ACL?

STATEMENT

OF UNDERSTANDING

ON THE PART OF THE
GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES |
AND THE COVERNMENT OF THE TRUST TERRITORY OF THE PACIFIC 1SLANDS
|

CONCERNING THE

MOVE OF THE PEOPLE OF BIKINI

\—.

On August ll,

1978,

AUGUST,

the Deputy Undersecretary,

the Office of Territoria]

Affairs,

Island ra Kila

island,

residents.

and

The purpese

th:

forthcoming

cto respend

tions und bear concerns put to then by the people of Bikini Island.
had carliec, on August 7,

held a similar mecting with

Bikini whe now reside on Kili.

of the Pacific Islands, Adrian P. Winkel,

dl.

in Saipan from joining in the visit

12.

with

ta qurs-

They

former residents of

The High Commissioner «fF

10.

and

Van Cleve,

their meeting *as to convey information on the subjecre of

move by tiie peaple of Bikini

of che

Wallace Green,

Ruth G.

journeyed cto Bikini Island to meet with its current
of

19768

the Undersecretary of the Department

Interior, James A. Joseph,
the Director of

ISLAND,

the Yrust Territory

had been prevented by bad weather

to Bikini

Island,

but he had egarldivr mee

the peuple of Bikini, as well as with other Bikinians on Kili.

13.
14.

In 1946,

15.

UL.

16.

nuclear

17.

first

S.

the people of Bikini were removed from their atoll by

Navy in order to enable the United States to use the acol]
testing program which lasted until 1958.

to Rongerik,

1960's,

then

In che early 1970's,

ang fae Cihdnd

the atoll] and a rehabilitation program was

seme Bikini

people wore empleved

beiand population inevessed to epprenimaieldy

to alarming proportions,

April,

CF
i
cs
melo
Listed
CL
EF?
Sar pepe

the major islands of the atoll.

jn

and a major feeding progran

1978 surveys showed that

the proderct

wis an dan.

the intake of radionuclides hy the people living an EBiniri

increased
tuted.

Tn the date

it appeared that levels of radiation on Bikini atell were such chat

Beginning in 1969, a clean-up of

1977,

for a

The islamlers were moved

to Kwajalein, and ultimately to Sili.

the people could return to and use a number of

gegun.

the

dn

island bau

was insti-

the feeding program had not

resulted

BEST COPY AVAILABLE

Select target paragraph3