Criminality
of Nuclear Weapons
Cnw
Extermination Devices
Nuclear weapons are evil because they cause massive and indis-criminate destruction of human lives. Nuclear weapons are not just a means of mass destruction; they are devices of extermination.
The nuclear-armed states say that even though nuclear weapons, like any other weapon, can be used indiscriminately, they are not indiscriminate by nature.
But this misses the point. No one could reliably forecast the complex atmospheric conditions and the wind direction at the moment of launch. The effects would be so unpredictable that even with accurate targeting it there could be no reliable assessment of indiscriminate deaths or suffering.
The peril of nuclear weapons being used constantly hangs over every one of us. Human beings are fallible and not safe to be trusted with such awesome responsibility. Whether by design, accident or flaws in the system, catastrophe is always possible.
Even a "small" nuclear war could trigger a global and climatic catastrophe. Apart from the horrific initial annihilation of life, it would cause nuclear winter and billions would starve. Cancer rates would soar and there could be no effective assistance. The use of nuclear weapons is unthinkable. They must be eliminated to avoid catastrophic genocide and environmental devastation.
At the five yearly Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) at the United Nations in 2010, 189 countries unanimously stressed the “catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons” and demanded that all states “at all times” comply with “applicable international law, including international humanitarian law.”
This suggests that use of nuclear weapons would be illegal. However, agreements at international forums like the NPT have to be reached by consensus. Any state can block a decision. As a result, their statements and calls to action tend to be watered down. Therefore we are asking citizens to affirm their personal belief that any use of nuclear weapons would be a War Crime.
In 1996 the International Court of Justice went nearly this far, but pointed out that it did not have enough information about actual nuclear weapons. But we do have that information. For example, The Trident system, used by both the US and the UK, is eight times as powerful as the Hiroshima Bomb. It could never be used without incinerating and irradiating huge numbers of civilians. No one could predict the effects and the results would be vastly out of proportion to any possible military benefit. Britain and the other nuclear-armed states are deploying weapons which it could never be legal to use.
Several states support the idea of declaring nuclear weapons use to be criminal and Mexico is proposing a way for this to be done.
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The nuclear-armed states are deploying weapons which it could never
be legal to use.
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The nuclear-
be legal to use.
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