Laos is a beautiful mountainous country with a low population and filled with promise for the future. Its people are gentle, kind and industrious.
It is easy to forget that from 1964 to 1973, the United States of America, leader of the modern world and promoter of Western style democracy in all corners of the globe, conducted a secret war on this beautiful land. Without the knowledge of Congress or the Senate, two presidents, obviously with the support and connivance of the military forces, decided to drop more tonnage of bombs on Laos than was dropped in the entire World War 11, making Laos the most heavily bombed country in the world per capita, in an attempt to frustrate the supply lines of the Vietcong. One third of this weaponry did not explode on contact, most of it in the form of cluster bombs, one large bomb with hundreds of little bombies inside it.
The legacy of this secret war is still a hundred deaths a year, and three hundred injuries, as people, often children, stumble upon these remaining time bombs. A sad trade has developed in the recycling of the high quality metals used in the weapons, adding to the cruelty.
A small and modest museum, one room and a short video, bear witness to this cautionary tale and the heroic efforts of well meaning organizations to comb every square inch of the countryside to clear the land and make it safe for farming and development. There are many ways of being a hero. Visiting this small museum is a worthwhile experience.
www.uxolao.org
It is easy to forget that from 1964 to 1973, the United States of America, leader of the modern world and promoter of Western style democracy in all corners of the globe, conducted a secret war on this beautiful land. Without the knowledge of Congress or the Senate, two presidents, obviously with the support and connivance of the military forces, decided to drop more tonnage of bombs on Laos than was dropped in the entire World War 11, making Laos the most heavily bombed country in the world per capita, in an attempt to frustrate the supply lines of the Vietcong. One third of this weaponry did not explode on contact, most of it in the form of cluster bombs, one large bomb with hundreds of little bombies inside it.
The legacy of this secret war is still a hundred deaths a year, and three hundred injuries, as people, often children, stumble upon these remaining time bombs. A sad trade has developed in the recycling of the high quality metals used in the weapons, adding to the cruelty.
A small and modest museum, one room and a short video, bear witness to this cautionary tale and the heroic efforts of well meaning organizations to comb every square inch of the countryside to clear the land and make it safe for farming and development. There are many ways of being a hero. Visiting this small museum is a worthwhile experience.
www.uxolao.org
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