Moral injury: the key to justice for nuclear veterans

I began to use the term of moral injury in external circles to engage in conversation including with the Office for Veterans’ Affairs The day after I wrote to the then Minister for Defence People and Veterans’, Leo Docherty, about this, he mentioned moral injury during a televised Defence Select Committee meeting. The Cabinet Office Director told me he was taken by surprise as this hadn’t been agreed. During 2022, I had the privilege of being interviewed on multiple occasions on BBC national television and radio about the work of the BNTVA and related moral injury As the daughter of a nuclear test veteran, I really felt and continue to feel this first hand, and that is why I will continue to speak out about this human rights contravention

By Ceri Marsh

Over the years, I have listened to dozens of British, US and Commonwealth nuclear test veterans relate their first-hand experiences of the tests and radiation clean ups during the 1950s through to the 1970s French and Chinese surveillance flights I am familiar with the patterns of explanation, reminiscent of my nuclear veteran father’s experience, and the uniqueness of each account I never tire of these stories and that is why when I commenced my tenure as Chair of the BNTVA, I stressed the importance of collating personal histories of nuclear veterans Hence the BNTVA joined the Oral History Society at that time. Narratives remain consistent about how our nuclear veterans felt and are aggrieved at “being volunteered”, “subjected to” and “told” to witness radioactive bombs of varying sizes and concoctions. I read accounts of US atomic veterans who were described as experiencing Radiation Response Syndrome, so I reached out and just over two years ago I received a private message from a veteran working in the NHS saying, “I think the term you’re looking for is moral injury.”

This person had hit the nail on the head! Moral injury explains that a transgression has occurred, and a violation has been committed by a higher power or institution. It features an act of betrayal, act of omission or act of commission In the case of the nuclear veteran, the betrayal is defined as an act of the government subjecting a person to harm which changes one’s life-long outlook negatively, the act of omission constitutes a lack or insufficiency of protective clothing and the act of commission covers a lack of choice in being exposed to live radioactive combat conditions during a time of no actual conflict.

Last year I was approached by Ian Foulkes, Porton Down veteran. Ian served in the Royal Signals and in 1983, aged 19, he was volunteered (that phrase again) to attend the Porton Down science facility He was placed in a chamber, given a respirator to aid his breathing and two drops of sarin nerve agent were placed on his arm, with very distressing results

I was familiar with Porton Down testing and the apparent search for a cure for the common cold by government scientists but on meeting Ian I read about a far bigger issue of human experimentation than just nuclear testing. The UK government has been experimenting on its troops since the First World War; over 20,000 British service personnel were subjected to chemical and biological testing by the government between 1916-1989, as well as thousands of civilians When individuals spoke out about these occurrences, the MOD, described these experiments as “for the greater good” despite evidence that Royal Engineers were subjected to LSD testing at Porton Down in 1964, which caused life-long neuropsychiatric effects.

This is why Michelle Harding and I have set up BREACHED, which stands for Biological, Radiological, Ethical Abuse, Chemical Harm and Ethical Detriment

BREACHED will address arising issues about ethics within artificial Intelligence and human augmentation. BREACHED has begun working with individuals and communities, including nuclear test veterans, to provide welfare services and counselling where needed through our affiliation with Forces Online CIO If you want to know more please contact Michelle and me through Fissionline or contact us direct at:- ceri.marsh@forcesonline.org.uk or michelle.harding@forcesonline.org.uk