Dr. Nancy Covington initiates e-petition sponsored by MP Elizabeth May to pressure Canada to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)

VOW Member Dr. Nancy Covington has initiated an and MP Elizabeth May has sponsored a Parliamentary Petition to force the Government of Canada to read a petition regarding the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Once a Parliamentary Petition has reached 500 signatures from Canadian Citizens, Parliament must read it in the House of Commons. As of this article, the petition has 721 signatures but the more it has, the better to underscore the need for nuclear abolition.

Please read below to hear what Dr. Nancy Covington writes on the initiative and please click on the link below before February 6th, 2021 to sign this important initiative!

Dear Friends,

In the spirit of advancing Canada’s long time commitment to global nuclear disarmament, please sign the following House of Commons e-petition calling on the Government of Canada to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).  Access via:   https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Sign/e-3028

On January 22, 2021, this United NationsTreaty will become international law thus finally declaring nuclear weapons illegal.   However, nuclear weapons will only be illegal for those nations which have acceded to the Treaty, which currently stands at 51 nations.  An additional 86 countries have signed the Treaty.  Canada has not signed or acceded. 

The International Committee of the Red Cross has stated that no government or international agency could possibly respond to the humanitarian needs after any use of nuclear weapons.  Furthermore, there is no vaccine for the effects of a nuclear weapons detonation.
The only solution is to prevent such a humanitarian disaster by being proactive.  The more signatures the stronger the petition.   Please sign and distribute.  https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Petition/Sign/e-3028

Closing date of this petition is February 6, at 2:00 pm EST, after which the petition will be verified, sent to Elizabeth May to be read in the House of Commons.  The petition will also elicit an official response from the Government of Canada.

Earl Turcotte, chairperson of Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons has stated  “This is an excellent initiative that can help press the Government of Canada to take action in support of nuclear disarmament.” 

Nancy Covington  Dec 2020

Read the e-petition here but don’t forget to sign!

e-3028

Petition to the Government of Canada

Whereas:

  • A nuclear weapons detonation could result in a humanitarian catastrophe so immense that it is impossible to comprehend. The direct effects would be far worse than any pandemic as there is no known meaningful medical response. A nuclear winter could be triggered causing widespread famine throughout the world;
  • A recent surge in modernization of nuclear weapons means the risk of an accidental or intentional nuclear catastrophe has increased markedly since the Cold War era;
  • The money and resources spent on nuclear weapons could be redirected to address the unsolved issues facing humankind, such as climate change, poverty or pandemics;
  • Nuclear weapons, designed to kill vast numbers of people indiscriminately, have always been immoral. On January 22, 2021 nuclear weapons will also become illegal under international law for countries that have ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, a Treaty whose text has been endorsed by 122 nations;
  • The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons is the best current option for nuclear weapons disarmament; and
  • This Treaty is considered robust in terms of its provisions for implementing the process of abolishing nuclear weapons and is therefore complementary to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. It is a major achievement of international diplomacy;

We, the undersigned, Citizens of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons thereby advancing Canada’s longstanding commitment to global nuclear disarmament.