British Nuclear Testing in Australia

[miolchu]

It is a pity that the staff of government departments who authorise such testing, do not join those who have no right to say NO.

A sad situation, but is not the only situation, from which governments have not accepted any liability.

I wonder if the lawyers could publish all the names of goverment personnel, who suggested and/or authorised such testing? It might make those in power today and in the future, think twice ?

Regards

Ranald

One has to wonder if there is a democracy there anymore where civil servants and elected officials lack accountability for their actions. It appears that the pendulum has swung backwards 500 years for the average individual. No protection from harmful decisions.

[1938 Observer]

18th August 2012.


Dear XXXXXXX
RE: Class Action for Nuclear Veterans
In our letter to you'of 16 May 2012" we; informedyou that"the recent decision of the UK Supreme Court had effectively put a stop to our hopes of filing a case on behalf of Australian veterans affected by the British nuclear testing.
Since then we have been investigating other possibilities to highlight the plight of nuclear test participants and their families. Although taking action in the courts no longer appears possible, we still wanted to see if something could be done to put pressure on the Commonwealth government to do something more for you.
Stacks/Goudkamp believes that it may be possible to make a complaint to the Australian Human Rights Commission (HRC). The HRC's role is not to make a decision about your complaint but it tries to get all sides together to discuss potential solutions to the complaint. Although it is unlikely to result in the Commonwealth agreeing to provide compensation, it will at least result in more attention being drawn to your matter and may lead to some form of recognition of the dangers faced by test participants.
We are considering making a complaint to the HRC on behalf of everyone on our list. To do this we need your authority. It will not cost you anything to participate. However, it is also unlikely that you will receive any compensation even if the HRC agrees to investigate the matter. We are doing this primarily in an attempt to obtain more recognition for you and maybe motivate the government to reconsider extending veteran entitlements or other Commonwealth benefits to nuclear test participants

Our experience with those on our list has been that almost everyone is interested in doing what is necessary to promote the cause of nuclear test veterans. Therefore rather than get each person on our list to grant authority, we will proceed on your behalf unless we receive specific instructions from you NOT to participate in a complaint to the Human Rights Commission within 30 days from the date of this letter. If you agree to participate, you do not have to respond.
If you provide us with notice that you have decided not to participate, then we will remove your name from our list and you will not receive anything further from us. If you agree to participate, we will provide you with updates on the progress of the matter with the HRC.
Tom Goudkamp MANAGING DIRECTOR
SYDNEY NEWCASTLE
Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation STACKS/GOUDKAMP P/L ABN 88 104 796 394
Regardless of your decision, we thank you for your contribution and patience in this matter. Yours faithfully,

[1938 Observer]

This will probably be the 'Last Hurrah" as all other attempts to obtain recognition have failed, Governments seem to have a bottomless pit of funds to defend these claims.

********************************************


Maralinga veterans in last-ditch bid for compensation
PM By Rebecca Brice
ABC News..Australia.

[B]Almost 300 Australian veterans of British nuclear testing are making a last-ditch attempt to win compensation.

They want the Human Rights Commission to find that the Australian Government knowingly exposed them to harmful radiation by ordering them to take part in the tests in the SA outback.

While any recommendation from that action will not be binding, they are hoping to embarrass the Government into compensating them and providing medical treatment.

Many of the surviving personnel, ordered to take part in the tests at Maralinga in the 1950s and '60s, blame their medical conditions on exposure to nuclear radiation.

Stacks Goudkamp lawyer Joshua Dale says given the advanced age of the group, it is very much a case of now or never.

"This submission is really the end of the line," he said.

"It's the last opportunity that we have to try and get some kind of recourse from the Australian Government.


Audio: Veterans final bid for radiation compensation (PM)
"It essentially says that the Australian governments have breached the human rights of the veterans and this is for a number of reasons.

"The nuclear veterans were essentially used as guinea pigs during the nuclear testing.

"There's evidence that has revealed that the veterans were sent in after testing had taken place to see what the type of effect radiation would have on the human body, and there's various articles under the universal declaration that specifically go to a right to life and obviously the right to a standard of living as well."

The veterans' decision to take their case to the Human Rights Commission follows a UK court's ruling that the link between the tests and the veterans' health problems could not be proven.

In 2010 the Government allocated $24 million towards service pensions and healthcare cards for the veterans and their widows.

Entitlements disputes

Video: Maralinga veterans appeal to HRC for justice (7pm TV News NSW)

A spokeswoman for Veterans Affairs Minister Warren Snowdon says eligible veterans have access to a broad range of compensation and health treatment already.

But Mr Dale says many are caught up in disputes over the entitlements.

"The problem is these administrative disputes are largely being viciously defended by the Government," he said.

"In a lot of the cases they're unsuccessful because of the time that has lapsed and due to the secrecy of the type of testing that was taking place.

We were never given any briefing as to what we were doing, what the dangers were, what risks were involved or what precautions had to be taken.
Avon Hudson, veteran Australian service personnel
"A lot of the records don't even show what type of levels of radiation they were exposed to, which means there's very little evidence to prove that they were exposed to harmful levels and whether or not those levels could have potentially caused their illnesses.

"One of the veterans that we represent, he suffers from leukaemia, and they've said that he was too far away from the testing to be exposed to dangerous levels of radiation.

"He's really left high and dry at the moment with this horrific illness."

Avon Hudson, 76, is one of 8,000 Australian service personnel that took part in the tests.

He has echoed Mr Dale's sentiments on how urgent the case is.

"If we don't get what we're entitled to now, well I suppose all we can do is throw our hands in the air and wait for the end to come, because we're all getting too old," Mr Hudson said.

"We won't be here in five years.

"Every year that goes by it's less likely you'll be able to cope with these things.

"We were never given any briefing as to what we were doing, what the dangers were, what risks were involved or what precautions had to be taken..




Go to the link below to view videos or listen to audio.


http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-02-2...-compo/4532954