Transcript
Moruroa e Tatou means 'Moruroa together' and its lawyer Philippe Neuffer says Roland Oldham brought the victims of France's nuclear test legacy together to fight for compensation.
Victims include the wives and children of the men who worked at the test sites who trusted they weren't being put at risk. A total 193 weapons tests were carried out between 1966 and 1996.
Mr Neuffer says Mr Oldham was motivated by the lies and injustice of the French state and its nuclear test programme.
"The veterans, they are really sick. They have cancer, different types of cancers, and he was really concerned about that. Both the French nuclear testing and the impacts of the French nuclear testing on the veterans, on the people of French Polynesia."
Mr Neuffer says Roland Oldham was a champion of French Polynesia's Maohi people.
Mr Oldham was born in 1950 in Papeete and he grew up with the Polynesian myths and legends of his famed storyteller grandfather Pouira ā Teauna, known as Te Arapo.
After teaching on Moorea, he spent some years living in Australia and New Zealand but returned to Tahiti in the early 1980's when he became involved in indigenous activism.
The veteran anti-nuclear campaigner and former politician Tea Hirshon is a contemporary of Roland Oldham's from that time and was with the pro-independence Tavini Huiraatira party.
"We were doing the political side of the struggle and Roland with Moruroa e Tataou was doing the non-political part. Our position was that it is because of the status of a colonised nation enabled France to impose its nuclear programme on us."
Tea Hirshon says despite his illness Roland Oldham was on local television as recently as last week.
"And he said that he's ashamed of the way the politics, the actual government is dealing with this issue. He was very courageous and you could see that he was weak and all that but never lost the conviction, the power and the seriosness that he had."
Ms Hirshon says his directness and honesty will be missed.
Tahitians' esteem for Roland Oldham is such that his casket is in repose in the town hall for people to pay their respects.
Others who've paid tribute include the French High Commissioner Rene Bidal who described Mr Oldham's dignity as rare and inspiring.
The former French Polynesian politician Sabrina Birk will remember his sincerity and bravery.
"He dedicated his heart, his soul, to his people, to something that he thought very unjust. And he was there when the French government was silencing this, and today everyone is speaking up."
Ms Birk says many of today's politicians have changed their tune on compensation due to Mr Oldham's efforts.
The lawyer Philippe Neuffer says since new laws were introduced in 2010 veterans have legal means to compensation.
However the onus is still on the victim to prove their case.
"We won 90 percent of our law suits. That means every time we sue the French state, it's always a success."
Moruroa e Tatou will continue fighting for automatic compensation for veterans and their families.
Philippe Neuffer says this was Roland Oldham's legacy.
