Scottish parliament urged to support global DU ban

Scottish parliament urged to support global DU ban

Following a CADU & ICBUW seminar in the Scottish Parliament, Patrick Harvie MSP has submitted a resolution to the parliament condemning depleted uranium and calling for the Scottish Government to support calls for a ban. We are asking all our supporters in Scotland to contact their MSP - at both constituency and regional level, and ask them to sign the motion.

Developments in Holyrood are a reaction to a resolution in the European Parliament last May, which received the support of 94% of MEPs, and was co-sponsored by every political group in the parliament. The motion asks that the Scottish Government lend it's moral support, and practical support where possible, to a global ban on DU.

Depleted uranium is a particular issue in Scotland, as the only DU test firing range in the UK is in Dumfrieshire, where environmental monitoring has found radioactive earchworms and soil contamination limits that breach agreed safety levels. This is despite the fact that most of the shells are fired into the Solway Firth.

“The serious long-term effects of depleted uranium on health and the environment have long been well understood, and they bring a price neither Iraq nor Dumfriesshire should have to pay,” said Patrick Harvie, Green MSP for Glasgow, who tabled the motion.

The move follows developments in Costa Rica, which is expected to become the second country to enact a domestic ban on DU weapons. The proposed law is being driven by Alexander Mora Mora, who is president of the Latin American Parliament's Human Rights commission, and managed to get almost 40 signatures within two days, out of 57 members of the legislative assembly. He has subsequently taken it to the Latin American parliament – the Parlatino, where it may be used as a template by other states in the region interested in enacting domestic laws on uranium weapons.

Please contact your MSP, as well as all the MSPs in your region, and ask them to support motion S3M-4113 which calls for the Scottish Government to join with the European Parliament and all those taking a stand for a global ban on uranium in weapons. If you have the time, it is better to write using your own words – but if not, why not use the text below.

To find your MSP’s contact details visit http://ww.theyworkforyou.org or http://www.scottish.parliament.uk

Uranium is used in armour piercing tanks and shells, and has been used extensively in Iraq and the Balkans. While it is often called depleted uranium, it is radioactive and chemically toxic, and is believed to be responsible for reported rises in rates of cancer and birth defects in affected areas. A motion currently before the Scottish Parliament cites these health concerns as justification for a global ban on weapons containing uranium.

In May 2008 the European Parliament passed a powerful resolution, which called for an EU-wide moratorium on these weapons. The fourth resolution to be passed by the Parliament, it was supported by 94% of MEPs. It was co-sponsored all the major European political group, including those of all Scottish MEPs.

Uranium weapons have been banned in Belgium and a ban is expected shortly in Costa Rica. They have been the subject of repeated United Nations resolutions and have been branded as inhumane and indiscriminate by a UN Commission on Human Rights. The use of uranium in conventional weapons runs counter to the principles of environmental protection, precaution and proportionality enshrined in International Humanitarian Law. Because of this they are the next target for a global ban following the successful treaties banning land mines and cluster bombs.

As home to the UK’s only uranium weapon test firing range at Dundrennan in Dumfries and Galloway, the Scottish Parliament has a key role to play in adding its voice to the growing global condemnation of these indiscriminate and inhumane weapons.

Please support motion S3M-4113 which calls for the Scottish Government to join with the European Parliament and all those taking a stand against them.

The full motion text:

S3M-4113 Patrick Harvie: European Resolution on Depleted Uranium Weapons—That the Parliament acknowledges the European Parliament’s resolution on "Depleted uranium weapons and their effect on human health and the environment - towards a global ban on the use of such weapons"; recognises the serious health concerns about the use of depleted uranium weapons on both military personnel and civilians, concerns that are widely acknowledged by many including the UN General Assembly; further recognises the serious environmental hazards posed by depleted uranium such as the contamination of soil and groundwater, and strongly urges the Scottish Government to offer its moral and, where appropriate, practical support for a global ban on the use of depleted uranium weapons.

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Page last updated: 19 May, 2009