PEOPLE FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT

LETTER BY ORGANISATIONS WORLDWIDE TO GOVERNMENTS OF DPRK, ROK, UNITED STATES, RUSSIA, CHINA AND JAPAN
 
Dear Secretary-General Kim Jong IL, Presidents, Prime Ministers, Foreign Ministers/Secretaries of State, of the DPRK, Republic of Korea, Japan, Russia, China, and the United States,

We are writing:

(a) To urge that no party takes any action subsequent to the recent nuclear test by the DPRK that might in any way further raise tensions.

We urge parties to consider instead what steps might result in a steady reduction of tensions in the Peninsula and a return to a process of dialogue and negotiation, in particular through reconvening the Six Party Talks.  Provocative actions or words must be avoided. We call on all six parties to refrain from any further provocative actions, including any threats  by any party to use force against any of the parties.

(b) We write to urge that the recent DPRK nuclear test be in no way permitted or used as an excuse or argument to deviate from an unbreakable commitment to a world in which nuclear weapons have no place and in which they are completely outlawed.

We unreservedly condemn all nuclear testing by any party whatsoever, both the test recently conducted by the DPRK and all other nuclear tests. Every one of the roughly 2000 nuclear tests done to date has threatened the peace, contaminated the environment and stimulated the nuclear arms - race.

We draw attention to the October 2006 statement by parliamentarians on the DPRK test of that time.(appended)

We affirm that the large-scale use of nuclear weapons may be terminal for civilisation and possibly for humans.  The smaller- scale use of nuclear weapons would be an unprecedented catastrophe with global climatic effects.  The use of even a single nuclear weapon in the Korean Peninsula by any party whatsoever would be an unprecedented disaster,   as well as a crime against humanity, and would likely lead to the further use of nuclear weapons.

The possession of nuclear weapons by the DPRK will decrease, not increase, its security. It will make it a target for the nuclear weapons of others and making the actual use of those weapons more probable. It will provide a powerful impetus to further nuclear weapons proliferation by others in Northeast Asia and elsewhere.

It is vital that the increasing tension in the Korean Peninsula is put into reverse, and a process of decreasing tension is initiated. A process of dialogue must replace threatening rhetoric and threatening actions.

We call on all six parties to refrain from any words or actions that might further inflame matters, and to consider carefully what actions will lead to a reduction in tension on the Korean Peninsula.

We call on the six parties together to consider what might lead to a denuclearised and nuclear - weapons - free Korean Peninsula, (as was the dying instruction of Kim - Il Sung).

We call on the DPRK, USA, China, India, Israel and Pakistan to sign and/or to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and we call for an early entry into force of that treaty.

We call on the DPRK to rejoin the NPT as a non - nuclear weapons state and to open all its facilities to inspection by the IAEA.

We call on the Six Parties to explore the possibilities for establishing a North East Asian Nuclear Weapon Free Zone
We call for a redoubled commitment by all states to achieving a nuclear - weapons - free world.

We call for the conclusion at an early date of a nuclear weapons convention that will provide an overarching legal framework for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons.


When the DPRK tested in Oct 2006, parliamentarians worldwide put out a statement which is reproduced below.

Parliamentary Statement on Nuclear Testing in October 2006

As parliamentarians from across the political spectrum, and from countries around the world, we share a concern about the announcement by the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea on October 9 that they have tested a nuclear weapon for the first time.

This act increases tensions in North East Asia, increases the risks of further proliferation in the region and globally, and is in violation of obligations of North Korea and all other countries to end nuclear testing and work for the prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons.

There have been over 2000 nuclear weapons test explosions conducted by China,  France, India,  Pakistan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, each one contaminating the environment, threatening the peace and stimulating the nuclear arms race. There is no need for any more testing by any country.

We welcome the negotiation of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and the overwhelming support it has already received. We call on those few States that have not yet ratified the treaty - particularly those with nuclear capabilities including North Korea, China, India, Israel, Pakistan and the United States - to do so..

We also call on North Korea to rejoin the Six Party talks,with China, Japan,  South Korea,  Russia and the United States,for the denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and to explore the possibility for a nuclear-weapon-free zone in North East Asia. We call on all six parties to refrain from any further provocative actions that could derail these talks, including any threats to use force against any of the parties.

We are encouraged by the international monitoring system developed by the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisation which has the technical capacity to detect nuclear tests anywhere in the world. And we look forward to the treaty 's entry-into-force in order to make available its compliance mechanisms in the case of any treaty violation.
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Signed:

John Hallam, People for Nuclear Disarmament Nuclear Flashpoints Project, Sydney Australia

Kate Hudson, Chair, Sam Akaki, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament London, UK

Alyn Ware, Vice-President, International Peace Bureau (IPB)