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David Lange - Nuclear Free Warrior
by Larry Ross, Secretary/Founder of the Nuclear Free Zone Committee, August 23, 2005
People have wondered why and how he took a step that was resented so deeply by our chief ally - the United States. I feel admiration for a politician brave enough to follow through with a controversial decision that he believed in. David Lange, because of his great oratory prowess and the courage of his convictions, was able to succeed in this mission. He represented our major policy recommendation so well for New Zealanders and for the world. I founded the Nuclear Free Zone Committee at a meeting at the WEA in Christchurch New Zealand, in November 1981 with the express purpose of making New Zealand a nuclear free zone. Our other purposes were to make New Zealand a peacemaking neutral state, supplying peacemaking initiatives and services where possible to help resolve disputes between states. To implement these purposes our executive agreed to four simultaneous campaigns. A campaign to inform MPs about the high dangers of a nuclear war, why New Zealand should take steps to reduce this threat and work for the abolition of nuclear weapons. We always emphasised that a step New Zealand could take was to declare New Zealand nuclear free with a foreign policy based on positive neutrality, international peacemaking and support for the UN. We did this by regularly sending all MPs our monthly newsletter, usually with an informative letter. We also lobbied individual MPs, as did other peace groups throughout New Zealand. To achieve success we needed to become a large national movement. We did this by encouraging peace groups to form throughout New Zealand; to campaign with individuals, with their local councils and local MPs. We sent out our monthly newsletter, packed with important and useful information, to a growing subscription list. I went on at least 4 New Zealand national lecture tours between Jan 1981 and 1984, giving public lectures, media interviews, and visiting local peace groups. I made it a point to stop my car and try and get local news coverage wherever I went that had a newspaper whether I was giving a public talk in that town or not. Many interviews with photo coverage were achieved using this method. This resulted in many, many thousands of rural voters getting a nuclear free New Zealand message. We also had a local body campaign to get local city and regional councils to declare their areas nuclear free. We helped local groups with suggested petitions to their councils and informative materials that would help educate councillors. Often councils would vote to reject the first petition. Then after further education and presentations by the local group, they would agree to declare their area nuclear free. We issued a series of maps of New Zealand, showing the growth in the number of nuclear free zones from 28 to 105 from 1982 to 1985. These maps were included with our newsletters and sent to MPs, our members, local councils, and anyone else we thought might be interested. Every time a new local nuclear free zone was declared, there was publicity in local and some national newspapers. That way the nuclear free message and education, was repeated many times to MPs as well as reaching the general population. Naturally political parties picked up on this information. They realised this was a result of thousands of dedicated people, campaigning for a nuclear free New Zealand - their potential voters. The Labour Party thought this could be an electoral winner for the 1984 campaign. Thus David Lange declared in 1984 that if Labour was elected, they would declare the whole country nuclear free. That achieved national publicity and helped spur the declaration of further zones. The National party took the opposing view, thus ensuring vigorous debates during the campaign. A fourth campaign was importing famous speakers and experts from overseas and sending them on lecture tours throughout New Zealand. These people would speak on the benefits of a nuclear free zone for New Zealand, the multiple dangers of the nuclear arms race leading to a nuclear war of extinction, and often the very unusual details of their own experiences. People like US (ret) David Hackworth - the most decorated US soldier in US history. He became a peace advocate after serving in the Vietnam war. Then there was the ex-CIA 25 year veteran, Ralph McGehee who said the US would resent NZ's nuclear free policy and get the CIA to try and subvert it. He was very popular, as most people had never seen a real live ex-CIA spy before. The news coverage was large, and we knew it would reach the MPs. When Labour was elected in 1984 it was also a victory for our campaign. The National party lost in 1984. After losing again in the 1987 election, with the nuclear free NZ issue a major issue, National got the message. They embraced the Nuclear Free NZ policy and won the election campaign in 1990. The Labour party recognised the benefits nuclear disarmament would bring to NZ and the world and that New Zealanders wanted this for their country. Labour has never wavered in its support of this policy. After some initial hesitation, and the Americans' belief that a way to circumvent Labour's declaration would be found, David Lange became an eloquent champion of nuclear free New Zealand and nuclear disarmament. His greatest hour was debating the issue at the Oxford Union against Jerry Falwell. His most famous line, for which he will always be remembered was replying to an interjector: "I can smell the uranium on your breath" The whole world listened. People were reminded that they lived on the brink of nuclear extinction. They admired New Zealand's courage for standing up for it's principles in spite of US hostility. David Lange put New Zealand on the map - as never before. He went about as far as he could, without completely alienating the Americans, to very skilfully present New Zealand's nuclear free policy. He tried to placate the Americans by saying "New Zealand's Nuclear free policy is not for export". Nevertheless New Zealand became an example, and a beacon of hope throughout the world. Today, New Zealand's stature and influence in the world far exceeds it's size. Yet the idea for the Nuclear Free New Zealand campaign was born in my mind, presented and approved by the 1981 Annual New Zealand Peace Workshop at Living Springs, Christchurch and adopted by the Labour Party in 1984. They made it a New Zealand Law in 1987. It gives me great satisfaction and pride to have played such a creative and active role. I am immensely proud and grateful to my executive members and all the dedicated people throughout New Zealand who made it possible. And I am so very thankful that David Lange embraced the nuclear free idea, made it his own and made it a beacon of hope in a world awash with enough nuclear weapons to destroy all humanity. Even my idea to link the nuclear free policy to a new foreign policy based on positive peacemaking neutrality has born fruit. New Zealand, while not declaring neutrality, has adopted a very independent foreign policy, and has been an active peacemaker in disputes such as in Bougainville and The Solomons. Also, Labour Prime Minister Helen Clark has stood firm against pressures from the United States, Britain and Australia to join them in an illegal war on Iraq. These are our traditional and major allies in the ANZUS alliance and New Zealand has always in the past, been keen to go to war - almost any war - for our friends. Strange as it may seem, the sky did not fall in and the Martians did not shoot thunderbolts at us. Again, New Zealand, this time under Helen Clark, has been an example to inspire the world. This would not have been possible if New Zealand had not become a nuclear free country - free of the yoke of the ANZUS military alliance which bound us to follow the U.S., no matter where. As a independent nuclear free country New Zealand could dare to say "no to illegal war" whereas Australia and Britain could not. Thank you David Lange for being such a great
man and representing Nuclear Free New Zealand so well. Larry Ross ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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David Lange So Many Tributes to a Great Achiever
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