Mexican Congressman Robles Launches Offensive for Peace—A New Security and Development Architecture

March 6—Speaking on the floor of Mexico’s Chamber of Deputies March 6, 2024—on the occasion of the International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness—Benjamin Robles Montoya, federal congressman for Oaxaca, on behalf of the Workers’ Party (PT), delivered a powerful call for peace.

On October 27, 2022, Congressman Robles had delivered a speech to the Second Seminar of Current and Former Legislators from around the world, organized by the Schiller Institute and held at the San Lázaro Legislative Palace in Mexico City, titled, “Legislators of the World Must Unite to Stop the Danger of Nuclear War.”

On the present occasion, he delivered a three-minute statement which we reproduce here in full.

Peace is the path to human reconciliation. And I say this because sometimes it seems that humanity has not learned from its mistakes.

The monstrosities of the world wars and other armed conflicts, the atrocities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are dark episodes in the history of humanity from which we should have learned, so that they would never be repeated. But the expansionist drive of the powers, the monstrosities of a voracious economic system that has generated inequality and misery, are a breeding ground for conflict.

Economic sanctions have only served to aggravate conflicts, to produce more suffering for the people, to provoke shortages of medicines and energy, as well as to drive world inflation.

How valid is the famous phrase of the Hero of the Americas, President Benito Juárez, that “Among individuals as among nations, respect for the rights of others is peace!” The war between Russia and Ukraine and, now, [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s genocide against the Palestinian people have unleashed great human suffering. But we should not leave aside other armed conflicts that seem to not matter to anyone, such as those of Armenia, Azerbaijan, or the Sahrawi Republic, and Morocco. Instead of leaving those dark episodes behind, humanity has returned to them.

Today, the threat of nuclear war is again looming, with the United States sending weapons to Ukraine and Israel, where what is happening is an atrocious genocide. And meddling in the China-Taiwan conflict, with Russia pulling out of strategic arms reduction treaties and nuclear test bans.

Colleagues, we have reached the very precipice of nuclear war and it is imperative that all nations raise their voices—not the voice of one nation, nor of several nations, but of all humanity—for peace and against nuclear war.

Let all the citizens of the world also unite in pursuit of a new international security and development architecture that guarantees the right to welfare and economic development of the people of the planet. Achieving peace through development, that is the path. That is all, Madame President.