More than 1,000 inhabitants of the departments of Valle del Cauca, Cauca and Nariño have already received training on safe behavior in areas with anti-personnel mines.
The task is conducted by Mine Risk Education soldiers of the Humanitarian Demining Engineer Battalion No.6 in rural and urban areas through training, delivery of brochures and loudspeaker activities, complying with biosecurity protocols.
Lieutenant Alicia Rojas, soldiers in the region, said: “With training about mines risk, communities are taught everything about the safe behaviors that must be take into account every time they leave their homes, either to their workplace or schools and other destinations, in order to mitigate, raise awareness and to promote a culture of prevention to reduce risk so people can live safely and can grow in an environment free of the limitations imposed by explosive devices”.
The officer explained that this training -which is carried out before, during and after humanitarian demining work- has lessons in which the inhabitants are taught to understand that demining is the operation that allows troops to find and destroy anti-personnel mines and other explosive devices that may harm people and animals.
The benefits it brings to the community are:
- Protection of the lives of its inhabitants
- Productive land use
- Access to goods and services
- Recovery of the relationship with the territory
- Recovery of sacred, recreational and tourist spaces
Soldiers affirmed that, in order to prevent new victims of explosive devices, it is mandatory for those involved in the training to spread their knowledge with partners and family.
Source: Press-National Army Humanitarian Demining Brigade
