CMAC Chief Stresses Humanitarian Impact of Mine Clearance in Border Villages

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Sept.24, 2025) — The head of Cambodia’s mine clearance agency has underscored the humanitarian importance of demining operations in villages along the Cambodia-Thailand border, citing their role in improving public safety, infrastructure and long-term development.

Heng Ratana, Director General of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), said mine clearance efforts have significantly benefited communities in Chouk Chey, Ou Bei Choan and Prey Chan — areas currently under scrutiny amid an ongoing border demarcation dispute.

“These efforts have been a high priority for the Royal Government since 1992–1993 and were implemented in strategic phases to address immediate humanitarian needs and longer-term development,” Ratana said in a public statement.

Between 1992 and 1998, mine clearance focused on creating safe corridors for repatriation and resettlement following Cambodia’s 1993 national election. From 1998 to 2003, operations shifted toward enhancing public safety and enabling socioeconomic growth in previously inaccessible or high-risk areas.

Ratana also credited foreign partners for their direct involvement in demining operations, saying the international community is well aware of the progress and humanitarian outcomes achieved.

In a Facebook post addressing the border tensions, Ratana said multiple rounds of negotiations between Cambodian and Thai border committees have taken place over the years, but a final resolution remains elusive.

“If neighbors truly wish to maintain good relations, there are sufficient mechanisms for peaceful conflict resolution at all levels,” he wrote. “The use of force or martial law is not necessary, and such actions would only escalate hostility between both sides.”

Ratana reaffirmed the government’s commitment to humanitarian mine action as a cornerstone of national recovery and development, particularly in conflict-affected border regions.