The other day, I happened to randomly catch yet another travel series starring Anthony Bourdain. Typically I don't keep up with the iterant machinations of the world-class chef, yet I found myself sitting through this particular episode, not due to the TV personality, but rather his chosen destination: Laos. I knew very little about this particular South Asian country, and though I wasn't expecting much from the culinary connoisseur, it seemed a fair opportunity to learn more. And learn I did, just not about the nation itself. Rather, I became uncomfortably familiar with the bad hand it was dealt by-- you might have guessed-- the United States.
It turns out, at the time American interest was tugged by the communist movements in Vietnam, a similar situation was developing in Laos. And, though US efforts to aid anti-communist institutions in the former were much more direct and popularized, military leaders took a more removed approach when it came to Laos. Enter the cluster bomb. These small explosives, no bigger than an orange, expel countless bits of shrapnel upon detonation, specifically designed to target infantry and personnel. In an unpublicized flexing of military power, the America pledged support to the Royal Lao Government, and conducted nearly 600,000 bombing runs in an attempt to oust communist forces throughout the sovereign state. Predictably, it was not the combatants but rather the civilians who suffered most.
It is impossible to know just how many innocents lost their lives to the two million tons of explosive ordinance, but the effects of the disastrous campaign are still felt to this very day. As it happens, cluster bombs are extremely unreliable, with close to a 30% average rate of failure. Hence, we arrive at a startling state of affairs: some eighty million-odd live munitions scattered across a rebuilding nation. Not only do these devices pose an egregious obstacle to urban and infrastructure development, but more and more cases of accidental detonation sprout up in previously settled areas. Ghastlier still, many of these village fatalities are often children who mistake bombs for tennis balls or other playthings. The Laotian population are hard at work removing these weapons of a bygone war, but despite their best efforts they've barely contained 2% of the volatile husks.
When I consider the fact that I only now came to know his horrid tale, I feel completely ashamed. Ashamed of my glaring lack of knowledge, and at my government's willful indifference. The situation is unacceptable, inexcusable even. The fact that our backs have remained turned to our own wrongdoing for so long is nothing more than blunt ignorance. Even though I lack the means to unearth the bombs myself, being informed and remaining vigilant of the Laotian plight is certainly a step in the right direction. The international community, and especially the United States, must begin reparations for an injustice far too prolonged. Laos stands as the most heavily bombed country since the end of WWII, but it doesn't have to stay that way. Groups such as the Legacy of War organization (which has provided many of these handy figures), are working to raise awareness, but on the individual scale much can still be done to spread the word. Truly, it is in everyone's best interest to do so.
