2 March 2004
In this NPT Update, March 2, 2004:
I) Registration for the PrepCom is now open
II) Office Space for NGOs participating in the PrepCom
III) News in Review submissions
IV) Calendar of NGO events
V) Housing for NGO representatives at the PrepCom
VI) Nuclear Testing: Then and Now
The information included in this NPT Update is very important, so please read carefully. If you have any questions, just [email protected]- contact us.
As always, all information regarding the NPT PrepCom is available on our NPT page.
I) Registration is Open
All NGOs wishing to participate in the Third NPT PrepCom, April 26- May 7, must register with the United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs, Weapons of Mass Destruction branch.
Instructions on NGO registration and other logistics are available in the aide memoire published by the DDA.
You must send:
1) A letter written on organizational letterhead requesting accreditation to the PrepCom. This letter must include the number and names of delegates. Please note: you may not change the names of delegates once the letter is sent in!
This letter must also include an overview of past interactions between your organization and the UN in relation to disarmament and non-proliferation issues. (Including past PrepComs, co-sponsorship of events, ECOSOC consultative status etc.) Be sure to also include all contact information: including email, phone and fax.
2) A mission statement or summary of work
Fax this information to Mr. Charles Mahaffey, NGO Liaison and Coordination: (212) 963-8892 no later than April 1.
The DDA will be notifying you through email if you have been accepted.
For more information on NGO registration and other logistics, please see our NPT Page.
2) Office Space for NGOs
Due to severely restricted space in the Secretariat in New York, NGOs will not be assigned their own office space. However, WILPF will be allowing NGOs participating in the PrepCom to use their office space, located at 777 UN Plaza (at the Church Center on 44th street and 1st avenue). NGOs will have access to 2-3 Internet-ready computers, as well as DSL plug-ins for laptops. There is also a photocopier available for use for small jobs. You must buy the paper from us at 5 cents per sheet, or bring your own.
The WILPF office will be staffed from 9AM- 6PM. If you need to use it later than 6 PM, you must contact us for special arrangements.
Please keep in mind that there are many organizations who will be requiring the facilities; please use these resources only as needed, and with consideration for the other WILPF staff women who will be working there.
3) News in Review
The News in Review, the daily NGO publication for the PrepCom, is a great way of getting your views across to the delegates. They are distributed each day to all governmental delegations and UN staffers, and they are archived on our site.
We are still accepting submissions for the News in Review. We are accepting Feature Articles on any disarmament issue (not to exceed 1000 words), cartoons, artwork, and advertising space.
Deadlines for submissions are April 12.
For more information on submissions, please see the last news advisory contact [email protected]
4) NGO Calendar of Events
The vast array of side events planned by NGOs make up a conference in and of themselves! Groups from all over the world have organized workshops, plenaries, and discussion fora which will be held in the NGO Conference Room A, in the basement of the Secretariat building. The Department for Disarmament Affairs has also arranged for a photocopier to be available for NGO use in the NGO Conference Room.
The Calendar of Events has been newly formatted to enhance its readability. Be sure to check it out today.
5) Housing
We have compiled and posted a list of affordable accommodations in New York City for NGOs wishing to participate in the PrepCom. Be sure to make your reservation as soon as possible!
Some New Yorkers have also offered a bed in their private home for NGOs visiting New York for the PrepCom. If you are interested in being a guest in somebody's home, contact Rhianna today.
6) Nuclear Testing: Then and Now
Yesterday, March 1, marked the 50th anniversary of the first deliverable hydrogen bomb test "Bravo" at Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands. Civil society groups commemorated the 15-megaton hydrogen bomb explosion with rallies, memorials, and silent vigils around the world. According to Fanai Castro, an indigenous rights activist, the Bravo test- with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima bombs- was probably the deadliest of the Cold War-era nuclear tests for the peoples of the Marshall Islands.
The fallout from the blast, later referred to as "ashes of death," rained down radioactive dust and other fallout to islands hundreds of miles away. Within hours of the explosion, hundreds of those islanders, as well as U.S. weather observers and Japanese fishermen in the area, were suffering from burns, nausea, diarrhea, itching, peeling skin, sores, lost hair and nails and other immediate effects from radiation.
While civil society mourns the death and destruction wrought by the Bravo test, the United States is busy revving up for another subcritical nuclear weapons test. Under the auspices of the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Program, the subcritical test, nicknamed UNICORN-1, is scheduled for sometime this month at the Nevada Test Site. For more information, contact the Shundahai Network
For more information on the history of Bikini Atoll, please see:
http://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html
Rhianna Tyson
Project Associate