Page One | Page Two | Page Three | Page Four | Page Five
"You can’t disinvent nuclear weapons” is the comment we often hear when we are on the stall, "You can’t wish them away.”
The inference from this is that, because the knowledge exists, we inevitably have to produce them, maintain them and threaten to use them.
And yet, we have to remind ourselves, the “we” is actually only a small, albeit in many cases powerful, number of countries which have them - the US, the UK, China, Russia, France, India, Pakistan, Israel, with question marks over North Korea and Iran. The rest of the world has decided that they are not necessary to its defence.
ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) is a new campaign initiated by the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, a federation of medical professionals in 60 countries. It worked for many years across the Cold War divide and it is now turning its attention to what it sees as the root of the problem – the continued possession of nuclear weapons by the countries mentioned above, who risk their use by design, accident, miscalculation of terrorists, and whose weapons are an incentive to others to become nuclear armed.
The aim is to achieve a Nuclear Weapons Convention to ban the development, possession and use of nuclear weapons in just the same way that chemical and biological weapons are banned.
Working with organisations such as CND, the organisation hopes to bring nuclear weapons abolition on to the UN agenda, and therefore on to the agenda of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review which will take place in 2010.
Preparation meetings for this are already taking place in Vienna where
CND is always well represented, numbering MPs in its delegation.
The statement from IPPNW begins with the following paragraph:
“As doctors and medical professionals, we are committed to life and healing As a consequence, we are committed to the prevention of the devastation of warfare and the establishment of global security frameworks that promote rather than undermine human and environmental well being.”
Nuclear weapons are not like other weapons – there is no other weapon that can kill hundreds of millions of people in a few hours and bring about the end of human civilisation. There is no other weapon which leaves behind such a toxic legacy which goes on killing people years after it has been used. Just 50 of today’s total of 27,000 nuclear weapons could kill 200 million people.
CND is now combining its No to Trident Renewal petition with a plea to people to sign up to the proposal for the nuclear weapons convention. People power does matter and there is increasing evidence that ordinary citizens throughout the world want to see an end to nuclear arsenals.
Brentwood CND will be campaigning on this issue in the Autumn. And asking the public to sign the petition. It you possibly can, do come and help at the stall. We shall only go ahead with this if we get enough offers of help so that we have an effective presence in the High Street. Please try to find an hour and a half or your time on at least one of the Saturdays.
THESE WILL BE HELD ON THE FOLLOWING SATURDAYS FROM 11AM -12.30PM BY BECKETT CHAPEL IN THE HIGH STREET
Saturday 1 September, Saturday 15 September,
Saturday 6 October, Saturday 20 October
Please let Jill know straightaway – 216712 or jilldimmock@hotmail.com-
if you are able to help
Published by Brentwood CND (Jill Dimmock) c/o 26 Mascalls Gardens, Brentwood CM14 5LT