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Dear Friend --
70 years
ago, the United States tested its largest ever thermonuclear weapon on
Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands, code-named Castle Bravo. 70
years later, survivors are still demanding justice.
Today, we stand in solidarity with the victims of
nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands and the Pacific, and invite
you to mark this anniversary with us.
Nuclear-armed states must address the ongoing harm to
people and the environment caused by their nuclear tests. Testing was
carried out predominantly in colonised states or areas populated by
Indigenous peoples, and the efforts to assist survivors and remediate
the environment have been lacking, or inadequate at best.
The
nuclear weapon used in Castle Bravo was about one thousand times more
destructive in terms of its explosive yield than the nuclear weapon
the United States detonated on Hiroshima. It obliterated two atolls
and part of a third, exposed people to near-lethal doses of radiation,
and left a lasting radioactive legacy that continues
to pose a threat to this day. 70 years later, these effects must be
addressed, not just because of their impact on people’s health and
wellbeing, but also as an urgent matter of social justice.
Today, I
invite you to learn more about the impacts of nuclear testing, in the
Pacific and around the world, and share the stories of the
survivors.
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