Friends of the Earth Brisbane
Anti-nuclear Collective      
Mobile:  0411 118 737

Friends of the Earth Brisbane
Anti-nuclear Collective
Mobile:  0411 118 737

Media Release
April 26 2006


20th Anniversary of Chernobyl a poignant reminder
nuclear power is never safe


Anti-nuclear campaigners will be offering Premier Beattie a symbolic child’s 
coffin with images of Chernobyl victims to assist him in considering the 
possible consequences of supporting nuclear industry.

20 years ago today, the world experienced the largest ever nuclear power 
accident, the meltdown of the Number 4 nuclear reactor at Chernobyl.

Friends of the Earth Brisbane (FoEB) are urging Queenslanders to commemorate 
Chernobyl Day, April 26th, as a poignant reminder of the dangers of nuclear 
technology in all its guises.

The Chernobyl disaster has left a toxic zone in which 9 million people 
living in the region are still victims to radiation’s legacy – untimely 
deaths, genetic damage, cancer and other radiation related illnesses.   
Everything they eat, drink and breathe, the soil their food grows in and 
their children play on, is poisoned by radiation.

Spokesperson for FoEB Robin Taubenfeld says, "Chernobyl demonstrates that 
nuclear power is neither peaceful, clean nor safe.

The Howard government has been pushing to expand the nuclear industry – 
engaging in uranium deals with nuclear weapons states, imposing a nuclear 
waste dump on the Northern Territory, inaccurately presenting nuclear power 
as a solution to climate change and pressuring states, such as Queensland to 
open uranium mines.  We are concerned that Labor is contemplating supporting 
these moves.

20 years on, people are still being affected by the Chernobyl disaster.  How 
would the people of Queensland feel if the uranium that powered such a 
disaster came from our state?

Chernobyl is a lesson that should remind us that uranium mining is a toxic 
industry and nuclear power is never safe" Ms. Taubenfeld concludes.


FoEB is an environmental NGO that campaigns on social justice and 
sustainability.  FoEB is a member of the Queensland Nuclear Free  Alliance.


Media:
Friends of the Earth Brisbane Anti-nuclear collective: Robin Taubenfeld  
0411 118 737