The Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons | Le Réseau canadien pour l’abolition des armes nucléaires
That Covid-19 has created a new global reality is clear. If there is any positive aspect to this unfolding situation, it could be a deeper appreciation for the fact that the well-being of people throughout the world is inextricably linked. The COVID crisis might also serve as a cautionary tale, helping us to avoid other threats to humanity. Read the pdf
In a world that seems
every week to be further jettisoning
international law on global security as ugly
national populism rises, is there any hope
for the elimination of nuclear weapons?
Continue reading… Roche021920_ht
Izumi Nakamitsu
Dear Prime Minister:
Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, supported by more than 1,000 recipients of the Order of Canada, write once again to urge you and your Government to make nuclear arms control and disarmament a national priority. In this letter, we make specific suggestions, notably that Canada work diligently toward achieving an international consensus to save the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) at its Review Conference in 2020….. [continue reading: CNWC Letter to Prime Minister.Jan22-2020]
Open pdf attachment here: DROCHE_HT_Feb12_2020
Geneva (ICRC) – Millennials see catastrophic war as a real likelihood in their lifetime. In fact, most millennials surveyed by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) believe it is more likely than not that a nuclear attack will occur in the next decade.
See: https://www.icrc.org/en/document/majority-millennials-see-catastrophic-war-real-possibility
Nuclear Armageddon is the global peril that time forgot. But amid all the concern about environmental degradation, disarmament remains imperative, says Nobel laureate John Polanyi. Read full essay: Do more to prevent nuclear war
“To understand the extent of Canada’s retreat from staunch defender of meaningful steps towards increased nuclear restraint and eventual disarmament to the shocking role of U.S. nuclear weapons apologist, it is necessary to review the position of Canada in the context of the NPT and NATO.” (Peggy Mason is President of the Rideau Institute.)
Download pdf here: From nuclear disarmament stalwart to nuclear weapons apologist
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Opinion: Earl Turcotte,
Chair, Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
On June 19th, The Guardian and a host of other media reported that on June 11th the U.S. Joint Chiefs released a document simply entitled “Nuclear Operations”… Continued
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Nuclear Disarmament: Canadian Leadership Required
Open Letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
cc: All Members of Parliament and Senators
May 15, 2019
Dear Prime Minister,
The risk of nuclear catastrophe is growing and urgent action is required to prevent it.
Recent developments include: Continue reading “Open Letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau”
Tribute by Ernie Regehr: linked here
Murray Thomson was our friend, colleague, and mentor. He had the good fortune to lead a very long, productive, and exemplary life, and some of us had the very good fortune of sharing elements of it with him. The following brief tribute acknowledges his central role in launching the initiative we know as Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention and celebrates his life of activism and optimism in the face of the challenges that he felt so deeply. The way in which we truly honor him is to continue to pursue the kind of world that he imagined and never stopped pursuing. Continue reading…
Murray Thomson was relentless in his work for peace. He just never stopped. Even at 96, he was a force to be reckoned with. Only a few days before he died, he phoned to tell me he had some new ideas for nuclear disarmament, and why wasn’t I doing more to implement them? He challenged me all the time, and I was a better person for it. Murray’s contribution to a more peaceful world and particularly to a world freed of nuclear weapons was outstanding. And that is too weak a word. There was nobody else like him. Although his life was filled with peacemaking activities (when he wasn’t playing tennis or chess), I believe his crowning achievement was the creation of Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, an organization composed of more than 1,000 recipients of the Order of Canada calling on Canada to take a worldwide initiative for nuclear disarmament. The peace movement has lost a hero and our only proper response is to redouble our efforts.
— Douglas Roche
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC): https://www.icrc.org/en/nuclear-ban-treaty-no-to-nukes
The world today needs the promise of a future without fear of annihilation, and this promise is one step closer to becoming a reality with the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in 2017
Join us and say no to nuclear weapons.
WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
World Council of Churches “Statement on the Way of Just Peace” , Nov. 8, 2013, adopted by the WCC 10th Assembly
May 15, 2012 – NATO Summit: nuclear weapons in Europe.
A public statement by the general secretaryof the World Council of Churches.
Public Statement in Support of the Multilateral Negotitiona of a Nuclear Weapons Ban in 2017, submitted to the 2016 UN General Assembly First Committee by Faith Communities Concerned about the Humanitarian Consequences of Nuclear Weapons, Oct. 12, 2016, New York.
Statement on the need for churches’ vigilance against nuclear proliferation, March 1, 2007
issued by the Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches.
Statement on nuclear disarmament, NATO policy and the churches, January 2001, adopted by the Executive Committee.
Appeal on the occasion of the NATO Summit in Prague
14 November 2002, Letter to foreign ministers of the non-nuclear member states of NATO, 14 November 2002.
Religions for Peace
Media Release: Faith Communities Say End the Danger and Moral Tyranny of Nuclear Weapons, Vienna, Austria; 8 December 2014
Pax Christi International
An appeal to the Catholic church to recommit to the centrality of Gospel nonviolence
CANADIAN COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
Dec. 21, 2018 – Canadian Council of Churches (26 denominations) letter to Prime Minister Trudeau regarding Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,
Oct. 6, 2017 – Canadian Council of Churches letter to The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Justice re Canada’s absence from multilateral process to ban nuclear weapons.
August 10, 2016 – Canadian Council of Churches letter to Minister Dion on Nuclear Disarmament and the Open-Ended Working Group.
April 24, 2015 – General Secretary on behalf of the Canadian Council of Churches to letter to The Honorable Rob Nicholson, Minister of Foreign Affairs re 2015 NPT Review Conference.
April 10, 2014 – General Secretary on behalf of the Canadian Council of Churches letter to The Honorable John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs re Nuclear Weapons
June 25, 2010 – Canadian Council of Churches letter to Prime Minister Harper regarding a World Without Nuclear Weapons
What do Pope Francis’ Statements on uclear Weapons mean for Ctholics in the military?
Sojourners article by Tobias Winright. Reviews statements by the Pope.
MILITARY STATEMENTS ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS
“US military leaders would reject illegal order for nuclear strike, senators told,” The Guardian, Nov. 14, 2017
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/nov/14/us-military-nuclear-weapons-strike-senate-trump
As senators raise concerns about ‘unstable’ Donald Trump’s decision-making, former commander says military is ‘not obligated to follow illegal orders’
Dec. 6, 2014 – Statement by US General (Ret) Lee Butler speaks for a ban on nuclear weapons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBgF-2HK8H0
Statement by Generals and Admirals of the World Against Nuclear Weapons , December 5, 1996.
Address by General Lee Butler to Canadian Peaceworkers, March 11, 1999, Ottawa.
https://www.cnanw.ca/1999/03/11/voices/
General Lee Butler, Remarks to National Press Club, Dec. 5, 1996
https://nuclearweaponarchive.org/News/Butlpress.txt
Joint Statement on Reduction of Nuclear Weapons Arsenals: Declining Utility, Continuing Risks by Generals Lee Butler and Andrew J. Goodpaster, Dec. 4, 1996, National Press Club
http://prop1.org/2000/gengood.htm
Letter to Bill Graham M.P., Chair, Standing Committee on oreign Affairs and International Trade from Lee Butler, General, USAF, Ret., July 1998
http://www.ccnr.org/scfait_recs.html
Douglas Roche: Church leaders step into political realm to show they’re serious about scrapping nukes. Feb 6, The Hill Times … Roche_HTFeb6,2019
From Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention
Jan 24, 2019
Dear Prime Minister,
We write to urge, in the strongest terms, you and your government to publicly and prominently call on all the parties to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty to ensure that it is preserved.
De Rassemblement canadien pour une convention sur les armes nucléaires
Monsieur le Premier Ministre,
Nous vous envoyons cette lettre pour vous exhorter, ainsi que votre gouvernement, à inciter – publiquement et fermement – toutes les parties au Traité de limitation des armes nucléaires à moyenne portée (traité INF) à faire en sorte qu’il soit maintenu.
PDF here/ici: 2018-01-24-CNWCINF Letter to PM
January 31, 2017
Dear Prime Minister Trudeau,
RE: Canadian Emergency Response Plan
With the Presidency of Mr. Trump, we are urgently seeking your engagement in an emergency response plan to confront the possible use of nuclear weapons by President Trump. He has been quoted as saying “If we have [nuclear weapons], why can’t we use them?” President Trump has joined the small group of “leaders” who claim the right to kill millions of people to protect their country’s interests. It is clear he is a man of little patience, no diplomatic expertise, no military or conflict resolutions skills. His control of “the button” places the global community in grave danger.
We call on you to use your considerable skill in inspiring communications and clear thinking to urgently lessen and eliminate the nuclear threat. We believe you have the capacity to ensure a more secure future for your family and our families, and indeed the global family.
More specifically, we would propose that you personally take these steps:
1. During your first meeting with President Trump, propose a Reykjavik-style bilateral summit between him and President Putin to discuss how they could further reduce nuclear arsenals and work together to pursue global nuclear disarmament.
2. Publicly commend President Xi’s proposal for nuclear disarmament, to press China for CTBT ratification and to actively explore with China ways to pursue nuclear disarmament on an urgent basis.
3. Seek cooperation with like-minded leaders of NATO member states to promote reduced Allied reliance on a nuclear deterrent and to make an active contribution to creating the conditions necessary for a “world without nuclear weapons”.
4. Direct Canadian diplomats to engage in upcoming negotiations on a legal instrument prohibiting nuclear weapons and in all other processes that will advance nuclear disarmament
5. Strongly support public advocacy on the increased threat of a nuclear weapons exchange and the need for urgent work toward nuclear disarmament.
We recognize the load on you has been heavy but want to assure you that should a nuclear exchange occur, a legacy of environmental agreements and pipelines will be irrelevant. There can be no greater 150th Birthday gift to Canada than one of increased security for Canadians and the global community.
Respectfully,
Bev Tollefson Delong
Chairperson, Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
This letter has been endorsed by the following groups:
Canadian Peace Initiative(CPI)
Canadian Pugwash Group
Physicians for Global Survival
Religions for Peace Canada
Vancouver Island Peace and Disarmament Network
Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, Nanaimo Chapter
