The following is the statement of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) titled “A Humanitarian Plea from the Heart of Cambodia”:
“The Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) strongly expresses its deepest regret and condemnation of the deliberate and premeditated invasion and assault on Cambodia by the Royal Thai Armed Forces. This campaign of violence, now marked by Thailand’s own admission of using cluster munitions, has unleashed a humanitarian disaster on innocent Cambodian civilians.
What we are witnessing is not a conflict between armies it is a tragedy endured by families, women, children, monks, and farmers. In the past 72 hours, lives have been lost, homes reduced to rubble, and places of worship scarred by fire and steel. Our beloved Preah Vihear Temple, a site of universal value to humanity and a world heritage, and a symbol of spiritual peace and national identity, has suffered severe damage because of this attack. The trauma inflicted on our people runs deep, and its echoes will be felt for generations.
Cluster munitions, now confirmed by the Thai army, are among the most barbaric tools of war. These are not just weapons of the moment they are seeds of sorrow sown into our land. When the bombs stop falling, they remain: tiny, deadly killers scattered through rice fields, schoolyards, health centers, pagodas and temple grounds. They do not vanish with war they become war’s cruel shadow, haunting the innocent long after the world has moved on. They maim farmers returning to their land, kill children playing in the grass, and paralyze entire communities with fear.
As Samdech Techo Hun Sen, President of the Senate of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the architect of Cambodia’s peace, has warned, this assault recalls the darkest days of protracted wars in the past. And under the firm, dignified leadership of Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Prime Minister Hun Manet, Cambodia stands united in defending our sovereignty, our dignity, and our unshakable commitment to peace.
Across the border, thousands of Cambodian families are fleeing not from battle, but from the terror of living under cluster bombs. Their stories are not statistics: a mother carrying her wounded son; a monk guiding elders through smoke-filled hills; a farmer whose leg was lost to a hidden bomblet in the soil he once trusted. Their suffering is real. Their pain demands action.
The violence has also brought education to a standstill. Nearly 500 schools have been forced to close across the border provinces, affecting over 130,000 students and teachers in 14 cities and districts as of noon on July 26. Children who should be in classrooms are instead sheltering in fear, robbed of safety, routine, and learning. This disruption threatens not just their academic progress, but their mental and emotional well-being.
We call on the international community-not just governments, but people of conscience everywhere to stand with Cambodia. This is not a time for silence. This is a moment for moral courage. Condemn this cruelty. Demand accountability. Support the victims.
The CMAA, once again, pledges to continue our mission to protect lives, assist survivors, and clear every remnant of war. But we cannot walk this path alone. We need the world to walk beside us. In the name of peace. In the name of justice. In the name of our shared humanity–act now.
