Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Dismay at lack of compensation for French nuclear weapons tests

Posted at 22:50 on 13 December, 2012 UTC

Nuclear test veterans organisations have expressed their dismay at failing to win compensation from France for their members suffering poor health.

Moruroa e tatou and AVEN met the compensation committee at the defence ministry in Paris and heard that all but nine claims have been thrown out.

Walter Zweifel reports.

“The heads of the two veterans groups have described the outcome of the discussions as a slap in the face after battling for a decade to get help for those affected by the French atomic weapon tests in the South Pacific and Algeria. They have told Tahiti media that out of 400 claims examined so far, 391 have been rejected. They are also upset that the new defence minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, has praised the 2009 compensation law of his predecessor despite it being widely denounced as too restrictive. After the change of government this year, they say, the defence ministry’s policy is being continued on the back of the victims.”