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Dear Heads of Government,
Dear Ambassadors to the United Nations
International Law on the Use of Force
The humankind had to pay a price of more than 60 million people killed in two World Wars
before agree-ing on International Law. With the founding of the United Nations and after defining
the principles of In-ternational Law, a general ban of the use of force as a political measure was
promulgated. There are but two exceptions: the right of self-defence if an armed attack occurs
and the enforcement measures of the Security Council. Beyond those exceptions, all countries
have lost the right to wage war against other countries, no matter what claims are made for the
justness of the goals.
With respect to the weakening of International Law * and the fathomless hardship
war brings to the people affected by it, we call upon you to:
Make sure that the UN is not deprived of its power as a peacekeeping organisation between
individual nations and resist any attempt to weaken the strict adherence to and implementation
of the ban of the use of force in International Law!
Lend your support to making your country part of those nations which are prepared and willing
to en-shrine a ban on the use of force and war as a means for political action once more.
We each declare to you that I shall make use of all available legal means in order
to ensure that:
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all activities contrary to International Law shall be stopped as quickly as possible.
the damage caused by such activities shall be compensated for by those who caused it.
the responsible politicians shall be called to account.
International Law and Nuclear Weapons
From the very first resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly, the international community
has attempted to grapple with the threat of nuclear annihilation. In 1996, at the request of the
UNGA, the International Court of Justice considered place of nuclear weapons in the rule of law
and human rights. They unanimous found that there exists a universal legal obligation to “pursue
in good faith and bring to a conclusion negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament in all it
aspect under strict and effective international control.”
With respect to the use of nuclear weapons and its genocidal impact on cities** ,
we call on you to:
Never forget the experiences of Hiroshima and Nagasaki! The 60th Anniversary of those
bombing ap-proaches, yet cities everywhere are still at risk.
Begin negotiations in 2005 in good faith and conclude them in 2010 so that the agreed
measures can lead to nuclear disarmament in all its aspect by 2020, as the Mayors for Peace
have proposed.
We each declare to you that I shall make use of all available legal means in order
to ensure that:
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all nuclear-weapon program activities that delay nuclear disarmament are stopped as
quickly as possible.
any negotiation not conducted in good faith is rectified as quickly as possible.
the responsible politicians for such activities shall be called to account.
* Leading experts in International Law agree that a preventive war as waged by the coalition of the willing
constitutes a clear breach of current International Law. It also bears the potential to be taken as precedent
so that ”preventive war” may become international customary and thus an acknowledged form of state
action. That means that the total ban on any war of aggression as enshrined in International Law would
be suspended and individual nations would be granted the opportunity to declare a war of aggression in
accordance with International Law, as long as they manage to justify it as a preventive “defensive” war
(regard-less of the insubstantial nature of the reasons and “evidence” they adduce).
** The International Court of Justice also found that “the threat or use of nuclear weapons would generally
be contrary to the rules of international law applicable in arms conflict, in particular the principles and rules
of humanitarian law.” Within seconds 70,000 people were killed in Hiroshima and 40,000 in Nagasaki in
August 1945. By the end of the year over 200,000 had suc-cumbed to injuries and radiation. Nuclear
weapons and humanity cannot co-exist.