They carry out humanitarian demining in the Montes de María

To try to contain the criminal activity of illegal armed groups operating in the Montes de María subregion, the authorities are carrying out a process to defuse all anti-personnel mines. The process took place during the last week of March and was ordered by the national Government, under the coordination of the National Navy and the Inter-Agency Agency for Humanitarian Demining.

“Since 2011, troops of the Humanitarian Demining Company, attached to the No. 1 Marine Infantry Brigade, arrived in the Montes de María with the firm intention of decontaminating the 15 municipalities of the department of Bolívar and Sucre that make up this subregion, eliminating the suspicion of anti-personnel mines left by the armed conflict in this area of the Colombian Caribbean,” said Marine Corps Colonel Evert Andrés Mejía Giraldo, commander of the brigade.

It was noted that the Inter-Agency Agency for Humanitarian Demining, consisting of the Office of the High Commissioner for Peace, the Ministry of Defence (MINDefence) and the General Inspectorate of the Military Forces, appointed the Colombian Navy as responsible for the process in 19 municipalities. The objective, in addition to eliminating explosives, is to “free these communities from the danger of anti-personnel mines”. This is even intended to contribute to the fact that those who have been displaced from the Montes de María feel confident to return.

The authorities detail that under the jurisdiction of the Caribbean Naval Force are the following municipalities:

— Bolivar: There are ten municipalities under intervention, including Cartagena, Cordoba, El Carmen de Bolivar, El Guamo, María La Baja, San Jacinto, San Juan Nepomuceno, Santa Rosa de Lima, Villanueva and Zambrano.

— Sucre: There are nine municipalities in this department, including Chalán, Colosó, Corozal, Galeras, Los Palmitos, Morroa, Ovejas, San Onofre and Sincelejo.

It is important to mention that until this Sunday (March 27), 14 municipalities have been completely freed from anti-personnel mines.

The authorities that make up the Inter-Agency Agency for Humanitarian Demining assure that this work has been possible thanks to the technical support of the Organization of American States (OAS). The international entity has helped to monitor and control the quality of Humanitarian Demining operations carried out in Colombia. In addition, it has contributed financially to the maintenance of specialized equipment that allows the effective development of tasks in the municipalities assigned to the Colombian Navy.

The Government assured that it will continue to order humanitarian demining operations throughout the country. For their part, different State institutions and the military forces indicate that they are committed to this cause in order to protect the lives of civilians and uniforms.

“The Naval Institution remains committed to ongoing monitoring and attention to residual risk in these municipalities, raising awareness of mine risk with the community, through informative talks to learn how to identify an explosive device and how to inform Marine Corps troops”, said Colonel Mejia.

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