“We stand at the brink of a second nuclear age. Not since the first atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki has the world faced such perilous choices ... As in past deliberations, we have examined other human-made threats to civilisation. We have concluded that the dangers posed by climate change are nearly as dire as those posed by nuclear weapons.”
On 18 January, the Board of Directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the hands on the Doomsday Clock from…
In Denmark, a group of citizens are preparing to challenge the legality of their country's participation in the invasion of Iraq.
In a historic case to be heard by the High Court of Eastern Denmark on 29 January,a group will argue that Denmark's decision to join the war was in breach of the constitution. Mean-while, in the US, where a recent poll found that only 54% of serving army personnel support the Iraq war, 1,000 active duty soldiers and sailors have joined peace activists in…
Later in the month, groups from Ireland, Leicester, Staffordshire and Stoke all blockaded successfully. Trident Ploughshares blockaded with the help of Faslane Peace Camp, who used nine-year old concrete barrel lock-ons to great effect. One group from TP attempted to use bikes to blockade. These tactics are part of the continuing effort to overcome the large numbers of police officers and resources.
Christmas crackers Scottish Students blockaded the week before Christmas with steel…
On 4 December the government published a White Paper outlining its preferred option for the continuation of Britain's nuclear weapons programme, committing the country to a new fleet of nuclear submarines and to a service life extension for the US-owned Trident D5 missiles. Buried on page 30 was the news that the future of Britain's nuclear warheads would be determined in the next parliament. For now, a reduction in existing warhead numbers, from the equivalent of approximately 1,600…
November saw 16 different groups covering 20 days at Faslane, clocking up a mighty 148 arrests. The total number of arrests since 1 October 2006 stands at 330, but still only one prosecution so far.
Cumbria and North Lancashire started the month on a Halloween theme, handing over to the Iona community and the Clergy Action Group. By all accounts the police found it a surreal experience to be arresting so many church ministers. CND and Stop The War were next in line, with small but…
On 4 December the government published a White Paper outlining its preferred option for the continuation of Britain's nuclear weapons programme, committing the country to a new fleet of nuclear submarines and to a service life extension for the US-owned Trident D5 missiles. Buried on page 30 was the news that the future of Britain's nuclear warheads would be determined in the next parliament. For now, a reduction in existing warhead numbers, from the equivalent of approximately 1,600…
Campaigners in more than 50 cities across Europe have taken part in a month-long action protesting against the nuclear capacity of NATO member states. Concerned citizens have been filing official complaints with relevant authorities on the grounds that NATO's nuclear capacity is contrary to international humanitarian law, as the weapons' indiscriminate nature is certain to cause unnecessary suffering.
The series of complaints, organised by Greenpeace and the Belgium peace…
It might have been described in North Korea as a “happy” test, but North Korea's nuclear explosion on 9 October was deeply sad.
Sad for the people of North Korea who are oppressed while their preening “dear leader” Kim Jong Il beggars the economy and pours scarce resources into building plutonium weapons. Sad for the nuclear non-proliferation regime, widening its credibility gap and yet again showing how the “promise” of nuclear power can be diverted into nuclear weapons by…
On 1 October, 200 people descended on USAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. The airbase is believed to be home to around 110 US nuclear weapons of vital strategic importance to the US military. The following day eight activists broke into the base and locked on to the gates of the ammunition depot.
The demonstration on 1 October was called by CND and the Lakenheath Action group, and saw CND's Kate Hudson and Bruce Kent address the crowd along with Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn (who, apparently, had…
Frances Laing talks to Joan Meredith, founder member of Trident Ploughshares, following her arrest at Faslane 365 in October.
Frances: Why did you join the opening Faslane 365 blockade?
Joan: I remembered Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It was 1945. I was 15 years old - the announcement on the radio that the bomb had been dropped and then the awful thing was seeing it on the Pathe Gazette news - utter devastation and the tales of horror - how people had finished up…
On Saturday 7 October, a full sized replica Trident missile found its way onto the streets of Taunton. The event was part of an ongoing action staged by Somerset Campaign Against Trident Renewal (SCATR) and drew attention to the Faslane 365 Campaign. A number of activists from across the South West joined the protest in Scotland during the following week, overlapping with the Seize the Day group, many of whom also come from this area.
The banner was made by Taunton Peace Group, and…
In August 2002, the Atomic Weapons Establishment Aldermaston outlined a raft of new facilities it wanted to build over the coming years. Amongst more benign projects like greening the site and providing better facilities for its employees, the nuclear bomb factory's plans included a massive laser, and hydrodynamics and explosives facilities.
Fast-forward four years and, after a bitter struggle by anti-nuclear campaigners, work on the first of the most contentious facilities - the…
The campaign to stop the next generation of nuclear weapons has received a lot of support - in particular from faith communities. From the Vatican to the local Friends Meeting House, calls to prevent Trident replacement can be heard, and many are choosing to turn their faith into action.
Every month outside the gates of AWE Aldermaston, worshippers hold a multi-faith vigil to remember those affected by acts of aggression and to renew their commitment to non-violently campaigning…
Hard on the heels of the great victory at the TUC -- an overwhelming vote in support of an RMT resolution against replacing Trident -- the issue has, however, been kept off the agenda at the Labour Party Conference.
This is another sad reflection of how out of touch the current government is with public opinion; 59% oppose Trident replacement, yet the party of government won't allow a debate on the issue. On the eve of the conference, tens of thousands of people marched through…
Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy: Regularly updated information and briefings available at http://www.acronym.org.uk/uk/index.htm. Call 020 7503 8857 for printed briefing. Aldermaston Women's Peace Camp(aign): Latest updates on developments at Aldermaston available at http://www.aldermaston.net/tng. Latest update September 2006, plus further news and info online. Call 07969 739 812 for…
