2020 Vision Campaign

powered by Mayors for Peace 
Cities Are Not Targets! 

Action
ALERT Take action as an EU member of Mayors for Peace!

Dear Mayors of the European Union,

At the end of March, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the

Parliament of the European Union (EU) will take up a
resolution concerning nuclear nonproliferation. You can find the
full text of the draft resolution here.

The global Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

After more than a decade of
(NPT) is reviewed every stalled progress, nuclear
five years and it is the disarmament is now high on
practice of the EU the international agenda. US
Parliament to provide President Obama has pledged
guidance to member states to seek a world free of nuclear
weapons as an administration
on what should be
priority – an explicit
Europe’s desired outcome commitment under the
of the review process. Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT).
This time is special
because the draft resolution
(L-r): Mayor Akiba, Mayor Dehaene and Senator The final Preparatory
Vankrunkelsven at the launch of the Commission before the 2010
goes beyond a narrow
Hiroshima-Nagasaki Protocol in the UN in NPT Review Conference is
Geneva, May 2008 conception of the coming up in May 2009 at UN
nonproliferation of nuclear weapons to embrace the prohibition Headquarters in New York.
of nuclear weapons. One of the key reference points in the The time for action is now!
draft resolution for this broader perspective is the Hiroshima-
Nagasaki Protocol that the three of us unveiled last May at the 2nd Preparatory Committee
Meeting for the Eighth NPT Review Conference.
There is a real chance of this resolution
being adopted - make your voice heard
Since then, as the resolution notes, over 500 mayors
ahead of the March 31st vote!
and city representatives have signed the Cities
Europeans hold in their hands the power to Appeal in support of the Hiroshima-Nagasaki
make a difference this month – send the Protocol. About half of the signatories are from EU
linked letter and sign the Cities Appeal countries – thank you!
today and the team at Mayors for Peace
will make sure your message is carried to
the halls of European Parliament.
We would like to encourage those of you who have not
yet signed it to do so at this crucial juncture. Your
signatures on the Cities Appeal send a clear signal to
the EU Parliament that they are on the right course.
By going one step further and writing to the Member(s)
of the Committee from your country to let him/her
know that you have signed the Appeal, you will directly
help to secure approval of this path-breaking resolution.
Please find here a link to a sample letter from a mayor
to an MEP. Please make use of it in the best way that
you possibly can by emailing your chosen MEP and
putting Mayors for Peace in Cc. You can find a full list
of the MEP members of the Foreign Affairs Committee
here.
We would be most obliged if you would notify the 2020
Vision Campaign Secretariat in Ypres (Belgium) of
whatever action you take. Thank you.
Together for a safer world,
Tadatoshi Akiba Luc Dehaene
Mayor of Hiroshima Mayor of Ypres
President of Mayors for Peace Chairman Board of Directors
Mayors for Peace
The Hiroshima-Nagasaki Protocol:
What role does it play?
The Cities Appeal in support of the
Protocol is the centerpiece of the 2020
Vision Campaign and was launched by
Mayors for Peace in May 2008 at the UN
in Geneva. It seeks to challenge
national governments to follow through
on the commitments they made in the
NPT. Through the Cities Appeal, cities
are given a chance to make a stand for
what is most important to them: the
security and wellbeing of their citizens.
Find a full list of our signatories to date
here.
Among the proposed amendments to
the resolution some MEPs are
attempting to take out all reference to
nuclear disarmament, the Protocol
included. This means your actions are
more important than ever!
Patrik Vankrunkelsven
Belgian Senator
Councillor, City of Laakdal