The critical issue of safety

摘要

Films do not often cause diplomatic incidents. But in November last year the Czech Republic's ambassador to Austria protested against "The First Day", a fictional account of the aftermath of a nuclear accident at Dukovany, a real-life Czech plant near Austria's border. Austria voted in 1978 to ban nuclear power, and its public-service broadcaster showed the film to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the referendum. Not only is the Czech plant portrayed as a menace to Austrians, but the Czech authorities withhold vital information from their neighbours after the accident.rnAustria's longstanding fear of the atomic plants over the border demonstrates why nuclear safety is an international matter. After the accident at Chernobyl in 1986, which was caused by operator mistakes and which spread radiation beyond Ukraine across swathes of Europe, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) called for more global co-operation on safety. It introduced a Convention on Nuclear Safety and an improved set of safety standards.