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Letter from CYTUN (Church Together in Wales) to the Prime Minister, Tony Blair (20/02/03)
This statement is not necessarily the latest issued by the Church Together in Wales. Please refer to there website for up to date information.
We believe
1. that terrorism post 9.11 is a far more dangerous threat to world security than the present foreign policy of Iraq. We very much understand the insecurity felt by Americans and other peoples and feel that the UN must act in ways that address the causes of such insecurity and avoid the danger of increasing it by being inconsistent or hypocritical.
2. that the case for evidence of possession of WMD has not been made in ways that convince the majority of people in this country and certainly not in the churches. On the contrary, the evidence produced both by Colin Powell and the British Government, separate from the inspection process, has proved to be questionable as well as unconvincing. Even if possession was proved beyond reasonable doubt this, of itself, would not justify a pre-emptive strike. A pre-emptive strike on the basis of possession alone would create a dangerous precedent for other countries in the future.
3. that intent is as important as possession and has not been proved. The human rights record in Iraq, the invasion of Kuwait and the treatment of the Kurds are not proof of a wider geopolitical intent and certainly not a threat in themselves to the West.
4. that no convincing evidence has been given of a link between Al Quaeda and Iraq, quite the opposite. We are concerned that a war on Iraq will increase the development of such a link as well as encourage the use of whatever WMD are available.
5 that non-compliance with 1441 is a serious issue and we recognise the implications of this for the UN and its member countries. We do accept that Iraq is in material breach in terms of its lack of cooperation. We believe this justifies increased international pressure and containment rather than war.
If the USA and the UK believe that this breach does justify war then we wish to urge HM Government to work for a new UN Motion.
Such a motion, however should take very seriously not just the humanitarian issues of a war but the consequences on international security issues. The key point is to avoid increasing the risk of terrorism. We believe a main cause of terrorism continues to be the Israeli treatment of Palestinians. We note that America has vetoed resolutions on Israel on 34 different occasions. It has continued to support Israel with finance, military equipment and political legitimacy and has done nothing to reduce the violence or behaviour of Prime Minister Sharon towards the Palestinians. To the Islamic world in particular this pattern of American use of the veto in the case of Israel devalues its own expression of frustration at the possible use of a veto by Russia, China and France. Moreover, any war on Iraq would confirm a widespread belief in the Islamic world that the US and the UK ignore the interests and perceptions of Muslims.
We, therefore, propose that a new UN motion should couple these concerns so that the Islamic world will perceive the UN to be acting in a more even handed manner. If the UN is to condemn Iraq for its non-compliance with a UN resolution then it should at the same time condemn Israel for doing likewise.
Yours faithfully, The Revd Christopher Gillham Chair CYTUN International Forum on behalf of the members of the Forum 17th February 2003 |
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