Foz de Iguacu, October 18th 2011 - The Brazilian National Front of Mayors (FNP) officially joined the leadership of Mayors for Peace during their General Meeting in Foz de Iguacu (Parana). João Coser, the Mayor of Vitoria (ES) and President of FNP co-signed on Op-ed in Folha de Sao Paulo asking President Dilma to take leadership to organize the Special Disarmament Conference as proposed by Mayors for Peace.

The Op-ed, the main article on page 3,  announced publicly that ''believing in the importance of their involvement in global issues, the FNP will officially become part of the leadership of Mayors for Peace during the meeting that begins today [October 17th] in Foz de Iguacu. Let us all endorse the words of President Rousseff to "redouble our efforts towards general and complete nuclear disarmament under strict and effective international control", and reminding the international community that cities can no longer be considered targets.''.

The Op-ed was co-signed by Mr. Takashi Morita, the President of the Brazilian Association of Atomic Bomb Survivors and Pol Heanna DHuyvetter, Hiroshima Executive Adviser and International Development Director of Mayors for Peace.
Folha de Sao Paulo is one of Brazil's main national newspapers which is being compared with the Brazilian New York Times. The Op-ed which can not be accessed at Folha de Sao Paulo without paid registration was published within hours on the website of the Brazilian army and Democracia & Politica.

The authors declared that ''Nuclear weapons may seem irrelevant to contemporary Brazil, but it is not by chance that President Dilma Roussef raised the issue again before the UN [High Level Meeting on Nuclear Security] on 22nd September. She stated "We do have to move forward in reforming the Security Council of the United Nations. It has been the bulwark of the logic of nuclear privilege."

Facing enormous social challenges in Brazil the Op-ed also stated: ''In a time when the financial crisis haunts the world, one might question the 104.9 billion dollars spent annually on nuclear weapons, to the detriment of efforts to provide basic human needs.  As the  governmental entity closest to the people, we mayors are aware that peace is a condition for development, and we have to struggle to ensure the survival of our cities.

The Op-ed addressed to President Dilma Rousseff states: ''we believe that Brazil can and should make a real contribution to advance nuclear disarmament, leading the international campaign proposed by the Mayors for Peace to hold a Special Conference on Disarmament. With the support of Mayors and Parliamentarians from countries that still support the maintenance of nuclear arsenals, it is possible to overcome the paralysis that has ruled the United Nations in New York and Geneva in recent decades. Brazil, as an emerging world power, and we, as citizens and human beings, can only gain from that. ''.

Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui, President of Mayors for Peace, sent a message to the FNP GM stating: ''as the Brazilian National Front of Mayors officially becomes part of the leadership of Mayors for Peace ... Brazil’s mayors will be making an important contribution to global well-being. Brazil has long been a leader in the realm of nuclear disarmament, so now, let us all work together toward the total abolition of nuclear weapons by 2020 and the brighter future we hope to share''.

The General Meeting of FNP was held during two days in Foz de Iguacu, near the border of Paraguay and Argentina. Approximately 200 participants joined the 60th General Meeting addressing the main challenges facing Brazilian cities. FNP represents the 200 largest cities of Brazil which make over 40% of the entire national population. Mayors for Peace receives growing support of Brazilian Mayors and welcomes the survey which is being organized by Mayors for Peace in Latin America and the Caribbean. The survey is organized as the perception of the nuclear threat is very distant for local governments in the region, while they face enormous daily challenges.

Mayors for Peace wishes to thank Mayor João Coser, President of FNP, and Gilberto Perre, Executive Secretary of FNP, for their invitation and support.

Note:

- the free English translation of article in Folha de Sao Paulo
- the fileadmin/user_upload/PDF-Dateien/Kazumi_Matsiu_message_FNP.pdfmessage of Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui to FNP GM

« back