The Irish CND Executive Committee has unanimously endorsed a new initiative of the World Court Project, voicing the belief that the use of nuclear weapons use would violate international law. The Criminality of Nuclear Weapons (CON) project calls on organisations and individuals to sign an Affirmation voicing their belief that the use of nuclear weapons use would violate international law.
The project follows on the statement agreed by the 172 states who took part in the 2010 Review Conference on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which expressed its "deep concern at the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and reaffirm[ed] the need for all states at all times to comply with applicable international law, including international humanitarian law."
Details of the project and how to sign the Affirmation are available on the World Court Project website http://www.nuclearweapons-warcrimes.org/ or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nuclear-Weapons-War-Crimes/124383754288301.
Simultaneously, an international expert group has published the Vancouver Declaration on Law’s Imperative for the Urgent Achievement of a Nuclear-Weapon-Free World, following a conference in Vancouver organised by The Simons Foundation and the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms. The declaration is signed by legal experts, former officials, parliamentarians and civil society representatives, and evaluates the legal status of nuclear weapons in light of international law (humanitarian, environmental, public, peace and security law). The declaration advances strong legal arguments for all states to move towards a prohibition on nuclear weapons and is available at http://www.lcnp.org/wcourt/Feb2011VancouverConference/vancouverdeclarati....
