farmer” or “child.”[71]

Most recorded casualties occurred in Xieng Khouang (27) and Savannakhet (18) provinces.[72] The NRA noted that “under-reporting of incidents is certain, with only data reported from limited parts of… nine affected provinces.”[73]

The US-based NGO World Education Consortium (WEC) reported 56 casualties for 2007, collected through beneficiary and applicant data, including two people killed and 54 injured. Three were girls, 21 were boys, 17 were men, and four were women. The most common activities at the time of the incident were digging, burning, and dismantling.[74] The NRA stated that it appears as if some or all of these casualties were not included in their statistics.[75]

The casualty rate in 2007 is a significant increase compared to 59 new mine/ERW casualties in Lao PDR (16 people killed, 33 injured and 10 unknown) in 25 incidents reported for 2006, which was attributed to the limited capacity of casualty data collection.[76]

Casualties continued to be recorded in 2008. As of 26 June 2008, at least 47 casualties (15 people killed and 32 injured) were recorded in 17 incidents during the first four months of the year. Casualties included nine children, including one girl injured.[77]

Data collection

As in previous years, casualty data collection was not nationwide or comprehensive and the data itself was often inaccurate or incomplete.[78] The NRA is responsible for casualty data management and receives information from mine action operators, Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE), and the Lao Disabled People’s Association.[79] UXO Lao is the main source of casualty information but since 1999 it has only been able to collect data in some districts in nine of the 17 provinces. Data collected in Xieng Khouang province prior to 1999 is too incomplete for use. Analysis of UXO Lao data shows that the activity at the time of the incident is still recorded inaccurately, making it impossible to determine when a device was deliberately tampered with and why.[80]

Since 2006, it had been recommended to improve data management, and the development of a nationwide mine/ERW database was one of the main priorities in the NRA strategy. A data collection methodology and forms were developed in 2006 by the NRA Victim Assistance Unit. In 2007, the unit continued to focus on establishing the Lao Victim Information System (LVIS). In October 2007, the NRA and the National Rehabilitation Center (NRC) signed a nationwide survey agreement; recruitment and training of 20 provincial victim assistance technicians as supervisors and 139 district data collectors was started. In December, Phase 1 of the LVIS, a historical survey of casualties since 1964, was launched.[81] In order to carry out the data collection work, the NRC used the Ministry of Health network of health workers.[82]

The NRA planned to integrate LVIS data into IMSMA together with existing UXO Lao data and HI survey data. However, due to “the numerous technical difficulties intrinsic in the new IMSMA software,” the NRA was unable to use IMSMA in 2007.[83] By June 2008, IMSMA was used to manage the data collected during the historical survey.[84] The NRA Victim Assistance Unit produces bimonthly reports on progress to the Victim Assistance Technical Working Group, but to June 2008, these and the minutes of the Victim Assistance Technical Working Group meetings had not been made available online regularly as planned.[85]

Phase 1 of the LVIS identified 8,355 casualties from 1,372 villages surveyed to end April 2008. It was planned to survey 10,552 villages in total. Initial results appear to show a certain level of error in the survey or verification process, despite quality control of data in the field and at the NRA head office in Vientiane. As of June 2008, verification was still ongoing—and acknowledged as necessary.[86] For example, mines were recorded as causing more incidents than submunitions when the device was known, whereas other studies indicated that at least 42% of incidents were caused by submunitions.[87] Numerous incidents had improbable or impossible dates, including incidents between 1900 and 1940.[88] Data cleaning has been undertaken to remove these anomalies and, where that is impractical, the forms have been returned to the enumerators for recompletion.[89]

According to the survey, most casualties occurred in 1964 and 1967–1969, with more people killed than injured;[90] it is unknown if casualties as a direct result of aerial bombing are included in these figures. Initial survey results for incidents since 1997 display trends similar to what UXO Lao recorded in that time period, with the exception of 2004 when UXO Lao recorded a significant increase in casualties. Although preliminary, the survey data appeared to confirm that under-reporting by UXO Lao was at least 50%.[91]

The total number of mine/ERW casualties in Lao PDR is not known. According to NRA/UXO Lao data provided to Landmine Monitor, between 1999 and December 2007 there were at least 1,052 casualties (312 killed, 739 injured and one unknown).[92] HI survey data contains records for 10,639 casualties (5,487 killed, 4,832 injured and 320 unknown) between 1973 and 1997.[93] Landmine casualties have been recorded in every province.[94]

Mine/ERW Risk Education

Recommendations from evaluations in 2005–2007 were integrated in the ERW RE program in 2007, and new strategies and materials introduced (see below). However, a continued lack of accurate casualty data in Lao PDR created serious obstacles for targeted RE in high-risk areas, or for determining what sort of handling of ERW occurred.[95]

In 2007, at least 329,754 people received RE in Lao PDR (including 214,892 children), a significant and continued increase compared to 273,569 people in 2006 and 241,618 in 2005.[96]

Strategic framework and capacity

The NRA has a unit responsible for coordination and monitoring of RE activities, which should “liaise with operators to ensure a sustainable, targeted risk reduction strategy…focusing on high-risk areas and high-risk groups.”[97] The unit’s technical working group held regular bimonthly meetings in 2007–2008. UNICEF and MAG provided funding and technical advice and MAG seconded a technical advisor to the NRA. In 2007, the NRA and UNICEF signed a partnership agreement regarding funding for RE for the year.[98] The position of RE officer at the unit was vacant from October 2007 to early 2008.[99]

The national RE strategy 2007–2010 was approved by the NRA in January 2008.[100] The new approach encourages a shift from the information/education/communication model used previously to a behavior change/communication approach based on discussions of options for adults, and risk minimization for intentional adult risk-takers. The NRA and operators agreed to maintain the approach of discouraging children from any risk-taking with ERW/mines.[101] According to the MAG/UNICEF survey in 2006, 99.6% of children surveyed considered UXO to be dangerous but 52% of children surveyed reported collecting scrap metal.[102]

In 2007–2008, the NRA, supported by UNICEF and MAG, developed new RE materials to accompany the strategy (in Lao, Hmong, and Khamu languages) and guidelines for their use so that operators could better target specific at-risk groups as identified by previous assessments. These groups included: adult scrap metal collectors, scrap metal dealers, children who play or tamper with ERW or collect scrap metal, and farmers. General materials for all groups were also developed.[103]

The draft national standards for RE, revised in July 2008, were pending approval as of August. In addition to public information dissemination and education and training, two new official components for RE were added: data collection (monitoring of risk areas and inclusion of RE information in casualty data) and community initiatives (such as village-level frameworks for RE or scrap metal dealers promoting safe practices). Community liaison was removed as one of the official RE components of the national standards, but it was noted that RE implementers should “actively seek opportunities” to ensure that RE is integrated with other ERW/mine action activities.[104] IMAS RE standards were translated into Lao in 2007.[105] By mid-2008, the NRA was collecting data on RE activities even though IMSMA was not fully functional.[106]

Activities

In 2007, WEC continued working with the Ministry of Education and expanded its RE program to four new districts and to new schools in the 16 districts where it already operated. In 2007, 4,884 teachers used the UXO curriculum, which WEC had handed over to district and provincial authorities. Providing RE in remote schools with large ethnic minority populations remained a challenge for the program. In 2007, WEC and the Ministry of Education reached some 150,000 children in schools and through performances.[107]

In 2007, HI’s Integrated UXO Threat Reduction Program included a community-based RE component in Savannakhet province focusing on parent-to-child education and encouraging children not to take any risks with ERW. Community liaison was also conducted. RE for adult high-risk groups focused on risk minimization, recognizing that livelihood needs often force people to take risks. HI conducted needs assessments (in December 2006 and July 2007) but did not revise its materials accordingly as planned.[108] It used the new NRA materials instead to improve its community interventions. In 2007, HI reached 8,887 people through RE activities. [109]

MAG’s community liaison program reached 26,081 people in 2007. In 2008, MAG began a project targeting scrap metal collectors and dealers near Phonsavanh township in Xieng Khouang province. It included safety briefings for dealers and mobile explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) response to ERW reports. In June 2008, MAG started evaluating its community liaison program.[110]

UXO Lao provided RE to 144,786 people (61,919 children, 82,867 adults) in 2007.[111] Phoenix Clearance also provided RE through community liaison (beneficiaries unknown);[112] and the Japanese NGO Demining and Education for the Children organized an RE poster competition for children in Xieng Khouang province.[113]

In March 2008, CARE Australia started a project in Sekong province, supported by FSD, which would include an RE component. Activities would be implemented through a network of village-based ERW risk educators in accordance with the NRA RE strategy. A detailed baseline study for the project was completed in early 2008,[114] but activities had not started as of June 2008.[115]

Victim Assistance

Overall provisions for mine/ERW survivors remained inadequate. In 2007, the NRA reported that “In Laos, none of these [victim assistance pillars] exists,…although strides are being made in the direction of data collection for UXO victims.”[116] Many survivors are poor, live in remote areas, are often from minority ethnic groups, and suffer disproportionately from limitations of service provision.[117]

Emergency and continuing medical care was very poor.[118] Despite progress in improving health services in Lao PDR, the quality of care remained a major concern; staff motivation was low and public health services were underused.[119] By decree, people with low incomes should receive free medical treatment, but it almost never occurred.[120]

While some projects addressed physical rehabilitation and psychosocial support, further improvement was much needed.[121] Physical rehabilitation is reasonably well developed, but services are urban-based, centralized, and not easily accessible for survivors from rural areas.[122] Psychosocial support was lacking, although some peer-to-peer support was available. Medical professionals are not trained to recognize mental health problems and existing services are only available in Vientiane.[123] Economic reintegration remained limited, with few training opportunities available.[124]

The Decree on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was pending government approval as of June 2008. The NRA had not been closely involved in its development.[125] The drafting project involved the Lao Disabled People’s Association, the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, and the National Commission for Disabled People (NCDP) with technical support from international organizations and donors.[126] The decree states that it applies to all persons with disabilities, regardless of the cause of disability. While no specific provisions were included for survivors, there are specific regulations for military personnel disabled in war.[127]

Legislation does not mandate accessibility to government services for persons with disabilities, but some regulations for accessibility to buildings were established by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare.[128] On 15 January 2008, Lao PDR signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but not its Optional Protocol; it had not ratified the convention as of 31 July 2008.

Victim assistance strategic framework

The NRA’s Victim Assistance Unit is responsible for VA policy development, coordination, resource mobilization, and liaison between stakeholders.[129] VA is included in the NRA’s 2003–2013 National Strategic Plan, which states that the specific needs of survivors and their dependents “will be factored in all national [and] local public health initiatives.” The strategy also proposed a VA action plan to be developed together with the Ministry of Health and service providers.[130]

As of August 2008, Lao PDR did not have a comprehensive VA plan or framework. The Victim Assistance Unit intended to develop a VA strategy following the completion of Phase 1 of LVIS; drafting was to start in 2008.[131] The NRA VA annual workplan for 2007 contained only data collection activities.[132] Draft VA mine action standards, submitted to the NRA in February 2007, were pending approval in July 2008.[133]

The VA technical working group met regularly in 2007;[134] HI and WEC attended regularly as did the NRC, but no other government bodies attended. Some NGOs were said to attend less frequently.[135]

Responsibility for providing services to persons with disabilities is divided between the Ministry of Health, which manages national and provincial rehabilitation centers, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, which oversees the NCDP.[136]

Assistance activities

The Lao Disabled People’s Association works with the government, international organizations, and NGOs. It operated some 140 village-based self-help groups for 5,000 members in 11 provinces.[137]

Within the framework of its 2003–2008 national action plan,[138] COPE—a joint venture between the Ministry of Health and NGOs—continued to provide support for materials, components, and patients’ costs, skills development, capital works, and other expenditures to the NRC in Vientiane and four provincial prosthetic-orthotic centers in 2007. The project resumed in 2006 after being suspended in 2005 following the expiry of POWER International’s memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Health; a shortage of funds for patients’ costs was a contributory factor.[139] Physiotherapy guidelines were also developed in 2007.[140] In 2007, COPE assisted 1,167 people to receive prosthetic-orthotic devices, 1,200 devices were examined or repaired, and 765 of the beneficiaries were treated at the NRC.[141] COPE’s first Laotian International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics Category I graduate returned in 2007.[142]

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Special Fund for the Disabled (SFD) started providing material support to the NRC in Vientiane and provincial centers in Savannakhet and Pakse within the COPE framework. The three centers fitted patients with 528 prostheses and 416 orthoses in 2007; SFD materials made approximately half of this production possible. No technical assistance was provided as most of the centers have sufficient qualified national staff. SFD noted that, although COPE depends significantly on external funding, its “funding diversification is sufficient to preclude critical dependency on SFD support.”[143]

HI provided community-based rehabilitation (CBR) services to 357 persons with disabilities in 30 rural villages in Savannakhet and inclusive education services to 54 children with disabilities and 12 schools in three urban districts of the province. HI also provided capacity-building for rehabilitation staff and other stakeholders.[144] The Savannakhet CBR intervention, in cooperation with the Provincial Rehabilitation Center, will continue for at least the next two years.[145] Another VA project was pending signature of an MoU with the Ministry of Health.[146]

WEC provided capacity-building programs to hospital staff and VA service providers in four provinces. It also fundraised and provided funding for hospital repairs and medical equipment in three provinces. Funds for acute medical treatment, continuing medical care and socio-economic support continued to be provided. In 2007, the War Victims Medical Fund (WVMF), co-managed by WEC and the departments of health in five provinces, provided the costs for acute medical treatment and continuing medical care for 45 UXO survivors; since 1996, nearly 600 UXO survivors have been helped by this fund. While the hospital in Xieng Khouang treated 11 survivors who had intentionally dismantled ERW, the WVMF did not cover their treatment; this WVMF policy will be changed in 2008. WEC and the Department of Health in Xieng Khouang provided UXO survivor after-care services through peer support for 59 people, income generation for 94 families, vocational training for 60 UXO survivors or family members, education support for 61 children, and other services for 89 people.[147]

Association for Aid and Relief Japan completed its wheelchair project at NRC in November 2007; 1,180 devices had been produced since November 2004.[148] The NGO BasicNeeds promoted integration of psychosocial care into existing health services.[149]

Support for Mine Action

Landmine Monitor is not aware of any comprehensive long-term cost estimates for fulfilling mine action needs (including RE and VA) in Lao PDR. The 2003–2013 strategic plan, adopted in 2004, included annual cost estimates totaling $5,125,000 (€3,737,875) for UXO Lao clearance programs as well as RE, VA, and NRA operational costs, through to 2009.[150] Funding requirements for 2010–2013 were not reported. Since the strategic plan was adopted, mine action programming has increased notably and annual funding has surpassed levels indicated in the plan. The UXO Lao budget alone for 2007 was approximately $5.8 million.[151] Because of recent developments in the mine action sector, the strategic plan as a whole is under review (see above section on strategic mine/UXO action planning). COPE’s 2008–2013 plan in support of VA reportedly includes a cost estimate of $5.38 million.[152]

The NRA coordinates and reviews implementation of the National Strategic Plan for the mine/UXO action sector. Among its financial duties, the NRA manages mine/UXO action assets transferred from the government to mine action operators, acts as the formal depository for funding agreements between donors and mine action operators, and approves commercial investment projects involving mine action.[153] Identifying future funding strategies was among the priority tasks defined for the NRA as of July 2007.[154] In October 2006, the NRA established a government-donor UXO Sector Working Group.[155]

National support for mine action

No mine action funding was reported by the government of Lao PDR in 2007 or 2006. At a June 2007 NRA/NGO technical working group meeting, following a “study tour” by the NRA to Vietnam, in which national support by the government of Vietnam to mine action was noted, the NRA chief of operations recommended consideration of longer term national funding strategies for UXO action in Lao PDR.[156]

International cooperation and assistance

In 2007, eight countries reported providing $12,241,635 (€8,928,331) to mine action in Lao PDR. Reported mine action funding in 2007 was approximately 9% less than reported in 2006. There is no current data on ERW contamination or comprehensive casualty data against which to measure mine action funding in Lao PDR, however, funding at 2007 levels, while far surpassing budget estimates in the 2003–2013 strategic plan, does not appear sufficient to address the full range of mine/UXO action and VA needs.

2007 International Mine Action Funding to Lao PDR: Monetary[157]

Donor

Implementing Agencies/Organizations

Project Details

Amount

US

From the Department of State, USAID, Leahy Fund and Department of Defense

$2,905,000

Japan

MAG, UXO Lao, JMAS

EOD, UXO clearance

$2,691,100 (¥316,599,975)

Australia

CARE Australia, COPE, FSD, HI, MAG, UXO Lao, NRA

VA, integrated mine action, UXO clearance and threat reduction

$2,643,165 (A$3,150,000)

Ireland

MAG

Integrated mine clearance

$1,371,100 (€1,000,000)

UK

MAG, UXO Lao

Mine/UXO clearance

$1,117,677 (558,280)

Germany

UNDP

UXO clearance

$606,700 (€442,491)

Luxembourg

HI Luxembourg

Mine/UXO clearance

$490,193 (€357,518)

Switzerland

UNDP

Mine action and development

$416,700 (CHF500,000)

Total

$12,241,635 (€8,928,331)

UNDP reported allocating $620,000 in funds for Lao PDR in 2007, consisting of $350,000 for UXO Lao and $270,000 for the NRA.[158] UNICEF Lao PDR reported receiving $150,310 in funding for RE in 2007, including funds from the Australian National Committee for UNICEF, Sweden, the US and the United Kingdom.[159]

The UXO Lao budget for 2007 was $5,818,979, including personnel, operating costs, equipment, and UNDP administrative costs.[160] As of April 2007, UXO Lao reported secured funding of $5.2 million for 2007 and 2008, and pledges of an additional $2.1 million for the same period. Government donors included Germany, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Switzerland, the UK, and the US.[161]


[1] See Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 972; and Landmine Monitor Report 2007, pp. 877–878.

[2] Statement of Lao PDR, Standing Committee on the General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 2 June 2008.

[3] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1034.

[4] Presentation by Amb. Maligna Saignavongs, Director, NRA, Ottawa Convention Implementation and Universalization Workshop, Bali, 27 February 2008. He also noted that most of the incidents in Lao PDR are caused by (cluster) submunitions, not mines, and that mines comprised less than 1% of the explosive hazards removed during clearance and EOD in the previous 12 years.

[5] Statement of Lao PDR in Explanation of Vote After the Vote on Resolution 62/41, UN General Assembly, New York, 5 December 2008.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Statement by Amb. Maligna Saignavongs, NRA, Eighth Meeting of States Parties, Dead Sea, 18 November 2007.

[8] Presentation by Amb. Maligna Saignavongs, NRA, Ottawa Convention Implementation and Universalization Workshop, Bali, 27 February 2008.

[9] See Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 972; and Statement of Lao PDR, Eighth Meeting of States Parties, Dead Sea, 18 November 2007.

[10] Interview with Amb. Maligna Saignavongs, NRA, Vientiane, 4 April 2007.

[11] “US bombing records in Laos, 1964–73, Congressional Record,” 14 May 1975.

[12] See Landmine Monitor Report 2005, p. 789; and NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” p. 13, www.nra.gov.la.

[13] GICHD, “Lao PDR Risk Management and Mitigation Model,” December 2006, p. 39; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 878.

[14] GICHD, “Lao PDR Risk Management and Mitigation Model,” December 2006, p. 9.

[15] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 878.

[16] Committee for Planning and Investment, “National Socio-Economic Development Plan 2006–2010,” Vientiane, 2006, p. 95.

[17] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, Foreword, www.nra.gov.la. There were erroneous figures included in the annual report. Email from Tim Horner, Senior Technical Advisor, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[18] UNDP, “UNDP in Lao PDR,” www.undplao.org.

[19] HI, “Living with UXO, National Survey on the Socio-Economic Impact of UXO in Lao PDR,” Vientiane-Brussels, 1997, pp. 7, 9, 20.

[20] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 16, www.nra.gov.la.

[21] UNDP, “Sharp rise in UXO deaths for 2004,” Press release, Vientiane, 8 July 2004.

[22] Interview with Martin Dunn, Country Representative, Consortium in the Lao PDR (now WEC), Vientiane, 10 March 2006, and email, 28 March 2006.

[23] HI, “Living with UXO, National Survey on the Socio-Economic Impact of UXO in Lao PDR,” Vientiane-Brussels, 1997, p. 7.

[24] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 1036–1037.

[25] GICHD, “Lao PDR Risk Management and Mitigation Model,” December 2006, p. 24. The study found that some 5,700 mines had been disposed of, compared with 718,000 pieces of ordnance.

[26] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 10, www.nra.gov.la.

[27] The accident occurred on 27 October 2007 when a tractor working on a road in Xieng Khouang province detonated a US-made M19 plastic antivehicle mine. The area had been extensively used in recent years for grazing and cultivation and extensively transited by vehicles, including tractors. A UXO Lao team had checked the site a month earlier to a UXO-free, not metal-free, standard, recovering 22 items of UXO, including three submunitions. NRA, “Accident Investigation Report,” 2 November 2007. Email from John Dingley, Senior Technical Advisor, UXO Lao/UNDP, 26 August 2008.

[28] Telephone interview with Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 11 May 2008.

[29] See Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 974.

[30] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 881.

[31] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 22, www.nra.gov.la.

[32] Ibid, p. 21.

[33] Interview with Phil Bean, Technical Advisor, Operations/Quality Assurance, NRA, Vientiane, 21 April 2008.

[34] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[35] Telephone interview with Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 11 May 2008.

[36] Ibid; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 879.

[37] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 11 May 2008.

[38] Interview with Phil Bean, NRA, Vientiane, 21 April 2008.

[39] Prime Minister’s Decree No. 33, 29 April 2004.

[40] “The Safe Path Forward, National Strategic Plan for the UXO Programme 2003–2013,” Vientiane, 29 April 2004, pp. 2, 4.

[41] Interview with Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, Vientiane, 1 March 2007.

[42] Ibid.

[43] Telephone interview with Tim Lardner, Mine Action Specialist, GICHD, 26 July 2007.

[44] Interview with Tim Lardner, GICHD, Geneva, 5 June 2008.

[45] “The Safe Path Forward, National Strategic Plan for the UXO Programme 2003–2013,” Vientiane, 29 April 2004, pp. 2–4.

[46] NPA, “Enhancing the Technical Survey in Sekong Province,” June 2006, p. 11.

[47] Interview with John Dingley, Senior Technical Advisor, UXO Lao/UNDP, Vientiane, 23 April 2008.

[48] UXO Lao, “2008 Work Plan,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 2.

[49] Interview with Bounpone Sayasenh, National Program Director, UXO Lao, Vientiane, 23 April 2008.

[50] NPA, “Clearance System Study,” Vientiane, June 2006, p. 6.

[51] Interview with John Dingley, UXO Lao/UNDP, Vientiane, 23 April 2008; and UXO Lao, “2008 Work Plan,” Vientiane, undated but 2008.

[52] Leonard Kaminski, “NPA-Lao PDR Enhanced Technical Survey Project Report, Executive Summary,” June 2006.

[53] Email from Edwin Faigmane, Program Technical Adviser, UXO Lao/UNDP, 23 June 2008.

[54] UNDP, “RFP for the provision of UXO Sector Evaluation Lao PDR 2008,” 1 March 2008, p. 19.

[55] UXO Lao, “Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 2.

[56] See Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 977.

[57] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 10, www.nra.gov.la.

[58] Data provided by emails from Alan McKeown, Operations Manager, BACTEC Lao Ltd., 14 June 2008; Nigel Orr, Program Manager, FSD, and Tony Fish, Regional Coordinator for Asia, FSD, 20 March 2008; Kim Warren, UXO Program Coordinator, HI, 6 April 2008; David Hayter, Country Programme Manager, MAG, 4 April 2008; Jonathon Guthrie, Operations Manager, Milsearch-BPKP, 19 May 2008; and Paul Stanford, Technical Operations Manager, Phoenix Clearance, 20 March 2008; and UXO Lao, “Annual Report 2007,” undated but 2008, p. 10. NRA statistics show operators cleared a total of 88,259 items of UXO.

[59] Interviews with Bounpone Sayasenh, UXO Lao, and with John Dingley, UXO Lao/UNDP, Vientiane, 23 April 2008.

[60] UXO Lao, “Annual Report 2007,” undated but 2008, p. 1.

[61] Email from David Hayter, MAG, 4 April 2008.

[62] Emails from Alan McKeown, BACTEC Lao Ltd., 14 and 15 June 2008.

[63] Email from Nigel Orr, FSD, 20 March 2008.

[64] Email from Kim Warren, HI, 21 April 2008.

[65] Interview with Jonathon Guthrie, Milsearch-BPKP, Vientiane, 22 April 2008; and NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 52, www.nra.gov.la.

[66] Interview with, and email from, Ron Hawkins, Manager, Milsearch-BPKP, Vientiane, 2 March and 26 July 2007.

[67] Email from Paul Stanford, Phoenix Clearance, 9 March 2007; and telephone interview with Michael Hayes, Manager, Phoenix Clearance, 24 July 2007.

[68] Email from Edwin Faigmane, UXO Lao/UNDP, 23 June 2008.

[69] Interview with Bounpone Sayasenh, UXO Lao, Vientiane, 23 April 2008.

[70] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[71] Casualty data provided by email from Michael Boddington, Victim Assistance Technical Advisor, NRA, 30 April 2008.

[72] NRA, “Minutes of the Technical Working Group Victim Assistance,” Vientiane, 7 February 2008, provided by email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008.

[73] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 11, 15 and Foreword, www.nra.gov.la.

[74] Email from Barbara Lewis, Team Leader, Support for War Victims and People with Disabilities Project, WEC, 5 May 2008.

[75] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[76] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 885.

[77] Email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008.

[78] See Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1045; Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 885; and NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 11, www.nra.gov.la.

[79] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 886.

[80] Analysis of UXO Lao data for 2007 by Landmine Monitor; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 886.

[81] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 28, www.nra.gov.la; and email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[82] NRA, “Minutes of the Technical Working Group Victim Assistance,” Vientiane, 7 February 2008, provided by email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008; and email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[83] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 25, www.nra.gov.la.

[84] Email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 886.

[85] NRA, “Quarterly Report for Victim Assistance Unit (Q1) January, February and March 2007,” Vientiane, May 2007; and emails from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008; and Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[86] Email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008.

[87] HI, “Circle of Impact: The Fatal Footprint of Cluster Munitions on People and Communities,” Brussels, May 2007, p. 31; and Landmine Monitor analysis of casualty data from HI, “Living with UXO, National Survey on the Socio-Economic Impact of UXO in Lao PDR,” Vientiane-Brussels, 1997, p. 28.

[88] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008; and email, 26 June 2008.

[89] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[90] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008; and email, 26 June 2008.

[91] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 886.

[92] Casualty data provided by email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 887. Landmine Monitor Report 2007 incorrectly reported 951 casualties to end 2006 instead of 952.

[93] HI, “Circle of Impact: The Fatal Footprint of Cluster Munitions on People and Communities,” Brussels, May 2007, p. 31; and Landmine Monitor analysis of casualty data from HI, “Living with UXO, National Survey on the Socio-Economic Impact of UXO in Lao PDR,” Vientiane-Brussels, 1997, pp. 24–25.

[94] HI, “Living with UXO, National Survey on the Socio-Economic Impact of UXO in Lao PDR,” Vientiane-Brussels, 1997, p. 28.

[95] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 883.

[96] Emails from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008; Kim Warren, HI, 29 August 2008; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 883; and Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 979.

[97] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 20, www.nra.gov.la.

[98] Ibid, pp. 24, 26–27; and email from Amy Delneuville, Child Protection Officer, UNICEF, 29 August 2008.

[99] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Thongdy Phommavongsa, MRE Officer, NRA, 23 April 2008.

[100] NRA, “Strategic Plan for Mine Risk Education in Lao PDR 1 January 2007–31 December 2010,” Vientiane, 23 January 2008.

[101] Email from Ruth Bottomley, Mine Risk Education Advisor, MAG/NRA, 29 April 2008.

[102] Jo Durham, “Needs Assessment in Lao PDR,” Journal of Mine Action, Issue 11.1, Summer 2007, www.maic.jmu.edu.

[103] NRA, “Guidelines for the use of UXO Risk Education Materials,” April 2008; MAG/UNICEF, “UXO Risk Education Needs Assessment,” Vientiane, October 2006, pp. 8–11; MAG/NRA, “Mine Risk Education Materials Development Lao PDR Final Report,” October 2007; and MAG/NRA, “Mine Risk Education Materials Development Lao PDR Literature Review,” October 2007.

[104] NRA, “UXO and Mine Risk Education,” Lao PDR National UXO/Mine Action Standards (NS), Chapter 13, Revised Edition 2, 8 July 2008, pp. 5, 7; and NRA, “UXO and Mine Risk Education,” Lao PDR National UXO/Mine Action Standards (NS), Chapter 13, Draft Edition 1, 31 January 2007, pp. 4–5.

[105] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 26–27, www.nra.gov.la.

[106] Email from Ruth Bottomley, MAG/NRA, 20 June 2008.

[107] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Martin Dunn, WEC, 25 April 2008.

[108] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 884.

[109] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Kim Warren, HI, 20 May 2008; and emails, 23 June 2008 and 29 August 2008; and NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 43–44, www.nra.gov.la.

[110] Email from David Hayter, MAG, 24 June 2008; and email from Ruth Bottomley, MAG/NRA, 20 June 2008.

[111] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 11, 38, www.nra.gov.la; response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Martin Dunn, WEC, 25 April 2008; and response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Kim Warren, HI, 20 May 2008.

[112] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 50, www.nra.gov.la.

[113] Email from Ruth Bottomley, MAG/NRA, 20 June 2008.

[114] Email from Lisa Ognjanovic, Provincial Program Coordinator, CARE International, 30 June 2008.

[115] Email from Nigel Orr, FSD, 26 June 2008.

[116] NRA, “Quarterly Report for Victim Assistance Unit (Q1) January, February and March 2007,” Vientiane, May 2007.

[117] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 887.

[118] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008.

[119] Ministry of Health and Belgian Technical Cooperation, “Support to Health Sector Reform in Provinces of Vientiane and Savannakhet,” Vientiane, March 2008, p. 1, www.btcctb.org.

[120] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008; and email, 26 June 2008.

[121] UNICEF/HI, “Victim and Survivor Assistance Study, Lao PDR,” Vientiane, April 2006, p. 18.

[122] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 887.

[123] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Barbara Lewis, WEC, 5 May 2008; and BasicNeeds, “Where we work: Lao PDR,” www.basicneeds.org.

[124] Responses to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Michael Boddington, NRA, 30 April 2008; and Barbara Lewis, WEC, 5 May 2008.

[125] Email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008.

[126] Presentation by Shintaro Nakamura, Former Policy Advisor to the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (2004–2007), “Partnership of Government, International Community, NGOs and PWD: Experiences in Lao PDR,” Tokyo, 12 November 2007, www.jicafriends.jp.

[127] “Decree on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities,” Draft text, undated but 2007, www.shia.se.

[128] US Department of State, “2007 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Laos,” Washington, DC, 11 March 2008.

[129] See Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 888.

[130] “The Safe Path Forward, National Strategic Plan for the UXO Programme 2003–2013,” Vientiane, 29 April 2004, p. 2; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2004, p. 1046.

[131] NRA, “Minutes of the Technical Working Group Victim Assistance,” Vientiane, 7 February 2008, provided by email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008; and email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[132] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 28, www.nra.gov.la.

[133] NRA, “UXO and Mine Victim Assistance,” Lao PDR National UXO/Mine Action Standards (NS), Chapter 14, Revised Edition 2, 8 July 2008.

[134] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 21, 27, www.nra.gov.la.

[135] Email from Michael Boddington, NRA, 26 June 2008.

[136] See Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 986.

[137] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 64–66, www.nra.gov.la.

[138] Internet Directory of NGOs in the Lao PDR, “Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE),” updated 23 February 2007, www.directoryofngos.org.

[139] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008; and see Landmine Monitor Report 2007, p. 889; and Landmine Monitor Report 2006, p. 985.

[140] COPE, “Newsletter,” May 2008, www.copelaos.org.

[141] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[142] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, pp. 56, 61–62, www.nra.gov.la.

[143] ICRC SFD, “Annual Report 2007,” Geneva, February 2008, p. 41.

[144] Email from Lorenzo Villa, Coordinator of Operations, HI, 11 August 2008.

[145] Email from Luc Delneuville, Programme Director, HI, 30 August 2008.

[146] Email from Julie Roegiers, Institutional Fundraising Officer, HI, 8 August 2008.

[147] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Barbara Lewis, WEC, 5 May 2008; and emails, 15 May 2008 and 29 August 2008.

[148] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 59, www.nra.gov.la.

[149] BasicNeeds, “Where we work: Lao PDR,” www.basicneeds.org.

[150] “The Safe Path Forward, National Strategic Plan for the UXO Programme 2003–2013,” Vientiane, 29 April 2004, p. 3.

[151] UXO Lao, “Annual Report 2007,” Vientiane, undated but 2008, p. 8.

[152] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[153] NRA, “Sector Structure, Organisations and Responsibilities,” Lao PDR National UXO/Mine Action Standards, Chapter 1, Draft edition 1, 31 January 2007.

[154] UNDP, “Programme Brief: UXO Planning and Coordination (NRA),” July 2007.

[155] NRA, “UXO Sector Annual Report 2006,” Vientiane, undated but 2007, p. 18.

[156] NRA, “Minutes of the Technical Working Group UXO/Mine Clearance,” 28 June 2007, p. 2.

[157] USG Historical Chart containing data for FY 2007, by email from Angela L. Jeffries, Financial Management Specialist, US Department of State, 22 May 2008; and emails from Yasuhiro Kitagawa, Japan Campaign to Ban Landmines (JCBL), 22 May 2008, with translated information received by JCBL from the Humanitarian Assistance Division, Multilateral Cooperation Department, and Conventional Arms Division, Non-proliferation and Science Department; Leisa Gibson, AUSAID, 29 April and 8 May 2008; Michael Keaveney, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, Department of Foreign Affairs, 13 March 2008; Tayo Nwaubani, Program Officer, DfID, Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department, UK, 29 April 2008; Johannes Dirscherl, Desk Officer, Federal Foreign Office, 1 February 2008; Tessy Seidenthal, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 1 April 2008; and Rémy Friedmann, Political Division IV, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 29 April 2008.

[158] Email from Tim Horner, NRA/UNDP, 29 August 2008.

[159] Email from Amy Delneuville, UNICEF, 29 August 2008

[160] “UXO Lao: Resources and Budget,” www.uxolao.org.

[161] UXO Lao, “Annual Program Review,” 5 June 2007.