06.06.2008
M.A.G., war scrap architecture and metal hunters The Mine Advisory Group or M.A.G. started working in Laos in 1994, 20 years after the end of the “Secret War”. M.A.G. is a British association that is committed to clearing areas of mines and bombs. Even though great progresses have been made, they “only” find and destroy 100.000 “bombies” per year: at that pace, it will take almost 1.000 years to get rid of all the “bombies” that have killed so many civilians. The main activity and commitment of M.A.G. is the training of local technicians, both men and women. Teams are trained to remove a specific type of ordnance, for instance “bombies”. Others specialize in eliminating “big bombs”, some weighing up to 2.000 pounds. Such technicians, who risk their life on a daily basis, are paid 55 USD a week. Although most accidents happen when people are tending their fields or building new houses, a considerable number of people got killed when they tried to dismantle bombs. The fact that a kilo of scrap metal sells for 0.15 USD and gun powder twice as much makes this a very tempting business in poor rural areas. Many villagers, especially children, roam the countryside looking for metal with the help of cheap metal detectors. These can be bought for 12 USD at the omnipresent Chinese markets in Laos. “Bombies” are very different to landmines, the latter are designed to maim, but “bombies” are meant to kill. Apart from training technicians, M.A.G. also runs educational campaigns in the villages, especially aimed at young children. Particularly young boys are tempted to prove their courage… But M.A.G. also does a great job informing a wider range of people. Every evening, two excellent DVDs can be watched free of charge in their small office in Phonsavanh. These inform about the work and training of MAG personnel and also provide gripping footage of the “Secret War”, interviews with American politicians, pilots praying before starting on a bombing mission and media coverage from that time. Especially touching are the interviews with a few villagers who survived the horror and tell about the hunger, constant attacks and the many family members they lost. A rather bizarre side of the aftermath of the bombardments is the so-called “war scrape architecture”. This term was coined to describe the use of empty bomb shells and bombies in every practical manner. Some of the stilt houses rest on four upright bomb casings, rather than wooden pillars. Half a bomb shell may serve to grow a little herb garden. We have seen an entire fence made of big shells, a bomb shell dangling from pole as a bell and smaller “bombies” that were used as candle holders. It is not often that you run across this scurrile reminders of the war, because, as mentioned before, metal is a precious thing. |