[Reader-list] Call to address concerns of Kudankulam protesters

[T Peter]

Call to address concerns of Kudankulam protesters
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

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The concerns of safety, loss of livelihood, and displacement raised by
the villagers of Kudankulam are not the isolated concerns of 18,000
fisherfolk. Every individual should see this struggle as the right of
another for existence and support it, film-maker T. K. Rajeevkumar
said. The agitation against the Kudankulam nuclear plant has crossed
600 days.
Addressing hundreds of people on the Shanghumugham beach on Sunday
evening, Mr. Rajeevkumar said the people of Kudankulam only want to
convey to the world that none in high places had ever actually
explained to them the benefits or disadvantages of building a nuclear
plant in their village. They want to tell the world to understand the
depth and implications of the concerns they have raised and see it as
a concern of humanity and not marginalise it, Mr. Rajeevkumar said.
He was speaking after inaugurating the ‘A Rupee for Kudankulam’
campaign, organised by a State-level action council expressing
solidarity with the Kudankulam movement He said his reaction to the
issue was that of a citizen and that of an individual who was
apprehensive about what the proximity to a nuclear plant could mean to
his world and the safety of people. The government had the
responsibility to reassure the people about the concerns they had
raised, he said.

Video installation
Mr. Rajeevkumar said a video installation on Kudankulam, explaining
the entire anti-nuclear campaign from a human perspective, was being
planned, the shooting for which had already commenced. The video
installation would travel across the world so that the anti-nuclear
voices from an isolated community would be heard across the world, he
added.
S. P. Udayakumar, who is spearheading the anti-nuclear protests at
Kudankulam plant, addressed the campaign via video conferencing. He
said the people of the village were only seeking basic information
about the nuclear plant project. But the Centre and the Tamil Nadu
government were only concerned about enriching the Russian economy and
scuttling the non-violent and democratic agitation being carried out
by the villagers.
“Why is the government hell bent on going ahead with the nuclear plant
project in such a hasty manner? The Prime Minister says we are
approaching the issue emotionally and that we should come forward for
a dialogue. But to initiate a dialogue, we need all information about
the project – give us details about the site analysis, safety
evaluation and emergency preparation and management reports,” Dr.
Udayakumar said.
He pointed out that in other States too, proposed nuclear projects had
been dropped following people’s opposition. “There is no need for any
haste; let us have a national debate on the issue in the next
elections,” he said.He said the agitation will continue and that the
people of Kudankulam were determined to fight for their right to live
safely in their land till their last breath.