4 May , 2011
25 YEARS ON – CHORNOBYL SURVIVORS TO SPEAK AT COMMEMORATION AT
VICTORIAN PARLIAMENT HOUSE and SCREENING OF NEW FILM PRECARIOUS
Victorian’s will remember the many who suffered and died as a result of the Chornobyl Nuclear Disaster in Ukraine 25 years ago at a commemorative event being held at Parliament House this Thursday May 5, 2011 at 10.30am. Chornobyl survivors will address the gathering.
The commemoration will also remember the many who suffered or perished in the recent nuclear tragedy in Japan.
25 years on and the stories of the horrific incompetence of the then Soviet Government continue to leak. The recently accessed former KGB files show the cover ups, the withholding of information, the total disrespect for human life. People being left to live in their nearby homes for up to 36 hours after the explosion and officials recording that this was an isolated incident.
Victoria’s Ukrainian community together with Members of the Parliament led by the Minister for Planning Matthew Guy, consular and community representatives will remember the dark moments.
Olena Fedorova was 6 years old at the time of the Chornobyl disaster. Wanting to save their daughter her parents sent he into Belarus, not knowing that the radiation there was just as bad. Seeing her 2 months later, she couldn’t recognize her: Olena had lost her hair and most of her weight and was critically ill.
From September to December 1986, Sergey Bukharenko served in the Chornobyl zone as the commanding officer of a 400-strong clean-up battalion. “We knew that where we were going was risky, but we also knew that the work had to be done and so we all volunteered”. Since then more than half of the Chornobyl evacuees, workers and liquidators who were settled in the proximity of his city of Sumy have died. The rest are plagued by frequent health problems
Both survivors will be in attendance.
Precarious, which will be screened in Melbourne a film produced by Merilyn Fairskye. Associate Professor, Media Arts, Sydney College of the Arts at University of Sydney will provide an overview of current Chornobyl. Precarious is a haunting evacuation of the aftermath of the explosion at Chornobyl, 25years on. This visually stunning road movie takes the spectator on a bleak journey from the shores of the Black Sea to the frozen heart of Chornobyl, passing through desolate, snowy landscapes, littered with abandoned villages. Squatting in this icy, wasteland, the ghostly sarcophagus of Reactor Number 4 is a constant reminder of the threat still lurking below.
“Chornobyl was a human tragedy, Japan followed in a familiar vain. Yet PM Putin insists on building an untried reactor not in Russia but Belarus on the boarder of Lithuania . Some just don’t get it ,” Stefan Romaniw Chairman of the AFUO said today
“One of the biggest concerns are safety issues, as the planned two Belarus reactors, will be experimental. The lack of transparency and refusal of cooperation makes the project even more threatening, not mentioning a question why project parties chose the site for the nuclear power plant next to Vilnius, which will make it one of very few capitals in the world with a nuclear power plant at its doorstep,” Mr. Romaniw said.
25 years on the disastrous legacy of Chornobyl, created by irresponsible Soviet management remains. Ukraine and others continue to feel the pain. Our prayers and thoughts are with those who continue to suffer and to the families who lost loved ones. We also remember those who have been affected by the recent Japanese disaster.
“Life is learning experience. Only fools refuse to learn.” Mr Romaniw said.
Further information Stefan Romaniw 0419 531255
Program
- Opening
- Viewing of film and exhibition
- Booklets
- Lunch – Church service
