Thanks to the work of the Brigade of Humanitarian Demining Engineers No. 1, 43,415 km2 in the Colombian territory have been declared free of suspicion of antipersonnel mines.
Bogotá. The municipality of Granada, in the department of Antioquia, was declared free of suspicion of antipersonnel mines, thanks to the efforts of the demining soldiers of the National Army, who for 8 years worked to achieve it. The population, in eastern Antioquia, is one of the 35 new decontaminated areas presented by the National Army in 14 departments within the framework of the International Day for Anti-personnel Mines Awareness.
With this achievement, Colombia goes from occupying one of the first places in the world with the highest number of victims in 2012 to occupy the tenth position in this issue, according to Landmine Monitor 2017, an international monitoring organization. In this regard, 43,415 km2 are free of suspicion of antipersonnel mines, distributed in the departments of Amazonas, Cundinamarca, Santander, Valle del Cauca, Boyacá, Antioquia, Guainía, Casanare, Putumayo, Atlántico, Cesar, Bolívar, La Guajira and Tolima with 21 hamlets of the municipality of Rioblanco.
The Brigade of Humanitarian Demining Engineers of the National Army worked with 4,930 certified people involved in the process, to achieve the objective of ending this hidden and silent enemy. 3,061 are mine clearance specialists; 36, monitors in humanitarian demining; 165, supervisors; 948, humanitarian demining leaders; 518, nurses; 60, non-technical studies leaders, and 142, non-technical studies assistants.
According to a report presented by Descontamina Colombia, of the Presidency of the Republic, 163 members of the Public Force and 85 civilians have been victims of this threat since 1991 to date, in these municipalities due to antipersonnel mines, unexploded ordnance and improvised explosive devices.
Thanks to this work, nearly one million Colombians benefit of the decontamination of their lands, which guarantees the fundamental right to life and use their lands. It is noteworthy that, according to data of the Lands Restitution Unit, 3,147 requests for restitution will be processed in the areas that were intervened, so that the communities can return safely to their lands.
Source: National Army.
