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WHAT'S NEW IN INES? |
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No.50/2001 |
Dateline: December 28, 2001 |
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This is the weekly electronic information service of the International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility
Editor: Tobias Damjanov, e-mail:
WNII is archived at: http://inesglobal.org/archive.htm
INES homepages: http://inesglobal.org http://www.inesglobal.com/
INES International Office
INES Chair: Prof. Armin Tenner [Please note that the first "1" in q18 is the number one, while the last "l" is an "L"]
CONTENTS of WNII No. 50/2001
From the editor
Dear WNII readers,
Seasonal greetings and best wishes to all of you! I do not intend to make a lengthy statement here as to the year 2001; instead, I'd like to express my dream for 2002: for one year, humankind should make the experience of 12 months without any wars.
Back to business, I have to inform you that I can't exclude that my email account might not be prolonged after 31 December due to unforeseeable developments at the university. Since I have been informed about this possibility only by short notice, I could not do very much since, because now there are seasonal holidays. So, don't be surprised if you can't reach me via my usual email address after 31 December. If this happens, I will find a new account very quickly, about which you will be informed immediately.
For 2002, I am introducing a new section called "2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development News" to the WNII issues. This should give you a better overview regarding the contents of what is being published here, as I presume that in 2002, there will quite a lot to report on the WSSD.
All the best for 2002!
The editor
MEMBERSHIP AND PROJECTS' NEWS
INES Council Meeting 23-27 May 2002
A more detailed conference outline shall follow with a second Council invitation in 2002. The conference starts on 23 May, 14.00 hrs, and ends a day later at 15.30 hrs.
NOTE that incentives and ideas for this conference are welcome. Send them to Owen Greene (UK): < >
For more details*, registration, etc: mailto:
* NOTE that there will be a more detailed invitation later.
Abolition 2000 homepage: http://www.abolition2000.org Grassroots News: http://www.napf.org/abolition2000/news/
NPT PrepCom 2002: WILPF Monthly Updates
On 8-19 April 2002, the Non-Proliferation Treaty Preparatory Committee Meeting (NPT PrepCom) for the next Review Conference will be held. The "Reaching Critical Will" Project of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) has now started to publish Monthly Updates whose first edition covers the following:
1. Invitation to the 2002 NPT PrepCom
2. NGO Registration to the 2002 NPT PrepCom
3. Background Information
4. The 13 practical steps for systematic and progressive disarmament
5. Why is the NPT important
6. What can be achieved at this NPT PrepCom?
7. What can NGOs do?
8. For More Information on the 8-19 April 2002 NPT Conference
You can get this useful information either at: http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org
or from the WNII editor (as an rtf-formatted email attachment or as plain e-mail text message).
Pakistan: Pugwash delegation looks into nuclear matters (Source: Asia Times/Inter Press Service, 18 Dec 01)
Widely unnoticed by the mass media, a Pugwash delegation visited Pakistan in early December last year to look into the possibility of stolen Russian fissile material being used to develop weapons of mass destruction in Afghanistan. The members of this delegation, Professors Paolo Cotta-Ramusino and Maurizio Martellini, both Italian physicists, who also advise the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, "Pakistan's position is crucial in a post-September 11 scenario ... there are serious concerns about the possibility of weapons of mass destruction falling into terrorist groups or they may be striving to acquire them. Prof. Cotta-Ramusino is a member of the Italian INES member organisation Unione Scienzati Per Il Disarmo (USPID: Union of Scientists for Disarmament).
The "Asia Times" was further quoting the delegation as saying that, "Although no illicit traffic of nuclear material has been detected up to now in Pakistan, and its nuclear weapons and fissile materials are claimed to be under secure control, the fact that it shares a long border with Afghanistan and has a sizeable section of the public opinion supporting radical Islamic parties and its scientists and technicians are capable of building nuclear weapons is a matter of concern."
Although not referring to INES, the article went on to describe a visit by the delegation to the Pakistani INES member organsiation Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI). INES member Dr A H Nayyar, a research fellow at the SDPI, was quoted with the comments, "There is no doubt that Pakistan's nuclear assets are safe. The concern of the international community is that the religious lobby in Pakistan is openly vowing to use nuclear weapons for the protection of Muslim communities in the world, so there is fear that they might try to have access to nuclear weapons."
"The safety and security of the nuclear assets are linked with the number of nukes a country has. A smaller number means it is easy to look after them, and if the number is large then there is a possibility that a small number could be unaccounted for and there are chances that these could be stolen, as happened in Russia," explained Nayyar. He added, "Pakistan's nuclear scientists who are retired and ideologically fired are the problem now. Otherwise, we have a limited number of nuclear weapons - around 30 - and 400-500 kilograms of uranium. To steal it is simply not possible."
The strange point about the "Asia Times" article, however, was that its headline read "Proliferation of nuclear expertise a matter of concern" – something which in this article was only referred to with regard of a statement made by a US spokesman who had nothing to do with this delegation's visit. At the article's end, however, "Asia Times" is reporting about the Pugwash position concerning highly-enriched uranium to underscore proliferation threats. Without giving the exact source, Pugwash is quoted as follows:
"HEU poses the danger that it is far easier to manufacture into a nuclear weapon than is plutonium, so much so that even sub-national terrorist groups could accomplish the challenge," it said. "European and Asian governments, especially, need to join the United States in providing aid to the Russian government in controlling and destroying this fissile material [enough to build 20,000 nuclear bombs] through greatly accelerated funding," it added.
2002 WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT NEWS
IMPORTANT: Change of conference dates
As indicated earlier (see WNII 48/2001:B1), the UN has changed the data of the WSSD. It is now: 26 August to 4 September 2002
The venue remains the same.
INES Appeal to Governments
In Johannesburg, governments should
and agree to
Send your signature to: < >
INES Conference "Demands for a Peaceful and Sustainable Development in Africa" A contribution to the preparation of the World Summit in Johannesburg
Essentially, this conference is to start up analyzing the political, social and economical situation in Africa, as well as the demands for a sustainable and peaceful development of a continent that many people are considering lost. However, this conference can only ignite initial stages of analyses, providing suggestions as to how to bring about more in-depth discussions. This is also why a meeting should be held on the conference's second day which is open for everyone who is interested in a continuing network.
The conference addresses people interested in African issues, NGOs working on the subject, scientists, and Africa-related institutions working in the field of sustainability
Preliminary programme:
For more details, contact Nicola Hellmich: mailto:
WSSD PrepCom II: UN Secretary General's Report
The UN Secretary General's Report that will be the main basis of discussions in the upcoming Prepcom II of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, has now been disseminated. It is available from the WNII Editor as an rtf-formatted email attachment. This document will be uploaded in the Summit's web site as well.
Overview papers on the regional preparatory processes
"Priorities for WSSD – An Overview of the Regional Preparatory Meetings" is the title of an overall review of the outcomes of the Regional Prepcoms for WSSD in terms of the priority areas they have identified. It was prepared by the WSSD Secretariat (4 December 2001) as an information service for those following the WSSD process closely. It is not an official paper but will be made available for purposes of information at Prepcom II. The paper is available from the WNII Editor as an rtf-formatted email attachment.
A Draft version, written by the Danish 92-Group, has now been published, and is available from the WNII Editor as an rtf-formatted email attachment. You are welcome to submit comments to the NGO-Summary paper to: < >
New websites
Website in French There is now an on-topic French-language website online: http://www.sommetjohannesburg.org/ . I haven't checked on it; it wouldn't make much sense, anyway, due to my very poor knowledge of the French language. The editor
Danish 92 Group website The Danish 92 Group, a coalition of 21 NGOs, is now launching the website http://www.rio10.dk which aims to promote information sharing and coordination among the organizations and networks involved in the civil society preparations for the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development 2002. The group offers this website for free to Southern national networks to aid their preparation for the summit. In the current situation, with so few funds for the Southern preparation available, the initiators consider it even more essential to make efficient use of websites and mailing lists. Site contents: 1. Regional and national sub-webpages 2. Main website with useful background documents 3. Section devoted to promoting a worldwide NGO push for political Summit initiatives 4. Host for NGO debates re: the preparatory process
Asia-Pacific region NGOs Statement
The Statement of the Asia-Pacific Peoples’ Forum on Sustainable Development, held at Phnom Penh, 25-26 November, 2001, is available from the WNII Editor as an rtf-formatted email attachment.
EarthTrends: The Environmental Information Portal http://earthtrends.wri.org
EarthTrends: The Environmental Information Portal is a free, interactive online resource developed by the Washington D.C.-based World Resources Institute. It provides environmental and sustainable development information to a worldwide audience of individuals in government, private industry, and international organizations who work on environmental policy. It also provides educators and students with material readily available to meet their educational and research needs.
Ten key topics ranging from coastal and marine ecosystems to population, health, and human well-being cover information, in yearly increments, for 210 countries and more than 400 variables. Navigation is straightforward. By choosing one of the 10 topics, you can search the database or select one of the data tables, maps, country profiles, or feature articles about your chosen topic.
2002 accreditation of NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC
The form for accrediting UN representatives in 2002 is available online at: http://www.un.org/esa/coordination/ngo/note.htm
The accreditation form must be returned to the NGO Section/Liaison Offices. Details are on the form itself.
No new or changed email or web addresses in this issue. All INES e-mail addresses and homepages are available upon request from:
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