UN Secretary-General urges lawmakers to promote nuclear-weapon-free world
May 7th, 2010 - 5:01 am ICT by BNO NewsUNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) – United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday urged parliamentarians worldwide to promote the cause of a nuclear-weapon-free world.
“After decades of work, it is clear that real change will come only through consistent, strong public pressure – on a global scale, and from the grassroots. That is why you are so crucial,” Mr. Ban told a joint gathering of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (PNND).
He continued, saying that lawmakers are experts in enacting and upholding the rule of law and their voices must stay at the heart of the debate.
“It is the world’s taxpayers who are funding the development of nuclear arms,” the Secretary-General said. “Tomorrow, they could be paying a different – and much higher – price,” he emphasized, calling for an end to this “senseless” waste of resources.
The weapons do not enhance global peace and security, but rather, he said, “put them in jeopardy.”
Earlier this week, the United States revealed that it has more than 5,000 warheads in its nuclear arsenal; the Secretary-General called this a “chilling figure.” But the country’s revelation is sign of its transparency, which in turn builds trust, the Secretary-General said.
Mr. Ban told parliamentarians that he hopes negotiators at the NPT gathering will “seize the movement” and “think big” to achieve disarmament targets.
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