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Didn't know that Nuclear Weapons are illegal? Well now you do. The International Court of Justice delivered an Advisory Opinion in 1996 that the use or threat to use nuclear weapons is contrary to international law, because they cause unnecessary suffering and are indiscriminate in their destruction: two tests of the humanitarian conduct of war, if you can believe such a thing exists.
On top of that, the 480 US weapons in Europe violate one of the provisions of the Non-proliferation Treaty, which says that all nations are supposed to keep their nukes in their own backyards.
In the UK, a top lawyer released an analysis that Tony Blair's plans to upgrade the Trident weapons system is also illegal. Hundreds of people massed at Aldermaston atomic
weapons factory to carry out a citizen's inspection.
Read more about the events at
Aldermaston on Greenpeace UK's moblog.
Over the past weeks, anti-nuclear activists Vredesactie and Bombspotting decided to do the obvious thing, really. Call the cops!
Stop, police!
They uploaded citizen complaint forms, for people to fill out and hand in to their local law enforcement agencies. The forms are the same kind of thing you bring to the police whenever you've got an issue with, e.g., your neighbour being destructive and un-neighbourly and threatening to incinerate your home and make your entire town glow like a radium watchface.
The complaints highlight the complicity of governments in NATO nuclear decision-making and request that the police take the "relevant national judicial route" to hold governments accountable to the rules of international law.
The citizens summons demands NATO change its nuclear policy by putting an end to the role of nuclear weapons in its strategy and withdrawing and dismantling all remaining nuclear weapons.
In Spain
In Spain, complaint actions in Valencia and Madrid triggered a series of actions across the country, from Alcoi and Avila to Salamca. The call to action even made it across the sea and reached Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where 10 people filed complaints on November 23rd. More complaints will be filed in Alaquas and Sevilla. (more on www.antimilitaristas.org)
In Germany
Frankfurt am Main gave the kick-off for Germany. Actions in Stuttgart, München, Nürnberg, Wetzlar, Alpirsbach, Schwäbisch Gmünd and Ebersbach/Fils soon followed. In Wetzlar, peace activists did a demonstration before going to the police station, carrying a banner saying, "Either we get rid of the bomb, or it gets rid of us." (more on www.pressehuette.de and www.gaaa.org)
In the UK
In Norwich last week, over 30 supporters turned up with colourful banners representing local groups including the Norwich Quaker Meeting, Norwich CND, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), Norwich and District Peace Council and Norfolk Campaign against the Arms Trade (CAAT). They walked around part of the city centre and demonstrated in front of the police station while the letter of complaint was officially filed. Other complaint actions took place in the Bournemouth, Bungay, Halesworth and Newmarket, Norwich, Plymouth and Sussex. More complaint actions are to be expected today in Sussex, in at least 3 police stations in Essex, in Mildenhall, at MOD police at Lakenheath, Ipswich, Colchester, Cambridge, Cromer, Helensburgh and Bristol. (www.cnduk.org)
In Belgium
In Belgium hundreds of citizens collectively sent a bailiff with a citizens summons to Prime minister Verhofstadt. In earlier complaints actions in Belgium, in 2002 and 2004, more than a thousand complaints were filed. (more on www.bombspotting.be)
The legal complaints, and a step-by-step instructions page on how to file it, were put online on www.bombspotting.be so people could easily join the complaint action. This accounts for several 'spontaneous' complaint actions, like ones in Amsterdam and Zutphen (The Netherlands).
In some places, the police refused the complaints. In Ebersbach, Germany, the activists were told that they, rather than their government, were committing the illegal act. They still filed the complaint. In other cases, police officers did their job surprisingly well: Ulrich Bathke filed the complaint at the 13th police department at Frankfurt, and received notification that the case was transferred to the state attorney at Berlin.
In Italy
Italy
ran actions over the weekend across the country, and presented summons
in Rome, Florence, Milan, Turin, Napoli and Palermo.
More from (www.greenpeace.it)
Donna Mattfield, disarmament campaigner from Greenpeace International: "on 28th and 29th November NATO's state leaders will meet in Riga, Latvia, to begin a process to review the mandate of the Alliance. This is an opportunity for European leaders to meet their own obligation to disarm the world of nuclear weapons and to do what the majority of people in Europe want by removing US nuclear weapons from European soil".
More information: www.bombspotting.be
Say no to nuclear weapons in Europe
