IPPNW's new "Medical Voices Against Violence" project features stories of personal experiences with violence, especially gun violence, from IPPNW members - doctors, nurses, medical students and and other heath professionals. We will use these stories to educate others about the human costs of violence via IPPNW's "Aiming for Prevention" campaign, and to advocate for violence prevention using a public health approach.

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International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War regrets the nuclear test conducted by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). As an organization of doctors, we deplore the squandering of scarce resources of all the nuclear powers in the time of world wide economic recession on the development of weapons — especially weapons of mass destruction — instead of investing in health, education, economic development and other social needs that provide true security.

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IPPNW was one of more than 75 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) participating in the 2009 Preparatory Committee meeting for the 2010 Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty at UN Headquarters in New York. The two-week PrepCom made important strides toward strengthening the disarmament and non-proliferation "pillars" of the NPT, which had come under enormous strain during the eight years of the Bush administration in the US.

more ...[IPPNW peace and health blog]

The IPPNW joint European – Russian /CIS meeting and Symposium "Nuclear Weapons, Violence and Health" took place in Helsinki, Finland from 23.-26.4.2009. The Particpants from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Germany, Poland, Netherlands, UK, France, Portugal, Switzerland, Russia, Georgia, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan and Ukraine discussed a common European-Russia-CIS campaign on nuclear disarmament as part of the IPPNW ICAN campaign.

more ...[View the conference on video]

Most of the world is already finished with the idea of nuclear weapons. Public opinion polls in country after country—even in the nuclear-weapon states—reflect broad and growing support for a nuclear-weapons-free world. Serious mainstream politicians and diplomats, including US President Barack Obama, have embraced the goal of zero nuclear weapons, though they mostly advocate near-term— though important — incremental steps such as dealerting and making deeper cuts in the US and Russian arsenals, and stop short of calling for negotiations on a comprehensive, universal agreement—a nuclear weapons convention similar to the treaties that already ban chemical and biological weapons.

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IPPNW notes with grave concern the use of white phosphorus by Israeli forces in the recent war against Gaza.  As physicians committed to reducing the suffering brought by warfare, we recognise the inhumane and indiscriminate effects of white phosphorus, and strongly condemn its use in armed conflict under any circumstances. 

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During its first week in office, the new US administration of President Barack Obama published its foreign policy agenda on the revamped White House website. A summary of steps that Obama took as a US Senator to address the nuclear threat is followed by a series of explicit pledges to stop the development of new nuclear weapons, to take existing weapons off hair trigger alert, and to strengthen the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

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We, physicians who have the mission to protect life and promote health, cannot accept the present suffering and bloodshed taking place in Gaza. We urge all parties to immediately take all the necessary steps to achieve an immediate, complete, and stable ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the South of Israel, and to provide sufficient medical care for all the victims who suffer from severe injuries.

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After eight dark years of neo-con rule, the American people voted for hope and change, backed by global demand for progressive new US leadership. It feels like a new dawn. The election of President Barack Obama brings newfound hope that the United States will become a champion for peace. During the campaign, President-Elect Obama pledged to end the Iraq war, to restore the rule of law, to close Guantánamo Bay, to reaffirm the Geneva Conventions, to pursue diplomacy, and to respect and participate in the United Nations.

more ...[What you can do]

ICAN welcomes Secretary General to the United Nations Ban Ki-moon's speech "The United Nations and Security in a Nuclear Weapons-Free World", made at an East-West Institute event on weapons of mass destruction and disarmament. Attended by Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei (Director of the IAEA), Dr. Henry Kissinger, and leaders from the E.U., China, India, Japan, Pakistan, and the USA, Ban Ki-moon specifically urged all nations to pursue a Nuclear Weapons Convention (NWC).

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On October 17, 2008 the South Bridge connecting the cities Lewiston and Aubury in Main, USA was renamed after the IPPNW-founder Bernard Lown. Governor John E. Baldacci of Main expressed his hope that by renaming the bridge future generations will remember Bernard Lown and be inspired by his “incredible humanitarian efforts”.

more ...[Link zum Artikel im "Sunjournal"]

Over 150 people attended the London launch of Global Health Watch 2 at University College London on October 16th and the report is presently being launched in over 22 countries around the world. Produced by the People’s Health Movement, Medact and the Global Equity Gauge Alliance in South Africa, GHW2 presents an alternative view of health in the 21st century that is sorely needed.

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63 years have passed since the nuclear bombings on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which must be remembered for the excruciating human agony and devastating destruction of a kind never seen before. The “Global Voyage for a Nuclear-Free World – Peace Boat Hibakusha Project” has brought 102 Hibakusha (survivors of the atomic bombings) to Piraeus, Greece as part of the worldwide voyage to share their testimonies and the universal message of the Hibakusha that nuclear weapons must be abolished in order to never again allow their use. To this end, we join the global civil society call for a world free from nuclear weapons, underpinned by a Nuclear Weapons Convention.

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On the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of the NATO military organisation, we appeal to all people to come to Strasbourg and Kehl in April 2009, to protest against NATO’s aggressive military and nuclear policies, and assert our vision of a just world free of war. NATO is an increasing obstacle to achieving world peace. Since the end of the Cold War, NATO has reinvented itself as a tool for military action by the “international community”, including the promotion of the so-called “war on terror”.

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“How close we came to extinction, and it is forgotten now.” So begins Nobel Prize-winner Bernard Lown’s story of his fight against the nuclear symptom of what he calls “the disease of militarism.” It is still active and highly contagious, as witnessed by events in Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, and all too many other places. And it can only be stopped, as this extraordinary memoir vividly demonstrates, by concerned citizens working together.

more ...[Flyer of the book]

From September 12th to 14th IPPNW Germany held its 3rd Open Congress for a Culture of Peace in the Urania in Berlin.  For three days 700 participants and experts were debating to identify paths to recovery and to promote constructive proposals for more peaceful world order. More than 50 experts from all over the world gave lectures, from Ecuador, Kenya, Canada, South Africa or Palestine.

more ...[Congress Website]

The US-India Deal Working Group of the international disarmament network, ABOLITION 2000,  in which IPPNW is involved, deplores the decision of the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to approve a special exemption for India from its nuclear trade rules.
The exemption will allow India to participate in international nuclear trade, but, contrary to the claims of its advocates, it will not bring India further into conformity with the nonproliferation behavior expected of the member states of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

more ...[Letter to Ambassador Lüdeking, January 2008]  [Letter to Minister Steinmeier, August 2008]

The armed conflict between Russia and Georgia is extremely dangerous and needs to be brought to a halt immediately. The impact on innocent civilians is mounting and, if allowed to continue, could spiral out of control. Further, were this territorial dispute to draw in neighboring European countries and the United States, the conflict could escalate into a confrontation between the two largest nuclear-armed states.

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