546

RADIOLOGICAL CLEANUP OF ENEWETAK ATOLL

and he initiated action to improve the situation.?8 With the assistance of
the Joint Task Group, conditions and morale on Japtan gradually
improved. The entire Japtan population celebrated Christmas 1977 in the

Enewetak Base dining hall with a traditional turkey dinner paid for by

donations from the cleanup and rehabilitation forces.9? .
As time passed, changes occurred in the Japtan settlement and its
relations with forces at Enewetak Camp. A variety of cultures were
represented on the atoll, especially within the American military ang
contractor forces. There were the Marshallese, some employed by the
contractors, with their casual customs, there were American contractor
employees who spent their lives in remote assignments; there were
Filipinos seeking better wages than were available at home and who were
subject to removalfor the slightest wrongdoing; there were ‘“‘island boys”
from Hawaii and other parts of the Pacific; there were the ‘‘boys from the
block’’ who grew up in the slums and carried their personal lifestyles into
the military; and there were the professional military, responsible for order
and discipline in a disorderly part of the world. Considering the potentia,
for cultural shock, the additional problems the Japtan settlement caused
were not a§ serious as could be expected.
The Japtan men used discarded plywood, none of it marine-grade, to
construct small boats, and they obtained at least one small aluminum boat
from a mail order company. Powered by outboard motors obtained from
various sources, these craft became known asthe ‘‘Japtan Navy.’ They
were used for fishing the southeastern waters of the lagoon and several
miles out into the ocean and for travel to the other islands. Despite the
agreements, keeping the dri-Enewetak on Japtan became an impossible
task. One could wadethe reef from Japtan to well past Runit at low tide,
and the Joint Task Group was not mannedor authorized to enforce the
municipal council’s ordinance prohibiting unauthorized travel off Japtan.

Field Command efforts to have TTPI provide an effective resident
representative to enforce the ordinances and regulations werefruitless, !90

The increased mobility and natural gregariousness of the dri-Enewetak
led to broader social and commercial contacts between the Marshallese
and other people working at the Enewetak Camp. The husbands of some
Japtan women worked for contractors on Enewetak. Inter-island visits
became more and more frequent. Liquor and beer appeared on Japtan to
the great displeasure of Iroij Johannes Peter, who disapprovedofthe driEnewetak drinking any alcohol. There were reports of disturbances andof
Japtan residents eating in the dining hall without paying. The Joint Task
Group Commander brought these matters to the attention of the

DISTADREP, Ismael John, and the Council Members.!9! The council

passed more ordinances prohibiting alcoholic beverages on Japtan and
unauthorized travel between the islands; however, the enforcementofthe

ordinances did not improve. !02,103

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