By Shaarang Begani,
The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.- Albert Einstein. Taking inspiration from these words of wisdom Global Zero took shape as an international non-partisan group of world leaders and reformers dedicated to achieve the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. This initiative promoted a phased withdrawal and verification for the destruction of all devices held by official and unofficial members of the nuclear club. We have tasted immense success as an organization in Building public opinion supportive of the elimination of nuclear weapons and bringing people together for nuclear disarmament. The several chapters of our organization across the world opened voluntarily by people is a testament to this.
Keeping with our motto for incorporating a sense of awareness among the younger generation of our society the Kolkata chapter of our organization conducted Inkscribe, an essay writing competition during Xavotsav (the annual cultural fest of St. Xaviers College, Kolkata). It served as an opportunity to bring together students across the spectrum from different academic and social backgrounds together to spread and test awareness, disseminate knowledge, share stories and generally network. These events have been, and continue to be, extremely useful for fostering a sense against nuclear armament, raising visibility for key initiatives being taken across the globe for nuclear disarmament, and building and maintaining momentum for the same. We were overwhelmed with the participation of numerous candidates from the over twelve participating colleges who left us spell bound with their organized views on the subject and eloquent writing skills. The event was a grand success and we were delighted to be among the company of people with such passionate views against nuclear armament and look forward to conduct more such events.
During his visit, President Barack Obama and PM Narendra Modi unveiled plans to share billions of dollars in nuclear trade in order to establish a commuting relationship between the two nations. I. A joint news conference with Modi, Obama said, “This is an important step which shows as how we can work together and elevate our friendship.”
A conservative estimate states that there are over seventeen hundred nuclear warheads still functional. The destruction that such merchants of death can cause is beyond anyones imagination and the recent Fukushima fiasco serves us a timely reminder. Our campaign revolves toward building an international consensus and a sustained global movement of leaders and citizens for the elimination of nuclear weapons. We look forward to a safer and peaceful world without nuclear weapons.