Nuclear weapons crime in the UK has been reported to Thames Valley Police.
“We have a window to act now. If we push on scrapping Trident now, we’ll win. With the confluence of the international movement to ban nuclear weapons, and UK popular opposition to spending money on illegal weapons during a time of austerity, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to get rid of Britain’s nuclear-weapons of mass destruction.” - Dr. Rebecca Johnson, international anti-nuclear campaigner, Acronym Institute http://www.acronym.org.uk/ & ActionAWE actionawe.org
Latest actions
Action AWE actionawe.org: Report a Crime in Reading, 8 February
On 8 February 60 people braved the cold weather (including hail!) to queue up at Reading police station to report the crime of production of weapons of mass destruction, preparation for genocide, down the road at nearby AWE. Full reports, interviews and videos online, here!
Now it’s time to follow up, to ring the police and ask what is happening. ACTION: If you reported a crime on 8 February, you can ring Graham Benham at Thames Valley Police operations on: 01189-536225. Remember the crime number: EA 44024800 (the same for all of us). You could ask why the response is taking so long considering the seriousness of the crime you reported. Let us know how you get on: [email protected].
Many people found the action encouraging because for once we were taking the initiative in our struggle to rid the world of nuclear weapons, being proactive rather than reactive. Now we’re gearing up for a mass Report A Crime, 1-7 July, in a number of places around the country. Keep an eye on the website actionawe.org for more details!
Read part of the 2008 judgement handed down at the High Court in the public interest action against Trident taken by Peacerights and Nuclear Information Service:
Remembering Fukushima, 15 March
Action AWE activists joined the Fukushima 3-year anniversary demo in London on Saturday 15 March. Many of the demonstrators were from Japan, supported by British anti-nuclear protestors wearing their portable “nuclear waste drums”, with one dressed as the “magic fairy” we assume the government must believe exists to make nuclear waste disappear.
Nukewatch films a convoy at Bicester, 2 April
Nukewatch tracked a nuclear warhead convoy travelling south to Burghfield on Wednesday 2nd April. Oxford nukewatchers filmed this short video on the M40 at Bicester (outside lane of oncoming traffic): .
Forthcoming AAWE actions
People’s Budget, Global Day of Action on Military Spending, Reading, 14 April
Join us in Reading on 14 April in some creative street theatre: we’ll be inviting passersby to give their input to a People’s Budget – asking them to tell us how to spend the £100 billion pounds for Trident on other items. It will be fun! As well as educational!
Birmingham NVDA Training 10 May, Carlands Church Centre
E-mail [email protected] for details.
Fast for Hiroshima & Nagasaki: August, Aldermaston & Burghfield
We’ll be holding a Hiroshima and Nagasaki solidarity and remembrance fast from 6 to 9 August, and fasting campaigners will be camping near Burghfield, as they did last year. Everyone is invited to join the fast wherever they are, or come and camp with the fasting campaigners. Come on 8 August and be ready for Wool Against Weapons next day! For more info check the Action AWE website.
Wool Against Weapons
9 August, Nagasaki Day, is the big day for Wool Against Weapons http://www.woolagainstweapons.co.uk/, start making your plans now to join in the most colourful protest ever against Trident! We need many many people to join in, to hold up the giant pink scarf along the 8 mile route between AWE Aldermaston and AWE Burghfield. More details from Wool Against Weapons as they are finalised (also on facebook). The Aldermaston Women’s Camp will welcome women who want to camp the night before the Wool Against Weapons action.
Related actions
Speaking out against the Bomb
Dr Rebecca Johnson’s Ban the Bomb tour and Bruce Kent’s Scrap Trident tour are continuing, with Bruce Kent speaking in Bristol hosted by Action AWE / Bristol CND member Rowland Dye: http://www.cnduk.org/get-involved/item/1662-scrap-trident-tour-with-bruce-kent. For Rebecca’s new dates check the website: http://www.cnduk.org/campaigns/no-to-trident/the-new-ban-the-bomb-tour
Feeling Impatient? You can take action right now! http://www.rethinktrident.org.uk/
NATO’s coming to Wales, September
Peace and anti-nuclear campaigners and anti-militarists are gearing up for NATO’s summit in Wales in September. NATO is a nuclear partnership. Check out Stop Nato Cymru’s website for info as it becomes available: https://network23.org/stopnatocymru/
Other news
International conference towards an International nuclear weapons ban, February, Mexico
In February Mexico hosted more than 140 governments at the Second International Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons. The conference went ahead despite lobbying from some nuclear weapons states against participation, and concluded, after hearing much irrefutable evidence, with a call for states to launch a diplomatic process to ban nuclear weapons – to start the process of banning all nuclear weapons. The first conference was held in Norway in March 2013, attended by 127 governments, as well as international humanitarian agencies, and a broad cross section of civil society groups. Sadly the UK government was notable by its absence from both conferences. Read a fuller report from the conference here: http://www.icanw.org/campaign-news/nayarit-point-of-no-return-mexico-conference-marks-turning-point-towards-nuclear-weapon-ban-2/ and for more on the conference in the context of what’s happening in Ukraine: http://thebulletin.org/ukraine-and-nayarit-humanitarian-case-nuclear-disarmament
Faslane: protestors board a sub, 19 March
On Wednesday 19 March 2 Faslane Peace Camp campaigners broke into the nuclear submarine base and boarded the Royal Navy submarine HMS Ambush. HMS Ambush is one of the new Astute class of hunter-killer submarines, which will be based alongside the £100 billion Trident replacement at Faslane. Full story in Peace News.
Arms fair protestors Prosecute arms dealers
Some of the women arrested for protesting against the DSEI arms fair last September are now taking a private prosecution against 2 companies selling illegal torture equipment at the fair, Magforce International and Tianjin MyWay International Trading. Find out more about the campaign and how to support it at http://armsdealersontrial.wordpress.com.
Greenpeace occupation of French nuclear power station, 18 March, Fessenheim
34 Greenpeace activists from France, Switzerland, Britain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Israel were arrested for entering, climbing and occupying the nuclear power station at Fessenheim and hanging a banner. Full story in Le Parisien (in French): http://www.leparisien.fr/economie/nucleaire-spectaculaire-action-des-militants-de-greenpeace-a-fessenheim-18-03-2014-3683381.php
Goodbye Tony Benn
Huge crowds filled Parliament Square in March to say goodbye to Tony Benn, a longtime supporter of nuclear disarmament and campaigner against the renewal of Trident. Here are two short films of him speaking on the folly of nuclear weapons and the need to work for a safe, nuclear-free future: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjwsFZwQGCk and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZeMjlLXWYds
Martin Newell
Fr Martin Newell of Catholic Worker was sentenced to 28 days in prison on 15 March for non-payment of fines for peace protesting, including an action at the MoD on 14th March where he wrote the words ‘”Choose Life, No Trident” says God’. Released on 27 March, Martin said: “My prayer is that we will all deepen our commitment to work for peace and justice in God’s world.”
60 years of Pain: Anniversary of Castle Bravo test
1 March 2014 was the 60th anniversary of the most devastating nuclear weapon test ever conducted by the USA. The 15-megaton bomb (1,000 times the power of the Hiroshima bomb) vaporized three of the 23 islands of the Bikini Atoll, and created a crater visible from outer space. Now the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation have published 3 new papers on the test, the suffering, and the cover-up:
