STORY: China-aided mine clearance project benefits Cambodian people: Cambodian official
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 18, 2024
DATELINE: Jan. 19, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:41
LOCATION: Phnom Penh
CATEGORY: POLITICS/SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. SOUNDBITE (English): LY THUCH, Senior minister and first vice-president of Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA)
2. various of MoU signing on continued cooperation on mine clearance in Cambodia

STORYLINE:
A China-aided mine clearance project has cleared over 100 square km of land contaminated with mines and explosive remnants of war (eras) in Cambodia, benefiting some 1.5 million people, a senior government official said here on Thursday.
   
Ly Thuch, senior minister and first vice-president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), said the China-Aided Cambodia Landmines Elimination Project, which has been carried out in three phases from 2018 and 2025, has helped find and destroy about 78,000 pieces of landmines and unexploded ordinances.

He said at a press conference after receiving a new batch of mine clearance equipment from China.

SOUNDBITE (English): LY THUCH, Senior minister and first vice-president of Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA)
"The Royal Government of Cambodia and the people of Cambodia value very much the compassion, the kindness, and the generosity of the Chinese people extending to our people, in particular for the mine clearance sector in Cambodia.
Over the years, China has provided financial support for our deminers to clear silent killers - the landmines.
One landmine can destroy a whole family, so the support from China has saved our lives in Cambodia, and how many people will, you know, lose their legs, their hands, their eyes? So the support from China is very important for us.
We had cleared more than 107 square kilometers of land with the support from China, which is a huge achievement and 1.5 million beneficiaries."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Phnom Penh.
(XHTV)