16th World Congress
Beijing, China
IPPNW Says China Is Playing
"Important and Constructive Role"
in DPRK Nuclear Crisis
September 16, 2004
BEIJING -- International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) today applauded the Chinese government for its leadership role in promoting six-party talks to reduce the threat of nuclear proliferation on the Korean Peninsula. IPPNW, which received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1985, is holding its 16th World Congress in Beijing.
Dr. Ronald S. McCoy, IPPNW's President, said that "keeping nuclear weapons from spreading in North Asia is essential to enhancing the security of all countries in the region, including the DPRK. "Even more important," Dr. McCoy said, "is the global elimination of nuclear weapons under an international treaty at the earliest possible date."
Physicians and medical students from 40 countries have gathered at the Peking University Health Science Center for the IPPNW Congress. The host for the meeting is the Chinese Society of Radiological Medicine and Protection, Chinese Medical Association.
Dr. John Pastore, a US physician from Boston, has led an IPPNW project to bring medical assistance and education to doctors in the DPRK. Dr. Pastore welcomed the Chinese government's initiative to resolve the nuclear crisis on the Korean Peninsula.
"China is playing an important and constructive role," Dr. Pastore said, "and its efforts will benefit all Koreans. The people of the DPRK need peace and development. A healthy and secure North Korea without nuclear weapons is a goal we should all embrace."
Among the issues being discussed at the IPPNW Congress are the problems of nuclear proliferation in North Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East; the public health dimensions of small arms violence around the world; the effects of globalization on health and security; and the need to shift resources from spending on weapons and war to health, economic development, and environmental protection.
Professor Lu Rushan, Honorary Director of the Institute of Medical Information, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, said that the goal of doctors around the world is to create the conditions for peace by making sure that public health, rather than weapons of mass destruction, is the basis for human security.
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