Det danske Fredsakademi
Kronologi over fredssagen og international politik 8. Mars 2004 / Time Line March 8, 2004
Version 3.503/08/2004
Kvindernes internationale kampdag,
etableret 1910.
03/08/2004
What Next for Iraq? Bush Policy Leads to Endless War
March 8, 2004 -- As we approach the one year anniversary of the US
invasion of Iraq, the Women's International League for Peace and
Freedom, United States Section, charges the Bush administration
with a criminal invasion of Iraq, having created lies validated by
the intelligence community to justify a war that was in the making
before the 2000 election. WILPF-US supports Congressional
investigation of the lies and holds President Bush, Vice President
Cheney, and all those responsible for this illegal war
accountable.
Justifications for going to war on March 20, 2003, included: Iraqi
weapons of mass destruction, nuclear weapons capability, purchase
of uranium from Niger, and Saddam Hussein's collaboration with
Al-Qaeda. Investigations have shown these justifications were
false, and pre-war intelligence in the US and Britain was
politicized.
The war and military occupation have not liberated Iraq but led to
violent confrontations and deaths of civilians and military
personnel -- 548 American soldiers and more than 15,000 Iraqis,
though their deaths are not officially counted. The invasion has
caused material destruction and a total disruption of everyday life
in Iraq -- 50% unemployment and water systems, schools, and
hospitals in collapse.
WILPF rejects the US government's manipulation of the Iraqi
Governing Council in order to maintain control in the country. If
the Iraqi people, through their duly elected representatives,
request international assistance during a transition period,
especially from the Organization of Arab States, it should be
granted. The Iraqi people have the right to a sovereign state, in
control of its own government and resources. WILPF-US supports the
full participation of all women and men, including minority
populations, of any country in making governmental decisions that
affect the citizens of that country.
The Iraqi people and their new government must decide how their oil
money is to be distributed and who is to be employed for
reconstruction. We oppose the economic exploitation by US
contractors, such as Bechtel and Halliburton. While these
corporations have much to gain from contracts for the
reconstruction of Iraq, their enormous profits are a loss for the
Iraqi people and US taxpayers, with a total bill that will far
exceed the $87 billion approved in 2003.
Under Bush Administration policy Iraq will be forced to pay back
reconstruction costs from oil revenues, adding to its already
enormous debt stemming from previous wars, destruction, and UN
sanctions. WILPF supports forgiving international loans made to
Iraq, and the payment of reparations to Iraq, primarily from the US
and Britain for the destruction caused by the illegal invasion.
The Women's International
League for Peace and Freedom, one of the world's oldest
international peace and justice organizations, opposes the US
government's goal of dominance in the Middle East, which creates a
dangerous and unstable political and military climate in the area.
Just solutions must be found through international and regional
agreements, solutions that represent the needs of all people,
regardless of their nationality or religion, writes Jen
Geiger.
 |
 |