Ottawa Peace Calendar* December 1986
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Ottawa Peace Calendar * December 1986 |
by Kristen Ostling
On November 13th, the Legislature of Ontario took a step towards making the province a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone (NWFZ). A NWFZ private member's resolution introduced by Richard Johnston (NDP MPP for Scarboro West) was passed with 61 members voting in favour and 9 against.
Critics of the resolution have expressed their skepticism as to its significance. For instance, a recent Ottawa Citizen editorial (November 18, 1986) stated the obvious: "If ever the bombs start flying, they're not likely to bypass Ontario simply because our politicians have issued a decree."
Advocates of NWFZs have, of course, never attributed this kind of power to a NWFZ. The significance of the passing of the resolution is that it gives political direction to the government of Ontario to actually move towards a formal, legally binding declaration.
The Ontario NWFZ resolution or any subsequent declaration won't protect us in the event of a nuclear war, but it will help to move Ontario in the direction of extracting itself from the nuclear arms race.
The campaign to make Ontario a NWFZ, launched in September at the 1986 Ontario Peace Conference, played an important role in the passing of the resolution. However, it should be emphasized that it is the cumulative effect of the hard work that has gone into the Ontario peace movement's NWFZ campaigns over the past several years which led to this recent success. By the time the resolution was passed on November 13, 53 municipalities in Ontario had been declared Nuclear Weapons Free, representing approximately 40% of the population.
The next phase of the campaign to make Ontario a NWFZ will be discussed at a meeting on February 7th at the office of the Development Education Centre in Toronto. For further information, contact John Wilkinson at Operation Dismantle 722-6001.
Converted July 18, 2002 - Lg
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