RG/15 T/PY 1486 61 (ir. Alcalay) In 1963, nine years after the fall-out, the first lons-tern effect from the radiation manifested itself in the form of a tumour in the thyroid gland of a ‘iIarshallese who had heen exposed to fall-out. In the years followine, several more thyroid tumours appeared and at present the prornosis, in the words of Dr. Robert A Conard, who formerly supervised the Brookhaven surveys, seers rather uncertain: "necently, about 50 ner cent of the exposed Ronrelap people showed biochemical hypothyroidism without clinical evidence of thyroid disease, a findine that probably porten?s trouble ahead." In 1969 the Atomic Fnergy Commission declared Bikini Island safe for habitation, and 100 of the ex-Bikini people, who had been living on Fili Island since their forced migration in 1946, were allowed to resettle on their home island of Bikini. Then, ir 1978 the people of Bikini were once again forced to evacuate their home atoll when it was discovered that radiation levels exceefiel the rreliminary allowable levels considered safe for humans. In retrosrect, it nov annears that the “musical chairs" life-style of the Bikini Islanders is the result of policies which have been foriulated from very subjective intervretations of the radiological information, and it hichlichts the neec for an alternative point of view. point of view Such an alternative will be provided if the Trusteeship Council acts in requestinz an indenendent radiological survey to be undertaken by the Vorld Health Oreanization (WHO) and others. “hile I was a Peace Corps voluntecr on Utirik Atoll, the village Council repeitedly askec me to help the. to obtsin better and more compassionate medical treatment of troubles stemming from their irradiation. One such request was in the form of a Council letter written on 9 July 1976 to the Nevada Operations Office of the "nergy Research and Development Adriinistration (ERDA) - now the Department of Tnerzy. This letter, a copy of which was sent to the Secretary of the Trusteeshin Council, articulated sone of the major corplaints of the Utirik people trith the Brookhaven National Laboratory radiolorical and medical surveys. A sense of frustration and confusion may bereadily inferred from the contents of the letter, and the peonle could not understand why the United Nations did not resnond to their request for assistance.