EDITORIAL: Chornobyl: hope is not enough (04/27/97)

EDITORIAL

Chornobyl: hope is not enough

This year, according to the Julian calendar, Easter falls on April 27, which is also the anniversary of a less positive event: the anniversary of the "day after" the terrifying explosion at the Chornobyl nuclear power station 11 years ago. And just as rejoicing on the Messiah's Great Day (Velykden) is always combined with mindfulness of Christ's awesome sacrifice for humanity, so those who see in this terrible atomic disaster the catalyst for Soviet destruction, and thus the genesis of Ukrainian independence, must also be mindful of the price that Ukraine, and its neighbors, have paid and will continue to pay for hundreds of years.

The images and symbols of the two events are intermingled in 1997. Was Chornobyl Ukraine's Golgotha that led to its resurrection? Is Chornobyl (the Ukrainian word for wormwood) mankind's "bitter herb" that will lead to understanding and enlightenment?

For those in Ukraine living their everyday lives feeling the effects of Chornobyl, and for those abroad who care about them, Chornobyl's bitterness juxtaposed with the sweetness of democracy and freedom is not an image that can be bandied about lightheartedly.

Ukrainian statesmen visiting North America, such as former Prime Minister Yevhen Marchuk, often emphasize the enormous strain that the liquidation of Chornobyl's aftermath puts on Ukraine's economy. In the meantime, the country's elected officials, its appointed ministers and bureaucracy apparently still haven't made the connection between the necessity of swiftly and successfully completing basic economic reform in order to improve Ukraine's ability to contend with the disaster's lingering acrid effects. Chornobyl was the culmination of Soviet irresponsibility. Though current Ukrainian officials did not create Chornobyl and its aftereffects, they are nonetheless responsible for building Ukraine's future, which also includes the responsibility to make sure that something like Chornobyl never happens again.

At times it seems as though neither the governments of the West, nor of Ukraine, heed the still-flashing hazard sign of hubris and stupidity that Chornobyl represents.

In the West, people and governments allow themselves to slip into "issue fatigue" at their own peril. An unjustified resurgence of faith in nuclear power once again raises questions about humanity's ability to learn from its mistakes. At the same time, squabbling over technicalities threatens crucial aid efforts, such as the U.S. Department of Energy's International Nuclear Safety Program. This also suggests that a general understanding of Chornobyl's persistent threat is weak and thus requires constant activism and lobbying to keep the issue alive.

And, although Ukraine has spent $14 billion over the last five years to deal with Chornobyl's consequences, evidence such as the crumbling sarcophagus encasing reactor No. 4 clearly demonstrates serious and life-threatening inattention to the stricken plant's ever-present danger.

So, during this Easter that coincides with the Chornobyl anniversary, it's not enough to comfort oneself with the hope this season symbolizes. We must act on the seasons' redemptive message. All of us must strive to redeem humanity from the aftermath of the Chornobyl nuclear catastrophe. The Chornobyl challenge of today is to ensure that the world's commitment to deal with the Chornobyl issue is unwavering and ever-increasing.

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