Call to Action – P5 in London
From Kate Hudson, General Secretary, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, UK
Dear friends,
I am writing to ask you to support the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and take part in a symbolic global action: demanding nuclear disarmament when the five nuclear weapon states meet in London on 4th and 5th February.
In particular, I would like you to take action to apply specific pressure to the UK – the host nation of the meeting – to demand it commits to scrapping the Trident nuclear weapon system. A parliamentary decision on whether or not to replace it is expected in early 2016. So we have an enormous opportunity to get rid of UK nuclear weapons – but we need your help to do so. The campaigning is making good progress here in Britain, and we need international pressure to be applied too.
Join us in saying > ACT NOW > DISARM NOW > SCRAP TRIDENT
CND will be handing in a letter to the Prime Minister’s residence at 10 Downing St at 11am (UK time). We would like you to sign the simple letter below and hand it in, in person, at your British Embassy or High Commission in your own capital city on Wednesday 4th February.
We suggest it be used in media releases and in photo opportunities at the British Embassy or High Commission and that you circulate images on social media with the slogan #ACTNOWDISARMNOW
If you wish to hold a vigil or colourful protest outside the Embassy or High Commission, that would also help us make an impact.
We have produced two poster images which you can download from the following links, which we ask you to use in photos, which you should tweet at @CNDuk if you use twitter.
· POSTER COLOUR
If you have any further questions with regards to this action, please email my colleague on ben.folley@cnduk.org.
Thank you for your support.
In peace,
Kate Hudson
General Secretary
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Letter to British Embassy or High Commission
Dear ……(your name here)
On 4th and 5th February, the five Non-Proliferation Treaty recognised nuclear weapon states – the P5 – are meeting in London to discuss progress on commitments to nuclear disarmament.
The 70th anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings looms over their meeting and the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference requires a bold new statement to deliver on nuclear disarmament.
The UK, as the host country, is best positioned to change the direction of the P5 and demonstrate a lead on disarmament at the meeting.
With each of the states committing to upgrade and enhance their nuclear weapons programmes in the coming years, they are already undermining their commitment to disarm and are in conflict with the growing desire for disarmament demonstrated by the series of humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons conferences.
The UK, having originally shown leadership in establishing the P5 meetings in 2009, should continue to move the process forward and be the first of the P5 states to take a new bold step – by announcing it will not replace the Trident nuclear weapon system.
By making such a statement, the UK would hugely strengthen and advance the growing global call for a new legal process that would complement the NPT process and ban nuclear weapons. The P5 should explicitly support this process
As global representatives of civil society we urge: ACT NOW. DISARM NOW. SCRAP TRIDENT.
Yours sincerely,
