Behind the video - shooting the CNN iReport video at a Norwegian People’s Aid clearance project in Sekong Province, Lao PDR. Photo credit: Stan Fradelizi/CMC
(London, 16 March 2011) – An original video news report on the devastating impact of cluster bombs in Lao PDR won the first-ever CNN iReport Community Choice Award, CNN announced on 15 March 2011.
In the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, one million cluster bomb munitions rained down upon the fields, orchards and villages of South Lebanon. An estimated 30% failed to detonate. Three years later, teams of locally recruited and trained deminers race to clear the land before more civilians are injured or killed.
Remnants of a War is a feature documentary, photographed in beautiful high definition, that takes an intimate look into the lives of these brave men and women. Director Jawad Metni filmed for over two years in Lebanon, spending months embedded with the demining teams in the field, and capturing moments of joy, anxiety, and resilience. The film is a primer on the cluster munition problem, and a portrait of a people struggling to make a decent living and return the land to their fellow Lebanese.
Visit the Remnants of a War website to view a trailer and order copies of the film.
 Quang Tri province, Vietnam. Credit: Wikipedia |
More than three decades after the Vietnam War ended, explosive remnants from the conflict are still injuring and killing civilians in Vietnam. Unexploded cluster submunitions are among the deadliest legacies of the war. Known locally as “bombies, ” these tennis ball-sized bomblets are filled with thumb tack-sized pieces of metal that disperse upon detonation, frequently causing civilian injuries and deaths. The Convention on Cluster Munitions will become binding international law on 1 August 2010 after reaching 30 ratifications in February. Vietnam’s neighbor, Lao PDR, which suffered the effects of the same war and is the most heavily cluster-bombed country in the world, has been a leader on the treaty and is hosting the First Meeting of States Parties to the convention in November. However, Vietnam has yet to sign the Convention. As the Cluster Munition Coalition counts down to the Convention’s entry into force, we’re urging affected countries like Vietnam to join the treaty without delay. |
Audio Slideshow
“Burden of fear: Cluster bombs in Vietnam” is a three-part audio slideshow highlighting the impact on civilians of Vietnam’s deadly legacy of unexploded cluster submunitions.
“Burden of Fear” reporting and production by Daysha Eaton. Photos by Amanda Koster.
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