Chinese peacekeeping engineers set up new tents.
By Zhang Biao, Liu Xiaoshuai and Zeng Linsong
MALI, Apr. 16 (ChinaMil) -- On April 14, local time, fifty-eight officers and soldiers from the 6th Chinese peacekeeping engineer contingent to Mali completed the urgent construction mission of the Mécanisme Opérationnel de Coordination (MOC) camp in Gao, Mali with high standards after working over the weekend. Relevant departments, including the civil affairs department and the Sector East engineering office of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), have sent thank-you letters to the Chinese peacekeeping engineers for their excellent qualities of “dedication, responsibility, and professionalism.”
It is reported that the construction mission, ranked Level 1 in priority, was to level the accommodations area for the MOC camp and set up nine new tents. According to the MINUSMA work assignment, the Chinese engineer contingent was responsible for the construction, the Bangladesh Peacekeeping Infantry Battalion for guarding the perimeter of the construction area,and the Cambodian explosive disposal company for explosive searching and de-mining.
Gao is in summer right now with the highest temperature reaching up to 43 degrees Celsius, scorchingly hot and dazzling. In order to keep up the pace as scheduled, in the past two days, the Chinese peacekeeping engineers had to get up at 4:30 a.m., and rush to the construction site to start work before dawn. Even then, they still worked for up to seven hours during the highest temperature, with their stamina and willpower being tested to the limit.
The supreme civilian officer of the Sector East of MINUSMA highly praised the performance of the Chinese peacekeeping engineer contingent. “The Chinese engineers are brave enough to work hard and professional in taking their duties, and we feel relieved to have them undertake the mission due to the urgency of the construction,” he said. “We are grateful to the Chinese peacekeeping engineers for making outstanding contributions to promoting the process of Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) in Gao, Mali.”
It is reported that in the past 11 months since its deployment to the mission area, the 6th Chinese peacekeeping engineer contingent to Mali has completed 59 construction missions with high standards, and more than 10 of them have been listed as the “China model” by MINUSMA, including the construction of the west gate of the Menaka camp and the construction of the sentry squad in Super Camp of the MINUSMA in Gao. In addition, they have been highly praised by local authorities and the civilian population.
