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Statement by Mr Vladimir TSALKA
Head of Chernobyl Committee of the
Republic of Belarus
at the Concluding Conference of the
Chernobyl Forum
September 6, 2005, Vienna
Dear Mr Chairman!
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen!
First of all, let me express my sincere
gratitude to IAEA Director General professor Mohamed ElBaradei for putting
forward and successfully advancing an initiative to establish the Chernobyl
Forum. Taking into account the fact that this initiative of the Director
General was declared for the first time during his visit to Belarus, our
country has been participating in the Forum’s work with a special feeling of
responsibility. Forum’s activities and its final documents will have
significant practical value for optimizing national policies on overcoming
the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster and sustainable development of
the affected regions, as well as for advancing the international cooperation
on Chernobyl.
Summing up Forum’s findings that we start
today is a major landmark in solving the problems caused by the accident at
the Chernobyl NPP. Belarus expects that results Forum’s activities will
allow the world community and the three most affected nations to carry out
coordinated policy on combating the consequences of the largest man-caused
catastrophe in the history of humankind that had changed lives of millions
of people of present and future generations.
For the last years the Republic of Belarus
has been continuously conducting systematic large-scale activities aimed at
overcoming the Chernobyl consequences. Several national Chernobyl programmes
have been implemented. The “Chernobyl” legislation covers all necessary
spheres. It is based on the Laws of the Republic of Belarus «On Social
Protection of the Citizens Affected by the Catastrophe on Chernobyl NPP»,
«On Legal Status of the Territories Exposed to Radioactive Contamination
Resulting from Catastrophe on the Chernobyl NPP», and «On Radiation Safety
of the Population».
137.6 thousand people have been resettled
from the affected regions. For these people more than 66 thousand houses and
apartments have been built, 239 villages have been erected in uncontaminated
areas of Belarus. Relevant infrastructure has been put in place, including
schools, kindergartens, polyclinics and hospitals. Gasification of the
affected areas is in the progress.
Nevertheless, the Government of Belarus
still faces the need to continue large-scale actions to overcome the
Chernobyl consequences. It can be demonstrated by amount of state
expenditures – about two billions dollars – that are planned to be allocated
for the next 2006-2010 national Chernobyl programme. However the twenty
years' experience proves that the efforts of Belarus alone are not enough.
The main purpose of the national policy on
overcoming the Chernobyl consequences is the safety for people, sustainable
health care for one and a half million population, which lives on the
radioactively contaminated territories, including about 100 thousand
Chernobyl liquidators.
To achieve this purpose a number of
actions on radiation protection of the population, aimed at restriction of
radiation dozes and their maintenance at a legislatively established level,
is carried out. Protective measures are also taken in agriculture and
forestry sectors so that production meets national acceptable levels.
Agricultural activities are carried out on 1.3 million hectares of the
contaminated soil. The methods and technologies developed by our experts
allow receiving normatively clean production on such territories.
Every year the number of villages, where
cases of production of milk with excess of admissible levels of caesium-137
are registered, decreases. Such “critical” settlements are in the focus of
special government’s attention, and this is where the necessary resources
are directed as a matter of priority.
A major attention of the national policy
is given to health problems of the affected population, including
liquidators and children living on contaminated territories. A domestically
developed and nationally financed system of medical supervision, including
prophylactic medical examination, diagnostics and treatment of diseases,
recreation allows to mitigate to a certain extent the health consequences of
the Chernobyl disaster.
However our experts predict that in the
nearest future alongside the growth of thyroid cancer cases, there is high
probability of increase cancer diseases, as well as cardiovascular and other
non-cancer diseases. Therefore, the health problems remain in the focus of
the government’s attention. We continue our work on improvement of medical
care, including modern equipment, medicines, and medical personnel.
In overcoming Chernobyl problems Belarus
closely cooperates with the United Nations, International Atomic Energy
Agency, World Health Organization, and the other international
organizations, governmental and nongovernmental initiatives in many
countries.
On behalf of my government I express the
gratitude to all those who have taken close to heart the Chernobyl tragedy,
to everyone who has been rendering assistance in overcoming the Chernobyl
tragedy.
Dear Mr Chairman!
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen!
Let me emphasize, that the Chernobyl Forum
is a significant step forward in comprehending the whole range of long-term
consequences of the Chernobyl catastrophe. At the same time, Forum’s work
and its final documents show that some questions, including medical
consequences of the Chernobyl accident, remain opened and require the
further detailed studies.
For my country the criterion for the
Forum’s success is not just a set of recommendations to the governments of
the affected states, but also further joint actions on their practical
implementation. Belarus is ready to actively cooperate with all
international organizations – participants of the Forum.
We need to consider that many problems are
still to be solved. First of all, the population is still concerned by
health issues, clean production, returning to normal working and living
conditions, radiation safety.
In our opinion, the mainstream of the
further Chernobyl strategy should be a stage-by-stage rehabilitation of the
affected territories and population. The purpose of this strategy is the
creation of viable life conditions where profitable economic activities are
carried out without radiation restrictions. To achieve this goal, generally
approved approaches to rehabilitation based on expense-and-profit analysis
are required.
The issue of rehabilitation is a mixture
of radio-ecological, economic, demographic and social-psychological factors.
My country’s experience shows that to solve successfully rehabilitation
problems one needs a detailed estimation of all components defining a
situation in a given town, village of a farmyard. It is also necessary to
consider that success depends on the perception by the population, and
therefore special attention should be given to the information received by
population and local authorities.
Belarus draft National Programme on
Overcoming the Consequences of the Chernobyl Disaster for the years
2006-2010 aims at valid economic revival and sustainable development of the
affected regions. It is required not only to receive clean production, but
also to ensure its profitable manufacture on the basis of
scientifically-proven technologies. All the major Forum’s recommendations
will find there place in the Programme, and we hope that they will help us
make a new significant step in overcoming consequences of the Chernobyl
catastrophe in our country.
In conclusion let me as a co-chair of the
international organizing committee invite all of you to take part in the
international conference «20 Years After Chernobyl: Strategy for Recovery
and Sustainable Development of the Affected Regions» that will take place in
Minsk, Belarus, on 19-21 April 2006.
Thank you for your attention!
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