COVINGTON &

BURLING

Mr. Wallace O. Green
Page Two
December 17, 1980
Health Care Plan

Considering the constraints imposed by the scope
of its contract and shortness of time available to prepare ~a
plan, the Loma Linda University School of Health has submitted an exceptionally fine health care plan which would
address critical health care needs in the Marshall Islands
and which accurately reflects the mandate of Public Law 96-

205.

As will be discussed below, however, we must take

strong exception to certain critical and erroneous conclusions, based on sparse and scientifically biased data,
regarding the presence, or lack of presence, of radiation

related health effects in the Marshall Islands.

-

The following

comments on this and other issues are presented below

roughly in the order in which they arise from the text of
the report.
Qn page three of the Introduction, the report

refers to meetings with various officials of the Marshall

Islands Government, including the “king." We note that the
President is the chief executive of the Constitutional
Government of the Marshall Islands and that the Marshall
Islands does not have a "king."
We also point out an historical error on page one

of the Cultural and Historical Data section in which the
report states that the Marshall Islands were a part of the
imperial holdings of Spain and were seized from Spain by

Germany.

The Marshall Islands,

in contrast to many other

island groups in the same general area of the Pacific Ocean,
was never part of the Spanish empire.
In 1873, Spain
attempted to establish its jurisdiction in the Marshall
Islands by requiring vessels sailing for the Marshall
Islands to pay license fees and custom duties.
However,
Germany and Britain, the two other major trading nations in
the area, refused to comply or to recognize Spanish jurisGiction.
On November 28, 1878 at Jaluit the Imperial German
Government recognized the independence of the Marshall
Islands by signing a commerce and navigation treaty with
Iroij Laplap Kabua and Iroij Letabalin.

The German Government

recognized the Marshallese flag and established a
in Jaluit.
Accordingly, the Marshall Islands was
pendent state in 1885 when Iroij Laplap Kabua and
Iroij of the Marshall Islands signed an agreement

consulate
an indefour other
of protec-

oe agg

Select target paragraph3