InfoAnda - Breadwinners blighted by legacy of decades-old war in Laos

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Timberlake, Boardwalk Empire win at Creative Emmys | | 11 September 2011
Storm sinks Indonesian ferry, 250 feared dead | 11 January 2009
Australia says Uighur leader is no 'terrorist' | 31 July 2009

China zoos in 'barbaric' animal abuse: report | 10 August 2010

">Forum Views () ">Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Breadwinners blighted by legacy of decades-old war in Laos

Navigation Primary Navigation Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular Secondary Navigation Asia Pacific World Search Search: Breadwinners blighted by legacy of decades-old war in Laos AFP - 2 hours 29 minutes ago XIENG KHOUANG, Laos (AFP) - - Ta Duangchom was out fetching food in southern Laos with his two young sons when a cluster bomb exploded in front of him and left him with no arms and just one eye. Now the 39-year-old farmer finds it almost impossible to support his wife and seven children. "I cannot farm and I just stay at home. I cannot help my family," Ta said, adding that his wife has become the sole provider. Unexploded ordnance scattered all over this rural farming nation has left thousands of injured breadwinners helpless since the Vietnam War ended in 1975. UXO Lao, the group tasked with ridding the country of the deadly remnants of war, estimates that 260 million submunitions were delivered by US forces here during the conflict. Fully one third failed to explode and still lie dormant under the soil, making farming a dangerous and often deadly task. On average one person is killed every day by ordnance left behind in this nation of 6.7 million. Xiang Khouang, in the country's northeast, is an eight-hour drive over mountainous roads from the capital Vientiane, and was the second most bombed province in Laos during the war. Cluster bombs are more insidious even than landmines as they release a large number of smaller bombs that can spread over a wide area that remain dormant long after war has ended. Thoummy Silamphan, 19, struggled to find work after a bomb blew off his hand while he was cutting bamboo near his home 11 years ago. "Immediately after the accident I felt very different from other people and I worried if I would have a normal life and if I would be able to study," Thoummy told AFP. "When I was a child I wanted to be a policeman," he said. Injuries are often made worse by the lack of medical facilities available in Laos. Ta's sons, who were aged four and six at the time, had to fetch help from three kilometres (two miles) away when their father was injured in a remote field. Ta eventually reached his district hospital by tractor, but without specialist equipment doctors had to refer him to a larger facility. The delay contributed to an infection in his right arm, requiring two amputations, each claiming more of his limb. Another farmer, Yae Lee, 31, was six hours' drive from Xieng Khouang provincial hospital when he lost both legs in August after hitting a bomb with his spade. Now he cannot farm his field to feed his pregnant wife and five children. "I'm not really sure how it looks right now. I'm waiting to have my prosthetic legs made at the rehabilitation centre and then I expect to continue with work as before in the rice field," said Yae Lee. The hospital is supported by funds from the impoverished former Soviet state of Mongolia but the help is not enough and the three surgeons working there say they need better specialist equipment and surgical nurses to deal with the hundreds of cluster bomb patients they see. A man being fitted for his new leg at the rehabilitation centre next door was injured in 1967 during the Vietnam War when he stepped on an M67 landmine. More than 150 countries signed an anti-landmines convention in 1997 but cluster bombs are still legal, though they should not be, according to Mark Hiznay, a former US soldier who now works for New York-based Human Rights Watch. "Whatever utility they (cluster bombs) had is now outweighed by the problems caused every time they are used," said Hiznay. He has been helping the campaign for a strong international treaty to ban cluster bombs, due to be signed in Oslo on December 3. The treaty will ban the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster bombs, and requires all countries to get rid of their unexploded bombs within ten years. "(It's) going to have a huge effect in terms of taking the problem out of commission," said Thomas Nash from the Cluster Munition Coalition. "But Laos is going to really struggle because of the scale of contamination," he said, adding that the treaty will provide for medical assistance for victims and bomb clearance. Laos will sign the treaty alongside more than 100 other countries. Major producers and stockpilers of cluster bombs, the United States, Russia, China, India, Israel and Pakistan, did not attend talks which led to adoption of the Convention's text in May. Singapore has confirmed its refusal to sign, saying a blanket ban on cluster munitions is impractical because many countries see the need to use them for legitimate self-defence. Meanwhile, while Yae Lee waits for his new limbs, Thoummy and Ta work to educate people about the dangers of cluster bombs. Thoummy may not have achieved his goal of becoming a policemen, but he has partly overcome his disability, spending his days in an office typing on a computer. "I think about the day when there will be no cluster bombs in the ground," said Thoummy. "And when that day happens people will be able to fulful their lives." Email Story IM Story Printable View Blog This Recommend this article Average (0 votes) Sign in to recommend this article » Most Recommended Stories » Related Articles: Entertainment & Lifestyle `Four Christmases' finds $31.7M in holiday cheerAP - 2 hours 17 minutes ago Sydney Opera House mourns architect's deathAP - Monday, December 1 PR actress Roselyn Sanchez marries Eric WinterAP - Sunday, November 30 Live Earth concert in Mumbai cancelled: organisersAFP - Sunday, November 30 TV Lookout: highlights for Nov. 30-Dec. 6AP - Saturday, November 29 Most Popular – Entertainment Viewed Saudi king says 75 dollar oil price 'fair' World's oldest person dies at 115 years Love handles increase death risk: study Michael Jackson strikes 'amicable' deal with Arab sheikh At least 381 dead after Nigeria clashes: witness View Complete List » Search: Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Top Stories Most Popular

Other News on Sunday, 30 November 2008
Minister Mentor Lee has minor surgery
Aide: India's home minister offers resignation
Taliban frees 2 kidnapped Afghan journalists
51 protesters wounded in Thailand explosions
China holds horse betting trial run
Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore hospital, discharge Monday
Kabul suicide attack on German convoy kills two
Israel approves release of 250 Palestinian prisoners
Somali pirates say deal reached for Ukrainian ship release
Iraq, Iran swap bodies of 1980-88 war dead
New Gaza clashes as Israel keeps borders sealed
Kabul suicide blast kills two
Iran proposes nuclear plants with Arab countries
Iraqi forces search for suspects in UN rocket attack
Suicide bomber hits German embassy vehicle in Kabul | International |
Somali pirates strike deal on Ukraine ship | International |
Tiong Bahru bird corner near Link Hotel reopens
China's rural migrants are new front in AIDS fight | International |
Iceland whale meat to arrive in Japan: report
Jiangsu Party Secretary Liang Baohua calls on PM Lee
China to grow 10 percent in 2009 despite global crisis: government economist
Israel approves release of 250 Palestinian prisoners | International |
MOH expects total number of HIV cases in 2008 to exceed 2007 figure
Terror attack victim’s body flown back to Singapore
Romanians vote in shadow of financial crisis | International |
Golfing Internationals win Lexus Cup in Sorenstam swansong
Aviation shifts into new era with opening of S’pore—KL route
Golf: Team International beat Team Asia to win Lexus Cup
Microsoft and Yahoo in talks again on online unit: report | Technology |
Everybody must get stoned? Swiss vote on cannabis laws
Sydney Opera House darkens in mourning
China pledges to fight AIDS discrimination
Mumbai cop, left for dead, rides with gunmen
Sri Lankan helicopters bomb rebels
Mumbai attack survivor says panic caused more lives to be lost
No joy for Lin, Xie at Hong Open badminton finals
8 Muslims arrested for damaging Dhaka sculpture
Riots leave 13 dead in Pakistan's port city of Karachi
Stranded pilgrims leave Bangkok airport for hajj
Horse Racing: El Dorado wins S$1.35m Singapore Gold Cup
Police: 8 killed in clashes in northwest Pakistan
Lim Chu Kang Road converted into alternate runway
NKorea says Kim Jong Il inspected air force unit
Swiss stub out cannabis decriminalisation bid
Kim inspects air force unit: NKorean media
Journalists caught in crackdown by Myanmar junta
Sri Lankan helicopters bomb rebels in north
S Lanka's cricketers grind out final Zimbabwe win
Bloggers provide raw view of Mumbai attacks
Over 400 Singaporeans leave Thailand via U—Tapao Airport
Moroccans give fresh twist to kaftan
More babies receive pneumococcal disease vaccinations
Costa Rican president to visit Singapore
Police: Pakistani militants behind Mumbai attacks
Police: Pakistani militants behind Mumbai attacks
Breadwinners blighted by legacy of decades-old war in Laos
End of the road for some foreigners in the UAE: report
Thai political crisis heightens with new rallies
`Four Christmases' finds $31.7M in holiday cheer
Prof Tan Chorh Chuan is new NUS President
Thai political crisis heightens with new rallies
China dismisses EU criticism of 'spy' execution: state media
Mumbai survivor: 'There was blood everywhere'
Guns n' Roses just miss out on top spot in British charts
'Four Christmases' tops holiday movie box office charts
Specter: 'I'll be prepared' for 2010 race
Japan's Oda, Asada take NHK Trophy
NPR journalists' car bombed in Baghdad
Somali piracy stirs fear among Russian sailors
23 dead in Afghan clashes, Kabul suicide attack
Indian security chief resigns over Mumbai attacks | International |
UN chief 'backs EU force for DR Congo'
Anthrax poses new threat in cholera-hit Zimbabwe: charity
Congo's war-baby gorillas bring hope for endangered species
Jobs scarce abroad, but South Africans move away | International |
WTO: Lamy awaiting fresh texts ahead of any summit decision
Ethnic rifts pin Bosnia's sick convicts in jail | International |
NASA to attempt California touchdown after two failed Florida bids
Poland adopts 24-bln-euro economic aid package
Iraq and Iran resume swaps of 1980s war dead | International |
Obama set to name Clinton as top diplomat Monday
Swiss stub out cannabis decriminalisation bid
Somalia arrests 5 for kidnapping Western journalists | International |
Mumbai probe focuses on Pakistan-based militants
Korea Zinc to cut output by 10 pct for 13 months
Temasek in talks to sell Singapore Food stake
Seoul shares open lower; steelmakers retreat
3 Mexicans arrested in Australia-U.S. cocaine bust
Nine headless bodies found in Mexican border town | International |
South Korean export growth seen halving in 2009
Venezuela's Chavez pushes for more time in office | International |
Chavez seeks reelection, eyes presidency through 2021
Four Christmases gives box office a holiday gift | Entertainment |
Sean Penn offers warm Milk to movie fans | Entertainment |
Slumdog, Hunger sweep British film awards | Entertainment |
Swiss voters back prescription heroin, anti-paedophile law
Cyclist Chris Hoy caught up in Thailand protests
India claims Mumbai gunman tied to Pakistani group
Poll: Support for Japan PM plunges
China rejects EU criticism of Taiwan spy execution
ING taps Temasek exec as Asia financials head
Madonna, Alex Rodriguez in Mexico City
Bush sends Rice to India
NKorea starts imposing tight curbs at SKorea border
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph	VPN on MacOSX	BlogMeter 1.01