Letter to Heads of State and Press Release
May 1, 2006
To Presidents and Prime Ministers
George W. Bush, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, Tony Blair, Jacques Chirac, Ehud Olmert, Pervez Musharraf, Abdul Kalam, Hu Jintao, Kim Jong Il
Conscious of my rights and responsibilities as a member of the total world community, I cannot standby while governments pursue a policy of nuclear attack regardless of the seeming justifications they may devise. Such an attack is not only criminal under international law, but morally and biologically indefensible. Nuclear Weapons are weapons of mass destruction. They are indiscriminately destructive and they poison our atmosphere, causing deaths around the world for many thousands of years. They threaten the very existence of humanity. Prevention of such an attack and eliminating the threat and capability to launch nuclear war is therefore a necessary requirement for the safety and wellbeing of the human community, as well as for its environment on planet Earth. Due to your publicly-declared nuclear policies which threaten humanity, the undersigned, as a stateless World Citizen and as a representative of a global constituency of sovereign citizens, will seek your indictment as individuals for the following crimes under the statutes of the International Criminal Court at The Hague:
(a) The crime of genocide;
(b) Crimes against humanity;
(c) War crimes.
The indictment’s Table of Authorities will include, inter alia:
– the St. Petersburg Declaration, 1868;
– the Hague Convention, 1899;
– the IVth Hague Convention, 1907;
– the Aristide Briand Pact, 1909;
– the Kellogg-Briand Pact, 1928;
– the Nuremberg Principles, 1945;
– the United Nations Charter, 1945;
– the Tokyo Charter, 1947;
– the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948;
– the World Health Organization Constitution, 1948;
– the Covention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948;
– the Geneva Convention, 1949;
– UN Resolution 16653 (XV), Nov. 24, 1961;
– the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966;
– the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966;
– UN Resolution 33/71, Dec. 12, 1980;
– the Rights of the Child Convention; 1989
Included in the injunction will be a mandamus for total disarmament of all nuclear weaponry and facilities as well as damages which would be assigned to social needs of the human community along with protection of the global environment. Article 27 of the Statue of the ICC � “Irrelevance of official capacity” – codifies the legal fact, which has been part of the body of international law since 1950, that “…as a Head of State or Government. . .a member of a Government or parliament. . .shall in no case exempt a person from criminal responsibility under this Statute. . .” In short, you enjoy no personal “immunity” from international legal indictment as individual heads of state.
The Preamble and Article 28 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights furthermore mandate that global law and its institutions outlaw war itself throughout the world. Such evolution in the application of law is essential for the safety and well-being of the human community as well as its environment on planet Earth.
Yours sincerely,
Garry Davis
Enclosures:
Writ of Certiorari: SC-81-428 Brief filed March 15, 1985; ICJ: Davis v. Reagan and Gorbachev Dissenting Opinion; W.H.O. (ICJ), 1994: Associate Justice C.G. Weeranamtry
Cc: Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations; World Judicial Commission, WGWC; Heads of State; World citizenry
PRESS RELEASE
World Citizen Garry Davis to file injunction suit citing 9 nuclear heads of state as “war criminals” in International Criminal Court
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Former B-17 bomber pilot and founder of the World Government of World Citizens, stateless World Citizen Garry Davis (84) will personally file in the International Criminal Court in The Hague an injunction against Presidents and Prime Ministers George W. Bush, Vladimir V. Putin, Tony Blair, Jacques Chirac, Ehud Olmert, Pervez Musharraf, Abdul Kalam, Hu Jintao and Kim Jong Il for their overt nuclear policies which he claims criminally threaten humankind.
In a letter dated May 1 to the nine national leaders, Davis claimed that “In view of the ‘indiscriminate destructive’ capacity of nuclear weaponry as well as the generational effects which will continue to kill over time, we humans, conscious of our rights and responsibilities as members of the total world community, cannot allow a policy of nuclear attack by whatever seeming justification of states. Such an attack is not only criminal in terms of international law, but morally and biologically indefensible. Prevention of such an attack, therefore, is imperative.” He noted that the Nuremberg Principles “in legal fact, since 1950 part of the body of international law, thereby nullify your personal ‘immunity’ from international legal indictment as individual heads of state. . .” and that “the outlawing and total elimination of all nuclear arsenals are implicit for the safety and well-being of the human community as well as its environment on planet Earth.”
In his letter, he listed the Table of Authorities his brief will utilize to buttress the indictment: – St. Petersburg Declaration, 1868; – the Hague Convention, 1899; – the IVth Hague Convention, 1907; – the Aristide Briand Pact, 1909; – the Kellogg-Briand Pact, 1928; – the Nuremberg Principles, 1945; – the United Nations Charter, 1945; – the Tokyo Charter, 1947; – the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948; – the World Health Organization Constitution, 1948; – the Covention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948; – the Geneva Convention, 1949; – the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966; – the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966; – the Rights of the Child Convention, 1989.
A team of international lawyers headed by Dr. Francis Boyle, professor of international law at Illinois University Law School, and Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights are assisting in preparing the brief.
Davis is not new to this legal process. As a stateless person, on August 28 1981, he submitted a writ of certiorari* to the U.S. Supreme Court which presented the case for world citizenship via the 9th and 10th amendments of the US constitution. When denied by the high court, he filed a Petitition for Rehearing in October, 1981 which claimed that the 9th amendment provided the only “legal remedy” for the citizenry to countervale the discretionary powers of the US president when acting as Commander-in-chief.** This too was denied.
His next attempt at building a case against war and for world citizenship was on March 15, 1985 filed with the International Court of Justice in which he cited Presidents Reagan and Gorbachev as “war criminals”*** under the Nuremberg Principles. He was denied “standing” at this UN-mandated court.
The International Criminal Court, founded in 2002 by the Rome Statute, adopted July 17 1998 and ratified by the 60th state on 11 April 2002, opened its legal doors on 1 July 2002 at The Hague. Its Statute granted the court authority to try national citizens for “crimes aganst humanity,” “war crimes,” and “crimes against peace” defined by the Nuremberg Principles of 1945. As of March 2005 98 countries have ratified or acceded to the ICC Statute.
Neither the United States nor Israel have ratified the ICC’s Statute. However, Art. 17 denies admissability of a case if “(d) The case is not of sufficient gravity to justify further action by the Court.”
Support against the nuclear policies of the nine states is worldwide and growing as threats against Iran by the Bush Administration for its avowed nuclear policy have become daily headlines. The world of physicists and scientists in general has grown exponentially in recent years in particular following George W. Bush’s Nuclear Posture Review policy of pre-emptive and first-strike nuclear attack against so-called “rogue” states. Over 300 physicists, including 9 Nobel Prize Laureates (appended) have signed petitions condemning the nuclear policies of whatever state. (See letters attached to Senator Dianne Feinstein and George W. Bush signed by 10 members of the US Senate. )
*See www.worldservice.org/petition.html;
**See www.worldservice.org/scpetitn.html;
*** See www.worldservice.org/intcourt.html