Ban stresses need to revive areas affected by Chernobyl disaster

(April 27,2010) Marking the 24th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which exposed more than 8 million people in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia to radiation, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday, reiterated his commitment to reviving sections of the three nations still coping with the catastrophe. “We remember the hundreds of emergency workers, who responded to the accident; the more than 330,000 people who were uprooted from their homes; the thousands of children who later contracted thyroid cancer,” Ban’s spokesperson said in a statement. “One of the most important global lessons of the Chernobyl disaster is the importance of strengthening the safety and security of nuclear material and facilities,” it said.
Ban also reaffirmed his commitment to the so-called UN Chernobyl Action Plan, prepared by the UN Development Programme,(UNDP). The main challenges, including health and environment, are also components of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the eight anti-poverty targets agreed upon by world leaders with a 2015 deadline.
Ban will host a high-level summit on the theme of accelerating pace towards the MDGs around the world in September in New York, to coincide with the start of the new session of the General Assembly.