Gitt Jonnson, a tree lance writer who hay traveled extensively throughout tne Paciric, edits the Vieronesia Busdetin dublisned in Honolulu, Hawan 96826. habuation, the levels of activity are higher than those found in other inhabited locations in the worid. The nabitation of these people on the island will afford most valuable ecological radiation data on human ceings.”” Even at the outset of its medical treatment program, the acc seemed willing to expenment with the ex- cosed Marsnailese islanders. Up to 1988 the incidence of stillbirths and miscaitiages in the ex- rosed Rongelap women was more tually gomg to Rongelap and Utirik. the team examined exposed people in the district center of Majoro. The Japanese report stated: “The people of Rongelap who were not exposed to fallout. recetved a considerable amountof radioactive nuclides from the environment. Consequently, the ‘unexposed’ group actually became an ‘exposed’ group... it was a great mistake to permit the people of Rongelap to retum to their island in July 1957 without sulficient work having been done to remove radioactive pollution from the island.” than twice the rate of unexposed Marshailese women. In 1961, a Brookhaven National Laboratory report (prepared for the In 1972, Leko) Anjain, who had ,EC) showed that after the exposed been only a year old at the time ofhis Rongelap people returned to their 1s- exposure in [954. died of myelogeand in !987 their bogy burden of nous Jeukemia at the National Canradioactivity rapidly increased. In cer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland. ‘S61 thetr bodylevels of radioactive The Atomic Energy Commission cesium had risen 60-foid. zinc rose has consistently obscured informa*-fold and strontium-90 rose 6-fold. tion about the irradiation of the people and their high incidence of In 1964. the first thyroid tumors thyroid disease and cancer. In 1975 and cancers appeared. Since that Neilson Anjain. Rongelap’s magistime. more than 90 percent of the trate. wrote to Dr. Robert Conard of Rongelap children who were under Brookhaven: i= vears old in 1954 have developed thyroid tumors. Forty percent of ail “For me and the people on tne exposed Marshallese have de- Rongelap, it is life which matters seloped thyroid problems. as com- most. For you it ts facts and figures. pared to an average of 3 or + percent We want our life and our health. [n among Americans. ail the vears you've come to our IsSome people who returned to land vou ve never once treated us as Rongelap in 1957 had been away people. You've never sat down trom the island when the bomb among us andreally helped us honexploded and therefore had not been esuy with our problems. You have exposed to radiation. told the people that the ‘worst is Brookhaven’s 1960 medical sur- over. then Lekoj Anjain died. I am vey showed little difference in radioactivity levels among exposed and unexposed people living on very worried that we will suffer the body radioactivitv levels of previously unexposed Rongelap people was /O times that of Marshallese living on 2 noncontaminated island. as Well. Because their exposure was Rongelap. However. as late as 1969. In i371, Marshall Isiands leaders again and again.” The Utirik people were suffering considered “small.” tests on genetic and second generation etfects were not conducted on them. The Atomic Energy Commission had aiways told the Utirik peopie tnat the 14 rads of perform an independent survey of radiation they had experienced was the Rongelap and Ctirik people. too insignificant to be harmful. Barred by the United States from ac- Nevertheless. in 23 years the Atomic invited a Japanese medical team to [2 Energy Commission treated [1 re- ported cases of thyroid tumors. 3 of them malignant. out of a population of only [S§7. But suddeniv in 1977 the cancer and thyroid disease rate among the Utirikese rose so sharply that it equalied that of the much more heavily exposed Rongelap population. This unexpected increase has torced government scientists to revise theones on which radiation dose rate will lead to adverse human ef- fects. “Thyroid nodules have been in- creasing in the Utirik peopie and this was quite unpredicted and we had some of the best experts in the United States.” said Dr. Conard. who has headed the Atomic Enercy Commission and now ERDA ( Energy Research and Development Au- ministration) Medical program in tne Marshalls since 19S4. “The theory was put forth that Curik received iow radiation so « de- tailed follow-up was net necessary.” said Dr. Konrad Kotrady, a former wT Ry: ~ . eatenBee ve . re? x ”