Realities in the world are that some states outside those joining Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty(NPT) have developed nuclear weapons. This raised concerns among other nations. Activists around the world urged the UN to issue firm regulations on nuclear non-proliferation.
Institute of International Studies (IIS) of International Relations department of UGM is one institution that follows the issue and makes campaigns and advocacy for non-proliferation. Recently, the IIS held a seminar and roadshow themed Towards a World Free from Nuclear Weapons in Jakarta, Malang, and Padang. IIS also organised the Bike Not Bombs fun bike event to educate the people on the issue. IIS also participates in the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty in Oslo in year 2013 and in Nayarit, Mexico, in 2014.
Muhadi Sugiono, M.A., one IIS researcher, participated in the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on Nuclear Disarmament 2016 in Geneva, Switzerland, presenting a paper entitled Non-Nuclear-Weapon States and a Treaty Prohibiting Nuclear Weapons. The paper points out 14 policy and practices in non-nuclear states that still hamper the non-proliferation work. In January, the UN agreed to a negotiation on nuclear disarmament to run this year.
“Negotiation is not the climax of all efforts being made in the world in voicing the nuclear non-proliferation globally. We need to continue the fight for the non-proliferation,” said Muhadi on Wednesday (22/2).
Muhadi explained why nuclear disarmament has to be done immediately because nuclear is dangerous to human beings such as what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki while the impact will affect the environment and climate for a long time.
According to Muhadi, like other weapons of mass destruction such as chemical and biological weapons and cluster munitions, nuclear weapons need to be disarmed, too, due to the dangerous impacts on humans.
Ahead of the UN negotiation on nuclear disarmament this year, IIS runs campaigns on this issue.
“The humanitarian impacts of nuclear weapon use have denied all arguments that support the retention of such weapon. Nuclear weapon, like any other weapons of mass destruction, has to be banned,” he said.