Marshall Islands Sue Nine Nuclear Nations

The Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI), in the Pacific Ocean with a population of 70,000 is creating ripples in what is deemed to be a David vs Goliath challenge. Marshall Islands sued nine nations in possession of nuclear Weapons which include: The US, Russia, France, UK and China that signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1968 and other four nations: India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea containing nuclear arsenal at International Court of Justice (ICJ), Hague. Law suits were filed against the nations for their continuing modernisation of nuclear weapons against the pledge of cessation of nuclear arms race at an early date and disarming nuclear weapons under strict and effective international control in the NPT. It contends the NPT nations for the breach of the treaty and for legally violating its objectives. Under the customary international law, it reprimanded the non NPT members of indulging in quantitative accumulation of the nuclear weapons, qualitative up gradation of nuclear arsenals and for engaging in nuclear race contrary to the nuclear disarmament objectives.

Marshall Islands under this appeal has requested the ICJ to order the nations to curtail the on-going arms race at an early date and to comply with the principle of nuclear disarmament within one year of the judgement. The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation which supports the lawsuits informed that there are over 16,000 nuclear weapons worldwide and nearly 94% of them are with the US and Russia despite signing several treaties like START in 2010.

Following the occupation of the Marshall Islands during the World War II, the US between 1946 and 1958 conducted 67 nuclear tests on the Bikini Atolls of Marshall Islands including the most power Castle Bravo (1954), the largest nuclear detonator ever blasted. It was 1000 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. These tests resulted in death of a fisherman and evacuation of two atolls. In 1956 the United States Atomic Energy Commission regarded Marshall Islands as the most contaminated place in the World. The islanders severely berated the nations for testing the weapons of poison and mass destruction away from the shores of the nations testing them. Located at an altitude of 7ft from sea, the islands are precariously poised and threatened by the rising sea levels. Rapid climate changes made the islands highly prone to submersion. The RMI is conglomeration of 29 atolls and 5 isolated islands paid heavy price for the indiscriminate nuclear testing. Islanders suffered irreparable and catastrophic damages due to severe environmental changes and the radiation fall which resulted in radiogenic cancer and abnormal birth defects.

RPI filed law suits not in anticipation of monetary compensation for enduring the radiation contamination but to address the disputes between nations by invoking the painful history of his own land and to rekindle global concern about the nuclear arms race. If the on-going nuclear race isn’t curtailed it might entail disastrous consequences on the human race.

International lawyers inspired by the courageous move of the diminutive nation devoted time in compiling the law suits. Even if court rules the case in favour of the islands prospects of the nuclear nations heeding to such judgement is exceedingly low. But the action will draw substantial attention towards the most neglected issue of nuclear disarmament. Among these nations UK, India and Pakistan recognised court’s ruling as compulsory, China has replied that it will not accept the court’s jurisdiction and other nations don’t have a binding to adhere to court’s ruling.

While treaties prohibiting the use of chemical, biological and other weapons of mass destruction have been successfully enforced, possession of nuclear weapons have never come under scanner. The issue has merit as the world is going through international tension. In the recent meeting convened at Vienna on humanitarian law, scientists warned that use of even a small percentage of nuclear arsenals would drastically change the atmosphere causing drop in temperature resulting in massive crop failures. While nations have qualms about the climate changes, what can they hope to gain with peaceful resolutions on climate change with looming threat of burgeoning nuclear arsenals set to annihilate the world? Islanders are appealing to the World by drawing parallel between climate change issues and nuclear disarmament as they both affect security and survivability of human kind.


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