Tatiana Nikolaevna Leschenko
President
Union of Nuclear Test Victims-Altai Branch
Russia
Dear friends,
I am happy to see you again and make new friends at the conference. We discuss many important questions of life during these meetings. Here we share the most painful problems and try to resolve them.
Last year contained many events of great importance for Russia. The central one is the election of new President, Vladimir Putin. In voting for him the Russian people invested their hopes in him.
The most burning point of our life is the war in Chechnya. Years ago there was military conflict in Afghanistan, now we hear again the crying of mothers who lost their sons. We truly believe that the new government will break it off.
Pernicious consequences of 40 years of nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk test site remain at present a great problem also.
The law that is to protect nuclear test victims had no effect in the Altai Region because of economic difficulties. But today we can hope that the law will begin to have an impact because of a governmental decree on its financial support.
It is very pleasant that Japanese scientists from Nagasaki and scientists from Altai Region can study together diseases of nuclear test victims.
We should like scientists and medical workers from Nagasaki to join with scientists from Altai Region to exchange their experience. We have similar problems concerning nuclear test victims and their rehabilitation. It would be easier to solve such problems together.
I invite you to work together in the name of Altai Regional Governmental leaders. Our organization has had close bonds of cooperation with non-governmental organizations in Japan and other countries.
We will take an active part in preparing receptions for scientists and medical workers of each interested institution.
We have brought books in English, on the result of scientific studies done in our region. The books are available at Gensuikyo's office in Tokyo.
We also would like to tell you about the treatment for nuclear test victims at Altai resort hotels and sanatorium. My colleague, Olga Alexandrova will tell you about this in the conference.
I wish you fruitful work and good luck.