Weisgall

Radiation levels on Eneu are one-eighth
the levels on Bikini Island. Both government
and independently hired scientists agree that
resettlement on Eneu, even without a rotation
system, will result in radiation exposures well
within federal radiation protection guidelines, provided the people eat no food from
Bikini and maintain a diet consisting of 50
per cent food grown on Eneu and 50 per cent
imported food. The Bikinians have given
their assurance that they would comply with

these conditions and that they would be will-

ing to accept restrictive measures to insure

that they do not violate DOE proscriptions.
~ Given the Bikini Island experience, it is
clear that an Enew resettlement program, 1i
adopted, cannot be implemented halfway.
There must be a special ship purchased and
earmarked for supplying Eneu with imported

food. There are adequate local crops growing on Eneu. so there will be little incentive
to travel co Bikini to obtain food. Nevertheless. the Bikinian leaders, perhaps ctogerher
with Marshallese or American officials, would
have to take responsibility for keeping the

people away from Bikini Island. Moreover,
the homes built on Bikini in the early 1970s
could prove to be an attractive nuisance and
mighr have to be removed.
An Eneu rotation program will require
good planning and implementation by the
Unired States and sacrifice and self-discipline
on the part of the Bikinians. But the people
of Bikini strongly support the program. even
though it is a far ery from their hopes of
returning to Bikini Island.
Resettlement on Eneu will accomplish
three important objectives. Firsr. ic will give
the Bikinians an ourpost at Bikini Aroll.
their homeland. Second, it will insure the
active participation of the Unired Srares
after its trusteeship of the Marshall Islands
terminates. Third, a rotation system will reduce each individual's living time on Eneu,
thereby minimizing his exposure to radiation. Although scientists agree that radiation
exposures on Enewu are well within federal
94.

standards. every effort should be made to
keep exposure as limited as possible.
There remains the principal policy question regarding a resettlement program for the
Bikiniansraised by Carter's pledge to end the
U.S. trusteeship of Micronesia in 1981: Who
should negotiate the program and how should
it be implemented? In January 1980 the
United States and the Marshalls initialed a
Compact of Free Association that will grant
a large degree of self-rule to the islands. and
the agreement wil! be submitted to Congress
as soon as the other Micronesian governments have signed. The compact provides
that the governments of the United States
and the Marshall Islands “‘shall set forth in
a separate agreement provisions for the just
and adequate serrlement ' of all post-trustee-

ship nuclear claims issues. ranging from
monetary claims to medical treatment, radio-

logical surveillance, and “such additional

programs and activities as may be mutually
agreed... .”"

The United States continues to
treat the Pacific islands as its back-

yard dumping grounds.

The compact is ambiguous on the question
of who should negotiate these programs and
how they should be implemented. It states
only that the two governments shall confront these matters “‘in a separate agreement.’
but it does not specify the parties to the negotiations leading to such an agreement and is
silent on the question of its implementation.
The Marshall Islands government has indicated that it intends to negotiate a separate
agreement exclusively with the United States.
It desires direct government-to-government
negotiations on these issues. perhaps with
token representation by the Bikinians on its
delegation. in order to shore up its new sovereignty. To be sure. there are some nuclearrelated matters that should be addressed in
this way, such as the responsibilicy, if any, of
the Marshall Islands government to insure

95.

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