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| International-UN-NGOs |
| U.N. Approves Global Nuclear Treaty |
| 2005-04-13 |
| World Peace Imminent. Film at Eleven... UNITED NATIONS - The U.N. General Assembly approved a global treaty Wednesday aimed at preventing nuclear terrorism by making it a crime for would-be terrorists to possess or threaten to use nuclear weapons or radioactive material. We will hunt you down and slap you silly! A resolution adopted by the 191-member world body by consensus calls on all countries to sign and ratify the "International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism." The treaty will be opened for signatures on Sept. 14 and must be ratified by 22 countries to come into force. See ya in about twenty-two years. "By its action today, the General Assembly has shown that it can, when it has the political will, play an important role in the global fight again terrorism," U.S. deputy ambassador Stuart Holliday told delegates after the vote. "The nuclear terrorism convention, when it enters into force, will strengthen the international legal framework to combat terrorism." Straight to quadruple secret probation! No ifs, ands, or buts... Russia's deputy U.N. ambassador Alexander Konuzin, whose country sponsored the resolution, hailed it's approval. "It's the first time that an anti-terrorist convention has been developed on the basis of preventing — that is not after the fact but before the terrorist acts which are criminalized by this convention," he said. The treaty makes it a crime for any person to possess radioactive material or a radioactive device with the intent to cause death or injury, or damage property or the environment. It would also be a crime to damage a nuclear facility. Threatening to use radioactive material or devices — or unlawfully demanding nuclear material or other radioactive substances would also be a crime. Accomplices and organizers would also be covered by the convention. Fear our UN wrath! Please? Pretty please?? Countries that are parties to the treaty would be required to make these acts criminal offenses under their national laws, "punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the grave nature of these offenses." Appropriate penalties? Fly coach? Room service? Cabs instead of limos? Russia launched the campaign for a treaty to combat nuclear terrorism more than seven years ago, when Boris Yeltsin was president. But it was stymied for years because countries believed the draft convention was trying to define terrorism — an issue that has deeply divided the United Nations. Stymied, I tell ya! Stymied! Many a night I cried into my filet mignon because of this... stymification. Isn't that right, Kojo? Diplomats said the roadblock was broken after the drafting committee's last formal meeting in November, when the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference decided the new treaty could focus on criminalizing specific actions related to nuclear terrorism as other anti-terrorism treaties have done. Nice of them to give the go ahead. Did Allah come to them in a dream with the official OK? The drafting committee then quickly agreed on a text on April 1, leaving the difficult issue of defining terrorism to a new overall convention on terrorism still under debate. The General Assembly has tried for years to define terrorism, so far unsuccessfully because of the argument that one nation's terrorist can be another's freedom fighter. ...and a certain organization's guarantee of damn good free lunches, dinners, and first class accomidations for the foreseeable future. The convention requires all states that sign the treaty to adopt measures to make clear that acts designed to provoke terror in the general public or in specific groups cannot be justified under any circumstances "by considerations of a political, philosophical, ideological, racial, ethnic, religious or other similar nature." Yes, I'm sure that standard will be scrupulously adhered to. Well, maybe. In recent speeches and in the U.N. reform plan he announced last month, Secretary-General Kofi Annan called for swift adoption of a global treaty against nuclear terrorism. Yes, that was the clincher for me. The new convention will be the 13th U.N. treaty to fight terrorism, and U.N. Undersecretary-General for Legal Affairs Nicolas Michel said this means "that now most of the possible terrorism acts are covered by the existing legal instruments." Yes, we've all seen how effective they've all been, haven't we? The convention calls for stronger cooperation between states on sharing intelligence and on mutual legal assistance. I'll sleep good tonight knowing that the UN has this thing all but locked up... |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #12 Hmmmmmmm. I have some low-level sources (for testing Geiger counters and such). Am I "harming the environment" and thus subject to having the Blue Helmets come in and rob and rape My family? |
| Posted by: Jackal 2005-04-13 10:56:26 PM |
| #11 Folks---This goes beyond meaningless! Meaningless is just a start. Let us review what these UN 1. They have collaborated to wordsmith a treaty document together that criminalizes the possession or threatened use of nuclear weapons or radioactive material, ostensibly for would-be terrorists. 2. Would-be terrorists still have to be defined. It could include be anybody. It could be Binny, or Hek, or Omar, or it could be Iran (0.00001% chance), or it could be persons in Israel (99-44/100% chance), or the US, or the UK, or France, couldn't be Russia (after all, it was their idea). 3. What is the criminal punishment for this crime, assuming that Inspector Clouseau nabs him or her? Three hots in a cot in the Hague? Real shake-em-in-their-boots deterrant to a suicide bomber. All this proposed treaty does is put another brick in the transnational government framework. What this really is in the short term is a way to further isolate Israel but calling the Israeli government leader a terrorist who possesses a nuclear device. In the long term, the treaty will serve as a tool for anything the Tranzis want it to be to stick it to some country, like the US. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2005-04-13 8:02:25 PM |
| #10 Gadzooks, I feel so much safer now! |
| Posted by: Tom 2005-04-13 7:26:31 PM |
| #9 SURE they have.... (damn keyboard....). |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-04-13 6:22:52 PM |
| #8 "The treaty makes it a crime for any person to possess radioactive material or a radioactive device with the intent to cause death or injury, or damage property or the environment." It does no such thing. This just Tranzi wishful thinking. The next paragraph says what it actually does. At best it harmonizes national laws, although with the lowest common denominator effect. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2005-04-13 6:22:10 PM |
| #7 Sue they have: Terrorism = Israel | United States; |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-04-13 6:20:28 PM |
| #6 They (the UN) still haven't defined terrorist or terroism. This isn't just meaningless, it double plus meaningless. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet 0’ Doom 2005-04-13 6:14:25 PM |
| #5 Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador Alexander Konuzin, whose country sponsored the resolution, hailed it’s approval. "It’s the first time that an anti-terrorist convention has been developed on the basis of preventing — that is not after the fact but before the terrorist acts which are criminalized by this convention," he said. So they're being pre-emptively ineffective? |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-04-13 4:15:42 PM |
| #4 Where's the amendment that sez: "Especially Israel. So there." |
| Posted by: Snolulet Clusing8242 2005-04-13 4:11:32 PM |
| #3 Damn,now what am I going to do with that Tactical nuke I baught at the flea market? |
| Posted by: raptor 2005-04-13 4:04:52 PM |
| #2 The U.N. General Assembly approved a global treaty Wednesday aimed at preventing nuclear terrorism by making it a crime for would-be terrorists to possess or threaten to use nuclear weapons or radioactive material. Sooo.....have these guys fixed what is ailing their organization yet? |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-04-13 3:35:12 PM |
| #1 "The treaty makes it a crime for any person to possess radioactive material or a radioactive device with the intent to cause death or injury, or damage property or the environment." Read that a couple of times and see if any bells go off. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-04-13 3:21:31 PM |