17 February 2009 - A Euro-MP has challenged the ceremonial heads of every council in the South-East England region to join the international ‘Mayors for Peace’ initiative.

Mayors for Peace was established in 1982 by the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to create an international movement of elected representatives to spread information about the deadly effects of nuclear war – and work together to press for the complete abolition of nuclear weapons.

The organisation, the biggest of its kind in the world, boasts more than 2,700 members from 134 countries, and is recognised as an NGO to be consulted on major decisions by the United Nations.

Membership costs councils nothing – it is absolutely free of charge – but of the 74 councils in the South East England region only nine are members.

Caroline Lucas, Green Party MEP for South East England, said:

"Many thousands of men, women and children were killed by the nuclear bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the last few days of the Second World War. More than 60 years later, thousands are still suffering the devastating after-effects of radiation and unfathomable emotional pain.

"The mayors of both Japanese cities have appealed for their counterparts across the world to express their condemnation of nuclear weapons – and to co-operate for peace over the heads of national governments.

"I am due to meet some of them in Brussels this week: as a UN recognised NGO the Mayors for Peace group is a powerful lobby of anti-war elected representatives from across the world – and I challenge the 65 in the region that haven’t already to join it."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

For more information, see: http://www.mayorsforpeace.org/english/index.html

The nine members in South East England are the mayors of: Brighton and Hove, Eastbourne, Medway, Milton Keyes, Oxford, Ramsgate, Reading, Seaford and Slough.

For more information on the work of Dr Lucas MEP, please contact Melissa Freeman on 0207 407 9935 / 07950 382149 or carolinepress@greenmeps.org.uk