[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 55 (Thursday, April 25, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S4264]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR DISASTER

  Mr. KEMPTHORNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Con. Res. 56, 
introduced by Senator Lautenberg.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 56) recognizing the 
     10th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, and 
     supporting the closing of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the concurrent resolution?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I am pleased to join Senator Lautenberg in 
offering this legislation to remember the 10th anniversary of the 
terrible nuclear accident at Chernobyl. While 10 years have passed 
since that tragic day, the health and economic consequence of Chernobyl 
continue to be borne by the Ukrainian people.
  I recall quite well how the Chernobyl accident on April 26, 1986 
signaled the inhumanity of the totalitarian system of government. At 
first, the Soviet Government feebly attempted to deny the incident--
with the effect of causing further harm to those who lived in its 
vicinity. Ultimately, the full scale of the disaster became known, but 
only after millions in Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, and Poland had been 
exposed to radioactive fallout.
  That a government could be so brutal to its people is no surprise to 
those of us who worked for many years to confront and defeat the 
totalitarian system. That the Soviet Government could be so brutal to 
the people of Ukraine was no surprise to a people who endured the 
forced starvation, massacres, and genocidal policies of Joseph Stalin 
in the 1930's. The radioactive wasteland around Chernobyl will, 
unfortunately, serve as a lasting and hideous monument to refute those 
who would defend such a system, or whose historical memory has faded 
sufficiently to allow them to forget its evil.
  Within the catastrophe at Chernobyl were sown the seeds of the 
downfall of the Soviet system. A fiercely independent people such as 
the Ukrainians cannot be subjected forever to such abuse. I am proud of 
the role that I was able to fulfill in the Congress, in full support of 
Presidents Reagan and Bush, as the United States prevailed, the Soviet 
Union collapsed, and Ukraine again became an independent state in the 
momentous year of 1991. I was proud to sponsor legislation which called 
for direct United States aid to the republics, rather than through 
Moscow in 1990. The goal of defeating communism and achieving 
independence for Ukraine was not easily achieved, it was one that 
required the combined efforts of many nations and many people, 
including the Ukraine-American community, who simply refused to accept 
that communism would prevail over the spirit of Ukrainians.
  Democracy is prevailing in Ukraine today, but the Ukrainian people 
and Government continue to shoulder the burden of the Chernobyl 
disaster. Just as the United States joined with the Ukrainian people to 
defeat communism, we work in partnership to overcome the tragic 
consequences of Chernobyl. I was pleased to support the Republican 
initiative in Congress to provide Ukraine with $225 million in 
assistance this year, including specific assistance to nuclear safety, 
the development of alternatives to nuclear power and to address the 
ongoing health problems due to the Chernobyl disaster. I am certain 
that working together we can bring peace, prosperity, and a better 
quality of life to the people of Ukraine. I urge my colleagues to 
support our resolution.

                          ____________________