May Gathering in Plymouth to Prevent Wilful and Accidental Nuclear Holocaust
tamarians | 12.04.2014 21:43 | Anti-Nuclear | Anti-militarism | Ecology
The Tamarians are inviting members of the public to a gathering in Plymouth from the 9th to the 12th of May 2014. The group is a local affinity group of Trident Ploughshares, and is determined to abolish Weapons of Mass Destruction, starting with the one on their doorstep: the Trident submarine based system.
Tamarian activist wearing Trident Sub Headgear
There are 4 Trident submarines - one at sea at all times, each with up to 40 warheads of 100-120 kilotons. When fired, each missile can hit a different target. Each nuclear warhead on a Trident submarine is approximately 8-10 times more powerful than the bombs used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Trident is a Weapon of Mass Destruction, and is illegal under international law. (1)
The decision whether to proceed with a Trident replacement will be made in 2016, after the 2015 general election. This ‘Main Gate’ decision will cost the British taxpayer approximately £100 billion (2), at a time when public services are being cut to the bone. There is now strong evidence that going ahead with replacing Trident would result in jobs being lost, due to the resultant lack of government investment in other economic and infrastructure development. (2)
At the Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth the submarines are refitted. The population of Plymouth is in danger of exposure to nuclear leaks, details of the dangers are most apparent in the internal reports on accidents. In 2012 there were 50 hazardous incidents at Devonport Dockyard. Some were serious incidents. Alarmingly, one of these incidents involved loss of power to the cooling system for nuclear reactors for 90 minutes, an event with potential nuclear implications, which arose partly from an inability to learn from previous incidents and to implement the recommendations from previous event reports. (3)
If local people are concerned about the impact all of this may have on their future, they can join the Tamarians in their endeavor to disarm the illegal WMD Trident system.
On the evening of Friday the 9th of May the weekend will be kick-started by the legendary local busking band Phat Bollard at the Fortescue Pub, Mutley. Saturday the 19th is the workshop and skill-sharing day, which will start from 9:30 at the Quaker House on Mutley Plain. Workshops include: non-violent direct action, update on the Devonport subs, consensus decision-making and facilitation, stories from veteran peace activists, banner-making and practicing creative insurrection. Food and shelter will be provided for the whole weekend, (donations are welcome).
(1) Trident and International Law, 2011, Rebecca Johnson & Angie Zelter (Ed)
(2) People Not Trident: The Economic Case Against Trident Replacement, March 2014, CND
(3) Annual safety reports from HM Naval Base Devonport, March 2013, Ministry of Defense
The decision whether to proceed with a Trident replacement will be made in 2016, after the 2015 general election. This ‘Main Gate’ decision will cost the British taxpayer approximately £100 billion (2), at a time when public services are being cut to the bone. There is now strong evidence that going ahead with replacing Trident would result in jobs being lost, due to the resultant lack of government investment in other economic and infrastructure development. (2)
At the Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth the submarines are refitted. The population of Plymouth is in danger of exposure to nuclear leaks, details of the dangers are most apparent in the internal reports on accidents. In 2012 there were 50 hazardous incidents at Devonport Dockyard. Some were serious incidents. Alarmingly, one of these incidents involved loss of power to the cooling system for nuclear reactors for 90 minutes, an event with potential nuclear implications, which arose partly from an inability to learn from previous incidents and to implement the recommendations from previous event reports. (3)
If local people are concerned about the impact all of this may have on their future, they can join the Tamarians in their endeavor to disarm the illegal WMD Trident system.
On the evening of Friday the 9th of May the weekend will be kick-started by the legendary local busking band Phat Bollard at the Fortescue Pub, Mutley. Saturday the 19th is the workshop and skill-sharing day, which will start from 9:30 at the Quaker House on Mutley Plain. Workshops include: non-violent direct action, update on the Devonport subs, consensus decision-making and facilitation, stories from veteran peace activists, banner-making and practicing creative insurrection. Food and shelter will be provided for the whole weekend, (donations are welcome).
(1) Trident and International Law, 2011, Rebecca Johnson & Angie Zelter (Ed)
(2) People Not Trident: The Economic Case Against Trident Replacement, March 2014, CND
(3) Annual safety reports from HM Naval Base Devonport, March 2013, Ministry of Defense
tamarians
e-mail:
tp_tamarians@hotmail.co.uk
Homepage:
www.tridentploughshares.org
