Landmines in Cambodia: Past, Present, and Future By Wade C. Rober ...

at 61.3 years. The vast majority of deaths under the age of 5 (68%) occur as a result of neonatal conditions, diarrhea, and pneumonia. Individuals surviving the first 5 years of life are most likely to encounter death as a consequence of HIV (10%), tuberculosis (8%), and diarrhea (7%). In comparison to these problems, landmine- and UXO-related incidents pose less significant threats to human lives. For those encountering landmine-related ordnance, however, the ramifications are endless.

It is likely that the country of Cambodia is the only country in the world to have more active landmines buried beneath the ground than people living above it.¹ In addition to the landmine problem, residual UXO litters the country with an estimated 324,000 tons of postwar explosives. While estimations about the number of active landmines and residual UXO remaining in the country vary, even the most conservative estimates place Cambodia at a decisive disadvantage when considering ordnance estimations in relation to the population of the country.

In total, 58,000 individuals have suffered maiming, amputation, and/or death in relation to landmines/UXO since 1980. Between 1980 and 1998, an annual average of 2,700 landmine/UXO incidents took place, a number that declined to 781 between 1999 and 2007. The presence of ordnance prevents land from being used in harvest cycles and encourages the utilization of less-productive land in agricultural efforts. Individuals surviving an encounter with landmines/UXO often struggle to survive among a myriad of problems ranging from psychological to physical. When individuals suffer an ordnance incident, family members typically already experiencing extreme poverty are often forced into assuming debt, prostituting their daughters, and separating from each other to seek the aid of an international donor.

Despite the decrease in absolute ordnance numbers, landmine-related incidents still occur daily in Cambodia, leaving individuals maimed, with amputated limbs, or dead. People continue to walk past warning plaques to forage for food and gather water. On their way to school, children often cross fields suspected of being contaminated. Individuals migrating to new areas forcibly accept landmine risks with the allocation of land. The poor even intentionally seek ordnance, ironically to “afford” another