Mejatto, Republic of the Marshall Islands - Forty years since the Greenpeace ship the Rainbow Warrior evacuated the people of Rongelap Island to Mejatto due to decades of US government nuclear weapons testing, Greenpeace and the displaced Rongelap community have come together on the remote Pacific island to commemorate this significant moment in their shared histories.[1]
Cathy Joel, one of three women who were present at the commemoration and the few remaining survivors of the 1954 Castle Bravo bomb – the US government's largest ever nuclear weapons test – and was part of the Greenpeace evacuation to Mejatto, described her terror:[2]
"I didn't expect that I would be here as part of this very important event. I was six years old when the bomb exploded and I was so afraid. My father tried to comfort me but I was so frightened he couldn't calm me down. The explosion was so bright, there were so many colours, it frightened me as I had not seen them before. I couldn't explain it but all I knew was that I was so scared.
"Three of us women are here [in Mejatto] and I was afforded the opportunity to speak on behalf of these survivors. I'd like to encourage all of you when looking at us, see us as a remembrance of what happened in 1954 when the bomb exploded. We encourage you to continue to stand together, be strong and live in harmony - that is our wish."
Called "Operation Exodus," Greenpeace was tasked to relocate Rongelap's entire population of 350 due to nuclear fallout from Castle Bravo, which rendered their home uninhabitable. In May 1985, over 10 days and taking three trips, the residents collectively dismantled their homes bringing everything with them, including livestock, and 100 metric tons of building material.
Four decades later, the surviving Rongelap community is now spread across the Marshall Islands. Many travelled back to Mejatto for the commemoration, including those who were children during the evacuation, and prominent members of the Marshallese government. The Rainbow Warrior's visit comes as Greenpeace entities were found liable for more than USD$660m in damages as part of a meritless SLAPP suit by fossil fuel giant Energy Transfer, aimed at silencing those fighting for justice and the right to peaceful protest.[3]
Bunny McDiarmid, crew member during the 1985 Rainbow Warrior evacuation, and former Co-Executive Director of Greenpeace International from 2016-2019 said:
"Forty years ago, the people of Rongelap stood up to the United States when they refused to take proper accountability and responsibility for the damage it had done. After undergoing years of health impacts from exposure to radiation, Greenpeace answered a call to help evacuate them from their once rich, but now contaminated home island. We continue to stand with the Marshallese community – as we do with other communities that suffer displacement and colonial exploitation – in their fight for justice for the nuclear weapons legacy, and for the threats they are already feeling from climate change.
"The bonds between Marshall Islands and Greenpeace are very strong and have stood the test of time. They say we rescued them from a contaminated Rongelap, but the reality is that they rescued themselves – the Marshallese are the strong and brave people who took their future into their own hands and continue to do so. We cannot relocate the world - it is only through standing and acting together that we will make the needed difference that saves us all. In the fight for justice, our voices will not be silenced."
First displaced by nuclear fallout, the people of Mejatto - and across the low-lying Marshall Islands - are facing 'threats from all sides' as the climate crisis accelerates impacts to their homes, livelihoods, and cultures. Mejatto has been in drought for three months with once predictable seasonal rain failing to arrive, increasing extreme heat impacting health and food availability, and coastal erosion eating away the land.
The Rainbow Warrior is in the Marshall Islands as part of a six-week mission across the country with a team of nuclear specialists onboard conducting independent research to support the government in its ongoing fight for nuclear justice and compensation; and to reaffirm its solidarity with the Marshallese people - now facing further harm and displacement from the climate crisis, and the emerging threat of deep sea mining in the Pacific.[4]
