Areva: supervillains
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We’re about to write to the producers of the James Bond movies with an idea for the story of the next film. We wanted to know what you thought.
In our story, a supervillain uses radiation to give a group of people cancer. The people go to a doctor for help but unknown to them, the doctor has been paid by the supervillain to tell them that they have HIV/AIDS instead.
What do you think? Too bleak? Too far-fetched and unrealistic? Who could suspend their disbelief when presented with such a preposterous plot?
Try the executives of France’s own nuclear supervillains, Areva. Here’s Areva’s citation for its Public Eye 2008 Award:
Did you know you could get HIV/Aids from radioactive radiation? No? Well, the French Nuclear Corporation Areva figures as much – and the company-owned hospitals prefer to diagnose the cancers of its mineworkers as cases of the deadly HIV virus. Are we kidding you? No, this is actually happening in the north of Niger where Areva is the majority shareholder of two companies (Somaïr and Cominak) that mine for uranium. But why the false diagnoses? The state-owned French company would rather not pay for the treatment of its former employees. The mineworkers and their families receive little or no information about the health hazards of uranium mining.
Read that again. Digest it. In Areva’s glorious plan for a nuclear future, some people don’t have a future. In order to save a little money, Areva lie to people about how and why they are dying. At least the villains in James Bond movies are honest about their plans for death and destruction.
For such disgusting contempt for human life, Areva was entered into Public Eye’s 2008 Hall of Pain. Prison or one of the more terrifying circles of Dante’s Inferno would be preferable. But that’s the nuclear industry for you. Whether it be in Caetite, Brazil or Kakadu, Australia or Arlit, Niger, the nuclear industry’s lack of concern for human life is all too evident.
Areva and their competitors clearly believe it a price worth paying. Do you?
(You can vote in Public Eye’s Worst Corporation of the Year 2009 here.)
Comments
Dear Justin,
The fact that u're anti-nuke is fully respectable. The fact that you write all and anything about our activities is not. Particularly when u use people's health to invent nonsenses. Could you explain me the interest Areva should find in lying to it workers about their health? You say this avoid us to pay : we pay for HIV treatment when colleagues are infected !
Instead of looking for unrealistic & stupid scenarii, you'd better consider the thruth and the work done by our teams, closely with NGOs, in Niger and mainly in Arlit to strenghten general access to health system in the country.
This is my pleasure to invite you to visit them.
Posted by: Spokesman - Areva Group | January 19, 2009 1:05 PM
Dear Spokesman,
Our blog entries are always based on publicly available reports whether it is about the delays, spiraling increase of the cost of the EPR or as in the current case the dubious practices regarding Areva’s operations in Niger. This particular entry was based on the information two NGO’s -CRIIRAD and SHERPA- had reported on.
More information regarding these reports can also be found through the links presented in our entry.
Posted by: Aslihan | January 20, 2009 10:45 AM
@Spokesman
well i could find many reasons to answer to your question.
One of them is the fact that if the population starts to realize that you are the main cause of the rising of cancer and all respiratory problems in this part of Niger , well they might not be so happy with your work there.
Second by telling these poor workers they have aids .you know very well they won't go on the streets shouting they are sick, they will just die quietly in their home ashamed that they caught such a terrible sickness (Because in Niger having AIDS is still seen in some regions as a punishment for having a bad life style***).So Areva will never get sued , because the population and the media won't know what happened.
I'm not saying that nobody has aids there ,since the first case of AIDS in niger was diagnosed in ARLIT a city built by Areva. But i'm
saying that you are far from being saviours there.
Here are some links for people who wants to have their own opinion on the matter of Areva
http://allafrica.com/stories/201001140880.html?viewall=1
http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2278
Posted by: Pont d'Avignon | January 21, 2010 6:20 PM
neither of your links works. Please provide links to the information that this is based on. I work with a community that is currently making a decision regarding whether or not to engage in Uranium mining, and I would be interested in having this claim cleared up.
Posted by: anonymous | January 23, 2010 8:05 PM