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WHAT'S NEW IN INES? |
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No. 10/1999 |
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Dateline: 7 March 1999 |
WNII is an electronic information service of INES,
the International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility
Editor: Tobias Damjanov, e-mail: < >
INES homepage: http://www.mindspring.com/~us016262/ines.html
INES International Office < >
INES Chair Prof. Armin Tenner < >
''Challenges for Science and Engineering in the 21st Century'' Stockholm, 14-18 June 2000
http://www.ines2000.org
Congress-related queries: mailto < >
CONTENTS
INES MEMBERSHIP UPDATE
Do not forget to inform us about changes of your email address or your homepage!
From the Editor: Offering sources re new strategy of NATO^
In recent months, I have collected quite a number of articles assessing the plans to adopt a new NATO strategy at the NATO Summit in Washington at the end of April this year. For those interested in this subject, I can make available a list of these articles upon request so as to make a choice which article(s) you would like to receive. Just send a message to <> with "List NATO articles" in the subject line.
Yours, Tobias Damjanov
MEMBER ORGANISATIONS' + PROJECT GROUPS' NEWS ^
USA: Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF), The Sunflower, No. 22, March 1999^
http://www.wagingpeace.org/the_sunflower.html
The latest edition of The Sunflower covers the following:
For subscription information, !!! mailto < >
All issues of The Sunflower are on the web at the homepage indicated above.
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
Abolition 2000 homepage: http://www.abolition2000.org
For the latest nuclear weapons abolition grassroots news, visit: http://www.napf.org/abolition2000/news/
Support Kochi Governor for Nuclear-Free Ports! Request for message to Governor of Kochi (Japan) fighting for nuclear-free ports
On March 15, Kochi Prefectural Assembly will vote on the Governor Hashimoto's proposal to revise the prefectural ordinance. The new ordinance, if adopted, will urge the Japanese government to send a certificate to the Kochi prefecture to confirm that a foreign warship coming into any port under Kochi prefecture will not carry nuclear weapons. Given the power relationship in the prefectural assembly, chances of the proposed "nuclear-free ordinance" to be adopted are fifty-fifty. Strong support for Governor Daijiro Hashimoto (brother of former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto) and protests against the pressure by the Japanese Government are crucial.
This nuclear-free port initiative is based on the "Three Non-Nuclear Principles (not to possess, produce or allow bringing-into Japan of nuclear arms)," which was adopted by the National Diet and was declared as national policy by the Japanese Government. The proposed ordinance has an attached administrative document, which announces that the prefectural government seeks from the Foreign Ministry of Japan a certificate to prove non-presence of nuclear arms on board the foreign warships coming into any of the 19 ports under Kochi Prefecture.
The Japanese government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are exerting heavy pressure on this proposal, claiming, "This is the violation of the state right of diplomacy." The headquarters of the LDP issued directives to the Kochi Assembly's LDP members, who hold about a half of the seats, not to vote for the revised ordinance.
The Japanese Constitution and the Local Autonomy Law ensure that the ports and harbors are under the jurisdiction of local governments, and Governor Hashimoto's proposal is quite in the nature of the local governments that have a duty to protect the safety of local citizens.
At present, a new legislation based on the so-called new "Guidelines for Japan-US Defense Cooperation", the war manual agreed between the Japanese and U.S. Government, is being discussed in the National Diet. The legislation is aimed to get Japan into U.S. launched war, and allow air- and seaports, civilian and military alike, to be used by the U.S. forces. This is the background against which anxiety and deep concerns are spreading among many local municipalities.
Gradually, mayors and governors of other municipalities are beginning to voice their support to the Kochi initiative. On March 1, Mayor Torigoe of Tomakomai City (Hokkaido) said he would ask foreign warships to submit a "non-nuclear certificate" before port entry. Governor Asano of Miyagi Prefecture said, "It is the unavoidable mission of the governor to secure the safety of the prefectural people. The proposed ordinance of Kochi is one form to fulfill that task." Also, Mayor Matsuo of Kochi City, (prefectural capital of Kochi) said, "The Three Non-Nuclear Principles should be established as a law so that the stance of the A-bombed Japan be clearly demonstrated to the world." Governor Hiramatsu of Oita prefecture said the effort of Kochi was significant and raised questions over how the diplomatic matters and information should be made public and available to local governments.
At this crucial moment, your message of encouragement to Governor Daijiro Hashimoto would play an inestimably valuable role. His e-mail address is: < >
For translation and publicizing, please send the CC of the message to: < >
Yours in peace,
Hiroshi Taka, Japan Council against A & H Bombs (Japan Gensuikyo)
P.S.: For more information on the Kochi initiative and the new "Guidelines", please visit our Web Site: http://www.twics.com/~antiatom/
Peace movement conference in Pakistan
On 27-28 February, more than 500 peace activists gathered in Karachi in the first conference of its kind in the region to demand an end to the nuclearisation of the region and a no-war pact between India and Pakistan as a follow-up to the message of peace and goodwill generated by the meeting of the Prime Ministers of both countries in Lahore a week before.
Organised by the Pakistan Peace Coalition (PPC), a national body formed following the Indian and Pakistani nuclear tests of May last year, the two-day Pakistan Peace Conference had a distinctly South Asian flavour, with the attendance of some 30 Indian delegates, including two members of Indian Parliament, who got Pakistani visas literally at the last minute, while at least one senior scientist was refused permission to attend -- from the Indian government -- as well as activists from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal besides over 400 from all over Pakistan. Delegates to the conference, besides NGO representatives, included economists, film-makers, journalists, lawyers, doctors, trade unionists, women's rights activists, scholars, retired army personnel, students and artists.
Also among the participants was Zia Mian, a Pakistani physicist currently teaching at Princeton University, USA, who is a prominent member of INESAP.
Nine working groups, ranging from 25 to 60 participants each, deliberated various questions from the nuclear issue perspective. The idea, rather than announcing a charter of demands, was to spell out what society wants and to give a direction to the struggle to achieve it, explained conference organisers, who are hoping that participants would return to their areas armed with a better understanding of what peace means in today's conditions, and how best to politically mobilise people around a peace agenda. What's very encouraging is that the Pakistan-India Peoples Forum for Peace and Democracy demands, considered utopian just a year ago, have infiltrated the official agenda - people to people contact, reducing tensions and negotiating through dialogue. So what's happened at this conference could also influence what happens at policy or state level.
Bombay-based film-maker Anand Patwardhans announced a Peace March due to start from Pokharan on May 11, the anniversary of the first Indian nuclear test last year. Hundreds of participants signed the petition he circulated.
NOTE: This information was taken and heavily edited from a longer story written by Beena Sarwar and circulated via email by Harsh Kapoor (South Asians Against Nukes).
For the conference declarations and the working group reports, mailto Harsh Kapoor < >
[Sources: "The Sunflower" (NAPF), No 22/March 99; March 1999 Grassroots Newsletter (Abolition 2000); and others]
CONFERENCES - MEETINGS - SEMINARS ^
NOTE: Events listed here are being published only once due to limited space. Changes, however, will be taken into account (marked with ''UPDATE'')
Sixth World Peace Science Congress ^
For more details, go to http://www.copri.dk/ipra/ipra-bb.htm
7th Annual International Conference on Conflict Resolution
For more details, mailto < > or go to: http://www.ahpweb.org/cbi/home.html
INES WEB- AND EMAIL SERVICE ^
No new or changed email or web addresses in this issue. Please inform us about changes of your email address or your homepage!
NOTE: All INES e-mail addresses and homepages are available upon request from:< >
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