Bikinian Mayor Alson Kelen will visit Japan to commemorate the 57th anniversary on March 1 of a U.S. hydrogen bomb test at Bikini Atoll in the South Pacific that exposed some members of the local population as well as a Japanese tuna boat to radioactive fallout, organizers said.
The Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs, commonly known as Gensuikyo, announced Tuesday that Kelen will be attending a gathering and meet with Hiroshi Shimizu, the mayor of Yaizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, the home port of the tuna boat Fukuryu Maru No. 5.
Kelen said in a statement he hopes to share with others the damage and suffering of his people, who cannot return to their home island due to strong radiation remaining in the area to this day.
Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands was a major hydrogen bomb testing site of the United States, and a number of local residents were exposed to radiation in the process.