I want to make a brief statement about laos 1st we strongly and undeservedly support the goals of a neutral and independent layer tied to no outside power or group of powers threatening no one and free from any government nation my fellow americans they are far away from america but the world is small. The security of all Southeast Asia will be endangered if laos loses its neutral independence i want to make it clear to the American People and all the world that all we want to lay our. Hands out 90. 980 s and i am sad. One of those days the american airplanes flew in night parts of lines they flew back and forth and dropped bombs like crazy and known as they didnt care about anything we knew nothing all we could do was wait for our deaths to come. From june 1064 to mikes 973 the us dropped at least 2000000 tons of bombs on the small landlocked Southeast Asian country in what would become the largest Bombing Campaign in history the equivalent of one plane load every minutes 24 hours a day for 9 years more than were dropped on germany and japan during world war 2. Already the mekong river and but obviously last on understandably increased the danger along the Northern Front is thailand. A declaration of neutrality of lapse and respect for the neutrality of end of the better look up to the present. And over the war effort in laos to the cia. This nation to the entire peninsula is threatened by red military takeover as it was last may. Americas intervention here allows for the secret to the American People. The people also have suffered tremendously for the world that. Was the reason for those who. Laos is littered with as many as 80000000 bondys or bomblets based small size bombs found inside cluster bombs. Up to 18000000 of these files to decimate and just one percent of them have been cleared. Again the amount of bombs that were talking about that were dropped on this tiny country. Now and people have been living among the us for decades. What they say today is that they want to put the war behind them and they want soon grow in the future and they would love the help of the United States government in doing that. Be nice of their story. Now oh yeah. We didnt know that they would come to bomb us megawatt they just said the war is coming soon it will be a war of airplanes course well have to run and hide as fast as you can. Manage a survey here journal i literally went to the forest. We went to make a we couldnt stay as the planes bombed the cave heavily by commodore what i mean long money was just the sound of an explosion could kill you. And then you got sued or. Found someone that only i see my family name is strongly d. Im a farmer. I was born in 1955 im not quite sure how old i am i got a wooden one that when i got out someone said im 61 but i dont know if thats true. In 1965 the b. 52. 00 plane started bombing the country i thought running. Man got me there were times that the planes didnt bomb. Me sometimes a full day would pass without round. We moved into this cave to join my grandfather. Now why did my left leave now you would have me i am. The one who dies in your hand and when and during the war time there were days of very heavy bombing. So my and the bombs dropped from airplanes beginning in 196510 and that continued in 196667 and through 969 bad power the bombs were boring from the airplanes on to the ground we didnt. Put on been gone for about 2 or 3 different kinds of bombs have done it. And thats how the top 10 educate only had one entrance we couldnt take shelter that we were afraid it would be trapped inside the enemy stayed on that mountain back then the mountain was higher than where they were on the mountain until it became flat i mean no one survived that. 6 6 i. Am. I believe. That. The u. S. Dropped one plane load of bombs on average every 8 minutes 24 hours a day and night this. May a. Random route i know what our house was over there at the base of the mountain oh it was really scary and who couldnt light fires at night. If we lit a fire the planes would come to bomb us for sure like alright hold them to let us to 1st come to drop a light marker then they started bombing when that happened we couldnt sleep in the house we had to run would crawl under one to hide from the airplanes we went to dig a hole next to the river over there. You know her i had 5 children at the time and sometimes i had to carry or drag them as we ran with alcohol in the book we had to dig the holes by ourselves there was nobody else who could dig for no rationale for crap you just had to dig with your family until the hole was large enough for everyone to fit i know you are not 2 families in one whole momentum a day they bombed my house i saw the village mark the monk went to dig a hole on the mountain top there for fighter jets came really fast and we had to run for our lives they dropped many bombs in our area and we had to run and hide in the hole and a little they almost didnt survive that day the bombing was in the really heavy there are no bombs fell like rain will cool. The golf course the air. My father died in 1969. After my father died we rent able to farm anymore we couldnt do any farming grow food in our garden. Because the airplanes were bombing the area so heavily at the time that. I was more than 10 years old by then. After my father died we stayed with my grandfather and. When i see the children these days and think about the past my tea is drop. Most of the time when i pass by this area and see this cave in the cliff i start to cry remembering my life up there. Difficulties and losses. Whenever i come back here i think about that difficult time when i lost my father i never thought about life or anything else during. All we could think about was the difficult situation we were in during the war. When i look at the modern world today. I never thought we would have electricity we have enough clothes and other things to wear and use. We have to try to work in the rice fields and so. We have cars motorbikes and light to see at night. He let me cry or you know. Just when the United States is gradually pulling out of vietnam there is a rush of concern that laos may become another vietnam not so says they have ministration and says why well the president will let it happen this would. Really learned one lesson and that is they were not going to avoid any. Major major wars. In the mainland of asia again were not going to send american troops there and we certainly are going to do it must be of the American Public in the congress behind this there are no american combat forces involved we have been providing Logistical Support of some training for the neutral Us Government in order to avoid laos falling under communist domination as far as american manpower in laos is concerned there are none there at the present time on a combat basis. Month on show not make came around noon when when you had the vietnamese on the cliffs firing the guns. Back. Then you know it was time to run and hide because they were coming. They were coming for sure and they would bomb us heavily. The planes didnt drop just one bomb at a time they dropped bombs in one long line as they flew. Home we werent even able to escape them in the cave. We just had to run and hide for our lives. They kept dropping bombs until they were satisfied and went back. To them they didnt care what they were bombing. Everything was gone. The only thing that was left of a crisis some courses were really big. Life had no meaning during the war you hoped you would survive see the world in your family again. Without any real pain during the war we lived in the forest where you were we couldnt live in the village because it was all on fire when you when you made it was terrible destruction from the bombs in the kalahari the pillars of the houses remained. In 1975 we returned to the village where we still live. And i dont know how to describe the number of mines that were on the roads go on and. The road lines were piled up everywhere. Trying to clear the mines but they will never be able to finish one a lot of flat mines were dropped thats the kind that destroyed my leg. Now we cant believe that it wasnt even a year later when my husband went to dig in the field that we had no cattle left on the flat my husband was the 1st to go back to the fields but he was digging and he had a few lost a bomb i kept hearing it exploded and he died immediately replied right there on the spot. I was left alone with all of our children and ive been taking care of them by myself ever since. He died so many years ago. Yet. There are currently 80000000 unexploded american bombs in laos enough to cover 83 american football fields. Im nailing the last of the war ended we moved to the village there was so many unexploded bombs. There was a us so in every bush. Family. Borderline oh yes there are still many of them around and they are still active. So i wanted to stab one it explodes. Now many people were killed by them as they dock in a rice fields. Without yankie and hand the bombs where in every corner of our rice fields after the war ended i was always careful i never used hose to dig in my fields never. In the cost of arms or very rusty but if you hit one it explodes straight away and may last for a really long time one time when i. Am yes. You know file this is my daughter unknown to us. Down youre too tall he can see you. About my hair come in. This is my husband. You can see it ditto. Some i and her husband both work for us now laos is National Bomb clearing organization. Of those my name is on size encounter on im 38 years old now i work with us so low income on province. We have a risky and dangerous job. I discussed this topic with my wife before she went to the training. Now. She knows that its dangerous but she wants to take part. She wants to help the villagers have less risk in their everyday lives. We work in different places which are quite far apart she works on site and im in the office we only see each other a few days out of the month not that i meet that man but most of the time my mother takes care of the house and the children and my son and my daughter. My husband often comes home during the week its how we do things i depend on him because he works closer to home. And when he comes home to spend time with the children and takes care of the household because im usually gone for 20 days or more at a time. That some i and her team work 252 days of the year searching for us unexploded ordinance they work hard to find dig up and detonate the 80000000 u. S. One by one. I mean that what we do each day depends on the location of the site and when there are a lot of crisis then there will be more. We used to find about 20 to 30 in a single day sometimes there were even 40 or 50 u. S. Others in a single location and sometimes wed find an entire cluster bomb with all the small usa units and signs. And after my training the 1st time i had to scan for bombs i was so afraid but i slowly got used to it and then it became normal. And i. Am and i can see everybody in our team is working hard to clear the bombs. When i know that its dangerous. But we have to theyre our best. Plan and i really want all a village is to be able to go about their daily lives and safety of them. And i level i want to decimate all the remaining u. S. Arms and last year i am the kind of an. Almost 80 percent of laotians are subsistence farmers they and their families are especially at risk. As to the general view on this matter is of great concern to us United States is anxious to be established in laos a peaceful country. A country an independent country not dominated by either side but theyre concerned with the. Life of the people within the country we are. Anxious that that their situation their coming forward and United States is using its influence to say that independent country peaceful country im committed country can be established under the present very difficult circumstances dont you know any they had and then i have a man when i was young around 10 years old i went with my mother to collect. And we found in the bushes and i was about to dig to find some bamboo and. Then i saw the wreck so and i ran away i mean anything he knew them when i grew up and we went fishing i saw a lot of your exercise along the river too. I was really afraid of them when you and i never thought that one day i would work with them because im not much help all the people who work here are good friends we all feel a great sense of responsibility towards our jobs we stay in camps like brothers and sisters and we help each other and take care of each other if someone gets sick. Well you can and. Your nag at you about how its difficult when you find your ex are. Its very challenging to dig one out and you have to be very careful. Where one might find a small you xo we report it to the team leader. Of another team leader checks the area and marks it with a stick me on my mind i mean my mind never. Had been let me find a bigger access we report to the team leader and to the us or lao expat we slowly dig around the area until we can see if its a year xo or just some scrap metal. L. M. Money back when we find you access on the site that we detonate them at the end of each day. We usually find between 10. 20 new access per day. Chapel blubbered at 3 in the afternoon we block the site for detonations. Have them read them and then the legislation we carry out each day we need megaphones phones for the trigger and electric checking tools we also need explosives for the destination. What id most like to do is detonate. The. Quantity and the 4 destination we have to inform the us im a novice on the Village Authority of each location and i can perform. We have a working station on site running and storage for the explosive powder. The night a little bit there are no. Mass. At this rate it would take 2500 years to rid laos of you excise. Support us or lao come on started in 1909 with funding from the government allows. The something research and clear us sos in the region. Some people are good for something. Come by limiting put on there. My name is made tom tom of all. In my view x. Oloughlin alternator income a one province. Our 1st role is to reduce death and injuries from your acts of accidents. Caliber bullet and. So on our 2nd time scale. Is to clear more farmland for the population to come. Support from 1909 to today because of what we have found 116 big cluster bombs. And 12868. 00 on this way it will be. 43 landmines a mini series of sound way across and 26036 other us. I have learned so in 2016 there was an accident in board up our district but the 2 small children died and one was injured but milk or not. Been who own the land and im really worried about my children i dont want them to go near the bombs and i know how dangerous they are now so i dont want the children to go close or play near them. And im not sure if i would be less worried about my children if i didnt know about the danger and that one and yeah. I know that i would be very worried if my children found. Children dont always understand what it is but one and i might play with a young and ellen and in the past its happened sometimes that children through run around in the when they were children throwing them a treat nice and mild and if my children did that i wouldnt be able to accept it the way other families might and would i would back down and im on the edge. 40 percent of us a victims a children. Was. A male my name is laid 345 children 2 of them died i have 3 left. Over now i told them to go dig for some crickets they went to find some crickets for lunch that was last year. The police couldnt that they couldnt hear up to here my 2nd son was injured and the end of the he was injured from the knees up in the lead there were lots of holes in his just big enough for me to put my finger in the minute that was the younger boy my older son was injured here here and here. Moment in my younger son the injuries were all over his body my younger son was digging in the order one was waiting for the cricket and thats why the explosion mainly hit my younger son. Son was 11 and my 2nd son was 10 donate and pointed. They hit a landmine just digging for crickets. They took my sons to the hospital and they died there they brought my younger sons body back home to me. You know there have been many accidents in this region. Some people survive and some dont. The most recent case was a 10 year old child in longboard village. Had injuries to his head body and both his legs and. Tried to help him by giving him oxygen. So. We tried to help him for 15 minutes but then he died. We did our best and felt terrible about the accident. So its very sad that the boy didnt survive. He could challenge for us is that when an emergency arrives here with just a clinic. We dont have the proper equipment and we can only provide basic treatment. If there are any of us who want to support us that is always very welcome. You know if we had more funding for us in laos and if we received more donations we would try to get the necessary equipment. Would be able to treat the emergencies to treat these accidents. The United States stops bombing laos in 1973 they didnt offer aid to laos until 993. 00 to 2016 the us contributed an average of 4900000. 00 to laos a year but had spent 13300000. 00. A day in 2016 president obama was the 1st sitting u. S. President to ever visit. To the government the people of laos thank you so much for the kind welcome the extended to me and my delegation. I am very honored to be the 1st american president to visit laos i realize that having a u. S. President in laos would have once been unimagined 6 decades ago this country fell into civil war your neighbors and foreign powers including the United States intervened here at the time the u. S. Government did not acknowledge americas role it was a secret war and for years the American People did not know even now Many Americans are not fully aware of this chapter in our history and its important that we remember today over 9 years 9641973 United States dropped more than 2000000 tons of bombs here and lots war inflicts a terrible toll especially on innocent men women children. Today i stand with you and acknowledging the suffering and sacrifices on all sides of that conflict i also know that the rim remnants of war continue to shatter lives here in laos so today im proud to announce a historic increase in these items the United States will double our annual funding to 90000000. 00 over the next 3 years to help laos 6 fan thats what. The u. S. Spent 130000000. 00 in just 10 days of bombing laos. By my heart and at the end