WE ARE PROUD AND HAPPY – THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE 2017

The Nobel Peace Prize of 2017 was dedicated to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, ICAN. The campaign represents 468 civil society organizations in 101 countries. The Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society is one of the 468 member organizations.

– We are tremendously glad and very proud over that the civil society’s battle heading towards prohibition of nuclear weapons, the last worldwide non forbidden mass destruction weapon, is observed and strengthened! This yet again shows the power of the civil society organizations and their possibility to make a remarkable change in the world. It is very desirable that as many countries as possible join and sign the treaty and for this we are very glad that the Nobel Committee has used their influence to show support of the process, says Agnes Hellström, president of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society.

Earlier this summer on the seventh of July in New York, USA, at the headquarters of the United Nations, 122 countries united and voted for and expressed a desire of an international treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons. The treaty is what many survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki have fought for since 1945 and the Second World War, more than 70 years ago.

Just recently on the twentieth of September the treaty went open for signature at the UN headquarters. Sweden still has not signed the treaty but has decided to investigate the matter – the result of the investigation is planned to be presented in October of 2018.

– For everyone who is working with disarmament the fact is clear and given that Sweden could be a leading state in the process of global disarmament. We hope that the decision of the Nobel Committee will put pressure and speed on Sweden onto making the decision to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, says Agnes Hellström.