Publication Laka-library:
Radiation and indigenous populations: the Marshall Islands case (1993)
| Author | G.Alcalay |
| Date | June 1993 |
| Classification | 4.26.4.00/20 (PACIFIC - US TESTING AREA) |
| Front | 
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From the publication:
Abstract At the end of World War II, the United States took possession of the 2,100 islands of Micronesia, including the Marshall Islands (pop. 50,000) in the Central Pacific. Between 1946-58 the U.S. exploded 66 atomic and hydrogen bombs (many in the megaton range) at Bikini and Enewetak in the Marshalls. Several island communities in the Marshalls received substantial levels of radioactive fallout, and in addition to the immediate [acute] effects of radiation exposure, many islanders are today experiencing the latent effects of irradiation - most notably thyroid abnormalities. It is believed that foodchain contamination may be contributing to further disorders. Also, several island communities remain sociologically dislocated, awaiting the outcome of radiological studies of their abandoned islands. Although the U.S. has been monitoring the health of the Marshallese, critics outside of the U.S. Government contend that these U.S.-sponsored studies have focused too narrowly on the thyroid effect. The paper will feature the preliminary findings of an independent year-long health survey of 1,500 Marshallese women and problems associated with reproduction [congenital anomalies], as well as the larger sociocultural disruptions which stem from the nuclear testing legacy. Based upon more than 500 interviews over a fifteen-year period (1975-901, indigenous perceptions about radiation effects will also be highlighted in the paper.
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