New French decree for Polynesia nuclear test victims

Transcript

The French government has put in new measures to strengthen the process of compensating victims of French nuclear testing in Polynesia.

It means victims will no longer take their claims through the French Ministry of Defense, but through the Ministry of Health.

The French government has also asked The Association of Veterans of Nuclear Tests to appoint a doctor to help with compensation claims.

The head of the nuclear test veterans organisation in French Polynesia Moruroa e tatou, Roland Oldham, told Mary Baines he is sceptical the changes will make any difference to victims.

ROLAND OLDHAM: It seems to some people that it is moving forward, because we need a doctor in this committee, but this doctor of this committee, that's only one voice. As I say, he's like a drop in the ocean. This committee are the people that are nominated by the French government and all the experts that are called round this committee are experts called by the Ministry of Defense. And their position on the nuclear weapons is that nuclear tests have done no damage. Some of the specialists in this commission declared when the Chernobyl happened, that the cloud of Chernobyl came just to the frontier of France and did not reach the French population. So we have people like that in this committee. Which to us is still very, very hard. The situation to us is still the same. To me, we have been battling for that many years to simplify the processes for the victim to get compensation but today it is the same. To me, it is clear the French government has made law that protects us but this law is not to compensate the victims.

MARY BAINES: What were the reasons cited by the authorities to change the compensation from defence to the health ministry?

RO: There's no reason, they don't say much about it. All the propositions we made, we didn't get any feedback. As far as I am concerned, they are the masters of this situation, they have decided and that's it. We are not moving forward, victims, they are not moving forward. I would just like to remind us that on the almost 900 files that we presented to this committee only 11 or 12 have had compensation. And this compensation is so very low that a lot of our people are giving up.

MB: So do you think this change to the health ministry will mean more people do get compensation?

RO: I like to believe that something positive will come out of that. But the way when I look deeply and in detail at this law, I'm sorry, there's not enough change. If we don't agree with the committee, there's another chapter in the law that we can call on the committee and the victims should go to France and pay his own trip to France with his representation and his lawyer, I mean, that's impossible. That's just one way to tell us that there is no appeal. That's what it means to me.