Article: 972 of sgi.talk.ratical From: (dave "who can do? ratmandu!" ratcliffe) Subject: WWC: Stmt of Sen. Anjain, Rongelap, Republic of Marshall Islands to UN Summary: Document 6 of Part I, Testimony of R. Bertell before W.W.C., Miami, FL Keywords: description of the magnitude of planetary nuclear pollution Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc. Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1993 15:19:25 GMT Lines: 568 The way the US destroyed the cultures in Micronesia by turning them into human guinea pigs to study the effects of radioactive fallout is tragically comparable to the human experiments conducted by the NAZI doctors. Such inhuman behavior is every bit as worthy of being tried in Nuremburg-like tribunals as anything the Germans ever did to people in Europe. Under Article VI of the Trusteeship Agreement, the United States made a promise to the international community that it would "Protect the inhabitants against the loss of their lands and resources," and that it would "Protect the health of the inhabitants" of the Trust Territory. . . . It should be pointed out that the "Able" and "Baker" atomic bombs of "Operation Crossroads" were detonated the year before the signing of the 1947 Trust Agreement, and we now view that fact of history as evidence of how the United States would administer its "Trust" in the Pacific. . . . As health problems continued to proliferate many years after our original exposure to high-level radioactive fallout, we found it odd when the United States doctors and scientists kept telling us that things were getting better, and that the radiation in our islands was going away. We also began to wonder who was really benefiting from the annual medical surveys conducted by the United States government. It is funny that although many U.S. agencies have come out to our islands with supposedly the "best" doctors in the world, we still have never been taught even the most basic facts about our unique exposure to radioactive fallout. First the Atomic Energy Commission came to our islands, then came the Energy Research And Development Administration, and now we have the Department Of Energy. They keep changing the names of these agencies, but they never change the people in the agencies. . . . Following the 1978 D.O.E. survey, the people of Rongelap were told to abandon the northern half of their atoll because of dangerous radiation levels. You can imagine the great fears and anxieties this caused my people when they realized that since their return after "Bravo" in 1957 that they had been eating foods and living on islands in an area now under quarantine! And it is likewise easy to imagine why my people began accusing the United States government of using them as "guinea pigs" in an ongoing human experiment to study the long-term effects of how radiation enters the human foodchain. I have often thought that those Americans who allowed my people to be exposed to radioactive fallout, and subsequently used as human guinea pigs, should face a Nuremburg-like tribunal for the callous disregard for human life. Supporting Document #6 from Part 1 of Dr. Rosalie Bertell's Testimony prepared for the World Women's Congress for a Healthy Planet held in Miami, Florida, November 8-12, 1991, featuring the Statement of Senator Jeton Anjain, Rongelap Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands before the Fourth Committee of the United Nations on October 30, 1985: ___________________________________________________________________________ NITIJELA OF THE MARSHALL ISLANDS POST OFFICE BOX 24 MAJURO, MARSHALL ISLANDS 96960 TELEPHONE 321 or 379 --CABLE NITIJELA MAJURO STATEMENT OF SENATOR JETON ANJAIN, RONGELAP ATOLL, REPUBLIC OF THE MARSHALL ISLANDS TRUST TERRITORY OF THE PACIFIC ISLANDS BEFORE THE FOURTH COMMITTEE OF THE UNITED NATIONS OCTOBER 30, 1985 ___________________________________________________________________________ MR. CHAIRMAN AND DISTINGUISHED DELEGATES, I GREATLY APPRECIATE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS THE FOURTH COMMITTEE OF THE UNITED NATIONS, AND I WISH TO CONGRATULATE THE NEW CHAIRMAN ON HIS RECENT ELECTION. MY NAME IS JETON ANJAIN AND I AM THE SENATOR FROM RONGELAP ATOLL IN THE MARSHALL ISLANDS IN MICRONESIA. HAVING BEEN TRAINED AS A DENTIST, I PRACTICED DENTISTRY FOR TWENTY-FIVE YEARS IN THE MARSHALL ISLANDS, AND IN 1982 I WAS APPOINTED AS THE MINISTER OF HEALTH FOR THE MARSHALL ISLANDS. I NOW SERVE AS SENATOR FOR MY PEOPLE ON RONGELAP AND DEVOTE ALL OF MY TIME AND ENERGY TO THAT TASK. AT THE END OF WORLD WAR II, THE UNITED STATES TOOK CONTROL OF THE MORE THAN 2,000 ISLANDS THAT MAKE UP THE ISLAND GROUP CALLED MICRONESIA IN THE CENTRAL PACIFIC OCEAN. IN 1947, MICRONESIA BECAME A TERRITORY OF THE UNITED STATES UNDER THE UNITED NATIONS TRUSTEESHIP SYSTEM, AND OF THE ELEVEN TRUST TERRITORIES CREATED AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR, IT WAS THE ONLY ONE DESIGNATED AS A "STRATEGIC TRUST." UNDER ARTICLE VI OF THE TRUSTEESHIP AGREEMENT, THE UNITED STATES MADE A PROMISE TO THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY THAT IT WOULD "PROTECT THE INHABITANTS AGAINST THE LOSS OF THEIR LANDS AND RESOURCES," AND THAT IT WOULD "PROTECT THE HEALTH OF THE INHABITANTS" OF THE TRUST TERRITORY. IN JULY OF 1946, THE UNITED STATES SELECTED BIKINI ATOLL AS THE SITE TO EXPLODE TWO ATOMIC BOMBS IN AN EXPERIMENT KNOWN AS "OPERATION CROSSROADS." IT SHOULD BE POINTED OUT THAT THE "ABLE" AND "BAKER" ATOMIC BOMBS OF "OPERATION CROSSROADS" WERE DETONATED THE YEAR BEFORE --- ---- ------ THE SIGNING OF THE 1947 TRUST AGREEMENT, AND WE NOW VIEW THAT FACT OF HISTORY AS EVIDENCE OF HOW THE UNITED STATES WOULD ADMINISTER ITS "TRUST" IN THE PACIFIC. UNDER A UNITED NATIONS TRUST AGREEMENT, THE UNITED STATES EXPLODED 66 ATOMIC AND HYDROGEN BOMBS IN OUR ISLANDS, AND EVEN AS I SPEAK TO YOU TODAY, MY PEOPLE ARE CONTINUING TO SUFFER FROM THE RADIOACTIVE LEGACY OF THESE BARBARIC NUCLEAR WEAPONS TESTS. IN MY TRADITIONAL LANGUAGE THERE IS NO WORD FOR "ENEMY," BUT YET, WE NOW CONSIDER IT AN ACT OF WAR THAT THE UNITED STATES CAME TO OUR ISLANDS FOR ONLY ONE PURPOSE: TO EXPLODE NUCLEAR WEAPONS IN THE NAME OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL SECURITY. IN THE EARLY HOURS OF A STILL DAY ON MARCH 1st, 1954, A BRIGHT FLASH OF LIGHT STREAKED ACROSS THE MORNING SKY. SEVERAL OF MY PEOPLE ON RONGELAP WERE CONFUSED, AS THEY THOUGHT THEY SAW THE LIGHT COMING FROM THE WEST INSTEAD OF A NORMAL SUNRISE IN THE EAST. MINUTES LATER, SEVERAL LOUD SOUNDS, LIKE CLAPS OF THUNDER, PIERCED THE MORNING AIR. A LITTLE WHILE LATER, THE BRIGHT MORNING SKY TURNED GREY, AND A GRITTY ASH FELL OUT OF THE SKY AND COVERED OUR ISLAND. LITTLE DID WE KNOW THEN THAT OUR LIVES WOULD BE FOREVER CHANGED BY THAT GRITTY ASH THAT FELL OUT OF THE SKY 31 YEARS AGO. AND LITTLE DID MY PEOPLE KNOW THAT WE WERE THE WORLD'S FIRST VICTIMS OF RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT FROM A HYDROGEN BOMB. AFTER SEVERAL DAYS, MY PEOPLE--AND THE PEOPLE OF UTIRIK SEVERAL HUNDRED MILES AWAY--WERE EVACUATED TO KWAJALEIN ATOLL TO THE SOUTH OF RONGELAP. THE PEOPLE BEGAN TO FEEL VERY SICK AND WEAK, AND MANY BEGAN TO HAVE BURNS ON THEIR BODIES. HAIR BEGAN FALLING OUT OF THEIR HEADS, AND THE UNITED STATES DOCTORS TOLD US THAT THEIR BLOOD COUNTS WENT BELOW 50% THE NORMAL LEVEL. MANY PEOPLE THOUGHT THAT THEY WERE GOING TO DIE FROM THIS NEW SICKNESS, AND IN FACT, WE HAVE BEEN SLOWLY DYING EVER SINCE THAT TRAGIC DAY IN 1954. MYSTERIOUSLY, MOST OF THE PREGNANT WOMEN AT THE TIME EITHER HAD MISCARRIAGES, OR ELSE GAVE BIRTH TO CREATURES THAT DID NOT RESEMBLE HUMAN BEINGS. AFTER 31 YEARS, THE WOMEN OF RONGELAP CONTINUE TO HAVE THESE PROBLEMS WITH REPRODUCTION, AND WE BELIEVE THAT LINGERING RADIATION IS THE CAUSE OF THIS. BECAUSE OUR HOME ISLANDS WERE SO CONTAMINATED, WE WERE FORCED TO ABANDON OUR HOME OF RONGELAP. FOR THREE YEARS WE BECAME REFUGEES, AND LIVED ON EJIT ISLAND IN MAJURO ATOLL. THEN, IN 1957, THE ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION TOLD US THAT WE COULD RETURN HOME. PACKING UP OUR BELONGINGS, WE MADE THE HAPPY JOURNEY BACK TO OUR ANCESTRAL HOME OF RONGELAP. AFTER SEVERAL YEARS BACK HOME ON RONGELAP, WE THOUGHT THAT THINGS WERE SLOWLY GETTING BETTER, AND THAT PERHAPS OUR LIVES WOULD RETURN TO A NORMAL STATE. HOW WRONG WE WERE. IN 1963, THE UNITED STATES DOCTORS DISCOVERED A THYROID TUMOR IN THE NECK OF A RONGELAP WOMAN. THE NEXT YEAR A FEW MORE THYROID TUMORS WERE DISCOVERED. WE BEGAN TO SEE THAT WITH EVERY PASSING YEAR, MORE AND MORE OF OUR PEOPLE WERE BEING STRICKEN WITH THYROID DISEASE, AND ONE BY ONE MY PEOPLE WERE TAKEN TO THE UNITED STATES WHERE MAJOR SURGERY WAS PERFORMED TO REMOVE THEIR THYROID GLANDS. BEGINNING IN 1969, THE PEOPLE OF UTIRIK - WHO WERE 300 MILES DOWNWIND OF THE HYDROGEN BOMB AT BIKINI - BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THYROID TUMORS. THE THYROID DISEASE AMONG MY PEOPLE HAS REACHED EPIDEMIC LEVELS, AND SEVERAL CHILDREN SUFFERED FROM STUNTED GROWTH BECAUSE OF THEIR INJURED THYROID GLANDS. IN 1972, A NEPHEW OF MINE NAMED LEKOJ ANJAIN DIED OF LEUKEMIA WHEN HE WAS 19 YEARS OLD: LEKOJ WAS ONE-YEAR OLD DURING THE "BRAVO" HYDROGEN BOMB TEST OF 1954 WHEN HE PLAYED IN THE SNOW-LIKE FALLOUT ON THE GROUND. NOT LONG AFTERWARDS, MY BROTHER JOHN - THE FATHER OF LEKOJ - AND HIS WIFE MIJJUA BOTH DEVELOPED THYROID TUMORS. AND I HAVE HAD A CANCEROUS TUMOR REMOVED FROM MY BODY. THE RADIATION FROM THE 1954 "BRAVO" FALLOUT HAS NOT ONLY KILLED AND MAIMED THE PEOPLE OF MY ISLAND, BUT IT HAS TAKEN A PERSONAL TOLL ON THE LIVES OF MY FAMILY MEMBERS. MR. CHAIRMAN AND DISTINGUISHED DELEGATES, I DO NOT THINK THIS RADIOACTIVE LEGACY IS WHAT THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HAD IN MIND WHEN IT TURNED OUR ISLANDS OVER TO THE UNITED STATES UNDER A SACRED TRUST AGREEMENT IN 1947! AS HEALTH PROBLEMS CONTINUED TO PROLIFERATE MANY YEARS AFTER OUR ORIGINAL EXPOSURE TO HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT, WE FOUND IT ODD WHEN THE UNITED STATES DOCTORS AND SCIENTISTS KEPT TELLING US THAT THINGS WERE GETTING BETTER, AND THAT THE RADIATION IN OUR ISLANDS WAS GOING AWAY. WE ALSO BEGAN TO WONDER WHO WAS REALLY BENEFITING FROM THE ANNUAL MEDICAL SURVEYS CONDUCTED BY THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. IT IS FUNNY THAT ALTHOUGH MANY U.S. AGENCIES HAVE COME OUT TO OUR ISLANDS WITH SUPPOSEDLY THE "BEST" DOCTORS IN THE WORLD, WE STILL HAVE NEVER BEEN TAUGHT EVEN THE MOST BASIC FACTS ABOUT OUR UNIQUE EXPOSURE TO RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT. FIRST THE ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION CAME TO OUR ISLANDS, THEN CAME THE ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION, AND NOW WE HAVE THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY. THEY KEEP CHANGING THE NAMES OF THESE AGENCIES, BUT THEY NEVER CHANGE THE PEOPLE IN THE AGENCIES. IN 1978, THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CONDUCTED A RADIOLOGICAL SURVEY OF THE NORTHERN MARSHALL ISLANDS. AT THE CONCLUSION OF THEIR SURVEY, IT WAS REVEALED THAT IN ADDITION TO RONGELAP AND UTIRIK, 12 OTHER ATOLLS AND ISLANDS WERE CONTAMINATED WITH DANGEROUS LEVELS OF FALLOUT FROM THE HYDROGEN BOMB TEST PROGRAM. IN OTHER WORDS, OUR WORST FEARS WERE REALIZED WHEN THE U.S. GOVERNMENT ADMITTED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 1978 THAT LITERALLY THOUSANDS MORE MARSHALLESE HAD BEEN EXPOSED TO FALLOUT AND WERE CONTINUING TO LIVE IN A RADIOACTIVE ENVIRONMENT. YET, DESPITE THIS VERY IMPORTANT ADMISSION, ONLY RONGELAP AND UTIRIK ARE RECEIVING U.S. MEDICAL SURVEYS. THIS FACT MAKES A SIMPLE MOCKERY OF ARTICLE VI OF THE TRUST AGREEMENT WHEREBY THE UNITED STATES PLEDGED TO "PROTECT THE HEALTH OF THE INHABITANTS." FOLLOWING THE 1978 D.O.E. SURVEY, THE PEOPLE OF RONGELAP WERE TOLD TO ABANDON THE NORTHERN HALF OF THEIR ATOLL BECAUSE OF DANGEROUS RADIATION LEVELS. YOU CAN IMAGINE THE GREAT FEARS AND ANXIETIES THIS CAUSED MY PEOPLE WHEN THEY REALIZED THAT SINCE THEIR RETURN AFTER "BRAVO" IN 1957 THAT THEY HAD BEEN EATING FOODS AND LIVING ON ISLANDS IN AN AREA NOW UNDER QUARANTINE! AND IT IS LIKEWISE EASY TO IMAGINE WHY MY PEOPLE BEGAN ACCUSING THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT OF USING THEM AS "GUINEA PIGS" IN AN ONGOING HUMAN EXPERIMENT TO STUDY THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF HOW RADIATION ENTERS THE HUMAN FOODCHAIN. I HAVE OFTEN THOUGHT THAT THOSE AMERICANS WHO ALLOWED MY PEOPLE TO BE EXPOSED TO RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT, AND SUBSEQUENTLY USED AS HUMAN GUINEA PIGS, SHOULD FACE A NUREMBURG-LIKE TRIBUNAL FOR THE CALLOUS DISREGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE. FOLLOWING THE 1978 DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SURVEY, THE D.O.E. PRODUCED A BI-LINGUAL BOOKLET ABOUT RADIATION IN THE NORTHERN MARSHALL ISLANDS. WHEN WE COMPARED THE RADIATION LEVELS OF BIKINI--WHERE 23 ATOMIC AND HYDROGEN BOMB TESTS OCCURRED--AND RONGELAP, WE FOUND VERY LITTLE DIFFERENCE. AND YET, AS THIS COMMITTEE KNOWS, BIKINI IS OFF- LIMITS FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT 100 YEARS WHILE THE PEOPLE OF RONGELAP HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO REMAIN IN A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION SINCE OUR RETURN IN 1957 AFTER THE FALLOUT CAME TO OUR ISLANDS. IT WAS AFTER WE WERE TOLD THAT ONE-HALF OF OUR ATOLL WAS UNDER QUARANTINE, AND AFTER WE SAW IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY'S OWN WORDS THAT MANY ISLANDS ON RONGELAP WERE AS CONTAMINATED AS ISLANDS AT BIKINI, THAT WE DECIDED TO TAKE SOME ACTION. IN 1983, PRESIDENT AMATA KABUA AND I INTRODUCED A RESOLUTION INTO OUR PARLIAMENT CALLING FOR THE EVACUATION OF THE RONGELAP PEOPLE. THAT RESOLUTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY. IN MAY OF THIS YEAR, THE PEOPLE OF RONGELAP FINALLY DECIDED TO TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION. WITH THE HELP OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP GREENPEACE, THE PEOPLE OF RONGELAP TOOK THE DRASTIC STEP OF MOVING AWAY FROM THE DANGEROUS SITUATION ON RONGELAP. WITH THE KIND ASSISTANCE OF GREENPEACE'S FLAGSHIP, THE RAINBOW WARRIOR--WHICH THE FRENCH SAW FIT TO BLOW UP IN AUCKLAND HARBOR--WE MOVED OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY TO MEJATO ISLAND AT KWAJALEIN ATOLL. I AM CURRENTLY HELPING TO ORGANIZE AN INTERNATIONAL INDEPENDENT RADIOLOGICAL AND HEALTH SURVEY OF RONGELAP IN THE NEXT YEAR SO THAT WE MAY--AT LONG LAST--MAKE AN INTELLIGENT AND INFORMED DECISION ABOUT WHETHER TO RETURN TO RONGELAP, OR WHETHER TO ABANDON OUR HOME ISLANDS. AT PRESENT, THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS IS ABOUT TO TERMINATE THE STRATEGIC TRUST AGREEMENT WITH THE UNITED NATIONS. UNDER A QUESTIONABLE LEGAL DOCUMENT KNOWN AS THE COMPACT OF FREE ASSOCIATION, WE WILL ENTER INTO AN AMBIGUOUS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE UNITED STATES THAT IS NEITHER INDEPENDENCE NOR COMPLETE ANNEXATION. HOWEVER, THE ONE CERTAIN FACT UNDER THE COMPACT IS THAT THE U.S. WILL MAINTAIN A MILITARY GRIP ON KWAJALEIN FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT 30 YEARS. PERHAPS THE MOST TROUBLING PART OF THE COMPACT CONCERNS THE RADIATION VICTIMS IN THE MARSHALL ISLANDS. AT THE MOMENT, MORE THAN FOUR THOUSAND MARSHALLESE HAVE FILED LAWSUITS IN UNITED STATES COURTS FOR RADIATION-INDUCED DAMAGES TO PROPERTY AND HEALTH. UNDER THE SO- CALLED "ESPOUSAL" CLAUSE OF SECTION 177 OF THE COMPACT, ALL OF THESE LAWSUITS WILL BECOME NULL AND VOID, AND ALL FUTURE LAWSUITS FOR LATENT RADIATION DISEASE WILL BE CANCELLED. BECAUSE WE HAVE NEVER HAD THE BENEFIT OF A TRULY INDEPENDENT AND NON-GOVERNMENTAL HEALTH STUDY OF OUR CONTAMINATED ISLANDS, WE STILL DO NOT KNOW JUST HOW EXTENSIVE THE RADIATION DAMAGE REALLY IS. FURTHERMORE, WE HAVE NO IDEA ABOUT THE FUTURE OUTLOOK FOR OUR UNBORN GENERATIONS WHO WILL BE EXPOSED TO RADIOACTIVITY ON MANY ISLANDS IN THE MARSHALLS. THEREFORE, WE FIND IT RATHER PECULIAR THAT THE U.S. IS S0 EAGER TO PREVENT US FROM ALL JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS STEMMING FROM THE --- NUCLEAR TESTS, AND WE HONESTLY FEAR THAT THE U.S. MAY KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT OUR FUTURE HEALTH THAT THEY DO NOT WANT US TO KNOW ABOUT. CERTAINLY, THIS VIOLATES BOTH THE LETTER AND THE SPIRIT OF THE 1947 TRUST AGREEMENT. RECENTLY A RESEARCH ARM OF THE U.S. CONGRESS KNOWN AS THE CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE DID AN ANALYSIS OF THE ESPOUSAL CLAUSE IN THE COMPACT. ACCORDING TO THIS ANALYSIS BY C.R.S., IT HAS BEEN DETERMINED THAT ESPOUSAL IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND VIOLATES U.S. LAW. THE REASON GIVEN BY C.R.S. IS THAT BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT OF THE MARSHALL ISLANDS DOES NOT HAVE SUFFICIENT SOVEREIGNTY EITHER UNDER THE TRUST AGREEMENT OR UNDER THE COMPACT, THAT IT COULD NOT LEGALLY ENACT THE ESPOUSAL PROVISION OF THE COMPACT. I HAVE ATTACHED A COPY OF THIS 5-PAGE C.R.S. ANALYSIS TO MY STATEMENT. IN CONCLUSION, I MUST CONFESS MY DEEP-FELT DISAPPOINTMENT WITH THE NEARLY FORTY YEAR HISTORY OF UNITED STATES ADMINISTRATION OF OUR ONCE-PEACEFUL AND UNPOLLUTED ISLANDS. MY PEOPLE CONTINUE TO ASK ME WHY THE UNITED NATIONS HAS NEVER REALLY HELPED US. IN FACT, UNDER THE WATCHFUL EYES OF THE TRUSTEESHIP COUNCIL, THE UNITED STATES EXPLODED NUCLEAR BOMBS IN OUR ISLANDS, CAUSED IRREVERSIBLE DESTRUCTION TO OUR HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT, AND HAS TAMPERED WITH OUR CULTURE IN A WAY THAT HAS DIVIDED US INTO OPPOSING CAMPS. IN THE AFTERMATH OF U.S. ADMINISTRATION, SUICIDE--UNKNOWN AMONG THE MICRONESIAN PEOPLE BEFORE THE PERIOD OF AMERICAN RULE--HAS ONE OF THE HIGHEST RATES IN THE WORLD IN OUR ONCE-PEACEFUL LAND. IN CLOSING, I FORMALLY REQUEST THAT THE DE-COLONIZATION COMMITTEE SEND A SPECIAL VISITING MISSION TO OUR ISLANDS TO SEE FIRSTHAND WHAT 40 YEARS OF U.S. RULE HAS DONE TO MY PEOPLE AND TO OUR ISLANDS. SURELY, ON THIS 40th ANNIVERSARY OF THE UNITED NATIONS, IT WOULD SEEM MOST APPROPRIATE FOR THE DE-COLONIZATION COMMITTEE TO DIRECTLY OBSERVE THE LAST REMAINING TRUST TERRITORY BEFORE THE TERMINATION OF THE TRUST AGREEMENT. LAST AUGUST, THE MEMBERS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC FORUM SIGNED A TREATY CALLING ON THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT TO STOP ITS NUCLEAR TESTING IN THE PACIFIC. THE REASON THE FORUM NATIONS ARE DEMANDING AN END TO NUCLEAR TESTING IN THEIR BACKYARD IS THAT THEY FEAR THE POSSIBLE ADVERSE HEALTH EFFECTS ASSOCIATED WITH EXPOSURE TO RADIATION. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THESE NATIONS ARE TRYING TO PREVENT WHAT HAS ALREADY HAPPENED TO MY PEOPLE. IF NOTHING ELSE, MY PEOPLE SERVE AS A WARNING TO ALL OF HUMANITY ABOUT WHAT NUCLEAR WEAPONS DO TO HUMAN BEINGS. PLEASE, FOR THE SAKE OF OUR CHILDREN AND OUR CHILDREN'S CHILDREN, LET US HEED THE WARNING BY REPLACING AN UNCHECKED NUCLEAR ARMS RACE WITH INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND A SANE WORLD ORDER. THANK YOU. -- Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves. -- Henry David Thoreau, 1847