The Ukrainian government is cutting payments to Chernobyl survivors: residents threaten to block roads

The Ukrainian government has decided to reduce by five times the number of inspections in radiation-contaminated areas.

This has raised concerns among Verkhovna Rada deputies, who believe that such actions could deprive many Ukrainians of the benefits and social guarantees they are entitled to due to living in radioactively contaminated zones.

The deputies have sent an official appeal to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, in which they set out a number of demands:

• Conduct a full dosimetric certification of all 927 settlements affected by the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident. This will objectively determine the current level of radiation contamination and the justification for providing benefits and payments.

• Keep the boundaries of radioactive contamination zones unchanged until martial law ends, so that citizens do not lose their rights and guarantees.

• If it becomes necessary to exclude certain settlements from the list, provide additional payments to residents who lived or worked in these areas from 1986 to 1993. This is because many people have been exposed to radiation for decades and have a legal right to compensation.

Residents of the Korosten community in Zhytomyr region have expressed particular concern. They warned that they are prepared to take more decisive action, including blocking highways and railways, if the authorities continue to cut payments to affected areas. According to community representatives, any attempts to reduce payments will be seen as an infringement of their legal rights and an ignoring of the long-term consequences of the disaster.

It’s worth recalling that the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident occurred on April 26, 1986, and remains the largest man-made disaster in human history. The effects of the accident still impact the health and lives of thousands of people living in radiation-contaminated regions.