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From: "bannerheather" (bannerheather@clara.net)
Subject: BRILLIANT ACTION VICTORY!
Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 21:04:02 -0000

Mailinglist For Mother Earth International network

URGENT PRESS RELEASE 1.2.99
NUCLEAR TRIDENT DISARMED BY TP 2000 PEACE ACTIVIST WOMEN

In the early hours of this morning two peace activist women, from the Aldermaston Women's Group, safely and non-violently carried out disarmament work, to prevent the new British Trident submarine from leaving its dock. This vehicle for nuclear weapons of mass destruction was due to sail within the next month.

The women are Rosie James and Rachel Wenham, both from Leeds. The women swam 300 metres in wet suits into the Vickers dock yard at Barrow in Furness to reach HMS Vengeance. They swam in freezing conditions in the dark with their disarmament equipment of hammers, chisels, crowbars, screwdrivers and paint. The women then climbed around the submarine and dismantled radio equipment used to launch weapons of mass destruction. Both have been arrested and are being held in police custody at Barrow. Since August 1998, this is the second disarmament action at Barrow, and the third swimming action - the others being at Faslane in Scotland.

The imminent threat of a nuclear conflict is such that the women had no alternative but to carry out this task of preventing a new vehicle for these weapons of mass destruction being even tested. This threat to us all comes from the facts that -

* the British Trident submarine Vanguard was on patrol around Gibraltar during the Gulf crises

* from the allegiance displayed between Blair and Clinton in the latest Gulf war, there is little doubt that Blair would follow a U.S. military lead

* the current British Strategic Defence Policy indicates that the UK would contravene International Law, by launching a nuclear attack even if the sovereignty of the nation itself is not directly threatened.

These facts together denote that although the Trident weapon has not been used so far, the illegal threat is constant - so the danger of it being used is imminent.

A single Trident warhead is 8 times more powerful than those detonated over the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Due to this enormous explosive yield, these weapons are in direct contravention of International Law governing War, Human Rights, the Environment and Genocide.

Rachel Wenham states "as a citizen of the world, I have upheld the Nuremberg Principles in acting to prevent the crime of mass murder from being threatened and committed".

The women support the campaign Trident Ploughshares 2000. This is committed to the implementation of the decommissioning of the Trident programme by the year 2000. The UK Government refuses to recognise the illegality of the Trident warheads, and continues their criminal activities of maintaining and deploying these weapons. TP2000 activists uphold the law - including by disarming the system themselves. The women state: "In this world where in the arena of War instantaneous mass murder of innocents is an accepted possibility, we, the said mass, have the unalienable right to protect our rights to life and peace".

CONTACT: For interviews & photos, contact Ippy on 0385-740969. For more information about Trident Ploughshares 2000 see http://www.gn.apc.org/tp2000 (Also Press Liaison David McKenzie on 01324 880744 or 07775 711 054 or Jane Tallents/Jim Chestnut on 01436 679194) ENDS

Trident Ploughshares 2000
42-46 Bethel Street
Norwich
Norfolk NR2 1NR
UK

tel + 44 (0) 1603 611953
fax + 44 (0) 1603 666879
http://www.gn.apc.org/tp2000/
Email : tp2000@gn.apc.org

Nuclear weapons are immoral, dangerous, polluting, a terrible waste of resources and were found to be generally illegal by the International Court of Justice on 8th July 1996.

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