ICIS AccomplishmentsIn 2001, the Institute for Cooperation in Space (ICIS), a Delaware 501(c)(3) educational non-profit foundation, went to work with focus and intention in the United States, Canada, and in the world arena, to educate about a developed strategy and action steps being taken to ban space-based weapons and to transform the war complex into a space complex (without space-based weapons), and to educate about processes that people agree can and will prevent the imminent weaponization of space. 1) July 26, 2001
- Kucinich Announcement 1) July 26, 2001 - Kucinich Announcement ICIS educated about July 26, 2001, when important events to prevent the weaponization of space took place. U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) in Washington, D.C. announced his intention to introduce legislation to that will ban all space-based weapons.
2) July 26, 2001 - Canadian Announcement On July 26, Deputy Prime Minister John Manley of Canada stated at an international conference in Hanoi that, "Canada would be very happy to launch an initiative to see an international convention preventing the weaponization of space." 3) October 2, 2001- Space Preservation Act Introduced in Congress On October 2, 2001 (just after the events of September 11th), the Space Preservation Act was officially introduced by Congressman Kucinich in the U.S. House of Representatives. It was reintroduced on January 23, 2002, and will be reintroduced into the 108th Congress in September 2003, when the movement will begin. 4) June 5, 2002 - Letter to International Leaders In a letter of June 5, 2002, Congressman Kucinich, sponsor of the Space Preservation Act, which, uniquely and importantly, has a companion world treaty, the World Space Preservation Treaty, states, "It is my sincere hope that all nation-state leaders will immediately sign this Treaty, send it to the U.N. Secretary General, and ratify it as soon as possible. The Space Preservation Treaty will play an integral role in securing space for peaceful purposes. I support your efforts to secure an international Treaty Conference to facilitate the signing and ratification of this Treaty." 5) June 13, 2002 - Co-founding of a Canadian Coalition to Preserve Space. In June 13, 2002, ICIS helped coordinate a coalition in Canada of non-governmental organizations working towards Canada convening a Space Preservation Treaty Conference, as Congressman Dennis Kucinich called on Canadian leaders to convene, and for all world leaders to sign and ratify this Space Preservation Treaty. 6) September 9, 2002 - Proposal for International Treaty Conference On September 9, 2002, ICIS formally submitted a Proposal for an International Treaty Conference for the Space Preservation Treaty to Hon. Bill Graham, Foreign Minister of Canada, requesting that the Government of Canada immediately convene an emergency World Space Preservation Treaty Conference to ban all space-based weapons. 7) September 10, 2002 - Berkeley Resolution Passes On September 10, 2002, the Berkeley Resolution (initiated by ICIS) was passed by the City of Berkeley, CA., U.S.A., and was presented to Congressman Kucinich by a City Councilwoman before seven hundred people as a model for other cities to endorse the Space Preservation Act and Treaty and to declare the outer space above the city passing this Resolution to be a space-based weapons-free zone. 8) November 30, 2002 - Kucinich Addresses Conference on Unity, Sovereignty, and Prosperity (CUSP) in Canada On November 30, 2002, ICIS arranged for Congressman Kucinich to address the Conference on Unity, Sovereignty, and Prosperity (CUSP) in Toronto, Canada, at the invitation of the former Minister of Defense, where Congressman Kucinich, before approximately one thousand people, called for Canada to initiate the Space Preservation Treaty Conference. Read the transcript of the CUSP Address 9) Progress Report The Vancouver Space Preservation Resolution, calling for “a treaty-signing conference for the Space Preservation Treaty, as Canada did in the treaty-signing conference in December 1997, where 122 countries signed the Convention Banning Land Mines, known as the Ottawa Convention,” has been adopted by five Canadian cities, including Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, Sparwood, and Bowen Island, British Columbia. In an official World Space Preservation Treaty Resolution supported by peace, environmental, community and other organizations, the City Council of Victoria, British Columbia has voted unanimously to urge the Government of Canada to ban all space-based weapons by holding an emergency World Space Preservation Treaty Conference to gather world leaders to sign the World Space Preservation Treaty banning all space-based weapons. The June 26, 2003 Resolution, sponsored by Victoria, B.C. Councillors Pamela Madoff and Rob Fleming, also urges Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien to sign the Space Preservation Treaty and the Canadian House of Commons to ratify it. Victoria is the capital of British Columbia. The Victoria City Council is the third British Columbia municipality to adopt the World Space Preservation Treaty Resolution. Organizations supporting the Victoria World Space Preservation Treaty Resolution include the Victoria Peace Coalition, the Council of Canadians, Victoria Chapter, the Green Party of Victoria (Beacon Hill Constituency), the World Federalists, Victoria Chapter, VCAWSI (Victoria Campaign Against War and Sanctions in Iraq), and the Institute for Cooperation in Space (ICIS). Deana Dean of VCAWSI stated, “U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense may be a trillion-dollar program. Our City Council is the closest general body to our people. They [the Victoria, B.C. City Council] must take the [Space Preservation Treaty] Resolution and pass it on to all municipalities in Canada, to support the Space Preservation Treaty.” Susan Clarke, coordinator of the Victoria Peace Coalition, who co-presented the Resolution to the City Council along with Deana Dean of VCAWSI and Saul Arbess of the Victoria Council of Canadians, stated, “By adopting the [Space Preservation Treaty] Resolution, the Victoria City Council recognizes the importance of the local, municipal level in protecting the security and well-being of our citizens, in this case against the instability of space-based weapons.” The World Space Preservation Treaty bans the space-based weapons components of the U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense system. On December 17, 2002, U.S. President George W. Bush ordered the Pentagon to have ready for use by November 2004, a Ballistic Missile Defense System, partly based in Alaska near the Canadian border, for “defending American territory, troops and allies against attack by ballistic missiles.” The current U.S. Administration, committed to early deployment of missile defense, could deploy space-based weapons as early 2004-5. The World Space Preservation Treaty prevents the weaponization of space from occuring as a by-product of the missile defense system, by establishing:
The Victoria, B.C. Space Preservation Treaty Resolution encourages the peaceful and environmentally sound uses of outer space, stating that the World Space Preservation Treaty permits "space exploration, space research and development, testing, manufacturing or deployment that is not related to space-based weapons or systems, including civil, commercial, or defense activities such as communications, navigation, surveillance, reconnaissance, early warning, or remote sensing." According to Alfred Webre, JD, MEd, International Director of the Institute for Cooperation in Space (ICIS), "The World Space Preservation Treaty facilitates investments in clean, safe and sustainable technology, products and services to support expanded, cooperative, non-weapons space ventures and the consequent stimulation of the national and world economy. Satellites will be protected for verifying arms agreement including the reduction and elimination of missiles, nuclear weapons, and other dangerous and polluting technologies." Dr. Carol Rosin, President of ICIS, says, "This World Space Preservation Treaty-signing Conference will bring world leaders together to take a vital step that will help build a real security system based on using space-age technology and services for enhancing worldwide communication and information exchanges applied directly to solving urgent problems of human needs, energy, and our threatened environment." The Canadian Government has stated that, although it may be negotiating with the U.S. Department of Defense on missile defense, it remains opposed to the weaponization of space. On May 30, 2003, Prime Minister Jean Chretien stated at the G-8 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia that, "We want to participate -- hopefully through NORAD -- to the defense of North America against missiles. We will not participate in a program if it is to be the weaponization of space." Canadian cities are following the example of a cutting-edge municipality in the United States of America which adopted the World Space Preservation Treaty Resolution. On September 10, 2002, the Berkeley City Council, led by Councilmember Dona Spring, made Berkeley, California the first city in the world to pass this Resolution calling for a ban on all space-based weapons in support of the U.S. Space Preservation Act and the companion World Space Preservation Treaty. Berkeley City Council Resolution 61744 calls on "the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to enact and the U.S. President to sign and enforce the Space Preservation Act." It also declares that "it is the will of the Council that the U.S. President, individually or at an emergency Treaty Conference, sign the Space Preservation Treaty, and that the U.S. Senate ratify it to permanently ban all space-based weapons to preserve the cooperative, peaceful uses of space for all residents of Berkeley and for all humankind." On February 17, 2003, Vancouver, B.C. area Canadian Member of Parliament Svend Robinson (New Democratic Party, from the City of Burnaby-Douglas) presented a Parliamentary Petition in support of the World Space Preservation Treaty on the floor of the Canadian House of Commons stating,
URL: http://www.parl.gc.ca/37/2/parlbus/chambus/house/debates/061_2003-02-17/han061_1520-E.htm Quote (excerpts) by Congressman Dennis Kucinich at November 30, 2002, Toronto, Canada CUSP speech:
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