SPECIAL EVENTS AT HEADQUARTERS, 25-26 APRIL, TO COMMEMORATE FIFTEENTH ANNIVERSARY OF CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR ACCIDENT

                                                            Note No. 5661

                                                            24 April 2001

Note to Correspondents

SPECIAL EVENTS AT HEADQUARTERS, 25-26 APRIL, TO COMMEMORATE

FIFTEENTH ANNIVERSARY OF CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR ACCIDENT

26 April 2001 marks the fifteenth anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine.  It will be commemorated at Headquarters on 25 and 26 April by several events, including a press conference, a bazaar, a panel presentation and two photo exhibits.

The press conference will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, 25 April, in room

S-226, featuring Ambassador Sergei Ling (Belarus), Ambassador Sergey Lavrov (Russian Federation), Ambassador Valery Kuchinsky (Ukraine), and Kenzo Oshima, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and United Nations Coordinator of International Cooperation on Chernobyl.  The urgent need for further international assistance to alleviate the consequences of the disaster will be discussed.

In the accident, 30 people were killed instantly and radioactive material spread across Europe, causing at least 6,000 subsequent deaths and health problems affecting millions in Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.  The plant was shut down on

15 December 2000.

Part of Chernobyl’s legacy includes better safety measures for the nuclear power industry.  As the disaster fades from the collective memories of the international community, the region’s environment, economy and society continue to suffer the consequences of the disaster and continue to require international assistance.

The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs has taken a leading role in international cooperation and assistance efforts in his capacity as United Nations Coordinator on International Cooperation on Chernobyl.

For further information on the press conference, contact:  David Chikvaidze, Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, at (212) 963-9665, or Robin Della Rocca, NGO Section, Department of Public Information, at (212) 963-1285.

Chernobyl Bazaar

The annual Chernobyl Bazaar will be held in the Secretariat Lobby from

11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Wednesday, 25 April, organized by the Permanent Missions of Belarus, Russian Federation and Ukraine.  Proceeds from sales of food, art, books, cards, jewellery, embroidery and other goods will benefit the children suffering from the consequences of the disaster.

For further information, contact:  Dina Neskorozhana, Permanent Mission of Ukraine, at (212) 759-7003, Ext. 112.

Panel Presentation

On Thursday, 26 April, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Economic and Social Council Chamber, a segment of the Conference “Economics of Health and Environment”, organized by the World Information Transfer, Inc., in collaboration with the Governments of Ukraine and Greece and the Children of Chernobyl Relief Fund, will be held.  The segment, entitled “Chernobyl Commemoration:  Economics of a Catastrophe”, includes the following speakers:

Janet Davison, Vice-President, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

JoAnne DiSano, Director, Division for Sustainable Development

Madina Jarbussynova, Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan

Valery Kuchinsky, Acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine

Sergey Lavrov, Permanent Representative of Russian Federation

Sergei Ling, Permanent Representative of Belarus

Kenzo Oshima, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs

Adi Roche, Executive Director, Chernobyl Children’s Project

Shashi Tharoor, Interim Head, Department of Public Information

For further information about the segment, contact:  Oleg Dzioubinski, NGO Section, Department of Public Information, at (212) 963-1859.

Exhibits

On 26 April, photographs by Joseph Sywenkyj, a first-generation Ukrainian American, will be on view in the Economic and Social Council Chamber depicting the after-effects of radiation from Chernobyl.  The exhibit, sponsored by the Children of Chernobyl Relief Fund, can be viewed in the area between Conference Rooms 1 and 2 from 27 April to 11 May.

An opening for the exhibit “Black Wind/White Land – Living with Chernobyl” will be held in the General Assembly Visitors’ Lobby from 6 to 8 p.m. on 26 April.  It will be open to the public from 26 April to 27 May.

The exhibit, presented by the Chernobyl Children’s Project of Ireland, includes an array of photographic works that examines the stricken regions of Belarus, northern Ukraine and western Russia.  Many of the photographs are from hospitals, asylums and institutions that house surviving victims and the new generation of victims who bear the Chernobyl legacy.

The opening will feature performances by 16 members of Riverdance Broadway show performing “RíRa”(“commotion”), a Russian/Irish piece, and the 70-member Millennium Choir.  Remarks will be made by the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, Louise Fréchette; Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs,

Mr. Oshima; Interim Head of DPI, Mr. Tharoor; Acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine, Mr. Kuchinsky; Minister of State of Ireland, Liz O’Donnell; and Executive Director of Chernobyl Children’s Project, Adi Roche.

The book Chernobyl Legacy, which documents the effects of the disaster, will be launched.  A humanitarian project developed and realized by designer and publisher Giorgio Baravalle, the book presents the works of photojournalists Paul Fusco and Magdalena Caris and serves as an important reminder to ensure that such a disaster may never happen again.

For further information about the exhibits, contact:  Valerie Hampton-Mason, Exhibits Unit, Department of Public Information, at (212) 963-5150.

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