President hails completion of demining efforts
ROC Central News Agency
2013/06/14 20:42:55
Taipei, June 14 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou said Friday that Taiwan has succeeded in removing all landmines on the former frontline islands of Kinmen and Matsu after seven years of demining work.
This means Taiwan is three years ahead of the goal set by the Mine Ban Treaty, which aims to have all landmines cleared within 10 years of joining the treaty, Ma said during a meeting with Sylvie Brigot, executive director of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.
Taiwan is not a signatory of the international treaty, but the country did enact the Antipersonnel Landmines Control Act in 2006, which requires the government to clear landmines within seven years, Ma said.
"The government has worked so proactively in support of the international action because the Republic of China is a peace-loving country that respects human rights," he said.
Taiwan's efforts to improve relations with China in recent years have helped turn Kinmen from a former battlefield into a major tourist attraction and an "island of peace," the president said.
Kinmen and Matsu were frontline islands when the two sides of the Taiwan Strait were at war in the 1950s and 1960s. This led to the presence of extensive minefields along the coast of the two outlying islands.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the military has managed to remove more than 126,000 landmines and unexploded ordnance from Kinmen and Matsu over the past seven years.
The two areas are expected to be officially declared free of landmines at the end of this month, the ministry said.
(By Lung Jui-yun and Y.F. Low)
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