VOW has joined organizations around the world in signing on to this year’s appeal for the Global Days of Action on Military Spending (GDAMS), April 13th to May 12th.
The statement begins: “This year, the world reaped the horrors of its investments in tools of war. The violence being perpetrated on people around the world at the hands of militarized states has had devastating impacts on humanity and the environment. The $2.11 trillion spent on militaries in 2021* did not provide true security— instead, these bloated budgets for weapons and war kept us mired in cycles of violence. It is time for us to join together and call on governments around the world to cut military spending, and to instead invest in common and human security. We need to give peace a budget.”
And continues: “Military spending does not keep us safe, and prevents the global collaboration that is essential for human wellbeing. For all this, we call on civil society and the media to push for major reductions of military expenditures, instead of the increases announced in many countries.
We demand that governments reduce their military spending, and commit funding to common and human security instead— investing in the true needs of the people and the planet to build a just and sustainable peace.”