Speech of UN Coordinator of International Cooperation on Chernobyl at ICRIN launch

A little over seventeen years ago, the world witnessed one of the most terrible accidents in history. The Chernobyl disaster was a horrendous tragedy because of the direct human cost, the large tracts of land poisoned, the scale of displacement of populations, the loss of livelihood, the trauma suffered by the people because of the snapping of their links with their soil and their patrimony. The victims of the tragedy were confronted by a situation which they could scarcely understand and against which they had no means of defence. The material damage inflicted by Chernobyl, enormous though it is, pales into insignificance before the human cost it has inflicted and continues to exact. The true scope of the tragedy lies in the fact that its full scope is still beyond comprehension. The devastation does not merely extend over enormous distances and touch the lives of such a large number of people. It stretches beyond the present to cast a shadow on the future. Besides those who have already succumbed, it takes a daily toll of those who have survived and are living today, both young and old. It reaches out and traps future generations into fear, anxiety and insecurity.
Our hearts go out to the people of these blighted lands who, in the face of continuing danger, have persevered in their efforts to rebuild their communities and fight their way back to normalcy. They have shown enormous courage in their efforts to mitigate the suffering of their neighbours and to help deal with the problems caused by Chernobyl. They have been supported in these efforts by the national governments, particularly those of the three most seriously affected countries. They have continued to carry an enormous burden to address the problems resulting from the accident despite the fact that it is a time of economic difficulty for them.

The international community has also responded in a spirit of humanity and fellowship. Nations from all over the world generously assisted in caring for the affected. It would take too long to mention all that has been done by the governments and people from all corners of the world. But I would like to take this opportunity to mention only the most recent contribution and express my deep appreciation. In June last year an international Chernobyl website, operated with the cooperation of the UN, was launched with funding from Switzerland. The Swiss have also been intimately involved in the discussions and preparations leading up to the establishment of ICRIN, the main purpose of today's event.

Non-governmental organizations have played a crucial role in this humanitarian endeavour - both those NGOs that have brought tangible, material assistance to the affected areas, as well those that helped to mobilize and raise awareness of the need for this assistance. Without their help, deep commitment, and dedicated hard work, no amount of assistance would have proved adequate.

It is appropriate that the keynote speaker today is a distinguished representative of that community. Ms. Adi Roche, the founder and Executive Director of the Chernobyl Children's Project, has been tireless in her efforts to bring relief to the innocent child victim of the disaster. Her dedication and commitment have won the admiration of all. People like her with their extraordinary devotion give us hope in the future of humanity.

In the first decade, and certainly ever since Chernobyl was brought to the United Nations in 1990, the requirement was for immediate assistance in the form of emergency relief. And that, appropriately enough, was what the international community and the national governments concentrated on. The efforts of individuals, governments and civil society have done much to ameliorate the condition of those affected by the disaster. But much more remains to be done and the needs now are different from those of the past.

Last year UNDP and UNICEF, supported by OCHA and WHO, commissioned a report on the Human Consequences of the Chernobyl Nuclear Accident in order to formulate a strategy for recovery. The thinking behind the exercise was simple. The efforts undertaken in the first stages of the catastrophe had mitigated the suffering and served their purpose. But the current situation demanded a different plan. What was required was a shift in strategy from the initial focus on emergency humanitarian assistance to one that stressed a long-term developmental approach. The objective was to ensure as rapid an end as possible to the dependency that outside assistance creates and to make the individuals and communities self sustaining. This can only be achieved through empowerment of those affected. But how is this to be achieved?

Health hazards for the communities affected are still deadly. But now they are more insidious. There is woefully inadequate knowledge among the victims about the perils that they and their off springs face. The ordinary citizen has little understanding of what afflicts him. The child scarred by an unseen, all pervasive malady, cries out in pain and puzzlement. The farmer whose land has been contaminated by a poison he knows nothing about is not sure if normalcy can ever return. Parents wonder if the child they want so much will come into this world, already condemned to deformity and disease. Much remains to be learned and understood about the effects of radiation on health, agriculture and the environment. In the absence of authentic credible information, doubts, fear and speculation haunt the people and create their own problems. Empowerment is not possible in conditions of ignorance.

The first, the indispensable, requirement is the acquisition and dissemination of scientifically correct information. Only in this way will we be able to help the people make informed decisions about their future course of action. It is only so that we will be able to ensure that the government authorities, and the civil society groups concerned do not need to grope in the dark; that the international community is able to channel its assistance where it is most needed, in forms that would prove most effective.

And beyond this, there is a larger, more universal, need that must also be met.

For we must also give thought to the unthinkable. One shrinks from even admitting the nightmare possibility of another accident like Chernobyl. Today, there are four hundred nuclear reactors in operation around the world. More will probably be built over the coming years. Experts assure us that another major accident is improbable, if only because of improvements in design and the greater vigilance for accident prevention that Chernobyl has generated. But the improbable is not impossible; and accidents are, by definition, unpredictable. All of us fervently hope that it will never happen again but absolute safety and immunity from accidents is the only impossibility. While dealing with the aftermath of the Chernobyl catastrophe, we must use it to be better prepared should a like disaster afflict us again.

The tragedy experienced by the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki was different in nature from that of Chernobyl. It was the consequence of war. Chernobyl is the biggest nuclear accident in history. Yet, there are lessons that can be profitably learnt from the studies conducted in the two Japanese cities over the years. Collation and comparison of findings will bring invaluable insights.

It is clear that there is a paramount need for continuing high-level research. It is needed for meeting the needs of the affected populations of the three states which have borne the brunt of the impact. But it is also necessary to address questions of importance to humanity at large. For instance, there are growing concerns about the effects of ionizing radiation in low doses on human health. There is no direct basis for determining the risks associated with exposures of the kind resulting from the Chernobyl accident. These and other problems need to be researched, and knowledge and information widely shared, in accordance with internationally recognized protocols.

It is for these reasons that the United Nations report of last year recommended the establishment of the International Chernobyl Research and Information Network (ICRIN). Admittedly a great deal of research has been carried out and valuable information has been collected by a large number of organizations, universities and institutes in the three countries - the Russian Federation, Ukraine, Belarus - and around the world. Within the UN system, agencies such as the IAEA, WHO and UNESCO have been engaged significantly in these activities. ICRIN is not intended to duplicate the excellent work being done by these and other agencies and organizations. It is meant to fill another need, the need for a synergy. Only so can specialized research, dedicated to the particular interests and concerns of the agency conducting it, be used for formulating a holistic approach to the problem. For we must not forget that, ultimately, knowledge too, though desirable in itself, must serve the noble purpose of human welfare. Scientific research on the problems generated by the Chernobyl catastrophe must be brought to serve the people directly affected and provide reassurance to humanity at large. And this is precisely what ICRIN project intends to do, and do so at a relatively low cost of funding.

Using existing information and mechanisms, ICRIN will attempt to compile, consolidate and disseminate scientific information. There are many issues on which scientific consensus is still lacking. There are conflicting reports, contradictory opinions, and differing interpretations of data and experience. This is particularly true of the effects of the accident on the environment and public health. ICRIN will recommend further studies where required and ensure effective dissemination of its findings. It will, thus, respond directly to the information needs of the people who will be its primary beneficiaries. It will also assist the authorities concerned by providing objective findings and help them in reaching informed decisions on the long-term recovery and management phases. In this way it will help ameliorate the complex and diverse humanitarian, ecological, economic, social and medical problems of the affected territories. Besides, it will support the international, national and civil society efforts for their sustainable development.

ICRIN will be well placed to carry out its task because of the eminence and talent of the members of its scientific board. They will include scientists of international repute with expertise in all the fields relevant to the problem they are charged with tackling. They will be experts in ecology, public health, radiobiology and psychology. The Board will also include scientists and practitioners from a variety of other disciplines relevant to the totality of the problem. Whenever necessary ICRIN will be able to establish working groups and commissions to advise the Board on scientific matters. The diversity of disciplines that will be represented on the Board will enable it to take account of the needs of individuals and communities in their totality. Always, the human dimension will be at centre-stage, where it belongs.

As a born citizen of Hiroshima, the affects of a nuclear catastrophe have been of personal, as well as professional, concern to me. As the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Coordinator of International Cooperation on Chernobyl, I have been deeply involved in problems relating to Chernobyl. My presence here today is one of the last official functions that I have to perform in that capacity since I have come to the end of my tenure at the UN and will be departing soon. You can well imagine how satisfying I find it to be bowing out while witnessing the creation of a mechanism for finding long-term solutions to the scourge of nuclear catastrophe. I fervently pray for the success of ICRIN in its noble mission.

Thank you.