Min-Iren Delegation Visits Chernobyl

From April 1 to 8, the NGO Peace Boat conducted “Orizuru Program Overland Tour.” Along with some Hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Dr. Konishi Kyoji, Min-Iren Vice President, and Dr. Yukita Shinji, Min-Iren’s Radiation Exposure Commission member, took part in this program. They visited Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which had a serious accident in 1986, and met the victims and their supporters. Set below is a report by Vice President Konishi.

Setting out for Chernobyl

On April 2, we left Hotel Ukraine in Kiev by bus, which took us two hours to Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
At present, working is permitted within 30 to 10 kilometer radius of Chernobyl plant, and about 4,000 city workers were working in the area. As many as 1,000 of them work at Chernobyl nuclear plant on such conditions as “working is restricted to only 15 days out of 1 month”, or “mandatory rotation should be made after 3 to 4 days of work”.

Within 10-kilometer radius, working is permitted only to those related to the nuclear power plant. Former workers living in Pripyat City had to evacuate en masse outside 30-kilometer radius, and migrated to Slavutych, a new town set up in Desniansky district. They are now engaged in the work of preventing the spread of radiation contamination. The radiation level in the city of Chernobyl, 30 kilometer from the nuclear plant, was 0.12 μSv (per hour).
At the information office of Chernobyl Interinform, a state agency administering the area within 30-kilometer radius, we received an explanation regarding the general situation of contamination. Before entering the radiation controlled area, all our members were requested to agree and sign the document, stating that it was prohibited to collect berries (fruits) or mushrooms, have direct contact with plants, earth or architectures. Further, we had to measure our exposed dose after the visit, and act on the principle of self-responsibility for any health hazard that might appear later on.
At a spot 10-kilometer from the power plant, tanks and loading shovels were on display, which were once used in the disposal work immediately after the accident. We could not approach them, as the radiation level of these objects was too high. At 5 meters from these object, it measured 0.328 μSv/hour.

Buried village, now small hills

Further ahead, the radiation level increased rapidly, and we saw Kopachi Village, located at 4 or 5 kilometers from the power plant. Houses were buried with earth, which formed small hills.
And the bus approached Chernobyl nuclear power plant. At the plaza in front of Reactor No. 4, which exploded in the accident, the radiation level was very high. Still now, it measures 8.5 to 8.9 μSv/hour. In a year, it amounts to 74 to 78 mSv. In light of 1 mSv/year, the permissible radiation dose set by the International Atomic Energy Agency, it is an enormously high level. As the “stone coffin”, in which Reactor No. 4 had been encased in concrete, was found to be leaking radiation anew, a construction work for a second stone coffin has started to be completed by 2015. At Chernobyl nuclear plant, many workers were still engaged in dealing with the aftermath, even after the last reactor (No. 3) stopped its operation in 2000.

Data concealed by the former Soviet Union

Next day, we met Mr. Volodymyr, a Ukrainian scholar on environmental issues, active in the anti-nuclear movement. Regarding health hazards caused by the radiation contamination of Chernobyl, he said, “We have learned that thyroid cancer has increased, but there are no good data concerning solid cancers or leukemia. The data on the firefighters and liquidators engaged in the clean-up work after the Chernobyl accident are now held by the Russian government (i.e., the government of Former Soviet Union), but they refuse to make them open.”
The official reply from the Ukrainian government is that the data on the liquidators have been lost, and no follow-up measures or assistance have been given to deal with their health problems. When we said to Volodymyr, “Min-Iren will send another fact-finding delegation in September to Chernobyl, and we would like to ask for your help”, he was willing to cooperate.

Discrimination against nuclear victims in Belarus

On April 4, we visited a medical institution in Gomel City, Belarus. Free medical care is provided in Belarus and special allowance is given to the Chernobyl victims.
Dr. Mikhail, former hospital president in Vetka　district said, “At the time of the accident, we had no idea how to battle with radiation. Most of the doctors in my hospital fled, never to return. I studied about radiation only after the accident. I have measured the radiation level on mushrooms in the forests.”
Erina (age 46), a midwife, told us she saw the explosion on the day of the accident. Just like Mikhail, she said no one knew what to do at that time. A member of the delegation from Hiroshima said, “I suffered discrimination by others for having been exposed to the A-bomb radiation. Consequently I missed the chance of marriage and I am still single. Now the victims in Fukushima are suffering from similar discrimination, as people mistakenly fear that radiation is contagious.” Hearing this, Erina said, “We suffered discrimination in Vetka district, too. My children were called “Hedgehogs of Chernobyl” and excluded by other children in playing.”
Erina told us that after the accident, “Out of 1380 newborn babies, 6 had (severe) congenital defects,” but Dr. Zhimina Nadejda, president of the hospital, interrupted her, saying, “That is not a big number. Such birth defects were seen even before the accident.” It seemed the views among medical professionals on the damage caused by radiation were incongruent. Dr. Nadja said, “People in the contaminated areas are doing fine. Thyroid cancer is the only confirmed disease having cause-and-effect relations with Chernobyl nuclear power plant. According to the Ministry of Health of Belarus, cancers of thyroid, kidney, lung and pancreas are on the increase.”

Lawsuits filed in Ukraine

On April 6, together with Ms. Tanaka Mineko, our delegation members met Ms. Tamara, a representative of the group “Zemlyaki”, working to support the evacuees from Pripyat in northern Ukraine, and Mr. Takeuchi Takaaki, a Japanese peace activist living in Ukraine. According to Tamara, a law for the rehabilitation of Chernobyl victims was established in 1991. But the law soon fell completely defunct, following the breakdown of the Soviet Union.
“The pension for the people living in the affected areas was supposed to be raised, but it never happened. They are entitled to free medical care by law, but in fact they have to pay. Even if they fall ill, they cannot receive examination or treatment. Most victims are in dire poverty. They are suffering from malfunction of thyroid, debilitating memory loss, immunological deterioration or various other health problems. During the first 5 years following the accident, the rate of suicides and unexpected deaths was high, but no clear cause has been found,” Tamara said.
What drew our particular attention was the fact that the victims in Ukraine are getting united to seek compensation for their suffering. When I shared the struggles of the Hibakusha’s collective lawsuits seeking official recognition on their A-bomb induced diseases in Japan, Tamara said, “There are many things in common. With the help of lawyers, two years ago, we filed a lawsuit against the government and won the case.”
However, despite this ruling, the government refuses to provide compensation to the victims, due to the “lack of State fund for pensions,” and the movement to achieve compensation to the Chernobyl victims is still going on. Tamara said, “The doctors at Research Center for Radiation Medicine of Ukraine know concrete cases and cannot deny what they have actually witnessed. There is a doctor in Kiev studying endocrine secretion, too. I do hope you will meet them in person.”

Achieving zero nuclear power plants through international solidarity

Through our visit, we witnessed that even 26 years after Chernobyl nuclear accident, the situations of the affected areas and victims have not been improved at all. Through the dialogues with the people, we have learned the fact that virtually no relief measures have been taken for the victims and voluntary evacuees were marginalized and placed in constant fear of possible outbreak of cancer or sudden death. They live with the sufferings common to the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombing, with whom we have worked together in solidarity over the last 50 plus years. The attitude of the governments is just the same: they try to underestimate the damage and continue their failure to act for the victims. It is necessary to achieve full information disclosure and establish State policy measures to save all the victims.
Coming autumn, Min-Iren is planning to send the second fact-finding mission to Chernobyl. Working together with many different NPOs and NGOs in Japan and internationally, we want to make this mission an important opportunity to further develop a global movement to achieve zero nuclear power plant and promote renewable energies through our solidarity across borders.

Health Hazards Still Unresolved 26 Years After Chernobyl Disaster

Min-Iren Delegation Visits Chernobyl

From April 1 to 8, the NGO Peace Boat conducted “Orizuru Program Overland Tour.” Along with some Hibakusha from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Dr. Konishi Kyoji, Min-Iren Vice President, and Dr. Yukita Shinji, Min-Iren’s Radiation Exposure Commission member, took part in this program. They visited Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which had a serious accident in 1986, and met the victims and their supporters. Set below is a report by Vice President Konishi.

Setting out for Chernobyl

On April 2, we left Hotel Ukraine in Kiev by bus, which took us two hours to Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
At present, working is permitted within 30 to 10 kilometer radius of Chernobyl plant, and about 4,000 city workers were working in the area. As many as 1,000 of them work at Chernobyl nuclear plant on such conditions as “working is restricted to only 15 days out of 1 month”, or “mandatory rotation should be made after 3 to 4 days of work”.

Within 10-kilometer radius, working is permitted only to those related to the nuclear power plant. Former workers living in Pripyat City had to evacuate en masse outside 30-kilometer radius, and migrated to Slavutych, a new town set up in Desniansky district. They are now engaged in the work of preventing the spread of radiation contamination. The radiation level in the city of Chernobyl, 30 kilometer from the nuclear plant, was 0.12 μSv (per hour).
At the information office of Chernobyl Interinform, a state agency administering the area within 30-kilometer radius, we received an explanation regarding the general situation of contamination. Before entering the radiation controlled area, all our members were requested to agree and sign the document, stating that it was prohibited to collect berries (fruits) or mushrooms, have direct contact with plants, earth or architectures. Further, we had to measure our exposed dose after the visit, and act on the principle of self-responsibility for any health hazard that might appear later on.
At a spot 10-kilometer from the power plant, tanks and loading shovels were on display, which were once used in the disposal work immediately after the accident. We could not approach them, as the radiation level of these objects was too high. At 5 meters from these object, it measured 0.328 μSv/hour.

Buried village, now small hills

Further ahead, the radiation level increased rapidly, and we saw Kopachi Village, located at 4 or 5 kilometers from the power plant. Houses were buried with earth, which formed small hills.
And the bus approached Chernobyl nuclear power plant. At the plaza in front of Reactor No. 4, which exploded in the accident, the radiation level was very high. Still now, it measures 8.5 to 8.9 μSv/hour. In a year, it amounts to 74 to 78 mSv. In light of 1 mSv/year, the permissible radiation dose set by the International Atomic Energy Agency, it is an enormously high level. As the “stone coffin”, in which Reactor No. 4 had been encased in concrete, was found to be leaking radiation anew, a construction work for a second stone coffin has started to be completed by 2015. At Chernobyl nuclear plant, many workers were still engaged in dealing with the aftermath, even after the last reactor (No. 3) stopped its operation in 2000.

Data concealed by the former Soviet Union

Next day, we met Mr. Volodymyr, a Ukrainian scholar on environmental issues, active in the anti-nuclear movement. Regarding health hazards caused by the radiation contamination of Chernobyl, he said, “We have learned that thyroid cancer has increased, but there are no good data concerning solid cancers or leukemia. The data on the firefighters and liquidators engaged in the clean-up work after the Chernobyl accident are now held by the Russian government (i.e., the government of Former Soviet Union), but they refuse to make them open.”
The official reply from the Ukrainian government is that the data on the liquidators have been lost, and no follow-up measures or assistance have been given to deal with their health problems. When we said to Volodymyr, “Min-Iren will send another fact-finding delegation in September to Chernobyl, and we would like to ask for your help”, he was willing to cooperate.

Discrimination against nuclear victims in Belarus

On April 4, we visited a medical institution in Gomel City, Belarus. Free medical care is provided in Belarus and special allowance is given to the Chernobyl victims.
Dr. Mikhail, former hospital president in Betka district said, “At the time of the accident, we had no idea how to battle with radiation. Most of the doctors in my hospital fled, never to return. I studied about radiation only after the accident. I have measured the radiation level on mushrooms in the forests.”
Erina (age 46), a midwife, told us she saw the explosion on the day of the accident. Just like Mikhail, she said no one knew what to do at that time. A member of the delegation from Hiroshima said, “I suffered discrimination by others for having been exposed to the A-bomb radiation. Consequently I missed the chance of marriage and I am still single. Now the victims in Fukushima are suffering from similar discrimination, as people mistakenly fear that radiation is contagious.” Hearing this, Erina said, “We suffered discrimination in Betka district, too. My children were called “Hedgehogs of Chernobyl” and excluded by other children in playing.”
Erina told us that after the accident, “Out of 1380 newborn babies, 6 had (severe) congenital defects,” but Dr. Zhimina Nadejda, president of the hospital, interrupted her, saying, “That is not a big number. Such birth defects were seen even before the accident.” It seemed the views among medical professionals on the damage caused by radiation were incongruent. Dr. Nadja said, “People in the contaminated areas are doing fine. Thyroid cancer is the only confirmed disease having cause-and-effect relations with Chernobyl nuclear power plant. According to the Ministry of Health of Belarus, cancers of thyroid, kidney, lung and pancreas are on the increase.”

Lawsuits filed in Ukraine

On April 6, together with Ms. Tanaka Mineko, our delegation members met Ms. Tamara, a representative of the group “Zemlyaki”, working to support the evacuees from Pripyat in northern Ukraine, and Mr. Takeuchi Takaaki, a Japanese peace activist living in Ukraine. According to Tamara, a law for the rehabilitation of Chernobyl victims was established in 1991. But the law soon fell completely defunct, following the breakdown of the Soviet Union.
“The pension for the people living in the affected areas was supposed to be raised, but it never happened. They are entitled to free medical care by law, but in fact they have to pay. Even if they fall ill, they cannot receive examination or treatment. Most victims are in dire poverty. They are suffering from malfunction of thyroid, debilitating memory loss, immunological deterioration or various other health problems. During the first 5 years following the accident, the rate of suicides and unexpected deaths was high, but no clear cause has been found,” Tamara said.
What drew our particular attention was the fact that the victims in Ukraine are getting united to seek compensation for their suffering. When I shared the struggles of the Hibakusha’s collective lawsuits seeking official recognition on their A-bomb induced diseases in Japan, Tamara said, “There are many things in common. With the help of lawyers, two years ago, we filed a lawsuit against the government and won the case.”
However, despite this ruling, the government refuses to provide compensation to the victims, due to the “lack of State fund for pensions,” and the movement to achieve compensation to the Chernobyl victims is still going on. Tamara said, “The doctors at the Radiological Medical Center know concrete cases and cannot deny what they have actually witnessed. There is a doctor in Kiev studying endocrine secretion, too. I do hope you will meet them in person.”

Achieving zero nuclear power plants through international solidarity

Through our visit, we witnessed that even 26 years after Chernobyl nuclear accident, the situations of the affected areas and victims have not been improved at all. Through the dialogues with the people, we have learned the fact that virtually no relief measures have been taken for the victims and voluntary evacuees were marginalized and placed in constant fear of possible outbreak of cancer or sudden death. They live with the sufferings common to the survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombing, with whom we have worked together in solidarity over the last 50 plus years. The attitude of the governments is just the same: they try to underestimate the damage and continue their failure to act for the victims. It is necessary to achieve full information disclosure and establish State policy measures to save all the victims.
Coming autumn, Min-Iren is planning to send the second fact-finding mission to Chernobyl. Working together with many different NPOs and NGOs in Japan and internationally, we want to make this mission an important opportunity to further develop a global movement to achieve zero nuclear power plant and promote renewable energies through our solidarity across borders.