Arms Down! – Religions for Peace Youth Campaign for Shared Security

organized by Religions for Peace
30 September 2010

The Arms Down! campaign is an international effort to gather 50 million signatures to ask the United Nations to:
1.  Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
2.   Stop the Spread and Misuse of Weapons (Passage of a global Arms Trade Treaty. Full support and implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty and the Convention on Cluster Munitions.)
3. Use 10% of Military budgets for the Millennium Development Goals

The year-long campaign was launched in November 2009 by the Global Youth Network of Religions for Peace. Religions for Peace is the world’s largest multi-religious coalition advancing common action among religious communities for peace. In Europe the campaign is advanced by Religions for Peace, European Interfaith Youth Network. EUJS is a member organization of this network.

The campaign reaches out to religious leaders, international organizations, governments, national assemblies and parliaments, municipalities, media, and all men and women of good will. It advances a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution that asks member states to cut military spending by 10% and redirect those funds toward achievement of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). This reflects an important and necessary progression from existing UNGA resolutions on ‘disarmament and development’ that are less specific in their demands.

The resolution is the political counterpart to a petition being circulated all around the world. Over four point seven million people have signed the petition, indicating its success as a tool for grassroots mobilisation and outreach. The goal is to reach 50 million before October 2010.At end of the campaign, the petition will be presented to the United Nations Secretary General and senior heads of different states. 

You can join the call and sign the petition here: http://www.armsdown.net/