OneWorld.net (U.S.)

CONTACT: Carah Ong Advocacy and Research Director

Cell: (202) 378-3334 Email: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(May 24, 2005) – More than 35 non-governmental organizations from across the US are calling on Congress to grant the people of the Republic of the Marshall Islands the same level of health care, clean up and standards for radiation safety that apply to US citizens affected by similar circumstances. On Wednesday, May 25, 2005, there will be hearings in the House of Representatives Committee on Resources and International Relations Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific on the legacy of US nuclear testing in the Pacific and the Changed Circumstance Petition for the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

“Congress must remember and respond to the needs of the Marshallese people – people who sacrificed their lands and well-being to help the US become a global superpower,” said Carah Ong, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation’s Advocacy and Research Director.

From 1946 to 1986, the US government exercised all powers and determined all functions of government in the Marshall Islands. With the exception of the brief period of military rule after liberation of the islands from Japan, from 1947 to 1986 the people of the Marshall Islands had only those legal, political and citizenship rights prescribed pursuant to US federal law.

Since the nuclear testing program was conducted at a time when the US governed the Marshall Islands and its people with the same powers of government and responsibility arising from governance of the United States itself, the same standards of care, safety, redress of grievances and justice that Congress has adopted with respect to the effects of nuclear testing in the US mainland should be honored in the case of the Marshallese people. For example, Marshallese should receive the same level of health care as US Downwinders, Atomic Veterans, or Department of Energy workers exposed to radiation. Clean-up and radiation protection standards should mirror locations in the US, such as Hanford, Washington. Compensation for personal injuries should also be paid in full as is required for the Downwinders (rather than the pro rata currently used in the RMI due to an insufficiency of funds). The US government must also find the means to compensate private property owners for the damage to their lands as is required in this country.

The National Academy of Sciences recently recommended that the universe of exposure and remedial measures regarding the mainland nuclear testing program be redefined and expanded based on updated scientific information about the effects of radiation. In addition to ensuring that the measures taken under Section 177 of the Compact be sustained to ensure that RMI citizens receive the same level of justice as U.S. citizens affected by the mainland tests, if the criteria for defining the universe of affected people and lands in the U.S. changes, the same criteria should be applied in the RMI. A recent study by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) suggesting that more than half of the cancers caused by radiation exposure in the Marshall Islands have yet to appear or be diagnosed. In this regard, Congress has an obligation to help the RMI plan for the treatment of these pending cancer cases by ensuring that the RMI has the capacity to provide adequate healthcare for these individuals.

US organizations that have signed on to the letter include: American Friends Service Committee, Atomic Mirror, Center for Health, Blue Ridge Environmental Defense League, Citizen Alert Environment & Justice (CHEJ), Educators for Social Responsibility Metro, Global Peacemakers Association, Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE) Public Fund, Ho`okipa Network, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, Kak'oo Na Kupuna 'O Kohala, Lawyers' Committee on Nuclear Policy, Military Toxics Project, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, Nuclear Policy Research Institute, Nuclear Studies Institute at American University, Nuclear Watch of New Mexico, Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance, Peace Farm, Peace Links, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Portsmouth/Piketon Residents for Environmental Safety and Security, Proposition One Committee, Santa Barbara Society of Friends, Secure World Foundation, Snake River Alliance, Solidarity Committee of the Capital District, Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against a Radioactive Environment), Upper Hudson Peace Action, US Peace Council, Western States Legal Foundation, Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom US Section.

In addition, demonstrating solidarity from abroad, more than 20 international organizations have also signed onto the letter. Of particular note, Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba of Hiroshima has endorsed the letter.

For more information on the hearings or to receive a copy of the letter and a complete list of signers, please contact the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation’s Advocacy and Research Director Carah Ong at (202) 378-3334 or email .