On the 21st Anniversary of the Chornobyl tragedy

April 26, 2007 -- April 26, 1986 is a tragic date in world history. On this day the worst nuclear explosion in the history of mankind occurred at the Fourth reactor of the Chornobyl nuclear power station in Ukraine, changing the lives of millions of people forever and causing great suffering to many others.

The global scale of this tragedy shocked the world. A United Nations 1995 Report estimated that a total of 9 million people were directly or indirectly affected by the Chornobyl disaster and that 3-4 million of those affected were children. The people of Chornobyl were exposed to radiation 300 times greater than that from the Hiroshima bomb. An area the size of England, Wales and Northern Ireland combined - over 160,000 square kilometres - is estimated to have been contaminated by the disaster.

On the 21st Anniversary of Chornobyl, the Ukrainian Canadian Congress appeals to the entire Ukrainian Canadian community along with other countries and people of Ukraine to commemorate victims of this catastrophe by taking part in church services and other commemorative events, remembering the liquidators and firemen who contained the disaster of the Chornobyl nuclear power station and saved the world from an even greater disaster, and by praying for those whose suffering from the consequences of the accident.

This day is also a good opportunity to reflect on what has been done and what needs to still be done. The government of Canada, along with the Ukrainian Canadian community, has made significant contributions to Ukraine by participating in international programs in the areas of health, the environment, the economy and the social sphere all of which are aimed at neutralizing the consequences of this accident. Canada is a major contributor to the building of the so-called sarcophagus around the crippled reactor, which acts to contain radioactive debris emitting from the site. UCC will continue to work together with the Government so that the most effective and timely means are used to nullify the effects of the accident on the population of Ukraine and to avoid such tragedies in the future.

Ukrainian Canadian Congress