Letter to J Berg, Subject: Social Psychological Impact Assessment of Marshall Island Rehabitation Process (Encl: Issues of Forced Relocation and Migration of Cultural Groups)

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Staff Officer for Micronesia Office of Territorial Affairs United States Department of the Interior Human Affairs Research Centers Subject : Social Psychological Impact Assessment of Marshall Island Re habitation Process As requested in our telephone conversation of June30, 1977, I have enclosed two papers. The issues paper addresses forced migration as it relates to cultural groups. but identifies potential problems occurring or about to occur. The brevity of the paper is deliberately restricted by public a - tior, space. The second,a concept paper,focuses on specific issues now occurring in the Marshall Island group. While the paper stresses ethics and values associated with reh a hit ation of Enewetak and Bikini its real emphasis is on compiling case study data. Both papers are interrelated ; the latter, however, proposes a more definitive assessment plan. It's broad in scope The processes and consequences of evacuation and removal of persons from their homelands have concerned me for sometime. Invariably, the culture and lifestyle of relocate es are dra - mati call y altered. Home and work patterns must be adjusted to accommodate existing lifestyles in the new community. Often value conflicts emerge between residents and relocate es adding to the complications.Issues of this kind are complex, and frankly,not well understood by social scientists. The status the Marshall Islanders appears to fit this,pattern and I fully expect adjustment problems t o occur. Re habitation of Enewetak, Bikini,Jap tan and some of the other atolls in the Marshall Island chain is unique since there are risks associated.with the move. This risk introduces new conside rations to the issue.Fortunately,for social science, there are some examples available that could provide some insight. One possibility is to consider why people would want to return to or rebuild in a high risk environment. Some examples of this follow:

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Californians continue to build homes on seismic faults or live in areas highly prone to floods Residents in western Washington and central Colorado rebuilt their homes on floodplains. Coal miners continue to work in mines that have a history of collapsing. Kansans, Oklahomans, and .Texans rebuild farms, and homes i n areas frequently Hit by tornados. tornados,earthquakes and mine cave - ins are visible and real hazards.People can see the effects almost immediately after they occur.Radioactive contamination produces slow changes in metabolism,cell growth and respiratory areas o f humans. There are exceptions to the nature of the effects, of course. Nevertheless, the Marshall Islanders,like many underdeveloped societies, need to experience and visualize a risk.before norms and mores can be built into their culture.That hasn ' t happened and until effective procedures are developed to realistically communicate the risks,I anticipate communication and educational problems to In itself communicating technology to an underdeveloped cultural groups is a complicated and delicate process : perhaps more thought and planning should be devoted to communicating the nature of one rgy - related technologies to groups of this kind.In addition t o this immediate problem, an assortment of related issues comes t o mind as follows: potential conflicts and adjustment problems of inhabitants generated by there habitation process ; consequences of possible radioactive cont arni nation ; and agency commitment t o monitor and assess re habitation. The soil on Enewetak is low in nutrients making agriculture a non viable form of subsistence.Are t run to fishing is almost a necessity.Yet, as pointed out below, few know o r remember the skills required. The period of transition for the Enewetakese will indeed be troublesome.I think the Enewetakese and Bikini an s know this and are somewhat confused about the consequences of their desire to return.I ' m certain they have been told that they should reclaim their homeland from the federal government since it was their s in the beginning. The txper5ences of thirty years ago suggest some inconsistencies. For example, families who never experienced life on the atoll will experience similar kinds of adjustment problems as their parents

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did not so long ago. In fact,those adjustment problems are well known since the experiences have been passed on from one generation tothe other. Moreover, many are still living who vividly recall the relocation and the problems they and others experienced. Hence, given the information,one would wonder why over60percent of the Enewetakese who never lived on the atoll would want to give up present lifestyles and attempt to return to a way of lifelong forgotten or never experienced. The relocation of people to an area once used as a nuclear bomb test site has far - reaching implications.Onthe one hand, ifthe groups return and manage to survive the efL'ects of contamination much can be said about the general iz ability of this to future groups caught in similar circumstances.It suggests that people can be evacuated from an area where the danger of radiation contami nation is high and then return thirty years later to resume daily living patterns.I understand that recently a few Bikini nn s ate fruit containing "cesium," a highly radioactive substance and became extremely ill. I am awar.e of the current joint efforts of the Energy Research- and Development Administration,the Department of Defense and the Department of the Interior as it pertains to there habitation effort. My almost daily communication with residents of Enewetak and Majuro keep me informed of progress.Continued monitoring of radioactive levels is important as are continued efforts t o communicate risks to the groups. However, I would propose that considerable ef € ort be taken to systematically document and assess the full re habitation process over a two- to three - year From my experience in working with American Indian groups involved i n similar relocation efforts, I can assure you that the transition will not be a smooth one. The following questions are buta partial list of issues that could be addressed : 1. What steps will be taken to assist the islanders to eventually develop a self - supporting economy? 2. What relearning of former methods of subsistence will occur and what will be their Effect on the quality of life ? 3 . What norms and sanctions will emerge that will prevent islanders from frequent in q off - limit areas ? How will they be enforced ? 4 . To what extent have western ways affected the culture of the people ?

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5. Will adoption of western ways introduce forms of 6. What prevention measures can be developed to reduce the possible emergence of social devi an cy ? 7. What adjustments will be ma& by islanders and how will they effect daily living patterns ? 8. What does the future hold for an island group isolated from the main flow of economic activity ? 9. What are the social,educational, employment needs, etc. of islanders ? Bat tell e Human Affairs Research Centers here in Seattle has compete nt staff sensitive to the issues just raised and can plana long - term program to investigate a number of these issues.The tasks demand an interdisciplinary approach where staff scientists representing abroad range of social and beh wi oral science expertise function as a team. Perhaps for the first time in history,science has an opportunity to systematically investigate the process associated with a society returning to their homeland where the risks are unusually high, The significance of findings can have long - term effects on understanding re habitation efforts, I have a number of additional thoughts and ideas on the subject and would welcome the opportunity to discuss these with you i n the immediate future.I look forward to hearing from you. Je arch Scientist Social Change Study Center

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1ISSUES OF FORCED RELOCATION AND MIGRATION OF CULTURAL GROUPS Bat tell e Human Affairs Research Centers As a general theme, migration has received a great deal of attention by social scientists in the past few decades ' (Mangalam, 1968; Price and Sikes,1974).Research emphasis has been placed on assessing adjustment patterns of persons migrating from rural to urban areas. Review of major themes in migration literature suggests that often the choice to move is voluntary, promp'ted by inadequate community services, dissatisfaction with living arrangements,or search for employment opportunities. Once settled,migrants undergo a series of adjustments that vary according to race, religious affiliation,ethnic background For purposes of discussion and illustration,it is important, to specify classes of migration.He berle (1955) prefers to classify migration as involuntary,voluntary and semi voluntary, appealing to a group ' s decision-making power as the main basis for movement. Petersen (1958) makes a useful distinction between '1 am indebted to the following for their insightful crit i - . cisms and comments: Juris Draguns, Pennsylvania State University ; Robert Kist e and Joseph Westermeyer both at the University of Minnesota; and Michael Wood and Michael Mick lin at Bat tell e Human Affairs Research Centers.

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migrants who retain the power to decide whether or not to leave and the latter when t!iey do not have that power. should be apparent that a thin line separates the two cond i - conditions exist where there is no alternative but to move. Furthermore,groups might be led to believe that they have decision-makinq rights when in fact the decision has already been made by an external agent. Groups may have decision-making power but often The function or purpo'se of movement must bean additional consideration in delineating between impelled and forced migr at ' ion. movements of groups, as follows : A number of factors affects forced or involuntary Groups may leave homelands simp3.y because a dominant group no longer finds their presence desirable (cf. Internal strife and war often lead to forced movements of people either out of fear or political orientations Natural hazards such as earthquakes,droughts,volcanic eruptions,or seismic tidal waves force groups to move t o areas of safety and never return because of damage and destruction to property(cf.Ketch,1961). Urban poor have been forced to move t o make room for demolition of substandard housing and buildings under the promise that new housing will lead to improvements in lifestyles and neighborhood conditions(cf.Fried,

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oR ural families have been forced to move t o make room for the construction of superhighways, hydroelectric dams, nuclear reactors, and fucl - related processing Forced movements of cultural groups may consist of isolated family units or may constitute a mass movement o f an entire group. During the move families and significant segments of the group may be broken,in some cases never to reunite. Removal of groups and their resettlement in a new environment, whether permanent o r temporary, does not constitute a simple change of residence. The move itself is often a painful process as individuals may be leaving lands that have been occupied for generations by members of the same family.Sentiments, traditions and customs based on the nature of the region,life - styles,to name a few, are broken and i n some cases irretrievable. Most significant is the fact that groups undergo dramatic psychological changes which require development o f new coping and adaptive strategies in order to survive in the new en v iron - Voluntary migration requires similar adjustments. Individuals have made a commitment t o move and usually recogniz e the need for developing new lifestyles and coping st rate - gies. Moreover, voluntary migrants typically resign themselves to the notion that if their current lifestyle is t o improve changes are necessary.A tacit commitment to change and t o succeed is an underlying motive and tends to facilitate the total readjustment process.