“ A sudden decline in agricultural

production could trigger

massive famine.

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VITALSIGNS

VITAL SIGNS

VOLUME 19 ISSUE 1 2007

NEWSLETTER FOR THE INTERNATIONAL PHYSICIANS

FOR THE PREVENTION OF NUCLEAR WAR (IPPNW)

REGIONAL NUCLEAR WARCOULD MEAN GLOBAL“NUCLEAR FAMINE”

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IPPNW.ORG

Aregional nuclear war

involving the numbers of

weapons possessed by

India and Pakistan would trigger

a global climate disaster and

could lead to global famine

according to findings presented

at a joint medical conference on

nuclear war organized by

IPPNW, its UK affiliate Medact,

and the Catastrophes and

Conflict Forum of the Royal

Society of Medicine. Emergency

medical specialist Ira Helfand

presented “An Assessment of

the Extent of Projected Global

Famine Resulting from Limited,

Regional Nuclear War” at the

conference – Nuclear Weapons:

The Final Pandemic —

Preventing Proliferation and

Achieving Abolition, in London

on October 5, 2007.

Dr. Helfand cited research

by conference speakers

Alan Robock of Rutgers

University and Owen B. Toon of

the University of Colorado,

demonstrating that debris eject-

ed into the stratosphere from

about 100 nuclear explosions

and subsequent fires would

cause sudden global cooling and

decreased precipitation for up to

10 years, resulting in shorter

growing seasons and significant-

ly lower grain production.

Dr. Helfand warned that “a

total global death toll in

the range of one billion

from starvation alone,” along

with “major epidemics of infec-

tious diseases” were foresee-

able outcomes of the climate

effects of nuclear explosions on

this scale. He explained that

there are already 800 million

people in the world whose daily

caloric intake falls below mini-

mum requirements. “A small

decline in available food would

put this entire group at risk. A

sudden decline in agricultural

production could trigger massive

famine.”

The two-day conference

also examined the current

state of understanding

about the health effects of expo-

sure to low doses of ionizing

radiation; the impact of uranium

mining on the health of indige-

nous mining communities in

India, Australia, and elsewhere

(see page 6); the dangers posed

by the use of highly enriched

uranium in reactors that produce

medical isotopes; and the

humanitarian consequences of a

possible US military attack

against Iran.

Former Co-President Victor

Sidel summarized a new

and comprehensive IPPNW

monograph, “Medicine and

Nuclear War,” an updated and

expanded version of a paper

originally published in the

Journal of the American MedicalAssociation in 1998.

ONLINE: PHOTOS AND

REPORTS

A full report and presentations

from The Final Pandemic conference:

IPPNW.ORG

”

VITAL SIGNS

VOLUME 19 ISSUE 1 2007- 2 -

be allowed to recur. The immense

human suffering and the environ-

mental degradation as a conse-

quence of these weapons of mass

destruction should be a sad

reminder that…[all of us must]

resist war and embrace peace.”

On April 7, IPPNW medical students

with the Nuclear Weapons

Inheritance Project joined with

Iranian students to organize a Target

X installation in Tehran. Medical stu-

dent exchanges between Iran and

IPPNW’s Swedish affiliate, SLMK,

are planned for the future.

CONDEMNING THE US-INDIA

NUCLEAR ENERGY AGREEMENT

INDIA AND UNITED STATES

Opposition to the nuclear energy

agreement between the US and

India may prevent it from ever going

into effect. Prime Minister Singh told

the US in October that political

obstacles in his country had frozen

the agreement, which had also

raised global proliferation concerns.

Indian Doctors for Peace and

Development (IDPD) and Physicians

for Social Responsibility-USA (PSR)

DOCTOR-TO-DOCTOR

DIPLOMACY: IPPNW IN IRAN

IRAN

Co-President Ime John continued

IPPNW’s outreach to Iranian physi-

cians with a one-week visit to

Tehran and Isfahan in June. Dr.

John met with members of the

Society of Chemical Weapons

Victims Support (SCWVS), includ-

ing the Society’s Head of

International Relations, Dr.

Shahriar Khateri. In addition to dis-

cussing IPPNW’s programs and

campaigns with Iranian physicians

and medical students, Dr. John met

with municipal officials in both

cities, delivering a letter from

Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba of

Hiroshima inviting Iranian partici-

pation in Mayors For Peace.

Recalling the devastation of

nuclear war as experienced by the

cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki,

Dr. John told an audience at the

Tehran Municipality Office that “the

effects of the atomic bombs on

those cities, like the horror of

chemical weapons used against

the people of Iran during the Iran-

Iraqi war in the 1980s should never

IPPNW WORLD NOTES GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF PEACEMAKERS

MAKING A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE

“ I hope that IPPNW’sInternational Campaign to Abolish NuclearWeapons (ICAN) and the campaign for the conclusion of a nuclearweapons convention will yield positive results...

The MongolianGovernment supportsIPPNW’s noble goals and activities. ”H.E. Nambar Enkhbayar,

President, Mongolia

PHOTO: J.LORETZ PHOTO: K.LUNDIUS

1 21

IPPNW.ORG- 3 -

(WORLD NOTES continued on page 4)

IPPNW RAISES NUCLEAR

AWARENESS IN PYONGYANG

DEM. PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF

KOREA

SLMK brought IPPNW’s nuclear

abolition message to another critical

region in June, when it organized a

return delegation of doctors and

medical students to the Democratic

People’s Republic of Korea.

Swedish physician Martin Tondel led

a group comprising medical students

Wenjing Tao, Johannes Norberg,

and Thomas Silfverberg, who

brought a collection of IPPNW publi-

cations along with medical texts to

the Korean Anti-Nuke Peace

Physicians (KANPP), the federa-

tion’s North Korean affiliate. At

Ansan General Clinic —one of sev-

eral hospitals visited during the trip

— the delegation had an opportunity

to learn about basic health services

in DPRK, after which they met with

the Dean of the Pyongyang

University of Medicine and a group

of nine medical students. Dr Tondel

presented a new paper on the health

consequences of the Chernobyl dis-

aster, which was followed by an

open discussion of nuclear issues.

“We were able to speak more open-

released a joint statement on August

17 condemning the deal, and calling

on the Nuclear Suppliers Group

(NSG) to block its implementation.

The US and Indian affiliates said the

deal undermines the Non-

Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by allow-

ing India to keep a third of its reac-

tors under military control without

international inspection, including

two “fast-breeder” reactors that

could produce fuel for weapons.

They called instead for investments

in renewable sources of energy that

will enhance India’s long-term ener-

gy security.

IPPNW, which has been working to

oppose the agreement since it was

first announced early in 2006, deliv-

ered copies of the statement to the

foreign ministries of each NSG mem-

ber country, and will keep up the

pressure to ensure that this danger-

ous deal is rejected.

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NORTH ASIA REGIONAL MEETING

FRONT ROW: DR. KATSUKO KATAOKA, IPPNW

REGIONAL VP, H.E.NAMBAR ENKHBAYAR, PRESI-

DENT OF MONGOLIA, AND DR. GUNNAR WEST-

BERG, IPPNW CO-PRESIDENT. BACK ROW: DR. N.

TUVSHINBAT, PRESIDENT OF MPPNW, J. ENKH-

SAIKHAN, DIRECTOR OF BLUE BANNER, DR.

SHIZUTERU USUI, PRESIDENT OF JPPNW.

FINAL PANDEMIC CONFERENCE

DR. SHAHRIAR KHATERI, PRESIDENT, SOCIETY OF

CHEMICAL WEAPONS VICTIMS SUPPORT, TEHRAN

SPEAKING WITH DR. MARTIN TONDEL OF SWEDEN

DURING A BREAK AT THE LONDON CONFERENCE.

IPPNW CO-PRESIDENT, DR. IME JOHN, WITH MEM-

BERS OF THE SOCIETY OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS

VICTIMS SUPPORT WHILE IN IRAN. IME JOHN ALSO

INVITED MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS TO JOIN MAYORS

FOR PEACE.

IN JUNE, A DELEGATION OF SWEDISH MEDICAL STU-

DENTS VISITED THE DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE’S

REPUBLIC OF KOREA. THE GOALS OF THE GROUP

WERE TO STRENGTHEN THE RELATIONSHIP WITH

THE KOREAN ANTI-NUKE PEACE PHYSICIANS, RAISE

AWARENESS ON NUCLEAR WEAPON ISSUES AMONG

MEDICAL STUDENTS AND DOCTORS, AND TO

INCREASE THEIR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE HEALTH

CARE SITUATION IN THE DPRK.

PHOTO: I.JOHN

ly than we had expected,” Dr. Tondel

said, “both with medical students

and doctors and health person-

nel…and we have a good idea about

the next steps in strengthening this

cooperation.”

PHOTO: W.TAO

Join the monthly sustainer program, Partners in Peace,

and help ensure the continuity of our global campaigns.

Contact Daniel Karp: dkarp@ippnw.org, 617.868.5050 x204

ONLINE: REPORTS

A full statement on the

US/INDIA nuclear energy

agreement available:

ippnw.org/News/Statements.html

3 4

AFFILIATES IN ACTION

GLOBAL LAUNCH OF ICAN AT NPT CONFERENCE IN

VIENNA, AUSTRIA. LEFT TO RIGHT, DR. RON MCCOY,

IPPNW, FELICITY HILL, ICAN, CARLOS VARGAS,

COSTA RICAN MISSION, AND MAYOR TADATOSHI

AKIBA, MAYORS FOR PEACE.

MEDICAL STUDENTS TAMARA SHASHIKADZE FROM

GEORGIA AND MICHAEL GNILO FROM THE PHILIP-

PINES AT THE FASLANE BLOCKADE IN SCOTLAND.

OVERRIDING TRIDENT BIKE TOUR: SEPTEMBER 28TH-

30TH, A GROUP OF 30 MEDICAL STUDENTS, DOCTORS

AND POLITICAL ACTIVISTS BIKED FROM DOVER TO THE

LONDON CONFERENCE. ENROUTE THE GROUP

INFORMED THE PUBLIC ABOUT THE DANGERS OF

NUCLEAR WEAPONS, AND HELD TARGET X INSTALLA-

TIONS AND MEETINGS WITH MAYORS AND LOCAL PRESS.

ONLINE: IPPNW-STUDENTS.ORG/OTT

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MEDICAL PEACE WORK: DR. KLAS MELF OF NOR-

WAY LEADING A VIDEO CONFERENCE WITH THE

CANADIAN PEACE-THROUGH-HEALTH GROUP AT

MCMASTER UNIVERSITY ON THE EMERGING FIELD

OF EXPERTISE IN HEALTH WORK, VIOLENCE PRE-

VENTION AND PEACE.

ONLINE: UIT.NO/SIH/8989

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THE 6TH AFRICAN REGIONAL CONFERENCE, HEAL-

ING THE WOUNDS OF WAR IN AFRICA:THE ROLE

OF HEALTH PROFESSIONALS WAS HELD IN NAIRO-

BI IN SEPTEMBER. IT BROUGHT TOGETHER HEALTH

PROFESSIONALS INCLUDING MEDICAL STUDENTS

TO PRESENT AND SHARE EXPERIENCES ON THE

IMPACT OF WAR ON HEALTH, WITH A FOCUS ON

PRESCRIBING PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES FOR THE

AFRICAN CONTINENT, AND CARE AND REHABILITA-

TION OF THE VICTIMS. IT WAS ORGANIZED BY

IPPNW’S AFRICAN REGIONAL OFFICE IN KENYA.

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ONLINE: ADDITIONAL PHOTOS AND REPORTS

IPPNW.ORG, ICANW.ORG AND IPPNW-STUDENTS.ORG

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DR. ANDREW PINTO, PGS CANADA, JOINED DR.

EMPERATRIZ CRESPIN IN EL SALVADOR IN JUNE TO

CONDUCT RESEARCH ON GUN VIOLENCE, AND PAR-

TICIPATE IN A RANGE OF EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES.

THEY ARE PICTURED AT A SOCCER MATCH FOR

PEACE CO-ORGANIZED BY IANSA/IPPNW PUBLIC

HEALTH NETWORK LATIN AMERICA AND TWO LOCAL

RADIO STATIONS (VOX FM AND RADIO “QUE BUENA”).

IPPNW.ORG- 5 -

IPPNW WORLD NOTES (continued from page 3)

VS

Member (only five from the world) of

the International Network of Scientists

and Engineers for Global

Responsibility (INES).

Co-President Ime John and

Emmanuel Eduru of IPPNW-Nigeria

participated in a two-day regional con-

ference in Abuja, Nigeria on the ratifi-

cation of the Economic Community of

West African States (ECOWAS)

Convention on Small Arms and Light

Weapons….

IPPNW-Zambia’s Dr. Robert Mtonga

was interviewed on the BBC World

Service on the advantages of the Arms

Trade Treaty—his “guns are bad for

health” message covered the econom-

ic cost of gun injuries and the impact of

small arms violence against women.

NEW AIMING FOR PREVENTION

STUDY CALLS FOR ONGOING

INJURY SURVEILLANCE

AFRICA

IPPNW’s African affiliates, under the

direction of Diego Zavala of the Ponce

School of Medicine in Puerto Rico,

have completed a pilot study funded in

large part by the Small Arms Survey,

Geneva, to determine the causes of

injuries in the Democratic Republic of

Congo (DRC), Kenya, Nigeria,

Uganda and Zambia, and to provide

evidence-based recommendations to

local government health authorities in

order to encourage the development

of armed violence prevention strate-

gies. The 5-country study—the cen-

terpiece of the African Aiming for

Prevention program in 2007—was

undertaken to

support the

need for an

ongoing injury

su rve i l l ance

system that can

help public

health practi-

tioners make

policy recom-

m e n d a t i o n s

about preven-

tion of injuries

from small

arms and light

weapons based on empirical data.

During six months of data collection,

4,366 injury cases were recorded in all

five countries. Nigeria and DRC stood

out as two countries with the greatest

proportion of small arms injuries

(approximately 40% of interpersonal

violence injuries).

OTHER AFP NEWS

The Journal of Public Health Policyhas published an important new series

of articles in a special section on small

arms violence in Africa written by

IPPNW researchers, available:

palgrave-journals.com/jphp/journal/v28/n4/

Dr. Balkrishna Kurvey of IIPDEP in

India was elected an Executive

THE STUDENT CHAPTER OF PSR NEPAL HEADED BY

CHUDAMANI GIRI, AND ADVISED BY DR. MAHESH

MASKEY, ORGANIZED A TWO DAY SOUTH ASIA STU-

DENTS’ MEETING IN AUGUST THAT BROUGHT

TOGETHER STUDENTS FROM MEDICAL AND PUBLIC

HEALTH SCHOOLS FROM NEPAL, INDIA,

BANGLADESH, AND A FEW FROM GERMANY TO DIS-

CUSS HOW TO ADDRESS THE CRISIS OF SMALL

ARMS VIOLENCE.

NEPAL “ONE BULLET STORY” ONLINE:

IPPNW.ORG/PROGRAMS/AFP

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NEW STUDY DOCUMENTS HEALTH PROBLEMS AROUND INDIA’S URANIUM MINES

IDPD researchers, including

Satyajit Kumar Singh and

Shakeel Ur Rahman, collected

health information from 2,118

households in five villages around

the mines, tailings ponds, and an

ore processing plant operated by

Uranium Corporation of India, Ltd

(UCIL). They compared this data

with similar information gathered

from villages some 30-35 kilome-

ters away from mining activities.

IDPD found significant increases

in congenital deformities and

childhood deaths due to congenital

deformities; increased sterility; and

elevated numbers of deaths due to

cancer. Reduced life expectancy

among people living near the mines

was also documented.

While acknowledging that fur-

ther study is needed to distin-

guish radiation effects from the

health problems related to mining in

general, IDPD blamed UCIL for

unsafe operations and for failing to

monitor the health of its workers or

to provide meaningful treatment

and compensation. Drs. Singh and

Rahman referred to a December

2006 incident, when a burst pipe

spilled thousands of liters of radioac-

tive waste into a creek for more than

nine hours before UCIL acted, as

typical of the company’s inadequate

safety standards.

VITAL SIGNS

VOLUME 19 ISSUE 1 2007 - 6 -

The IDPD study was funded by a

grant from the US-based

Ploughshares Fund, and was under-

taken cooperatively with the

Jharkhandis Organisation Against

Radiation (JOAR). An executive

summary is available: ippnw.org.

PHOTO ABOVE: YOUNG CHILDREN GATHERING AVAILABLE WATER FOR COOKING AND DRINKING.

BELOW: INDIAN PHYSICIANS AND RESEARCHERS WITH A HOUSEHOLD THAT LIVES IN CLOSE

PROXIMITY TO THE JADUGODA URANIUM MINES.

INDIAN DOCTORS FOR PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT (IDPD) HAS COMPLETED A YEAR-

LONG SURVEY OF HEALTH CONDITIONS AMONG INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES AROUND

THE JADUGODA URANIUM MINES.

Tel: 617.868.5050

Fax: 617.868.2560

Email: IPPNWBOS@IPPNW.ORG

Web: IPPNW.ORG

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2008

PRESIDENTS

IME JOHN, MD MPH - NIGERIA

GUNNAR WESTBERG, MD - SWEDEN

REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENTS

WALTER ODHIAMBO, MD - KENYA

BJØRN HILT, MD - NORWAY

ANTONIO JARQUIN, MD - NICARAGUA

AHMED GENEID, MD - EGYPT

IRA HELFAND, MD - USA

KATSUKO KATAOKA, MD, PHD - JAPAN

VLADIMIR GARKAVENKO, MD - RUSSIA

KAMRUL KHAN, MD - BANGLADESH

DANIELE VILIUNAS, MD - AUSTRALIA

AT-LARGE MEMBERS

CAECILIE BOCK BUHMANN, MD - DENMARK

MARTINA GROSCH, MD - SWEDEN

ANDREW S. KANTER, MD, MPH - USA

ALEX ROSEN, MD - GERMANY

TILMAN RUFF, MB BS, FRACP - AUSTRALIA

MASAO TOMONAGA, MD - JAPAN

INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL

STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES

KHAGENDRA BIKRAM DAHAL - NEPAL

RUTH MITCHELL - AUSTRALIA

SPEAKER OF THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL

PETER WILK, MD - USA

DEPUTY SPEAKER

HERMAN SPAANJARD, MD - NETHERLANDS

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

MICHAEL CHRIST - USA

CHAIR, 18TH WORLD CONGRESS

L.S. CHAWLA, MD - INDIA

SECRETARY 18TH WORLD CONGRESS

ARUN MITRA, MD - INDIA

IPPNW CENTRAL OFFICE727 MASSACHUSETTS AVE

CAMBRIDGE, MA 02139 USA

IPPNW.ORG

INTERNATIONAL PHYSICIANS

FOR THE PREVENTION OF

NUCLEAR WAR (IPPNW)

IPPNW is a non - partisan federation of nation-

al medical organizations in 60 countries dedicat-

ed to safeguarding health by working to ban

nuclear weapons and to address the impact of

militarism and war on human health.

IPPNW is a non - profit organization registered

under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States

Internal Revenue Code.

All gifts to IPPNW are tax deductible to the

fullest extent allowed by law.

� � � � � � � � � �

VITAL SIGNS IS PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER.

EDITOR AND DESIGNER: AKI MORIZONO

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: MARIA VALENTI AND JOHN LORETZ

� � � � � � � � � �

Also, Ploughshares Fund’s

generous support made it pos-

sible for IDPD to conduct a

public health project on urani-

um mining in India.

IPPNW Norway’s support

enabled the Aiming for

Prevention Campaign to com-

plete the six month injury study at

emergency rooms in five African

countries. A report was present-

ed to the primary study funder,

Geneva-based Small Arms

Survey (SAS) and will inform the

next SAS annual report.

THANK YOU

ONLINE:ICANW.ORG

The ICAN website contains new updates on global activities and

resources for abolition activists to participate in a number of immediate

ways to the global effort to achieve a future no longer threatened by the

horror of nuclear war.

ICANW.ORG

ONLINE: ACTIVISTS’TOOLKIT AND RESOURCE

NEWS, VIDEOS, MAPS, AND OPINION POLLS ON THE

ELIMINATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

IPPNW GERMANY

IPPNW NEW ZEALAND

JPPNW

MEDACT

NORWAY (NLA)

PGS CANADA

PSR FINLAND

PSR USA

SLMK

IPPNW would like to thank the fol-

lowing affiliates for their leader-

ship in championing the “Final

Pandemic” conference at the

Royal Society of Medicine:

- 7 -

Non-Profit

U.S. Postage

PAID

Burlington, MA

Permit No. 145

INTERNATIONALPHYSICIANS FOR

THE PREVENTION OF NUCLEAR WAR

727 MASSACHUSETTS AVE

CAMBRIDGE, MA02139USA

IPPNW 18TH WORLD CONGRESS NEW DELHI, INDIA

MARCH 7 – 8, 2008

IPPNW MEDICAL

STUDENT CONGRESS

IPPNW-STUDENTS.ORG

AND

DEVELOPMENT

PEACE, HEALTH

MARCH 9 – 11, 2008

MAIN CONGRESS

IPPNW2008.ORG

Plenary sessions and working

groups on nuclear abolition,

issues of global security and

the public health approach to

ending small arms violence.