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Watch Your Step!!! Upfront with Youth
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12 Heavily Mined Countries
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Why We Care About LandminesBy Faye WilsonOne of the most tragic side effects of war is the fact that many unexploded weapons, known as landmines, are left behind. So even after a war is over, it continues as civilians step on buried landmines. More than 26,000 people die annually from landmine explosions -- a third of them, nearly 9,000 victims, are children and youth. Furthermore, exploded landmines injure thousands more. Also, the presence of landmines interrupt the economy and damage the environment. Many families go hungry because they cannot till the land and grow crops for fear of setting off a landmine. |
The Church's Response
The United Methodist Church, through the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM), has taken a firm stand against this destruction of people and property. GBGM is contributing funds to clear minefields and to provide artificial limbs for those hurt and maimed by landmines. And it is advocating for the cessation of production of landmines.
Do your part by praying for this vital mission work. Protest the the manufacture and stockpiling of these lethal weapons of war. Help raise funds to demine fields, one mine at a time. Pray for the victims and help provide economic opportunities for those left disabled by mine injuries.
Remember: One mine makes a minefield. Fear of harm restrains people from using the land, whether there is one mine or a thousand mines present.
Make Your Way Through the Mine Field
This exercise is designed for a group to have some sense of the difficulty and danger that is present to families who attempt to farm land in mine infested areas. Use it to "feel the pain" of those struggling to live in mine infested areas. Feel and Reflect. Listen and Learn. Watch and Pray.
A peace-keeping soldier participating in a mine clearing exercise at a United Nations training camp. Credit: UN/DPI Photo by A. Farnsworth.
Background: Two families make the difficult choice to try to farm their land in Cambodia. They know there is always a risk that landmines have been planted. Also, years of neglect mean that weeds have grown very tall so it's difficult to see where the mines are. But they are hungry, they need food. This exercise follows individual members' attempts to reclaim their land and obtain food for their families.
Supplies: 30 Blue and Green balloons; 24 large red, orange, and black dots - 6 each; (dots can be found in stationery stores); masking tape; two handkerchiefs or pieces of cloth suitable for a blindfold; 10 chairs; individual bags of potato chips, cookies and candy (such as M & Ms).
Set-up: Choose a large room (about 12' x 20'). Arrange chairs in a haphazard pattern. Blow up balloons. Put a large dot on 24 of the balloons - 6 balloons will not have dots. With masking tape, affix balloons to floor amidst the chairs. You may tape a few balloons to the chairs as well. Scatter snacks throughout the room on the floor -- be sure to put some near to balloons. Identify a starting point and a finishing point at opposite ends of the room.
Using the Exercise: Choose one person to run the exercise and two other persons to be rescuers (one for each team). Divide the rest of the class into two equal groups. In turn, each member of the group is BLINDFOLDED and attempts to navigate the room without bumping into a chair or a balloon.
Role of the Game Leader: The game leader makes sure that: a) the player in the mine field is blindfolded; b) the team rescuer makes note of points if someone bumps into a balloon; c) sees that rescuers escort seriously injured players off the field and sends in a replacement from the respective group.
Role of the Rescuers: a) keep a tally of the points incurred by their group; b) escort seriously injured player (someone who touches a balloon with a yellow dot) off the field; c) escort a replacement player to the spot where player was injured to resume the journey through the mine field.
Counting Points: Chairs represent weeds; there is no penalty for bumping into them. Each dot represents a certain number of points.
- A red dot equals 5 points (meaning that a person who bumps up against a balloon with a red dot has actually touched a "mine" but did not detonate it - this person continues the trek across the field).
- A black dot equals 10 points (meaning that a person has set off a mine but suffered minor injuries - person continues the trek across the field).
- An orange dot equals 15 points (a person has set off a mine and suffered major injuries ... lost a leg or arm; ). A person who touches a balloon with an orange dot is immediately out of the game but a substitute player comes in to continue the trek across the field from the point where the injury was sustained.
Scoring: See how few points family members receive totally and how much food they collect as they navigate their way through the field.
Questions for Reflection
Mines are exploded in Huambo, Angola as part of a demining program. UN/DPI Photo by John Charles Monua.
- What did people "feel" inside as they walked across the minefield?
- What felt most successful? Avoiding the balloons? Finding the snacks? Facing the challenge?
- What felt most scary? Knowing that someone could be seriously injured and leave the game? Feeling there was no way to avoid bumping up against a mine?
- What must it be like to live in places such as Mozambique, Afghanistan and Cambodia where millions of mines have been planted?
- What words of encouragement could be offered to persons living under these difficult circumstances?
Donations
Donations can be made to Advance #105630, Angola Landmine Prosthesis Program, and left in United Methodist church collection plates or mailed to the Health and Relief Unit, United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 330, New York, NY 10115. Call 1-800-554-8583 to make a credit card donation.
For additional background information on landmines, see the Healing the Land: GBGM Initiative on Removal of Landmines