March 1, 2010
Day 61:
We didn’t have any school today. Today’s Bikini Remembrance Day. We didn’t do anything exciting, yet again. Pretty much we spent the whole day lesson planning and expressing, although we cherish the time we have here and appreciate the opportunity to be here, how ready we are to go back home.
I’ll take this time to explain the importance of Bikini Remembrance Day to those who aren’t familiar with the history of the Marshall Islands
Many of you probably wonder, Why the Marshall Islands? Well there’s a storied history that America has with the Marshall Islands that has led to American involvement in the Marshalls. It began at the end of WWII when America dropped the atom bomb on Japan. Clearly, America didn’t do the proper research of pay any attention to Nagasaki or Hiroshima, but after they dropped the bomb they continued to test it. They had been testing it in remote parts of the world, even some on American soil if I’m not mistaken. Well, the US identified the Bikini atoll of the Marshall Islands as a prime testing area of the atom bomb. So the Americans came in and set up shop on Bikini.
We told the Bikinians that we were testing for the good of mankind and our presence on the island would only help them out in the long run. Well America tested, I believe 54, bombs in the time they were on Bikini. Because of the Pacific winds, the radiation and fallout always headed out towards the sea and never towards land which is why Bikini was such a prime location.
One day the winds shifted for some reason, and that day, they also happened to be testing an atom bomb. This particular one was dropped in the water but the radiation blew towards the Bikini islands. The US, taking all precautions as usual, waited 10 hours after the bomb to go investigate the damage. Ten hours!
Well the radiation blew onto the Bikini Islands and ruined the lives of the Bikinians. Not only were they victims of radiation, but they were also forced to evacuate Bikini and move to other Marshall Islands. Feeling some sort of remorse, America began giving the Marshalls money and eventually, in 1989 I think, the RMI became an independent nation in free association with the United States.
Even to this day Bikini is unsafe to live on. It remains uninhabited and can only be visited with special radiation equipment and technology. Many Bikinians are still bitter about the fact that they were displaced from their homeland and Bikini Pride is very much existent even throughout the younger generations.
Bikini Remembrance Day is a very ironic occasion. It’s basically the Marshallese “thanking” America for running their land. I felt bad being an American walking around today. Almost guilty for something that was completely not my fault; something I couldn’t have changed in any way. I like to think that me being here, rather than sending a postcard from the states (if that even happens) from the US government, shows that I’m doing my part to ‘rectify’ the situation. I also realize that there’s nothing that anyone could do to actually rectify that situation.
Anyway, that’s a brief history of the relationship between the Marshall Islands and America and that relationship was celebrated today on Bikini Remembrance Day. Until next time, from Majuro, bar lo yok!
So much in error in this post hard to know where to begin.
ReplyDeleteBikinians were not on Bikini during testing and were not exposed during test referenced above, aka Bravo. Islanders on Rongelap and Utrik were exposed.
Utrik was not badly comtaiminated and Marshallese continue to live there, with no evidence of serious radiological issues.
A section of Rongelap was cleaned up at cost to the US of $90+M. Rongelapese are supposed to move back but so far have not. You can visit Rongelap if want -- the Rongelap community has turned the housing constructed for them into a "bed and breakfast" type of operation for tourists. They advertise this each week at "top of the mast" enty on web site www.marshallislandsjournal.com .
The total number of exposed Marshallese was less than 300.
There were Bikinians exposed to radiation during a poorly planned return to Bikini, fostered and sponsored by the US, during the Johnson administration. Believe number exposed from that was under 200.
US has provided over $500M in direct compensation for the damage done and impact of exposure. RMI wants more than $2B (yes, Billion) in additional compensation.
RMI became independent in 1987 under the Compact of Free Association.
You can visit Bikini today without any special equipment, though you should not eat any food grown on Bikini. The Bikinians until recently ran commercial dive tourism operations on Bikini and divers lived on Bikini; staff lived on Bikini for extended periods, with no effect (again, eating only foods brought in and not grown locally).
There is loads of information on Web about results of testing and levels of compensation provided by the US. If go to Letters To The Editor section on Pacific Island Reports, there is a letter posted with links to some information on compensation provided by US and the referenced National Cancer Institute study.
And finally, the Marshalleese Nitijela redesignated the holiday as "Nuclear Victims Day" a couple years back.
Oh wow - my comment had errors!
ReplyDeleteRMI has requested over $3 Billion in additional compensation, so they have asked for a lot more than just a measly $2 Billion more.
And the RMI became independent in 1986, not 1987.
I mention the US National Cancer Institute study but did not say why important. The NCI has concluded that between 1946 – 2003, there were an estimated 240 cancers in the Marshall Islands that occurred due to radiation exposure from nuclear testing, with an additional 290 cancer cases anticipated after 2003. The RMI Government has quoted this study in efforts to substantiate its request for $3B+ in additional compensation from the US, signfying the RMI's acceptance of the NCI estimate.
As bad as the impact of nuclear testing has been on the RMI, diabetes, heart disease, kidney failure, and other respiratory ailments caused by lack of exercise and poor diet (in spite of major US-funded efforts to educate Marshallese and change behaviors) kill or severely impact the lives of hundreds of Marshallse each year, as compared to estimated less than 550 cancer cases resulting from radiation related to nuclear testing, over period of 100 years.