Philippine Mine Action Stakeholders Workshop in Cambodia
In her remarks during the Philippines Mine Action Stakeholders Workshop in Cambodia, Philippine Ambassador Maria Amelita C. Aquino reiterated the Philippines’ commitment to achieving the vision of a mine free world by 2025. (Photo courtesy of Office of the Philippine Defense and Armed Forces Attaché in Cambodia)
PHNOM PENH 13 April 2022 – Delegates from the Philippines attended the Philippine Mine Action Stakeholders Workshop held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on 05-07 April 2022. The Workshop reviewed the explosive ordinance and mine action status in the Philippines, specifically in Mindanao and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and explored the experience and best practices of mine action coordination in Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and Lao PDR.
The Workshop was organized by the ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center (ARMAC) in collaboration with the Swiss Foundation for MIne Action-France (FSD-France), the Philippine Campaign to Ban Landmines (PCBL) and the European Union.
In her remarks during the opening, Philippine Ambassador to Cambodia Maria Amelita C. Aquino reaffirmed the Philippines’ commitment to achieving the vision of a mine-free world by 2025 and cited the workshop as contributing towards the Philippine government’s efforts to neutralize existing Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), particularly in Mindanao and in enhancing the mine action capabilities of the country.
Cambodian Senior Minister and First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), Mr. Ly Thuch, in his keynote remarks during the opening said that Cambodia and the CMAA are ready to support the demining efforts in the region not only in 2022 during Cambodia’s ASEAN Chairmanship but at all times. He cited Cambodia’s long history and experience in the mine action sector and the valuable insights that it can share during the workshop.
Philippine government participants included representatives from the AFP Logistics Support Command, Philippine National Police, Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), BARMM officials led by BARMM Minister of Public Order and Safety Mr. Hussein Munoz, and officials of the Philippine Mission to Geneva’s and the Philippine Embassy in Cambodia’s Office of the Defense and Armed Forces Attaché.
After the workshop, Ambassador Aquino and some of the Philippine participants to the workshop visited CMAA upon the invitation of Mr. Ly Thuch where CMAA and its officials provided a briefing on the history, mandate, composition, activities and programs of CMAA, including the demining progress in Cambodia. END
From left: Minister Hussein Munoz, Minister and Member of Parliament, Ministry of Public Order and Safety, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (BARMM); Mr. Ly Thuch, Vice President and Senior Minister, Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority; Philippine Ambassador to Cambodia Amelita Aquino, MFAIC Under Secretary of State Ung Rachana; and Executive Director Prum Suonpraseth, ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center (ARMAC). (Photo courtesy of ASEAN Regional Mine Action Center)
Top left: Participants during a group discussion at the Philippines Mine Action Stakeholders Workshop in Cambodia. Top right: An official from CMAA provides a briefing on the history and mandate of CMAA, as well as the demining progress in Cambodia. Bottom left: Mr. Ly Thuch explains about CMAA’s Victim Assistance program. Bottom right: Ambassador Maria Amelita C. Aquino expresses her appreciation to Mr. Ly Thuch for the opportunity to visit CMAA and learn about its work and practices, as well as the progress in Cambodia’s demining efforts. (Photo courtesy of Office of the Philippine Defense and Armed Forces Attaché in Cambodia)
Ambassador Aquino with the Philippine participants to the Philippine Mine Action Stakeholders Workshop. (Photo courtesy of Office of the Philippine Defense and Armed Forces Attaché in Cambodia)
For more information, visit https://www.phnompenhpe.dfa.gov.ph, https://www.facebook.com/PHLinCambodia/ or https://twitter.com/PhilippineIn