Embassy of Japan in the Kingdom of Cambodia
Speech by H.E. Mr. KUROKI Masafumi
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan
to the Kingdom of Cambodia At the Hand-Over Ceremony of Demining Equipments to CMAC
(Phase VI)
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan
to the Kingdom of Cambodia At the Hand-Over Ceremony of Demining Equipments to CMAC
(Phase VI)
February 16, 2012
- Venerable monks
His Excellency Dr. SOK An, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister in charge of the Office of the Council of Ministers
His Excellency Mr. SOU Phirun, Governor of Siem Reap Province
His Excellency Mr. Heng Ratana, Director-General of the Cambodian Mine Action Center
Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen
It
is a great honour for me to attend this important hand-over ceremony of
demining equipment for the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) with the
high presence of His Excellency Dr. SOK An, Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister in charge of the Office of the Council
of
Ministers. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to His
Excellency for sparing his busy time to preside over this ceremony.
This
is the sixth time that the Japanese Government provides a package of
demining equipments to the Royal Government of Cambodia. The main items
of today's hand-over include mine detectors, UXO detectors, brush
cutters and various transportation vehicles worth over 16 million USD,
which are to support and further improve CMAC's demining operations.
Through the assistances for the past five times in this sector, which
are worth about 50 million USD, almost half of equipment used by CMAC
was provided by Japan's grant aid.
The
Government of Japan has placed a particular emphasis on assisting
demining activities in Cambodia, recognizing the seriousness of the
landmine problem. Clearing landmines and UXOs is critically important
for the people of Cambodia both from the viewpoints of human security
and socio-economic development. Not only do their existences pose a
significant threat to the lives of the people in affected areas but also
they hinder the productive use of land for agriculture and may deter
foreign direct investments.
The
remarkable results of clearing landmines and UXOs in Cambodia would not
have been possible without a strong commitment by the Government
National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP) and Cambodian Millennium
Development Goals (CMDGs) put a high priority on the clearance of
landmines and UXOs and set the targets. Accordingly, the annual number
of victims has rapidly decreased from 4,320 cases in 1996 to 211 cases
in 2011 and the cleared land has increased to 52,075,770 m2 in 2011.
I
would like to commend the efforts and achievements made by CMAC, which
is undertaking risky but great missions. Furthermore, CMAC has been
successfully building the capacity of its staff and now it is sharing
its experiences and know-how with other countries affected by landmines.
Demining
and banning anti-personnel landmines are also among the critical
international issues, which have been tackled under the framework of the
Ottawa Treaty. It was symbolic that the Eleventh Meeting of the States
Parties (11MSP) of the Ottawa Treaty took place successfully in November
last year in Cambodia. This meeting was a springboard for further
actions and an opportunity to state that the commitment will not end
until the task is complete.
Under
the Ottawa Treaty, Cambodia's time limit for clearing landmines is the
end of 2019 and I understand that there still remain more areas to be
cleared than so far done. Thus, in order to fulfill this task, the
improvement of efficiency as well as additional resources is required.
I
sincerely hope that the assistance from the people and the Government
of Japan will enable CMAC for safer and more effective demining
activities and that the number of Cambodian people who enjoy the peace
dividend will further increase, and ultimately contribute to
accelerating Cambodia's economic and social development.
Thank you for your attention.