Polynesia: Commission of Inquiry into Nuclear Tests Requests France's Forgiveness

Recognition of the nuclear issue in Polynesia has taken a new step forward. Adopted unanimously – minus the abstention of the National Rally, which refused to show any "repentance" – on June 10, the report of the National Assembly's commission of inquiry into French nuclear tests in the Pacific was made public on Tuesday, June 17.

From 1966 to 1996, France conducted 193 tests, including 46 atmospheric ones , under the aegis of the Pacific Experimentation Center (CEP). These campaigns enabled the country to equip itself with the ultimate weapon: the atomic bomb. But this came at the cost of a profound disruption of Polynesian society, as well as major health and environmental consequences. "The authorities considered that the need to preserve the appearance of risk-free and perfectly controlled launches should prevail over the health protection of the population in the event of radioactive fallout exceeding forecasts," the report recalls.

Numerous scientific, official, and parliamentary studies have already shed light on these events. In 2005, at a time when some defense authorities were still boasting about "clean tests," the Polynesian Assembly conducted its own investigation , collecting previously unpublished testimonies from former civilian and military workers at the CEP. Its report denounced "state obstruction," with the Republic's High Commissioner in Papeete having attempted to prevent the very launch of this commission of inquiry before the administrative court.

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