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Cambodia, Thailand Shattered lives. .New hopes CLEAR PATH INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL REPORT 2007–2008 Serving landmine accident survivors, their families and their communities. Cover photo: Double amputee Do Thien Dang is one of CPI’s many beneficiaries in central Vietnam. © Erin Fredrichs Executive Director’s Message The Road More Traveled HUE CITY, Central Vietnam—Every time we arrive at Phu Bai Airport, Duc picks us up in our NGO car, a Nissan Patrol. After we exchange brotherly greetings, the bags go in the back and I go in the front. The car is always spotless. Duc, our project driver and all-around troubleshooter, does an excellent job keeping it in shape. The last time I got in, I peeked at the odometer just out of curiosity – 240,000 kilometers. My jaw dropped. Was that the distance we’d gone since we bought the 4X4 seven years ago or did Duc mess with the odometer? It only seems like yesterday when we got the new rig. I was quiet for a moment, absorbing the reality of covering so much terrain in one of the world’s most mine-affected regions. More milestones were to follow on that trip to central Vietnam in late 2007. A few days later, at the office of the Quang Tri Province People’s Committee in Dong Ha just south of the former DMZ, we were presented with a rare Certificate of Merit, awarded to foreign entities that make an extraordinary effort to assist those in need. In our first seven years in Vietnam, we served in excess of 4,600 survivors of landmine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) explosions, assisting more than 3,200 in the province of Quang Tri alone. In the one-year period covered by this annual report, we served more than 1,600 throughout central Vietnam. They are people like Do, a log trucker from Hue who lost part of his right hand and sight in one eye when he tried to free his truck from a muddy road three years ago and an unseen piece of war-time ordnance exploded. Clear Path paid for his eye operation and glasses, then gave him a $250 grant to start raising rabbits in a narrow space behind his family’s house where he built a roof and cages for the breeding project. In all, Clear Path raised $1.3 million in 2007 - 2008. With that, we provided services ranging from prostheses, physical therapy and full-time nursing care to scholarships, home improvement grants, employment and agricultural training to 9,471 landmine accident survivors, family members and persons with disabilities in five countries: Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar and Afghanistan. CPI photo Dressed for the award ceremony in a rare tie, I humbly and symbolically The beloved Nissan Patrol at CPI’s headquarters in Vietnam. accepted the honor on behalf of everyone who made 2007 – 2008 a success: Duc, Toan, Chi, Phuong, Nhi, Son and Huyen in Vietnam; Pat, Sarath, Sama and Chenda in Cambodia; Lobke, Eh Thwa, Maw Kel, Mordecai and Saw Yee Tip in Thailand; Kristen, Peter, Ed, Tanya, Zabi, Mohammed and Shamila in Afghanistan; Martha, James, Melody, Nancy, Mark and so many others in the United States, Canada and Europe. But as importantly, I accepted the award on behalf of you, our donors, for it is thanks to you that we could buy the Patrol, hire Duc, help Do and support the thousands of survivors who would have no other access to aid. With gratitude, Imbert Matthee Executive Director 1 Afghanistan Haunting Eyes Zab Mohammed lost his left leg to a landmine accident less than a month before this picture was taken at a hospital in Kabul. 16 Fortunately, he can now receive a prosthesis at a nearby orthopedic clinic funded through Clear Path. CPI Photo On the Forefront Zab Mohammed is haunted. After 25 days in the civilian post-op ward of Kabul’s military hospital, the ghost of his accident is still alive in his eyes. In an instant, the invisible landmine he accidentally detonated in his hometown in Nangaher Province snuffed out his left leg above the knee. He is 18 and still has most of his life ahead of him. On a recent visit to the ward, six of the eight recovering amputees were landmine accident survivors. Mines and bombs from decades of conflict and a resurgence of attacks by the Taleban continue to claim large numbers of civilian casualties like Zab at a rate of 60 per month. Thanks to the work of Clear Path International co-founders Kristen Leadem and Martha Hathaway, Afghanistan became the organization’s latest country program. In 2007, the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement (WRA) awarded Clear Path International a multi-year subcontract, under the prime contract held by DynCorp International, to establish, implement and direct the CPI Photo KOO in Action Victim Assistance component of CPI Afghan program coordinator Zabiulah Azimi (right) introduces a visitor to Mary Sadaq (middle), a pediatric physical therapist at the Kabul Orthopedic Organization that served WRA’s Afghanistan Program. more than 6,000 landmine accident survivors and persons with disabilities in 2007 - 2008. Clear Path’s task is to To the left is a disabled boy from the nomadic Kuchi minority staying at KOO for treatment. strengthen the capacity of emerging Afghan organizations to better serve persons with disabilities, including survivors of explosive remnants of war (ERW) accidents like Zab. Since launching the Program in May 2007, CPI has partnered with Kabul-based domestic organizations including the Afghan Landmine Survivors’ Organization (ALSO), the Kabul Orthopedic Organization (KOO) where the young survivor will soon go to get a prosthesis, the Accessibility Organization 3 for Afghan Disabled (AOAD), and the Development & Ability Organization (DAO) to provide physical C L E A R P A T H rehabilitation, peer support services, employment IN AFGHANISTAN opportunities, barrier-free access to schools and advocacy for the rights of persons with disabilities. In 2008, with technical leadership from Elegant Design and Solutions (EDaS), CPI established the Afghan Mine Action Technology Center, a cutting-edge project in the field of mine action. The AMATC brings together key pillars of mine action (victim assistance and clearance) by employing disabled deminers to produce the equipment for active deminers and generate revenue for rehabilitation services. The center makes the products from local materials and charges far less than international suppliers. The AMATC manufactures improved digging tools, renovates demining visors, and makes first-aid kits. The center also brings state-of-the-art prosthetic technologies to Afghanistan, improving rehabilitation for people with disabilities. Clear Path works with the Mine Action Center for Afghanistan (MACA) and contributes to the goals in Afghanistan’s Development Strategy and Afghan National Disability Plan. In November 2007, Clear Path and the United Nations Mine Action Center for Afghanistan (UNMACA) supported the Government of Afghanistan in hosting the 2nd National Victim Assistance Workshop, which drew more than 200 international participants -- nearly twice as many as the previous year. Although the country is the newest of Clear Path’s initiatives, the program has already helped assist 6,325 direct beneficiaries and strengthened four Afghan NGOs to further address the long-term needs of ERW survivors in Afghanistan. 4 Below is a summary of project activities, services and outcomes among CPI’s partners during the 2007 – 2008 period: Accessibility Organization for Afghan Disabled (AOAD): School Accessibility • Constructed 25 ramps at 13 schools in Kabul, creating barrier-free access to educational facilities for hundreds of children with disabilities. • Provided training in the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Inclusive Education to 40 school principals and teachers. • Created a fully accessible computer training room and courses for persons with disabilities. • Employed 8 Afghans, including 4 persons with disabilities. Photo: DAFA Road to Recovery Landmine amputee Shah Mohd near his home in Kandahar. CPI provided funding for the sheep Shah raises and sells to boost his income. Accidents with war-time explosives in Afghanistan still claim 60 casualties a month. 5 The Kabul Orthopedic Organization: Rehabilitation Services • Provided 6,000 patients with prosthetic, orthotic, and rehabilitation services. • Employed 40 Afghans, including 12 people with disabilities. • Improved quality of services through technical assistance and equipment upgrades. The Afghan Landmine Survivors’ Organization (ALSO): Peer Support Program • Provided community-based psychosocial counseling to 242 persons with disabilities, half of whom were survivors of explosive remnants of war accidents. • Referred 111 beneficiaries to existing victim assistance-related services. • Created/renovated a fully accessible organizational office with space for program activities such as training, counseling and sporting events for persons with disabilities. • Produced a peer-support training curriculum. • Employed 12 Afghans, including 8 people with disabilities. The Development and Ability Organization (DAO): Gadoon Magazine • Published 5,000 copies of a disability rights magazine (1,000 copies of 5 issues) The Afghan Mine Action Technology Center: • Employed 2 disabled deminers. • Created various tools and services for sale to the mine action community in Kabul, generating income for rehabilitation services. EDaS photo Better Tools, Better Lives Thanks to British inventor Ed Pennington-Ridge and his creation, the Afghan Mine Action Technology Center, landmine survivors are now employed making better, safer equipment for deminers and generating revenue for rehabilitation services. 6 I Saw My Leg In The Air Mohammad Nassim Ismail Mohammadi was 8 years old when he lost his leg due to a landmine explosion in Afghanistan in 1994. “During the civil war I was helping people move from their houses to escape the fighting and bombing,” he recalled. “I walked into one particular house to save the life of a child when suddenly something exploded.
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