War and conflict are major causes of human suffering. They also cause environmental degradation, perpetuate inequalities and undermine democracy. Nuclear bombs and other indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction are incompatible with the public health aims of safety and health protection.
But a vast complex of standing armies, militias, weapons manufacturers, arms traders and politicians promote war, violence and militarism out of self-interest and greed, or because they fail to see better alternatives for resolving conflict and disputes.
Health professionals have a long history of: providing humanitarian relief; facilitating ceasefires and the cessation of conflict; promoting disarmament and peacebuilding; and providing impartial evidence on the perpetration of war crimes.
Medact grew out of the medical peace movement and is the UK affiliate of the Nobel Laureate International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW).
Medact continues to promote disarmament and encourage investment in nonviolent responses to conflict; seek the abolition of nuclear weapons; and reduce the power and influence of the global military-industrial complex. It promotes the universal right to health as a platform for peace building and more effective international diplomacy and cooperation.
Latest
Policing the pandemic
Medact campaigns assistant, Aiyan Maharasingam, examines whether the police are an appropriate instrument of public health policy during the coronavirus pandemic.
From exclusion to international solidarity ─ the public health case for lifting trade sanctions in the face of COVID-19
Medact Campaign Assistant, Aiyan Maharasingam, looks at international trade sanctions and the impacts they are having upon public health systems during the coronavirus crisis.
Responding to COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown into stark relief the serious health inequalities that exist both in the UK and across the world. In response we have seen incredible kindness, and witnessed all kinds of actions to both serve our both communities immediate needs, and...
Responding to coronavirus ─ intersections with war, militarised violence and the arms industry
Medact Peace & Security Campaigner Reem Abu-Hayyeh looks at the legacies of war and militarised violence, their impacts on countries’ ability to respond to coronavirus, and how the UK could act to right injustices.
The arms industry in the era of COVID-19: lessons for the future
Join our webinar to discuss a just transition away from the arms and defence industry to work that promotes peace and public health, in the era of COVID-19.