THE VOICE OF GOD TO A NUCLEAR WORLD by OJAPA

THE VOICE OF GOD TO A NUCLER WORLD AMIDST COVID 19 PANDEMIC

                     Stephen Ojapah MSP

 

Peace, is a priceless value, one of the parting gifts of Jesus (John 14:27); on the 25th of April 2020, a gathering of international organizations like the Veterans for Peace; United for Peace and Justice; Peace and Planet; People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy; Pax Christy International; US Labor Against the War; Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy; Peace Action New York; Nuclear Age Peace Foundation held an Online World Conference on the futility of possessing a Nuclear bomb. As the world is so absorbed with the COVID-19 scourge, and every resource is channeled towards the curbing of the pandemic, I find this conference very instructive. The organizers were still in touch with some of the grave problems in the world prior to COVID 19. The degree of relevance of nuclear armament varies depending on which part of the world one is. For an average African, it is a nonexistent issue. There is no single African country that possesses a Nuclear bomb, and certainly may not have the capability in the nearest future. Most African countries are still trying to provide the basic necessities of life for their people. For the Israelis, it’s a weapon that they feel “changes the perception” of their neighbors towards them as a weak and defenseless people that were massacred in millions 70 years ago. For an American or a Russian, the concern is about who has the latest nuclear technology that has the most far reaching range and most lethal power. 

 

There are basically two reasons why everyone on the planet should pay attention to this nuclear disarmament campaign right now. The first reason is inspired by the current global pandemic. Now we understand forcefully our interconnectedness as citizens of the same planet. Children of the same Father (John 1:12, Gen 1:12). If a novel virus can spread this fast and far round the world within few months, we can no longer tolerate the threat of a weapon that can poison the atmosphere and the oxygen anytime. Those who are very innocent will certainly be affected beyond our imagination if the world ever gets to that tipping point. There is no guarantee that leaders committed to global denuclearisation will not emerge tomorrow. The second reason why this campaign should be taken seriously concerns the amount of resources used to develop a nuclear bomb. There is no justice in our system if we continue to use such resources on nuclear bomb. (Proverbs 11:1, Psalm 12:5, Isaiah 10:1-3)

 

This conference seemed to draw a lot of inspirations from the encyclical of Pope Francis on the Environment, Laudato si’, issued in 2015. This document touched on many issues concerning the environment; human’s behavior towards the Environment; our recklessness and the impact of relativism. Pope Francis states in Laudato si’ (no. 48), “The human environment and the natural environment deteriorate together; we cannot adequately combat environmental degradation unless we attend to causes related to human and social degradation. In fact, the deterioration of the environment and of society affects the most vulnerable people on the planet”.The most important appeal by the Pope that was echoed during the conference can be found in chapter five of the encyclical. There the Pope talks about Dialogue on the Environment in the International Community. 

 

The following quotation sums up the Pope’s appeal: “There has been a growing conviction that our planet is a homeland and that humanity is one people living in a common home. An interdependent world not only makes us more conscious of the negative effects of certain lifestyles and models of production and consumption which affect us all; more importantly, it motivates us to ensure that solutions are proposed from a global perspective, and not simply to defend the interests of a few countries. Interdependence obliges us to think of one world with a common plan. Yet, the same ingenuity, which has brought about enormous technological progress, has so far proved incapable of finding effective ways of dealing with grave environmental and social problems worldwide. A global consensus is essential for confronting the deeper problems, which cannot be resolved by unilateral actions on the part of individual countries” (no 164).

 

The one-hour long conference had ten experts from around the globe: Japan, Germany, Iran, USA, Costa Rica, and Australia. Two speakers particularly caught my attention. The first speaker was Wada Masako from Japan. She is a survivor of the 1946 Hiroshima Bombing. She represented Nihon Hidankyo, or the Japan Confederation of A and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations. Wada, who survived the bombing of Nagasaki when she was 22 months old, told a story about the plight of survivors that her late mother had told her many times. She said: “bodies were piled up and burned in a field, filling the area with a stench, and survivors left numb, losing the sense that they were human beings.” She noted that “the average age of survivors is now 83 and their profound suffering continues.” 

 

The second speaker that caught my attention was Dr Carlos Umana from Costa Rica. He is a medical doctor and a regional vice-president for Latin America of the international physicians for prevention of Nuclear war. He is equally a member of the International steering group, International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear- Weapon (ICAN). Dr Umana spoke extensively on the tripartite effect of the bomb: short term, medium and long terms. Each stage has a monumental effect on the human person; socially, emotionally and psychologically. For those who may have nothing to do with a Nuclear Bomb, this is why he said WE ALL must take the campaign seriously: “The other thing they produce well that is now more relevant than it was 75 years ago is an electromagnetic wave. Nuclear bombs emit electromagnetic wave that would interrupt electronic communication that would affect international travel. It would affect a lot of devices on which we currently depend on (sic) especially in the Hospitals.”  As COVID 19 has brought a lot of solidarity amongst peoples of every race, tribe and culture, let us use this same energy to raise our voices now that we have the chance. 

 

Jonathan Simrin Published a history of Costa Rica, and twenty-two other countries like Liechtenstein; Andorra; Dominica; Iceland, Haiti; Grenada Kiribati that have something uniquely spectacular the rest of the world can learn from as far as Nuclear and armed conflicts are concerned. These countries do not have standing armies. Liechtenstein as a country abolished its army since 1868, because the country could not bear the cost of maintaining an army. This country has a provision for the creation of an army in the case of war but thankfully this situation has never occurred. On December 1, 1948, President Jose Figueres Ferrer of Costa Rica abolished the military of Costa Rica. After achieving victory in the civil war that year, Costa Rica maintains small forces capable of law enforcement without a standing army. 

 

St Francis of Assisi once said: “Start by doing what is necessary, then what’s possible, and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” With God all things are possible (Mt 19:26)When president Jose Figueres abolished the army 72 years ago, it started as an impossible venture, I guess. Decades down the line, we now know it is possible for a country to exist without a standing army. Certainly, it is possible for any nation to exist without a nuclear weapon. A skeptic may ask, “Can these countries remain models if they are surrounded by hostile neighbors?” This can be an argument for another day. But one thing is sure; if all countries of the world rid themselves of Nuclear weapons, the hostility will not be tied to any atomic or biological weapon. 

 

Fr Stephen Ojapah is a Missionary of St Paul; Director for Interreligious Dialogue and Ecumenism for the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto. He is also a KAICIID Fellow(omeizaojapah85@gmail.com).