Nomination form International Memory of the World Register ID[ ] 1.0 Summary (max 200 words) The explosion, happened 26 April, 1986, on the 4

Transcription

1 Nomination form International Memory of the World Register ID[ ] 1.0 Summary (max 200 words) The explosion, happened 26 April, 1986, on the 4 th unit of Chornobyl NPP, became a disaster, which had results not only for Ukraine. Global impact of it is measured not only by the amount of the countries, covered by radioactive cloud. Events and aftermaths of this accident are so broad and multifaceted, that even today, 30 years after, are not fully realized. Different times actualizes different aspects of the disaster, which have results in very different spheres social, political, economic, medical, ecological, psychological and moral. Effective decisions on the problems of liquidation of the aftermaths of the accident are impossible without using the documentary heritage of the accident. It should be mentioned, that a lot of documents (for example, on the development of nuclear energetics, the building of nuclear power stations, explosion on Chornobyl NPP itself, authorities' reaction on it, nuclear pollution etc.) were created in Soviet times, so they had different secrecy labels. Declassification of these documents in independent Ukraine each year broadens the source base for researching Chornobyl catastrophe. Finding, description, examining and introduction to the public of the wide range of the documents, preserved in the State Archives of Ukraine, will help to understand the reasons of the disaster, its global aftermaths, and will help to cope with numerous 'Chornobyl' problems in Ukraine as well as in other countries, which were flew with nuclear ashes of Chornobyl. Information from these documents would be useful for everyone, who does not want the new Polyn Star to explode on the planet Name of nominator (person or organization) State Archival Service of Ukraine 2.2 Relation to the nominated documentary heritage Contact person(s) (to provide information on nomination) Head of State Archival Service of Ukraine, Baranova Tetiana Ivanivna 2.4 Contact details Baranova Tetiana Ivanivna Adress: 24 Solom ianska St. Kyinv Ukraine t.baranova@arch.gov.ua, J.prilep@arch.gov.ua Telephone: +38(044) , fax +38(044) Identity and description of the documentary heritage 3.1 Name and identification details of the items being nominated In the Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine preserves information-rich and thematically variable set of documents on Chornobyl problems. On problematically-chronological principle documents could be divided on such groups: - documents connected with the project development and building of the Chornobyl NPP (early 1960 th the first half of 1980 th ); - documents, covering the problems of disaster itself and first incident management (April 1986 end of 1980 th ); - documents on the liquidation of the aftermaths of the Chornobyl disaster

2 in the independent Ukraine (early 1990 th early 2000 th ). Documents, which enlighten the pre-history of the Chornobyl catastrophe, are the evidence of the domination of the politics over the professionalism, common sense, that appeared in the first months after the disaster. Documents from the first months after the catastrophe (including declassified documents of the Council of Ministers of UkrSSR) displays the everyday situation of nuclear impurity and first activities on the liquidation of catastrophe aftermaths. This is stated in the information letters and coded telegrams to the Council of Ministers from the ministries, departments, and regional executive committees. This group also includes evaluation materials, for example, report on the changes in geological and ecological conditions around the Chornobyl NPP (situation on the 15, July, 1986). Numerous documents touches upon the organization and realization of the evacuation of the population. Materials on the study of the dynamics of the radiation situation, carrying out agricultural activities in contaminated areas, organization of transport and other communications, law enforcement, and the international aspects of the accident may attract research interest. Policy document deals with minimizing the effects of radiation on citizens: providing the supplies of drinking water, construction of houses and social and cultural buildings for evacuees from the 30-kilometers exclusion zone, in order to create normal living conditions for them. The names of people, who fought with the radiation, and in the price of their own health and life saved not only Ukraine, but the whole world, could be also fount in the archival documents. The archive stores the decrees of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of UkrSSR to award the liquidators of the catastrophe (October- December 1986). Starting from the 1991 legislative acts of Verckhovna Rada of Ukraine and decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dominate. They touch upon the legal regime of the contaminated territories, exclusion zone management, the status and social protection of citizens affected by the Chernobyl disaster, the order and size of compensation payments to victims, sending citizens to treatment abroad. This group includes documents on the questions of creation of the interdepartmental Scientific and Technical Center "Shelter" and its transformation into an environmentally safe system; removing the Chornobel NPP from the service; activities of the Ministry of Ukraine for Population Protection from the Consequences of the Chernobyl accident; Appeal of the Government of Ukraine to the Ukrainian community and world on the 10 th anniversary of Chernobyl disaster; the decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine 1942 "On conclusion of the agreement on the amendments to the the Grant Agreement (Project Nuclear Safety Chernobyl NPP) between the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development as Administrator of funds provided under the Grant of the Nuclear Safety Account, the Government of Ukraine and the Chernobyl nuclear power plant." The analysis of the documents allows to make the conclusion, that listed documents not only describe the events, but also show if the decisions were effective or not. Chornobyl documentary complex of the Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine are saved in the funds of Verckhovna

3 Rada of UkrSSR and Verckhovna Rada of Ukraine (fund 1), Council of Ministers of UkrSSR Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (fund 2), the State Plan of UkrSSR (fund 337), in the funds of selected ministers and departments of UkrSSR and Ukraine (i.e., Ministry of Health, fund 342) etc. General amount of the documentary complex of the Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine is up to 1000 documents. As far as archive every year increases its funds, the amount may increase as well. 3.4 History/provenance The documents on the Chornobyl accident were forming as a result of the process of activity of the Verckhovna Rada of UkrSSR and Verckhovna Rada of Ukraine, Council of Ministers of UkrSSR Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, the State Plan of UkrSSR, selected ministers and departments of UkrSSR and Ukraine from mid-1960 th up to early 2000 th. These documents were sent for preservation to the archives according to the Law. 4.0 Legal information 4.1 Owner of the documentary heritage (name and contact details) Ukraine state owns the documents that are nominated. 4.2 Custodian of the documentary heritage (name and contact details if different from the owner) The Central State Archive of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine 4.3 Legal status The documents are part of the National Archival Fund of Ukraine. Their legal status is defined by the Law of Ukraine "On National Archive Fund and archive institutions". 4.4 Accessibility Access to the documents is free. No access restrictions. Digitization of documents makes them more accessible. Today only a few documents are digitized, they were presented on the exhibitions, available on the archival website: Copyright status Copyright in the documents belong to the Ukrainian state. 5.0 Assessment against the selection criteria 5.1 Authenticity. The documentary heritage submitted for nomination is authentic. Authenticity established on the basis of the examination of their value during the introduction to the National Archival Fund. 5.2 World significance Yes, as preserved in the archive documents reflect not only the chronology of events, delineate the extent of the accident, which affected many European countries,

4 but also highlight the experience of minimization and elimination of nuclear accident. 5.3 Comparative criteria 1. Time The complex of these documents fully reflect the causes, course and consequences of the Chernobyl disaster - the largest man-made disaster of the 20th century. 2. Place The documentary heritage contains information on the physical environment Ukrainian region - Polissya and of the city that have disappeared since then. 3. People The documentary heritage contains information about the large-scale relocation, accommodation, employment and social security of people evacuated from the zone of radioactive contamination. 4. Subject and theme Yes. Events related to the Chernobyl disaster (background, accident consequences), covering the decades. The history of the Chernobyl disaster - a history of Soviet society th, important pages of the history of the first years of the independent Ukrainian state. And when the painful issues of Chornobyl disaster are dealed, the political aspects are unavoidable. That is extremely important in recognizing the lessons of the tragedy. Experience of the overcoming the aftermaths of man-made disaster, the active participation of the scientists of various disciplines provide important material for research in medicine, physics, biology, ecology and others. 5. Form and style The documents are typical examples of official paperwork of the Soviet and post-soviet period. 6. Social/ spiritual/ community significance The documentary heritage about the accident at Chernobyl has quite a strong emotional impact on Ukrainian people. Introduction to archival evidence causes emotional memories of those killed, injured, and contaminated nature and the stress that people experienced in the first weeks after the tragic April 26, Contextual Information 6.1 Rarity The documents are originals, most of them have no other copies, and contain unique information. Documentary sources play crucial role for the reconstruction of objective and full picture of the Chornobyl disaster, its prehistory and aftermaths. 6.2 Integrity According to the profile of the archive, we may recognize the cohesiveness of the Chornobyl documentary complex, which includes documents of the office of

5 origin (Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine). As far as the process of the overcoming of the aftermaths of the disaster is not finished, complex will be renewed by the documents from the offices of origin, that connected to it.