Mayors for Peace / 2020 Vision Campaign - an outline
Plans for the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT)

Mayors for Peace has now (May 2009) over 2870 cities signed up.  As the LAANDC cover letter below states, Mayors for Peace, through close cooperation among the cities, strives to raise international public awareness regarding the need to abolish nuclear weapons and contributes to the realization of genuine and lasting world peace by working to eliminate starvation and poverty, assist refugees fleeing local conflict, support human rights, protect the environment, and solve the other problems that threaten peaceful coexistence within the human family. 

The 2020 Vision Campaign of Mayors for Peace is working to get all the mayors to sign the Cities Appeal petition, which calls for the 2010 NPT conference to adopt the Hiroshima-Nagasaki protocol.  The Hiroshima-Nagasaki Protocol would be an addendum to the NPT calling for the adoption of a framework for nuclear disarmament, aka "Nuclear Weapons Convention" to be worked up and adopted by 2015, and for complete nuclear disarmament to be carried out by 2020.  2020 appears to be the earliest practical date for complete nuclear disarmament.  The latest list of signatories - about 750 as of May 2009: http://www.2020visioncampaign.org/pages/462/. 

LAANDC Dialog - Activating the Mayors for Peace Network - a proposal by Roger Eaton

Our online dialog has the potential to activate the Mayors for Peace network.  This is not to deny that the network already is active in many ways, but if we could get just one person from each of the Mayors for Peace cities to join online, then our dialog could really wake up the network.  We would have the potential to exert a considerable bottom-up influence on the NPT Conference in 2010 by electing a message from the world to the conference.  To make this happen we need a pyramid scheme!  It looks doable even on our own nickel.  More as we develop the idea... 

Without a global revolution in the sphere of human consciousness, nothing will change for the better in the sphere of our being as humans, and the catastrophe toward which this world is headed -- be it ecological, social, demographic or a general breakdown -- will be unavoidable.   --Vaclav Havel

   1. Present information to the Mayor and City Council for approval 
         1. Cover letter
         2. May We Never Forget...
         3. Registration Form
         4. List of  member California cities
         5. Cities Appeal for signature of the Mayor

   2. Mail and E-mail the registration form to: 
            Secretariat Mayors For Peace 
            c/o Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation 
            1-5 Nakajima-cho, Naka-ku, Hiroshima 
            TEL: 81-82-242-7821 
            FAX: 81-82-242-7452 
            E-mail: mayorcon@pcf.city.hiroshima.jp 

   3. Receive confirmation from Mayors for Peace 

   4. Fax the signed Cities Appeal to +32-57-23 92 76 (Attn. Mayors for Peace) 

Cover Letter 

(Letterhead) 

Dear Mr./Ms.  (councilperson/mayor): 

The Mayors for Peace program is an opportunity for our city to stand in solidarity with more than 2800 cities worldwide and 134 cities in the United States against the use and maintenance of nuclear weapons.  Mayors for Peace is an NGO of the United Nations and was founded in 1982.  Their mission statement is: 

The Mayors for Peace, through close cooperation among the cities, strives to raise international public awareness regarding the need to abolish nuclear weapons and contributes to the realization of genuine and lasting world peace by working to eliminate starvation and poverty, assist refugees fleeing local conflict, support human rights, protect the environment, and solve the other problems that threaten peaceful coexistence within the human family.

We are a member organization of the Los Angeles Area Nuclear Disarmament Coalition (LAANDC).  This coalition is promoting August 6-9, 2009 as a period to remember the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to help us focus on the need to eliminate our nuclear arsenal.  President Obama has called for an end to all nuclear weapons and opened dialogue with Russia to accomplish that end.  We all need to support his efforts. 

We ask you to consider joining the Mayors for Peace and standing with a growing number of cities in California that believe in peace and a world without nuclear weapons. 

Sincerely, 

MAY WE NEVER FORGET HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI 

August 6-9, 2009 Period of Rememberance 

By Bob Kalayjian 

August 6th and 9th are the anniversaries of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki respectively.  While this was legally an action of a justifiable war (if war can ever be justified), it was an abominable act against civilians with effects that have lasted for decades since the ending of that war.  We must not forget what these two events have taught the world, that is, that nuclear weapons cannot ever be used by a civilized nation. 

The bombs killed as many as 140,000 people in Hiroshima and 80,000 in Nagasaki by the end of 1945, roughly half on the days of the bombings. Amongst these, 15 to 20% died from injuries or illness attributed to radiation poisoning. Since then, more have died from leukemia and solid cancers attributed to exposure to radiation released by the bombs. In both cities, the overwhelming majority of the dead were civilians. 

One way to remember the price these civilians paid and the uselessness of nuclear weapons would be to declare the period of August 6-9 as a period of commitment to the elimination of all nuclear weapons.  In the 1960's I was frightened and threatened by the possibility of nuclear war and the destruction of the planet.  With the end of the Cold War I forgot about the threat until recently when one small country after another develops these weapons.  With a surge in terrorism and the possibility of terrorists obtaining these weapons, I am again frightened. 

The United States and Russia have the vast majority of these weapons.  We spend tens of billions of dollars every year to maintain them and we can't use them.  If we eliminate them from our arsenals we would be much more able to lead the other nations of the world to follow. 

The city of Hiroshima has developed the Hiroshima Protocol to eliminate all nuclear weapons by 2020.  This is a workable timeline and a focus for support.  It is a development from the Mayors for Peace program that over 2700 cities around the world have supported.  It is time to enlist our cities and citizens to gather together to support the Hiroshima Protocol and the elimination of all nuclear weapons on this precious planet we live on. 
 

Registration Form download form from Mayors for Peace site

To Dr. Tadatoshi Akiba 
Mayor of Hiroshima 
President of Mayors for Peace 

I hereby express my city/municipality's support for the abolition of nuclear weapons 
and desire to join the Mayors for Peace.* 

Name of your country:   _________________________ 
Name of your city/municipality:   _________________________ 
Mayor's name:  _____________________________ Gender: ___ Male ___ Female 
Address:    __________________________________________________ 

TEL:  _________________________ 
FAX:   _________________________ 
E-mail:  __________________________________________________ 
 

Contact person 
Name:    _____________________________ Gender: ___ Male ___ Female 
Position:    __________________________________________________________ 
E-mail:      __________________________________________________________ 
Website:    __________________________________________________________ 
Population:   _____________________________ 
 

Date:     _____________________________ 
 

Mayor's Signature:      _____________________________ 

*This registration form is to express your city/municipality's decision to join Mayors for Peace. If your city/municipality requires specific procedures, including approval from your city/municipal council, please submit this form after such procedures are completed.

List of California Cities Endorsing Mayors for Peace Cities - April, 2009- find latest list here

Southern California
Compton  '93 
Irvine  '85 
Los Angeles  '88 
South Pasadena  '93 
Long Beach  '05 
Lynwood  '93 
Santa Barbara  '02 

Northern California
Fairfax  '07 
Berkeley  '88 
Fresno  '85 
San Francisco   '83 
Santa Cruz  '88 
Carmel  '85 
Marina  '85 
Pleasanton  '07 
San Leandro  '09 
Oakland  '07 
Palo Alto  '85 
Richmond  '07 
Sacramento  '85 
Saratoga  '85 
Sebastopol  '98 
Wasco  '05 

The 2020 Vision - set the rules for nuclear disarmament by 2015, disarm by 2020

1.Nuclear weapons do not destroy military targets they kill civilians and we civilians in the LA basin are prime targets.

2.It is unconscionable, as a civilized people, to use these weapons against other civilian populations.

3.In an international poll late last year, 77% of Americans strongly or somewhat favored elimination of nuclear weapons compared to 13% who somewhat opposed and 7% who strongly opposed elimination.

4.The cost to maintain our nuclear arsenal is $50 billion dollars a year or more than $160 dollars for every person in the US – and we can’t even use them.

5.If we want other nations such as India or Iran to eliminate or not produce their own nuclear weapons, we, Russia, France, Britain and China need to lead by example.

6.Eliminating thousand of warheads and reducing the number of third world countries that have them is the best defense against terrorist use of nuclear weapons.

7.This is not a unilateral disarmament, but a staged and coordinated effort with the other nations who have these weapons and implementing protocols to verify reduction and elimination.
 

Making citizens safer, saving money, leading the world away from the brink of disaster, reducing terrorist threats – how can we not support this effort at eliminating nuclear weapons?

Los Angeles Area Nuclear Disarmament Coalition Contact Information

Roger Eaton, Coordinator
11848 Atlantic Ave
Los Angeles, CA USA 90066
Phone: (310) 390-5220
rogereaton@earthlink.net (include "laandc" in the title of your message)