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WHAT'S NEW IN INES? |
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No. 22/1999 |
Dateline: 1 June 1999 |
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WNII is an electronic information service of INES,
the International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility
Editor: Tobias Damjanov, e-mail: < >
INES homepage: http://www.mindspring.com/~us016262/ines.html
INES International Office < >
INES Chair Prof. Armin Tenner < >
INES Congress 2000
''Challenges for Science and Engineering in the 21st Century''
Stockholm, 14-18 June 2000
http://www.ines2000.org
INES 2000 Conference Secretariat: mailto:
Re: 1999 INES Council Meeting and INES Seminar "Science and Responsibility"
Dear reader,
A few days ago, a comprehensive agenda and a registration form of these two INES events have been put out by the Dortmund INES Office. You will receive an email version of this mailing as a "WNII Special" within the next few days. The posting will be named "INES Council+Seminar Sep 99".
Tobias Damjanov
CONTENTS of WNII No. 22/1999
NOTE: All INES e-mail addresses and homepages are available upon request from: < >
Please inform us about changes of your email address or your homepage!
MEMBER ORGANISATIONS' AND PROJECTS' GROUP NEWS
Alan Cottey (SGR UK) informs about the 1999 International Week Of Science and Peace
To all readers of WHAT'S NEW IN INES
In view of the gravity of the war in Kosovo, the International Week Of Science and Peace has taken the unusual step of an 'out-of-week' action.
( The Week this year will be 8 to 14 November and the Call for Participation has already been issued. It will be reprinted in a later issue of WHAT'S NEW IN INES.)
After consulting National Coordinators, the International Chair of IWOSP, Hildegard Faessler, has sent an Open Letter to the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan. The text is here reprinted. Individuals and organisations who support this statement are invited to publicise the Letter and to endorse it publicly.
Alan Cottey < >
To: United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan
1 UN Plaza, New York, NY-10017 USA
An Open Letter on the Kosovo War
Dear Secretary General,
Your high office weighs your work with the hopes, but also the fears of millions of people. The UN's power is the democratic majority of humanity who want peace. It derives dignity and support from more people throughout the world than any military power.
With its significant role in the creation of the UN the US accomplished a tremendous and lasting deed for global peace. If US policy now aims to replace the UN's peacekeeping role with a military role by NATO, then this process has to be viewed as a fundamental breach of international law. Serbia's offences against human rights, and NATO's flouting of international law, ignoring the UN Security Council, will, if not corrected, lead to a significant weakening - perhaps even destruction - of the UN. The alternative to the UN is the anarchy of states, characterised by the misrule of violence.
On 29 April 1999 President Milosevic brought an action to the International Court against 10 NATO states alleging their offence against international law and the UN charter for their attacks, which lack the mandate of the Security Council, on Serbia. President Milosevic's action implies that he accepts the legitimacy of the International Court.
These circumstances should be taken as an opportunity for the UN -- to propose an armistice and -- to lead the conflict from violence to the rule of law.
No political institution is perfect and the UN is no exception. This is not, however, a reason for weakening or abolishing it, but rather for reforming it. Such reforms have to take account of the considerable developments of international law which have taken place since the UN was created. Most relevant here is the recognition that human rights are not solely the internal affair of a state.
The protection of human rights has to be pursued as a branch of the international opposition to organised crime, war being the worst offence against human rights.
The aims of the International Week of Science and Peace were endorsed and applauded by the UN General Assembly Resolution 43/61, on Science and Peace, in 1988. IWOSP now, in these trying times, wishes you, your secretariat, the UN Agencies, the General Assembly and the Security Council every success in the further development of the UN's work for a peaceful and just world culture.
yours sincerely
Dr. Hildegard Faessler (International Coordinator, International Week of Science and Peace)
Kaiser-Franz-Josef Str. 12, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria
Tel/Fax: (43-512) 565 873
e-mail:
Innsbruck, 18 May 1999
USA: Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER)
IEER has recently released a "Statement of Non-Governmental Organisations on Plutonium Disposition" which takes on the problems of the plutonium stockpiles in the US and Russia, also expressing concern about the safety risks of using MOX fuel in existing reactors, as well as related uncertainties.
If you wish to receive this important call, which is to be released on June 15, the date of US Department of Energy public hearings on the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement in Washington DC,
CONTACT Lisa Ledwidge at IEER by mailto: (Note the last day to sign is June 11, 1999)
RUSSIAN Version: Vladimir Sliviak of the Anti-Nuclear Campaign of the Socio-Ecological Union (another INES member organisation) is translating the Statement into Russian. He can be contacted by mailto:
Denmark: Ideas re Kosovo by Bernhelm Booss-Bavnbek
Danish INES member Bernhelm Booss-Bavnbek who is currently involved in organising a Balkan Forum of academicians at Danish universities through which they might express their own point of views with regard to the Balkans' future. He raises the idea that INES could make efforts in similar directions.
See also the following URL at which, among other things, a Danish version of the letter by P. Bordieu and other French intellectuals is published: http://www.fred.dk/bourdieu/
A first collection of Danish signatures to this letter has been handed to the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The petition campaign is coordinated by Booss-Bavnbek.
For more, mailto:
Treeplanting for CO2 Compensation
A commitment from the Amsterdam Congress Many of you will recall that participants of the Amsterdam Congress "Challenges of Sustainable Development" contributed a CO2-compensation fee in order to make up for the CO2 emitted by Congress travel and operations. A workshop at the Congress led by Claus Montonen estimated that the total CO2 emission of the Congress amounted to 220 tons, mostly from long distance air travel (160 tons).
The original intention was to support - from the fees collected - a tree planting project in Nepal. This did not materialize for various reasons. It was thus decided to give half of the CO2-compensation fund (DM 2000.-) to a tree planting project in the Scottish Highlands. The Scottish charity "Trees for Life" works since many years for the restoration of parts of the Caledonian Forest, which once covered major parts of Scotland. The present treeplanting activities focus on the Glen Affric area (close to the Loch Ness lake). The area is a forest reserve, protected by the government of Scotland. If thus can be expected that the trees will reach full maturity and will not face logging. Trees for Life has planted some 120 trees for INES in mid April 1999. At a survival rate of 80 percent about 100 trees will reach full maturity. It will take 100 trees to absorb 220 tons of CO2 in about 40 years.
We are looking for another promising and reliable tree planting project, preferably in a country of the South. If you know of any, please contact Hartwig Spitzer ( mailto: ).
British members are invited to visit the treeplanting site by prior contact with "Trees for Life", The Park, Findhorn Bay, Forres IV 36 OTZ, Scotland
Tel.: (44-1309) 691 292, Fax: (44-1306) 691 155
email:
Hartwig Spitzer
Abolition 2000 homepage: http://www.abolition2000.org
For the latest nuclear weapons abolition grassroots news, visit: http://www.napf.org/abolition2000/news/
Electronic Signature Campaign for the Global Peace March
Dear Friends,
The Global Peace March 1999 is being organized in India in form of a 1500 kilometers long walk from Pokhran (May 11) to Sarnath (August 6).
The objective of this march is to condemn the development of nuclear weapons capability by seven nations - USA, Russia, UK, France, China, India and Pakistan. The march's appeal to the people and the heads of these seven nations is for global peace and disarmament. We believe that 'security' can be derived only from building trustful and friendly relations and not from any weapons.
We appeal to all nations of the world to renounce the path of deadly arms race and begin exploring peaceful means of establishing a just socio-economic human order. The march started on May 11 from Khetolai (a village near the nuclear test site in India) and is progressing successfully through its scheduled route despite some disruptions attempted by the pro-bomb people. Peace marchers are holding discussions with villagers and city people on the route about evils of nuclear weapons and radioactivity.
The march will reach Sarnath - a place associated with peace - on August 11 (The Hiroshima Day) where a big public meeting will be held. As part of this event an electronic signature campaign is being organized to mobilize support for the cause. At the end of the march all the signatures along with the petition will be sent to the Heads of States of seven nuclear weapon nations and to the Secretary General of the United Nations. We request you to read the petition and add your voice to the growing movement of peace by signing on it.
To add your voice to this effort in support of peace, please visit the website of the electronic campaign at this URL, and sign on. http://209.157.184.32/petitions/gpm.htm
Sincerely,
Global Peace March
Anil Sharma [mailto: ] http://www.aidindia.org/peace
Email contacts for the march: (Arundhati, Lucknow); (Anil, Delhi); (Dr. Smita, Bombay); (Vidhi Parathasarathy, USA); (Aravinda, USA)
PLEASE PASS ON THIS MESSAGE TO AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE WHO SUPPORT THE CAUSE OF PEACE AND DISARMAMENT
News from VERTIC
For information of how to order mailto:
A complete list of VERTIC publications can be found at: http://www.fhit.org/vertic
UNIDIR publications
UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR): http://www.unog.ch/UNIDIR
The Dortmund INES Office received notification of the following UNIDIR publications:
(*) published in an English-French bilingual version
PLEASE NOTE: All issues of "UNIDIR Newsletter" mentioned above have a section called "UNIDIR Picks" which lists useful English and French webpage references. Due to its length, I cannot publish them here but I offer to you the following:
If you wish to receive these references as an email version, send an email to with "UNIDIR Picks" - e+f (for both English and French references); or: ...- e (for English only); or: ... - f (for French only)
T. Damjanov
CONFERENCES - MEETINGS - SEMINARS
Events listed here are being published only once due to limited space. Changes, however, will be taken into account (marked with ''UPDATE'')
"Just Peace? Peace Making and Peace Building for the New Millennium"
International conference in conflict resolution, peace building, and social justice http://www.massey.ac.nz/~wwsocial/homepage.htm
For more details, mailto:
Centre for Arms Control, Energy and Environmental Studies START Web Site
START Web Site is currently under reconstruction because it is moving to another server. Please, let us know by mailto: , if some of the forms and internal links do not work properly. We apologize for inconvenience.
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