Death on the Silk Road 26:00, 1999 (Ref: AS98837)

Description

This extraordinary undercover film from China exposes the suffering of thousands of Chinese whose lives have been destroyed by nuclear testing.

It presents exclusive evidence from inside China of spiralling levels of cancer and birth deformities among the population of Xinjiang province – part of the Great Silk Road – which was opened to tourists in 1985.

Up until 1986, China had carried out extensive nuclear tests in the Xinjiang province, which is in the northwest corner of China, bordering Kazakhstan. But Xinjiang is not unpopulated and isolated, as was Bikini Atoll.

The film-makers interviewed both victims and the doctors who are struggling to cope with their medical problems in the region’s hospitals. The documentary reveals that the tests were carried out under highly dangerous conditions, which could have consequences beyond China’s borders.