Ww a - @ 4 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR ee CETS.TORS ~ OF Tue~ TAT S~ USAND. . OFFICE OF THE 1GH COMMISSIONER Ll ZMIPAN, MARIANA ISLANDS C30 C« 7 ch “AM MCAT COMAMLLCTAT UAULE ADDRESS 45504 TACOTY SALE AN wt September 20, 1967 Lt, Col, Clarence D, Walters, dr. Staff Judge Advocate Department of the Air Force Headquarters, Air Force Western Test Range (AFSC) Vandenberg Air Force Base, California 93437 Dear Colonel Walters: é Thank you fo® your letter of 13 Septenber 1067 to mr. Bhoecratt concerning the Use and Occupancy Agreements for Bikini and Eniwetok, With reference to the five-year periodic revicws roquired by these agreements, our records indicate that such a review was held in 1961 and that we concurred in the determinution that the land was still needed by the United States, fe do not have any indication in our files that we were requeatcd to concur in a similar deter- amination in 1966, At any rate, 1 have become increasingly concerned because of mount- ing pressure from the Marphallose people who were former residents of those islands for some indication as to when they might be permitted to return to their home islands, From tine to tine, we have received rather informal indications that the danger fron radioactivity may no longer exist, We have algo had indications that the people removed from those islands are not satisfied with the anount of compensation they are receiving from the income from trust funds established at the time the islands were acquired for military use and we foresee gome adcitional pressure that the question of the amount of compensation be reopened, For some years ve have also Leen aware thel the former Bikini people, who were relocated to the Island of Kili, feel that Kili has never been suitable mainly because of its relative inaccessibility at sane times of the yeur end the difficulty of the people in obtaining natural foods and fish, For all of these reasons il woula be most helpful to us if we could have some indication of the plans of the United States for future use of Bikini and Enivetok, We are parttioularly interested in whether or not there are any prospects for early return of those islands in order that their people may be repatriated, nerosiony 12 COLLECTION of/PASO Tay i #Z BEST COPY AVAILABLE ” BOK NO. —IKIME 2,£4 F med) FOL@E® 2