Press Releases

Nearly $22,000 Raised for Mine Victim Assistance in Albania (Oct. 12, 2005)

The U.S. Embassy and the Royal Netherlands Embassy are pleased to announce that a total of $21,958 was raised to assist mine survivors in northeastern Albania. For the first time, contributions from individual donors raised at the February 2005 "Night of a Thousand Dinners" were matched in September through the International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF). These funds will be used to treat mine survivors’ eye injuries. Additionally, a donation of $1,138 was made to Adopt-A-Minefield (http://www.landmines.org) from the proceeds of the event.

Northeastern Albania has suffered from the effects of mines and unexploded ordnance since the 1999 Kosovo conflict. To date, 34 people have been killed and 238 injured as a result of these weapons. One third of the victims have been children. This problem has exacerbated the poverty of northeastern Albania, making land crucial for economic survival unusable.

The United States is the largest contributor to the Albanian Mine Action Program, having contributed over $6.5 million since 2000 to mine clearance, mine risk education, and survivor assistance. Information on the interagency U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program can be found in the annual reports "To Walk the Earth in Safety," available at http://www.state.gov/t/pm/rls/rpt/walkearth.

ITF is a humanitarian, non-profit organization devoted to the eradication of landmines in southeastern Europe. ITF seeks public and private donors for mine action, including mine survey and clearance, survivor assistance, mine risk education, and training. The United States provides up to $10 million annually to ITF in the form of matching funds. The majority of mine action in Albania is funded through this matching mechanism.

Ambassador Sweder van Voorst tot Voorst of the Netherlands, representing the EU Presidency until 30 June 2005, and U.S. Ambassador Marcie Ries co-hosted the second "Night of a Thousand Dinners" reception on February 7 at the Military Cultural Center, raising $11,452 from individual contributors. The first reception, held by the U.S. Embassy in December 2003, raised over $16,000 for mine survivor assistance in northeastern Albania, including helping survivors establish home-based economies through animal husbandry, assisting children to continue their studies, and providing physical rehabilitation and treatment for eye injuries.