Kiwi soldiers exposed to an insecticide in Malaysia that has inflicted health problems on their children will have a difficult time getting compensation, a class-action lawyer says.
Canterbury University researcher Professor Ian Shaw has found the soldiers' offspring were up to eight times more likely to get genital deformities and breast cancer. His research was published this month in the New Zealand Medical Journal.
About 3500 New Zealand soldiers were deployed during the Malayan Emergency from 1948 to 1960, fighting communists. The soldiers based in the jungles of Malaysia brushed the insecticide dibutylphthalate (DBP) on the seams of their uniforms to kill ticks and lice to avoid bush typhus.
Prof Shaw said the soldiers would have been in constant contact with the chemical.
"While the numbers are small in terms of absolute numbers, the statistical difference between normal people and those exposed to DBP is very significant."
Lawyer Grant Cameron told Radio New Zealand there were several legal obstacles to veterans claiming compensation.
Because the insecticide was used so long ago it might be difficult to find reliable witnesses and evidence. The veterans would also have to prove conclusively the chemical was to blame.
Mr Cameron said a better option might be to seek a Government inquiry.
Prof Shaw sent questionnaires to about 250 veterans but the response rate was low because they were elderly or unwell and some had died.
He said the boys born with reproductive deformities underwent successful surgery as children.
"But obviously breast cancer is very different," he said.
"Nobody knows how many generations will be affected and I would hope to be able to look into that."
The veterans have talked publicly in the past about seeking compensation.
NZN