Archived News
28.12.05. A new film, 'Song Trong So Hai’ (Live in Fear), based on a documentary called ‘Tay Dao Dat’ (The Digger), is a true story about the life of people who have cleared landmines after the war.
The original documentary was produced in 2001 and directed by Bui Thac Chuyen. The events take place in Vinh Hao commune, Tuy Phong district, Binh Thuan province (near Ca Na Beach).
The screenplay ‘Live in Fear’ by Bui Thac Chuyen and Nguyen Thi Minh Ngoc has been selected by Japan’s NHK Television for financial support. NHK has provided 40% of the total investment capital of the film (up to VND 3.5 billion).
The main character (his name is changed to Tai in the feature film) was affiliated with the S. Vietnamese army, and thus was "re-educated" after the war. He and his wife live in a land full of landmines. Many people in the area make their living by selling scrap pieces of bombs and mines. Although the government warns them not to clear the mines without permission, many continue on their own. If the land is not cleared, it can not be used for farming. The film details their struggle to clear the land of mines on their plantation for over a decade, in an attempt to dig out a better life. The film is currently undergoing limited release, but eventually will be sent to some international film festivals.
It is unknown how many unexploded ordnances may still be present in Binh Thuan province, though accidental deaths continue in recent years. The last reported deaths were onn Descember 21, 2004, when five people aged between 9 and 20 were killed in Binh Thuan when a war-time M-79 American artillery shell they
were playing with exploded. The five were killed instantly in a field where they were tending a heard of cows.
Since the Vietnam War ended in 1975 nearly 40,000 people have been killed
and over 100,000 injured as a result of unexploded ordnance, according to
Vietnam Ministry of Public Security.
According to the US military, more than 15 million tonnes of bombs, mines,
artillery shells and other munitions were used during the war. As much as 10% of that is estimated to have failed to explode.
Most of the explosions occur while people are farming or trying to
salvage the metal casings and explosives from the ordnances. The metal is usually sold for scrap, and the explosives are used by fishermen.
Places where it is likely to encounter ordnances include coastal waters off Khe Ga lighthouse, the area surrounding "Whiskey Mountain" (a former American military outpost--now hosting a quarry and communications tower) NorthEast of Phan Thiet, and the abandoned airfield and French/American military base LZ Betty, SouthWest of Phan Thiet.
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