ont Ss aise MD tes Gin SRSwet ee veg smo . ~ aewnal Onl Wen , ek; bncemeeteenees :fAaldegy? . {OUI . couse . . ae we ee eee q wee a enertee . . ~~ ~ a . t be ‘ Yeasts o}Paty {oriny 7~he bettred” Orin: lar — * us ~ wv uehent . : : . VERO Ea SOA ES toy. “yay Prin ets DEPARTSMch) OFoye TIED HOVER OFFICE OF TERRITORIES WASHINGTON, D.C. 20240 Hon. Clifford P. Case United States Senate Dear Senator Case: . ? DEC 19 40.07 tet. Washington, D.C. 20510 4 “ye EOF Ore 39 Wont This will acknowledge your letter of December 11 asking our comments with respect to two letters which you have received from Mr. and Mrs. Todd Jenkins, Peace Corps volunteers on Kili ‘Sd Island in the Marshall Island‘s district. The overall history of the people now living on Kili, as related by Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins, is substantially correct. Their home atoll, Bikini, was acquired for use in nuclear testing in the late 1940s and the Bikini people were moved ultimately to Kili Island in the southern Marshalls. Bikini is an atoll which is typical of most of the Marshall's district. Kili, however, does .not have a lagoon but is a single island with a fringing reef. Access to and from the island over the reef is admittedly difficult. Although this kind of island is not the usual‘one, it is by no means ~ uncommon in the Pacizic and Marshallese people have lived for many years on a similar island, Mejit. Tne people of Bikini were paid $325,000 for Bikini Island. AVE BoaGROeet a IY ai AIO A Eg 5 “ Pee. 4 c Ore ik LOPS Of this amount $25,000 was paid in cash and the remainder was invested in a trust fund, the income from which is periodically paid to them. Houses and other village facilities were built for them at the time of their Yemoval to the island and other assistance was given to them toward establishing their new home. Although smaller in land area than Bikini, Kili is more fertile and lies in part of the Marshalls that has a more ample rainfall. Agricultural production thus is somewhat easier than in their home island. Nevertheless, we recognize that the people on Kili have always enter= tained a desire to return to Bikini. This is a desire with whichwe sympathize and more than a year ago the High Commissioner and this Department requested the Atomic Energy Commission to make a new survey ‘: of Bikini to determine whether or not levels of radio activity are such that the Kili people may safely be returned. This study, which involved a field trip by a scientific team to the atoll in the early part of this year, has not yet been completed and the samples and data gathered have not yet been fully analyzed. It is therefore premature to say whether or not the Kili people might safely be returned to Bikini. | .