Statement from John Mate on the Greenpeace Sailing Vessel Caramba at the 12 mile zone on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the United Nations:

Friends;

Greetings of solidarity from the Greenpeace SV Caramba and the New Zealand Peace Flotilla SV "Joie", located just outside the military-enforced exclusion zone around French occupied Moruroa in the South Pacific:

We arrived here early Sunday morning, 22 October, on the occasion of the United Nations' 50th Anniversary celebration with a singularity of purpose - to stop France's nuclear atrocities. Aboard the 2 vessels are 2 Tahitians, an aboriginal Australian, a Canadian, a Dutchman, 2 New Zealanders, 1 British, and 2 American crew members.

The United Nations embodies the very highest principals of humanity in the pursuit of a just, peaceful, and environmentally safe world. In stark contrast, current French nuclear explosions at Moruroa and Fangataufa represent the very worst crime, the greatest evil that humans can commit against all life.

The shameful history of France's nuclear colonialism in Polynesia is one of brute military force, lies, treachery, bribery, violations of basic human rights, contempt for democracy, and a negligent disregard for the health and welfare, and the opinions of the people of the region.

Of course the peoples of the South Pacific have also been the innocent victims of American and British nuclear explosions.

Now these three nuclear powers are announcing that they will become signatories to the 1986 Nuclear Free South Pacific Zone Treaty in 1996 - conveniently giving France enough time to complete the last of its current set of nuclear explosions.

While this announcement should be welcome news for the whole world and especially for the purpose of the South Pacific, its timing can only be seen as damage control for President Chirac. Mr. Chirac's participation in this announcement is analagous to a serial rapist promising that after only 6 more rapes he will stop terrorizing the neighborhood.

The great French author, Victor Hugo, once wrote, "There is nothing so powerful as an idea whose time has come."

Clearly the time for a nuclear free Pacific and an end to French nuclear colonialism is right now, not next year.

The French should not only immediately cancel all further nuclear explosions, France should also provide a written contract with a 100,000 years guarentee to compensate the Polynesian people for any further injury that they or their environment may suffer as a result of France's present and past nuclear activities.
We came to Moruroa, territory which the French stole from the Tureian people, and to this date, illegally occupy, to bear witness to France's nuclear evil and to do whatever is in our power to prevent further evil from occurring.

However, we are not naive to think that we can physically stop the French military, but we are convinced that world public opinion can and will stop Mr. Chirac and his gang of nuclear terrorists.

What is needed is a chorus of voices from around the world achanting in unison "Honte a la France! Honte a Chirac!" "Shame on France! Shame on Chirac!"

A chorus that wakes up the French public after the great shame that the Chirac government is bringing on France.

We also need strong reaction from governments. Instead of sharing a platform with Chirac, President Clinton should expell the French Ambassador, and all the other countries should do likewise should France explode another bomb. France does not deserve to be a part of the community of civilized nations as long as it acts as a terrorist country.

We great you from this tragic place which not too long ago was paradise, and is now a nuclear graveyard.

Please let us hear your voices all the way to Moruroa, and let them hear them all the way to the UN: "Shame on France! Shame on Chirac!" "Honte a la France! Honte a la Chirac!"

Together we shall, we must, stop this evil. Together we shall rid the world of the nuclear nightmare. The future demands this of us.

-John Mate, GP SV Caramba +872 -624 453510
-Greenpeace Tahiti, +689 - 433280