More than three decades since the end of the war in Vietnam, accidents from landmines and unexploded bombs still injure and kill innocent civilians at an alarming rate.

As 2006 draws to a close, Clear Path International’s office in Vietnam reports it provided support to 88 new victims of encounters with unexploded ordnance in seven central coast provinces north and south of the former Demilitarized Zone. Clear Path has posted an incident report brief to their blog at www.cpi.org/cpiblog. Read the report in PDF format here.

"It should be made clear that this report is not representative of the country as a whole, and includes only accidents that were reported to our staff in the Central Vietnam region." stated Executive Director, Martha Hathaway "But these numbers should also make clear that the Vietnamese people are still, thirty years post conflict, suffering from explosive remnants of war with disturbing frequency."

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

Since 2000, Clear Path has provided medical, social and economic assistance to more 2,750 new and existing accident survivors and their families in central Vietnam. This year, it has been offered a matching challenge grant of up to $60,000 from the U.S. State Department.

Clear Path is still collecting donations to meet the State Department challenge focused specifically on its humanitarian mine action work in Vietnam.

Based in the Unites States, Clear Path International assists landmine accident survivors in Vietnam, Cambodia and along the Thai-Burma border. It also sends shipments of medical equipment, orthopedic devices and surgical supplies to hospitals in mine-affected countries around the world. Learn more about Clear Path International at www.cpi.org.

The U.S. State Department has announced it will match up to $60,000 in contributions made by any grassroots and private-sector donors to Clear Path International’s landmine accident survivor assistance work in central Vietnam.
The matching period will last at least until spring of 2007. This means contributions sent by mail or on the organization’s website will be eligible for the match from the State Department.

The dollar-for-dollar matching challenge was one of two grants for Clear path International announced by the State Department’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement. The government agency said it would also contribute $75,000 towards Clear Path’s initiative to construct a rice production facility in Cambodia where hundreds of landmine victims will learn farm-based skills in the coming years.

“This is very exciting news for us,” said Martha Hathaway, Clear Path’s executive director. “It’s the first time we have received assistance for our humanitarian work from the government.”

Since it was founded in 2000, Clear Path International has assisted more than 3,000 landmine accident survivors in Vietnam, Cambodia and along the Thai-Burma border, and it has sent 60 containers of medical equipment and supplies to hospitals in 22 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

All that work during the past six years was funded by individual grassroots donors, charitable foundations, churches, businesses and service clubs, Hathaway said.

“The State Department’s announcement of the matching challenge recognizes the strength of our grassroots and foundation support,” she said. “Now, private-sector donors know their contributions will have an even greater impact because of the government match.”

The $75,000 grant for the Cambodia rice mill project does not require a match from private-sector contributors. The rice mill has already received major private-sector funding from the McKnight Foundation in Minneapolis and the United Nations Association USA’s Adopt-A-Minefield program. Clear Path has now raised $280,000 of the $325,000 needed for the mills completion.
To make a contribution to Clear Path International, please visit www.cpi.org.

Gia Lai Province, Vietnam -Three children were killed this week and three others injured when they discovered a cluster bomb left over from the US-Vietnam war and played with it as if it were a toy. The children, ranging in ages from two to eleven years old, found the cluster bomb in a river near their homes in Vietnam’s central highlands and attempted to remove the BB-like pellets on the outside of the bomb casing

The resulting explosion killed three children, aged six, nine and eleven years old, immediately and three others remain hospitalized.

Quang Tri Province, Vietnam- Cluster bombs and other ordnance left over from the Vietnam War continue to kill and maim civilians in Vietnam 30 years after the war ended here.

Clear Path International has provided this brief on just some of the accidents that occurred in central Vietnam for the month of July 2005:

On July 6th a man in Quang Binh Province disturbed a piece of unknown ordnance while farming and sustained major injuries to his chest and legs, broke both his collarbones, suffered severe burns on his face and lost three fingers on his left hand.

On July 8 in Quang Tri Province, 14 year old Duong Ba Tien was found dead on his parents' farm after he apparently disturbed an unexploded bomb while harvesting crops.

On July 9th, 28 year old Phan Van Huong lost sight in one eye and partially in the other after a sub-surface piece of ordnance detonated while he was weeding in his garden.

On July 12th A 22-year old man sustained serious unjuries to his chest, face and arms when a cluster bomb detonated while he was clearing bushes. On July 15th an 8 year old boy received minor inuries to his eyes when a piece of ordnance exploded in brush burning outside his home

On July 19th in Ha Tinh province a 14 year old boy lost his left hand and injured his left leg after finding a piece of ordnace near his home.

Also On July 19th in Quang Binh Province, Le Cuong, a 37 year old man was killed while farming after he accidentally detonated an unknown piece of ordnance now thought to be a cluster bomb.

On July 22nd 41 year old Nguyen Cuu Lam was killed while scavenging metal in Quang Tri Province.

On July 29th 17 year old Pham Van Kien sustained major abdominal injuries when he and his friends discovered a piece of ordnance near their home.

Although the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago, by some estimates over 350,000 tons of bombs that did not detonate when dropped remain in the ground. This ordnance regularly claims lives and limbs in this still war-ravaged province.

Since the conflict ended in 1975, nearly 40,000 Vietnamese have been killed by by these munitions. Clear Path International serves landmine and bomb accident survivors, their families and their communities in former war zones in Southeast Asia. This assistance takes the form of both direct and indirect medical and social services to survivor families as well as equipment support to hospitals.

Current Clear Path projects are in Vietnam, Cambodia and on the Thai-Burma border. More information about Clear Path International can be found on the web at www.cpi.org.

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

Duong Ba Tien, 14, apparently was digging in the dirt when an unknown Vietnam War era device exploded and killed him on the spot. His mother found him a few hours later.

"Here explosions happen all the time." his father reported to Clear Path Intenational a US based landmine and bomb accident survivor assistance program operating in central Vietnam "We hear explosions everyday."

View a video of his interview here in Windows Media Format.

Although the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago, by some estimates over 350,000 tons of bombs that did not detonate when dropped remain in the ground. This ordnance regularly claims lives and limbs in this still war-ravaged province. Since the conflict ended in 1975, nearly 40,000 Vietnamese have been killed by by these munitions.

Clear Path International serves landmine and bomb accident survivors, their families and their communities in former war zones in Southeast Asia. This assistance takes the form of both direct and indirect medical and social services to survivor families as well as equipment support to hospitals. Current Clear Path projects are in Vietnam, Cambodia and on the Thai-Burma border.

More information about Clear Path International can be found on the web at www.cpi.org.