nuclear power development in Belarus
Anti-nuclear
activists meet during the Belarusian Social Forum
By: Natalie
Caine, Project Coordinator, European Youth For Action (EYFA)
Introduction
In Belarus, nuclear energy is a very
sensitive issue. The Chernobyl
disaster in 1986 had grave consequences for the Belarusian population, which
are felt up till now. There are no nuclear power plants in Belarus.
However, the authoritarian regime of the president Lukashenko has announced
plans to build one. At the same time, its cutting on the support for victims of
Chernobyl.
Anti-nuclear activists are starting a campaign to fight against this.
Belarusian Social Forum
May 15-20 the Belarusian Social Forum (BSF)
took place outside Minsk, Belarus. About 150 Belarusian and
international activists met to exchange knowledge and strategies. The
repressive regime is very intolerant to any political dissent. Political
meetings of any kind that include foreigners are illegal. Therefore such
meetings rarely take place, and are a political action in itself. The BSF
provided a unique venue to discuss political alternatives and activist
initiatives within Belarus.
A diverse range of topics was discussed, like alternative media, ecology,
globalisation and anarchism. Anti-nuclear activists attended the BSF to give a
workshop and discuss the development of their anti-nuclear campaign. This
article is based on interviews with them.
A power plant in Belarus?
There are no nuclear power plants in Belarus. Since
1996 a national moratorium prevented the building of nuclear power stations,
but with an expiry date after 10 years. Now this building-ban has expired.
President Lukashenko announced in December 2006 his plans to build a nuclear
power plant. The plan includes grand promises of job stimulation, economic
growth and energy security.
The process is in its very early stages.
Currently the government is trying to find a company to build a nuclear plant.
The exact location is still to be determined. The new plant will cost between
3-5 million USD. Belarus is
financially unable to carry out such a project. Moreover, there are no educated
specialists in Belarus
trained to build and operate a nuclear power plant. Therefore, the government is looking for a
company who can lend money, invest in the project and also provide technologies
and equipment to build the plant. So far the leading competitors for building
are France and Russia.
Activists are also quick to criticize the
claims of government that nuclear power in Belarus
will bring energy independence to the country, especially the suggestion that
it will let Belarus be more
independent from Russia.
Belarus has no uranium, so
it would have to be imported, possibly from Russia. Moreover, Russia might be chosen as the investor in the nuclear
project, again reinforcing the energy dependency on Russia
Annual Chernobyl
march
Most Belarusians remember the Chernobyl disaster, and
many of them are still affected by it. This influences their opinion greatly.
Since the 1990s there is an annual march in memory of Chernobyl, organized by the national-liberal
political opposition. It takes place on the anniversary of Chernobyl, April 26, and aims to remind the
public of the consequences of nuclear energy.
In the 2007 several thousand people attended
the march. Since 1996 anarchists groups have also been participating in the
demonstration. In April 2007 they specifically protest against the cancellation
of benefits and social guarantees to the people who have suffered from the
effects of the Chernobyl
disaster. The march in general also addressed problems of centralization and
privatisation of energy sectors, the link to militarism and the ecological
dangers of nuclear power.
Building an anti-nuclear campaign
Last years, the annual Chernobyl
march was the only regular action happening against nuclear power in Belarus.
However, activists are planning to have more actions and awareness campaigns in
the coming months. Reacting to the government’s plan to bring nuclear energy to
Belarus,
they aim to increase public interest and to inspire the public to intervene in
government decisions in the matter. This is difficult, because a Soviet Union mentality is still present in public
consciousness. Most of the population
feels dis-empowered and unwilling to show disagreement with state plans because
they feel their opinions will make no difference. People still do not act or
involve themselves because they think the government will decide everything
anyway.
The social movement against nuclear power
is now trying to focus its efforts on making the nuclear issue a matter of
public interest and concern, urging people to decide for themselves whether
they want nuclear power or not. The goal
of anti-nuclear groups is not to let the government decide about nuclear energy
until the public opinion has been heard.
The strategy used for this is to educate
and communicate in different communities in Belarus about the dangers of
nuclear energy; to build local social networks on this issue, as part of a
growing anti-nuclear movement; to reach out for international support and
exposure to help strengthening the message.
Text was taken from book about Belarusian Social Forum 2007. Book can be downloaded from: http://openesf.net/projects/openesf-website/action-research-on-the-openesf/kniga_1_kompaktnaja.pdf