On April 28, the Dutch parliament will discuss a national ban on nuclear weapons. This is the result of a national campaign initiated by PAX who gathered over 45,000 signatures to put this on the political agenda. It will be the first time in history that the Dutch Parliament will discuss a national nuclear weapons ban.
The success of the petition has demonstrated broad support for the elimination of nuclear weapons, and citizens’ demands that the Netherlands takes a leading role in this process. Various Dutch VIPs, religious leaders, youth wings of political parties and mayors all over the country have publicly signed the petition and are demanding a ban on nuclear weapons. Dutch Red Cross and ethical bank ASN Bank are key partners.
Citizens in the Netherlands have long called for the removal of US tactical nuclear weapons and this has been reinforced by repeated resolutions in national parliament. Together with its key partners, PAX has built large support from the Dutch population for the Netherlands to fill the legal gap on nuclear weapons starting at home.
Setsuko Thurlow, survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, already has a message to the Dutch politicians: “Make the right decision, for the sake of humanity.”
