[Music] the first Soviet atomic bomb tests in northeastern Kazakhstan was in 1949 there followed a nearly further 500 nuclear tests over the next 40 years many of them above ground spreading nuclear fallout far wider than the test zone itself that means the equivalent of a nuclear bomb explosion every single month in an area roughly the size of Belgium we're living on that land thousands of people all exposed too often extremely high levels of radiation people told to keep their windows open as the Soviet authorities measured people's reactions they told us it was a hospital that treats tuberculosis but it was the army who managed it after each explosion they would take people here they were kept for 10 days and then sent home even the Nazis didn't dare to do tests on their own people we did them on our own people nearly 30 years later and they are still living with the effects cancers miscarriages mental disabilities malformations infertility today nearly half a million people have officially been recognized by the kazakhstani authorities as affected by nuclear testing experts say the cancer rate in eastern Kazakhstan is 2 or even 3 times higher than the national average well I thought beginning to return to normal radioactivity levels at last dropping to safer levels the country once again wanting to exploit the land known as the polygon due to its shape which remains rich in minerals on the Yukie draws Aramaki and Sophie genial revisits me4 france24 thirty years after the last nuclear tests were conducted here Kazakhstan has not forgotten its victims this is the country that launched the global day against nuclear proliferation every 29th of August even in the rain thousands of people gather for memorial at samay a large city in the northeast of the country they've come to pay homage to their loved ones the sick the dead American is a radiation victim and respected activist hello how are you have a good day thank you thank you very much we will start soon everything is ready to go I'm ready for this 28 year old blogger this is the most important day of the year I love being in contact with people I'm not afraid of the crowd on the country I love being surrounded by people the ceremony takes place at the foot of this monument shaped like a nuclear explosion it's called stronger than death the test victims even have their own official anthem [Music] [Applause] [Music] the mayor officials and like every year a Japanese scientist from the University of Hiroshima are in attendance nutkin was born during the last year of nuclear testing but he has paid a high price for the radiation exposure his parents and grandparents enjoyed he feels this ceremony should be used to send a message of peace I was born like this because of the effects of nuclear tests I would like to address all world leaders especially those in charge of countries that use nuclear weapons like China or France and others too I call on them to learn how to live without for forty years his region lived through a barrage of nuclear testing with one bomb exploding a month each one more powerful than Hiroshima located just a hundred kilometers from the test site the city of samay has a special hospital for victims of the nuclear tests authorities here estimate that more than 700 thousand people have been exposed to nuclear radiation as a result the rate of cancer and cardiovascular disease is twice as high as in the rest of the country medical institutions even keep evidence of deformed stillborns and the source of all this suffering is the nuclear arms race the USSR took part in during the Cold War a scientist from Kazakhstan's nuclear research centre accompanies us to the former polygon test site where the steppe stretches into the distance I'm taking you to where the first nuclear bomb exploded on August the 29th 1949 overall Soviet scientists conducted 456 nuclear tests in an area the size of the US state of New Jersey make sure you put your face mask on to properly protect your Airways we're entering a very contaminated area we have to wear protective suits in order to approach the epicenter of the first Soviet explosion nicknamed first lightning strict security measures are in place we join a team of researchers who crisscross the area to measure radioactivity over there that's the epicenter of the explosion the crater fair gamma radiation is coming from this direction if I put the meter on this side so the micro sievert per our level shows 1.3 micro sievert is a unit used to measure the effects of radiation from the human body the harmful waves originate from the epicenter of the explosion here the level goes up to 2 micro sieverts that's at least 20 times more than the levels of radioactivity normally found without protection humans run the risk of developing cancer in just a few weeks the main danger is touching or inhaling radioactive particles imagine even the slightest hole in this bag can contaminate not just us but also the car and the laboratory these samples will be taken to the nearby city of kurchatov it's been named after the founding father of the Soviet atomic bomb Kurchatov was a secret city of the KGB until 1991 it didn't exist on any maps for over 40 years 20,000 scientists worked on and tested the ussr's nuclear program now the city has been partially abandoned that Kazakhstan has taken advantage of the former Soviet laboratories and turn them into a radioactivity observation center soil samples from polygon are analyzed here and although time has passed the radiation is still there radionuclides can be active for a century when was the first explosion in 1949 70 years later the soil is still contaminated and we continue to suffer the consequences Khedira Cova leads 30 researchers at this laboratory it weighs 330 grams and this is the volume yes let's move on to the next sample protecting the population is not the only concern of the authorities they're also keen to exploit the precious materials that are hidden beneath the ground there are numerous deposits in the polygon and companies would like to extract gold coal and many other minerals in the soils of course it would be in the country's interest if these mines could be used again these scientists are expected to complete their report in 2021 they hope to reopen a large part of the polygon to mining but as we will see when we visit despite the breathtaking landscape the countryside here is toxic this is the atomic Lake a 500 meter wide artificial Basin created by a nuclear bomb in 1965 it's the crater of one of the first underground explosions were accompanied by a mere the scientist in charge of our security here the power of the explosion was 140 kilotons as to say seven times more powerful than Hiroshima or Nagasaki all of them but in the polygon there are no signs telling you which areas to avoid in the distance at the edge of the water Aamir spots account our guide gets out to warn these fishermen who are completely unaware of any danger hello I'm in charge of controlling radioactivity did you know that you're in a dangerous area mate are you aware of that do you know that you're putting your health at risk you're fishing in a radioactive lake but everyone comes here that's why we come to everyone told us that there was no risk even just after the explosion thought we were told there was no danger to our health this should be enough to feed my family for two weeks and they are really delicious delicious but contaminated according to analysis by a French laboratory the water contains a high concentration of radioactive particles amaura was besides you have a teenager with you you should really leave okay we'll leave then the ignorance of the risks among local fishermen is alarming it's been the case for 70 years the main victims of radiation are the poorly informed local population the first villagers are less than 80 kilometers from the nuclear test site as anumana with 1,300 inhabitants and countless fields here there are few families who haven't lost a loved one sure at pond and a zipper are no exception this is my daughter who died she's gone because of the polygon their daughter died of breast cancer aged 33 La Ceiba and her children have lived in the region since 1962 and saw the atomic explosions firsthand each time the authorities asked us to leave the house in 1971 I had just given birth when there was a task I took the children in my arms and we went outside it was winter we sat on a sledge for more than an hour and that's where I saw the explosion like a black cloud I saw its shape with my own eyes even her grandchildren who never experienced the tests suffer from serious health problems I'm angry my heart bleeds all because of the Soviet polygon shamanism honestly what more can I say it's a looming threat that continues to haunt the genetic makeup of the population [Music] back to Sammy the big city near the polygon where the fourth generation is now being born it's impossible to know until when the harmful radiation will affect the children of this region like Newark convect Asif who goes through life in a wheelchair and always needs to be accompanied by a friend or his mother to push him so the fun just once the government gave me an electric wheelchair but it was much too big for me and in bad condition the battery stopped all the time a graduate with a degree in literature Norgan works as a Russian Kazakh translated hello he found a job in this library in addition to his salary this young disabled man receives a hundred and forty euros a month he can claim this state benefit thanks to this special document for radiation victims this is his polygon card this radiation card proves that we come from the region of nuclear test site despite a difficult daily life Newton and his mother don't hold grudges but they are worried more and more babies are born sick yes many of those born in Sami have health problems and handicapped because of the polygon worried of course we're scared we prefer to avoid thinking about it for Nutkin and his family it's impossible to move on yet the majority of sameas population of 300,000 would like to look to the future today the city has become a student town it's medical university attracts young people from all parts of Kazakhstan and even from abroad students from the region would like to see an end to the cliches that stick to them you meet someone he said oh you're from samay you have third leg or so down something like this but where is your Serge I saw something like this but it's not even funny the most popular is do you glow in the dark the opinion of people must change because fortunately this will not last forever the radioactivity decreases over time sooner or later we will no longer have the reputation of being the city of polygons and radioactivity we will be known as a modern city that's looking to the future yep Ashton the first-year students head inside the Faculty of Medicine for the first time welcome to semi Medical University on behalf of all the faculty of our department I sincerely want to thank you for choosing our school they're all determined to become doctors and to heal the wounds of their compatriots who were exposed to irreparable damage for 40 years mouki drawers Aramaki and Sophie Guinea on revisiting semi for France 24 well that's all from this week's edition don't forget of course you can catch it and all the previous editions as well on our website more news coming up very shortly do stay with us