“GUINEA PIGS" OR VICTIMS OF CIRCUMSTANCE? The Event Were the Rongelapese and their neighbors used as are guinea pigs in laboratory experiments? Did the United States of America intentionally cause 239 Marshallese to be exposed to deadly radioactive fallout in order to study the effects on human beings? Or did the incident which occurred as a result of the March 1, 1954, test simply come about from the oftenStated "unexpected shift of wind"? The Special Joint Committee believes that the answers are more complex than can be implied in a single statement. Although consideration of this subject area is not specifically a part of the Committee's mandate under Public Law No, 4C~-33, it believes that since the issue was raised and given great publicity and since it is inextricably intertwined with the work of the Committee, the subject deserves to be broached and discussed, Furthermore, the Committee has had available to it a great quantity of information and data, much of which pertains to the question, and some of which has never been widely known, a situation the Committee wishes to correct by including it in this report. Location Bikini (and later Enewetok) was an ideal test site for nuclear weapons. It suited all necessary specifications: airfield which could handle a B-29, and no extreme cold, it was within 1,000 miles of an there was no continuously heavy weather it offered an anchorage large enough for test ships and Support vessels, it was far from densely populated areas, fishing zones, coastal waters and shipping lanes. choosing Bikini: Two other requirements were also met in although inhabited, the islands could be evacuated without causing hardship to a "large number of inhabitants" (62, 0.22) importantly it was under control of the United States 133 Lory Tal and perhaps most (originally under the Navy,