WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR PEACE & FREEDOM UNITED STATES SECTION THIRTY-SECOND TRIENNIAL CONGRESS DETROIT, MICHIGAN August 3, 2014
Resolution passed unanimously by voice vote
The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom—United States, in the light of the six powers and Iran about to launch the decisive phase of diplomacy over Tehran’s nuclear work in Vienna, advances the urgency of a Middle East Nuclear Free Zone, also called a Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East.
The joint resolution for such a zone was initiated by Iran and seconded by Egypt in 1974 and then adopted many times by the United Nations General Assembly. Many nations spoke for it in the high level meeting at the UN that happened last September 26, 2013. Nuclear Free Zones have been pioneered successfully in other parts of the world. The UN has declared September 26th the day of Nuclear Disarmament.
We are encouraged by the meetings in Glion, Switzerland in which Israel participated and by the positive informal talks in June at the UN. It could be achievable, because so far Israel is the only nuclear power in the region.
We continue to affirm the importance of resuming the canceled Helsinki conference and setting up an agenda for it, as well as creating confidence building measures that would help make this development a reality.
September 21st being named already World Peace Day, it does give us a good opportunity to do a week of teaching from the 21st to the 26th of September 2014, honoring these two dates on the subject of weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zones (WMDFZ) and specifically on a WMDFZ in the Middle East.
Let it be resolved that WILPF branches will be encouraged to have discussions of this topic and educate their communities and that some budget and staff support will be nationally allocated to this education.
Let it be resolved therefore that WILPF branches will also, by visit or letters, reach out to the ambassadors of the UN, the Congress, and the Jewish Peace organizations and will build coalitions with other peace organizations on this topic.
At the last WILPF Congress we have previously endorsed a resolution on this issue; this is to re-declare our commitment to the abolition of nuclear weapons and the establishment of a weapons free zone in the Middle East.
Endorsed at WILPF 2011 Congress:
We urge a halt to the proliferation of arms in Western Asia (the Middle East) and seek the creation of a Nuclear Free Zone in that region. WILPF will lobby the U.S. mission to the United Nations to press for the establishment of this zone.