ADI ROCHE

Adi Roche, nacida o 11 de xullo de 1955 en Clonmel, Tipperary, Irlanda, é unha activista antinuclear, fundadora e directora executiva voluntaria de Chernobyl Children International dende 1991, unha organización que proporciona axuda humanitaria aos nenos afectados polo accidente de Chernóbil de Ucraína, Belarús, e o oeste de Rusia. Adi leva máis de 40 anos en activo como voluntaria, firmemente comprometida cos nenos afectados pola catástrofe e dedicada a loitar pola paz e pola xustiza social.

O 26 de abril de 1986 tivo lugar o que foi o peor accidente nuclear do mundo: unha explosión na central nuclear de Chernóbil en Ucraína do norte, que lanzou 190 toneladas de uranio radioactivo e grafito ao aire; é dicir, 200 veces máis radiación cás dúas bombas atómicas de Hiroshima e Nagasaki. Soamente o 3% do material letal do reactor foi expulsado; o 97% restante segue contido no sarcófago inestable que se construíu, que está en perigo de derrubarse, e continúa sendo unha bomba de reloxería. O 70% da radiación caeu sobre a poboación de Belarús, afectando a sete millóns de persoas.

700.000 homes, coñecidos coma “liquidadores”, foron chamados a conter a situación, sendo expostos a doses masivas de radiación. Polo menos 40.000 morreron e 70.000 quedaron discapacitados.

O 99% da terra de Belarús foi contaminada. 2.000 cidades e pobos foron evacuados e máis de 400.000 persoas foron trasladadas. Décadas despois, outras 70.000 aínda agardan ser evacuadas. A contaminación da terra é a ameaza máis grande para a saúde, pois o Cesio 137 chega ao corpo humano pola cadea alimenticia.

O custo e as consecuencias da explosión foron asumidas polos superviventes, e serán transmitidos aos seus fillos durante xeracións. 1,7 millóns viven na pobreza, e os nenos son os sector máis pobre da poboación. En Belarús, 2 millóns de persoas, das cales 500.000 son nenos, aínda viven en zonas moi contaminadas, constantemente expostos á radioactividade a través da cadea alimenticia.

A primeira fase do plan para conter o dano causado por este desastre é a construción dunha nova estrutura que protexerá o reactor durante 100 anos, pero a vida media dalgúns dos elementos radioactivos máis perigosos aloxados no núcleo dos reactores ten unha vida útil de ata 24.400 anos. A segunda fase consiste en desmantelar o reactor e eliminar de forma segura máis de 200 toneladas de material radioactivo. A limpeza aínda non comezou, e pode levar moitos anos. O custo do novo sarcófago e da limpeza ascende a 1.500 millóns de euros ata o momento.

Adi traballou durante varios anos na compañía aérea nacional irlandesa, Aer Lingus, e despois empezou a traballar a tempo completo como voluntaria para a Campaña Irlandesa para o Desarme Nuclear. Elaborou un Programa de Educación para a Paz e impartiuno en máis de cincuenta escolas de toda Irlanda, promovendo a paz e a cidadanía activa.

Comezou a traballar polas vítimas e superviventes de Chernóbil xusto despois do desastre en 1986, e fundou formalmente Chernobyl Children International en resposta a unha solicitude de axuda por parte de médicos belarusos. En 1991, recibiu un fax que dicía: “Petición SOS. Por Deus, axúdanos a sacar aos nenos”. Xa pasaran cinco anos dende o desastre nuclear, e moita xente cría que o perigo rematara, e comezaran a esquecer aos millóns de nenos e adultos forzados a vivir coas súas secuelas letais. Ese ano, alistando a familias irlandesas que coidarían deles, comezou a organizar vacacións de descanso e recuperación para un grupo de nenos de Chernóbil que vivían nun ambiente altamente tóxico e radioactivo.

Chernobyl Children International ten aportado dende 1986 axudas valoradas en 108 millóns de euros a persoas empobrecidas nestas rexións; grazas ao seu programa de Descanso e Recuperación, 26.500 nenos teñen desfrutado vacacións con familias de acollida en Irlanda. Mediante a compra e renovación de 30 casas, a organización proporcionou unha alternativa equivalente a pechar tres orfanatos en Belarús. CCI puxo en marcha un programa de Vida Independente para rapaces que viven en institucións para adultos. Tamén desenvolveu un programa de cirurxía cardíaca infantil en Belarús e Ucraína para combater o marcado incremento dos defectos cardíacos de nacemento, levando a cabo 4.000 cirurxías nos últimos doce anos. Ademais construíu un hospicio para bebés, 10 centros de día, e liderou un acordo de adopción entre Irlanda e Belarús ,en nome do Goberno de Irlanda. CCI foi pioneira na defensa dos dereitos humanos dos nenos nacidos con discapacidades mentais e físicas recluídos en institucións.

A organización apóiase na contribución de miles de voluntarios organizados nos seus programas, e está supervisada por unha xunta directiva que inclúe a Adi e a outras activistas coma Ali Hewson.

Ademáis do seu traballo en CCI, Adi Roche traballou coas Nacións Unidas para facer visibles as consecuencias do desastre de Chernóbil. En 2001, no decimoquinto aniversario do accidente, presentou a exposición “Black Wind, White Land” na sede das Nacións Unidas en Nova York, con obras de artistas que representaron o sufrimento causado polo desastre. Tamén impartiu diversas conferencias ao longo dos anos, coma no décimo oitavo aniversario do accidente, cando se proxectou o documental “Chernobyl Heart”. Ademais aportou consellos e suxestións sobre como se pode axudar mellor ás ONGs que traballan na rexión afectada.

En 2016, no trixésimo aniversario do desastre, deu un discurso fundamental na Asemblea Xeral das Nacións Unidas en Nova York. Nun xesto sen precedentes, a delegación belarusa nas Nacións Unidas cedeulle o seu tempo de palabra no debate sobre Chernóbil, en recoñecemento ao rol internacional que Irlanda e Chernobyl Children International desempeñaron en axudar ás vítimas da catástrofe. Como resultado directo do seu discurso, as Nacións Unidas ratificaron o “Legado Persistente do desastre de Chernóbil”, un elemento simbólico da implantación do “Día Internacional de Recordo do Desastre de Chernóbil”.

O 24 de febreiro de 2022 Rusia invadiu Ucraína, nun recrudecemento da guerra que empezou en 2014. Miles de tropas rusas en ruta a Kíiv atravesaron a Zona de Exclusión de Chernóbil, o entorno máis tóxico do mundo, que abarca un radio de 30 km arredor do lugar do accidente, en camións, tanques e vehículos blindados, levantando nubes de po. Entraron nas instalacións do reactor e nos edificios cercanos, saqueando e estragando todo o que podían atopar. A pesar das advertencias dos científicos do reactor, adentráronse no "Bosque Vermello" (chamado así pola cor que adquiriron as árbores) sen protección e cavaron trincheiras, refuxios para tanques, centros de mando e cociñas subterráneas, o que provocou que se desenterraran algunhas das 600 "tumbas nucleares" que conteñen material mortífero e altamente radioactivo do desastre de 1986. Despois de cinco semanas de ocupación, marcharon enfermos pola radiación, deixando un caos tras de sí: saquearon e destrozaron unhas instalacións de control de radioactividade da Unión Europea; roubaron pequenos instrumentos radioactivos que poden queimar a pel en dous minutos; puxeron minas con cables trampa na zona,  e os niveis de radiación eleváronse de xeito alarmante, poñendo á poboación en risco extremo de contaminarse.

Adi expresou o seu temor ante esta situación, equiparándoa a facer unha ameaza nuclear mortal sen expresala verbalmente, e a unha forma de chantaxear ao mundo; tamén manifestou o seu pavor a que o próximo Chernóbil poida ser o propio Chernóbil.

O catro de marzo de 2022 os rusos ocuparon a planta de Zaporizhia, no sur de Ucraína, a máis grande do continente. A planta foi alcanzada por unha serie de bombardeos desencadeando explosións e  incendios, e as forzas ucraínas e rusas culpáronse mutuamente dos ataques. Nunha situación sen precedentes, estase levando a cabo unha guerra nun país con instalacións nucleares. O risco de contaminación radiactiva da rexión ou dunha catástrofe nuclear é moi alto. Actualmente, a planta continúa ocupada polos rusos. Aínda que os seis reactores da central están en parada fría, as instalacións cada vez se deterioran máis e o risco continúa sendo moi alto debido aos constantes ataques.

En 2022, Adi Roche instou ao Goberno irlandés a facer presión na Corte Internacional de Xustiza da Haia para que calquera ataque a unha instalación nuclear sexa declarado crime de guerra. Tamén pediu que todas as instalacións nucleares sexan consideradas zona sen guerra, e solicitou ao goberno irlandés que actúe de intermediario para conseguir un alto ao lume, e a paz mediante a diplomacia. Ademais diso, pediu ás organizacións de mulleres en Irlanda e no mundo que centren a súa atención na vulnerabilidade das mulleres e dos nenos que foxen da guerra. Nos tres últimos anos, Adi continou reivindicando o mesmo e alzando a súa voz pola paz e a xustiza social.

Dende 2022, A planta de Zaporizhia sufriu polo menos 6 episodios de ataques importantes, sen contar os incidentes diarios repetidos e os cortes de subministración eléctrica. Trátase de múltiples ataques con drons, bombardeos e incidentes de cortes de subministración eléctrica causados ​​polos ataques. En varias ocasións foi imposible determinar quen os levou a cabo, e as forzas ucraínas e rusas culpáronse mutuamente .

Dende que empezou o conflito, Adi e Chernobyl Children International continuaron enviando equipos cirúrxicos especializados, que se aventuran en zonas de conflito para realizar cirurxías urxentes a bebés e nenos con defectos cardíacos conxénitos, incluída a afección coñecida como "Corazón de Chernóbil". Tamén seguiron levando a cabo programas en Belarús, e traballaron freneticamente para enviar axuda humanitaria, que inclúe alimentos, auga e medicamentos, aos nenos e ás súas familias atrapados na rexión de Chernóbil. Ademais diso, debido a que hai máis de cinco anos que non poden sacalos do seu país, organizaron campamentos de verán nun lugar seguro nos montes Cárpatos para nenos que sofren problemas de saúde mental, e todas as demais consecuencias de vivir nunha zona de guerra. Chernobyl Children International é a única ONG recoñecida pola ONU que traballa na zona.

CCI organizou eventos de recadación de fondos en Irlanda, incluíndo recentemente o "Liz and Noel’s Chernobyl Lunch" en abril de 2025, ao que asistiron estrelas irlandesas, e que se celebrou para apoiar os programas en curso do CCI. Malia a crecente demanda de misións cirúrxicas en Ucraína, CCI continuou destacando os desafíos da recadación de fondos, facendo fincapé en que o cambio do centro de atención dos medios a outras crises dificultaba cada vez máis a recadar apoio.

En marzo de 2024, Adi recolleu o Ahmadiyya Muslim Peace Prize en recoñecemento á súa contribución para o avance da causa da paz, durante toda a súa vida. Aínda que lle foi outorgado en 2020, a pandemia retrasou a súa presentación, que tivo lugar no Simposio Nacional da Paz na mesquita Baitul Futuh, en Londres, unha das mesquitas máis grandes de Europa. Durante o seu discurso de aceptación, lanzou unha clara advertencia sobre os riscos nucleares do conflito ucraíno, e instou á comunidade internacional a non abandonar Ucraína en medio de perigos crecentes.

En outubro de 2024, CCI e Adi Roche doaron os seus arquivos (incluíndo rexistros, correspondencia e arquivos multimedia) que abarcan cinco décadas á University College Cork, documentando a evolución e o impacto da organización.

En decembro de 2024, Adi Roche foi investida con Doutoramento Honoris Causa pola University College Cork. Anna Gabriel, Raisa Carolan e Marharyta Marozova, tres sobreviventes cuxas vidas a CCI axudou a transformar asistiron á cerimonia.

O 14 de febreiro de 2025 un dron ruso impactou contra o Novo Sarcófago Seguro sobre o reactor 4, creando unha brecha e iniciando un incendio, aínda que non houbo fugas de radiación. Ese mesmo día, Adi emitiu un comunicado no que pedía que se detivera a guerra e se declarase a Chernóbil e todas as centrais nucleares como zonas sen guerra. Así, afirmaba: "En nome de toda a humanidade e como primeiro paso cara ás negociacións de paz, fago un chamamento para que a mortal e tóxica central nuclear de Chernóbil, cos seus miles de toneladas e galóns de material altamente radioactivo, deixe de ser obxectivo nin de ser utilizada como zona de bombardeos, bombardeos e combates terrestres segundo o Convenio da Haia. O meu peor pesadelo neste conflito é que a traxedia do desastre de Chernóbil poida volver a ser liberada sobre o mundo. Temo que esta zona, unha zona sagrada, unha zona de absoluta vulnerabilidade e perigo, unha zona especial de traxedia humana, poida volver ter unha contaminación radioactiva mortal que se estendería por todas partes, coma un monstro grande e incontrolable."

O 24 de febreiro, no terceiro aniversario da guerra, Adi emitiu outro comunicado advertindo do risco catastrófico, e avogando polo recoñecemento do Ecocidio (a destrucción deliberada do medio ambiente, empregada como arma de guerra dirixida e sistemática) como crime de guerra ante o Tribunal Penal Internacional.

Tamén conmemorou o Día Internacional das Nacións Unidas en Recordo do Desastre de Chernóbil (26 de abril), que en 2025 marcou o seu 39 aniversario, cun comunicado no que advertía da crecente ameaza que supón a militarización de instalacións nucleares como Chernóbil e Zaporizhia no medio da guerra en curso en Ucraína, e condenaba os recentes ataques a estas instalacións como actos de "terrorismo nuclear" que sentaron un perigoso precedente. Adi seguía instando aos líderes mundiais a declarar todas as instalacións nucleares como zonas sen guerra e avogando pola paz para evitar outra catástrofe.

Texto publicado orixinalmente: 30/04/2021 

Texto actualizado: 11/07/2025 

Adi Roche, born on July 11, 1955 in Clonmel, Tipperary, Ireland, is an anti-nuclear activist, founder and voluntary CEO of Chernobyl Children International since 1991, an organization that provides humanitarian aid to children affected by the Chernobyl accident in Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia. Adi has been active as a volunteer for more than 40 years, firmly committed to children affected by the disaster and dedicated to fighting for peace and social justice.

On April 26, 1986, the world's worst nuclear accident took place: an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in northern Ukraine, which released 190 tons of radioactive uranium and graphite into the air; that is, 200 times more radiation than the two Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs. Only 3% of the lethal material from the reactor was expelled; the remaining 97% is still contained in the unstable sarcophagus that was built, which is in danger of collapsing, and remains a ticking time bomb. 70% of the radiation fell on the population of Belarus, affecting seven million people.

700,000 men, known as "liquidators", were called to contain the situation, being exposed to massive doses of radiation. At least 40,000 died and 70,000 are disabled.

99% of the land of Belarus was contaminated. 2,000 cities and towns were evacuated and more than 400,000 people were relocated. Decades later, another 70,000 are still waiting to be evacuated. Earth pollution is the biggest threat to health, as Caesium 137 reaches the human body through the food chain.

The cost and consequences of the explosion were carried by the survivors, and will be passed on to their children for generations. 1.7 million live in poverty, and children are the poorest sector of the population. In Belarus, 2 million people, of whom 500,000 are children, still live in heavily contaminated zones, constantly exposed to radioactivity through the food chain.

The first phase of the plan to contain the damage caused by this disaster is the construction of a new structure that will protect the reactor for 100 years, but the half-life of some of the most dangerous radioactive elements housed within the reactors core have lifespans of up to 24,400 years. The second phase is to dismantle the reactor and safely dispose of more than 200 tons of radioactive material. Cleaning has not yet begun, and it may take many years to come. The cost of the new sarcophagus and cleaning amounts to 1.5 billion euros so far.

Adi worked for several years in the Ireland's national airline, Aer Lingus, and then she began working full-time as a volunteer for the Irish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. She developed a Peace Education Programme in over fifty schools across Ireland, promoting peace and active citizenship.

She started working for Chernobyl victims and survivors right after the disaster in 1986, and she formally founded Chernobyl Children International in response to a request for help from Belarusian doctors. In 1991, she received a fax stating: “SOS appeal. For god's sake, please help us get the children out”. It had been five years since the nuclear disaster, and many people believed that the danger was over, and had begun to forget the millions of children and adults forced to live with its lethal aftermath. That year, recruiting Irish families who would take care of them, she began organizing rest and recuperation holidays for a group of Chernobyl children who lived in a highly toxic and radioactive environment.

Since 1986, Chernobyl Children International has provided aid valued at 108 million euros to impoverished people in these regions; thanks to its Rest and Recovery program, 26,500 children have enjoyed holidays with host families in Ireland. By purchasing and renovating 30 houses, the organization provided an equivalent alternative to closing three orphanages in Belarus. CCI has launched an Independent Living program for boys living in adult institutions. It has also developed a pediatric cardiac surgery program in Belarus and Ukraine to combat the marked increase in cardiac birth defects, carrying out 4,000 surgeries in the last twelve years. It also built a baby hospice, 10 day care centers, and led an adoption agreement between Ireland and Belarus, on behalf of the Government of Ireland. CCI has pioneered the defense of the human rights of children born with mental and physical disabilities incarcerated in institutions.

The organization relies on the contribution of thousands of organized volunteers in its programs, and is overseen by a board of directors that includes Adi and other activists like Ali Hewson.

In addition to her work at CCI, Adi Roche worked with the United Nations to make visible the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. In 2001, on the fifteenth anniversary of the accident, she presented the exhibition “Black Wind, White Land” at the United Nations headquarters in New York, with artworks by artists who represented the suffering caused by the disaster. She has also given several conferences over the years, such as on the eighteenth anniversary of the accident, when the documentary "Chernobyl Heart" was screened. She also provided advice and suggestions on how best to help NGOs working in the affected region.

In 2016, on the thirtieth anniversary of the disaster, she made a landmark address at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. In an unprecedented move, the Belarussian United Nations delegation gave her their speaking time at the discussion on Chernobyl, in recognition of the international role that Ireland and Chernobyl Children International have played in helping the victims of the catastrophe. As a direct result of her address, the United Nations ratified the "Persistent Legacy of Chernobyl Disaster", a symbolic element of the implementation of the "International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day".

On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, in an escalation of the war that began in 2014. Thousands of Russian troops en route to Kyiv crossed the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, the most toxic environment in the world, which covers a radius of 30 km around the scene of the accident, in trucks, tanks and armored vehicles, raising clouds of dust. They broke into the reactor facility and nearby buildings, looting and destroying everything they could find. Despite the warnings of the reactor scientists, they went into the "Red Forest" (so named because of the color the trees had acquired) without protection and dug trenches, tank shelters, command centers and underground kitchens, unearthing some of the 600 "nuclear graves" containing deadly and highly radioactive material from the 1986 disaster. After five weeks of occupation, they left sickened by radiation, leaving chaos behind: they looted and destroyed a European Union radioactivity control facility; they stole small radioactive instruments that can burn skin in two minutes; they laid landmines with trip wires in the area, and radiation levels rose alarmingly, putting the population at extreme risk of contamination.

Adi expressed her fear before this situation, equating it to making a deadly nuclear threat without expressing it verbally, and to a way of blackmailing the world; she also voiced her dread that the next Chernobyl could be Chernobyl itself.

On March 4, 2022, the Russians occupied the plant in Zaporizhia, in southern Ukraine, the largest on the continent. The plant was hit by a series of bombings triggering explosions and fires, with Ukrainian and Russian forces blaming each other for the attacks. In an unprecedented situation, a war is being waged in a country with nuclear facilities. The risk of radioactive contamination of the region or of a nuclear catastrophe is very high. Currently, the plant is still occupied by the Russians. Although the plant's six reactors are in cold shutdown, the facilities are deteriorating more and more and the risk remains very high due to the constant attacks.

In 2022, Adi Roche urged the Irish Government to lobby the International Court of Justice in The Hague for any attack on a nuclear facility to be declared a war crime. She also called for all nuclear facilities to be considered no war zones, and asked the Irish government to act as an intermediary to achieve a ceasefire, and peace through diplomacy. In addition, she called on women's organizations in Ireland and around the world to focus their attention on the vulnerability of women and children fleeing war. In the last three years, Adi has continued to claim the same and raise her voice for peace and social justice.

Since 2022, the Zaporizhia plant has suffered at least 6 major attacks, leaving aside repeated daily incidents and power outages. These include multiple drone strikes, bombings, and power outages caused by the attacks. In several cases, it has been impossible to determine who carried them out, with Ukrainian and Russian forces blaming each other.

Since the conflict began, Adi and Chernobyl Children International have continued to send specialized surgical teams, who brave conflict zones to perform emergency surgeries on babies and children with congenital heart defects, including the condition known as “Chernobyl Heart.” They have also continued to run programs in Belarus, and have worked frantically to send humanitarian aid, including food, water, and medicine, to children and their families trapped in the Chernobyl region. On top of that, because they haven't been able to take them out of their country for over five years, they've organized summer camps in a safe place in the Carpathian Mountains for children who suffer from mental health issues, and all the other consequences of living in a war zone. Chernobyl Children International is the only UN-recognized NGO working in the area.

CCI has organised fundraising events in Ireland, including the recent “Liz and Noel’s Chernobyl Lunch” in April 2025, which was attended by Irish stars and was held to support CCI’s ongoing programmes. Despite the growing demand for surgical missions in Ukraine, CCI has continued to highlight the challenges of fundraising, emphasising that the shift in media attention to other crises has made it increasingly difficult to raise support.

In March 2024, Adi collected the Ahmadiyya Muslim Peace Prize in recognition of her lifelong contribution to advancing the cause of peace. Although it was awarded in 2020, the pandemic delayed its presentation, which took place at the National Peace Symposium at the Baitul Futuh Mosque in London, one of the largest mosques in Europe. During her acceptance speech, she issued a stark warning about the nuclear risks of the Ukrainian conflict, and urged the international community not to abandon Ukraine amid growing dangers.

In October 2024, CCI and Adi Roche donated their archives (including records, correspondence and media) spanning five decades to University College Cork, documenting the evolution and impact of the organisation.

In December 2024, Adi Roche was conferred with an Honorary Doctorate by University College Cork. Anna Gabriel, Raisa Carolan and Marharyta Marozova, three survivors whose lives CCI helped transform attended the ceremony.

On February 14, 2025, a Russian drone hit the New Safe Confinement over reactor 4, creating a breach and starting a fire, although no radiation was released. That same day, Adi issued a statement calling for the war to stop and for Chernobyl and all nuclear power plants to be declared no war zones. She stated: "I appeal, on behalf of all humanity and as a first-step towards peace negotiations, that the deadly and toxic Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, with its thousands of tons and gallons of highly radioactive material, no longer be targeted, or used as an area of shelling, bombardment, and ground fighting under the Hague Convention. My worst nightmare in this conflict is that the tragedy of the Chernobyl disaster could be re-released on the world.   I fear that this area, a sacred area, an area of utter vulnerability and danger, a special area of human tragedy, could once again, have deadly radioactive contamination released which would spread everywhere, like a great and uncontrollable monster."

On February 24, on the third anniversary of the war, Adi issued another statement warning of the catastrophic risk, and advocating for the recognition of Ecocide (the deliberate destruction of the environment, used as a targeted and systematic weapon of war) as a war crime before the International Criminal Court.

She also commemorated the United Nations International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day (April 26), which in 2025 marked its 39th anniversary, with a statement warning of the growing threat posed by the militarization of nuclear facilities such as Chernobyl and Zaporizhia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, and condemning the recent attacks on these facilities as acts of "nuclear terrorism" that set a dangerous precedent. Adi continued to urge world leaders to declare all nuclear facilities as no war zones and advocate for peace to avoid another catastrophe.

Text originally published : 30/04/2021

Updated text: 11/07/2025