Det danske Fredsakademi
Kronologi over fredssagen og international politik 27. Juni
2005 / Time Line June 27, 2005
Version 3.0
26. Juni 2005, 28. Juni 2005
06/27/2005
Preliminary Declaration of the Jury of Conscience World
Tribunal on Iraq
Tribunal on Iraq Findings, World Tribunal on Iraq
Monday 27 June 2005
- http://www.worldtribunal.org/main/?b=91
In February 2003, weeks before war was declared on Iraq, millions
of people protested in the streets of the world. That call went
unheeded. No international institution had the courage or
conscience to stand up to the aggression of the US and UK
governments. No one could stop them. It is two years later now.
Iraq has been invaded, occupied, and devastated. The attack on Iraq
is an attack on justice, on liberty, on our safety, on our future,
on us all. We the people of conscience decided to stand up. We
formed the World Tribunal on Iraq, to demand justice and a peaceful
future.
The legitimacy of the World Tribunal on Iraq is located in the
collective conscience of humanity. This, the Istanbul session, was
the culmination of a series of 20 hearings held in different cities
of the world focusing on the illegal invasion and occupation of
Iraq.
We the Jury of Conscience, from 10 different countries, met in
Istanbul. We heard 54 testimonies from a panel of advocates and
witnesses who came from across the world, including from Iraq, the
United States and the United Kingdom.
The World Tribunal on Iraq met in Istanbul from 24-26th of June
2005. The principal objective of the WTI is to tell the truth about
the Iraq war as clearly as possible, and to draw conclusions that
underscore the accountability of those responsible and underline
the significance of justice for the Iraqi people. Saddam Hussein's
crimes against his people are not the focus of this Tribunal. We
believe it is up to the Iraqi people to investigate these crimes in
an independent and free trial.
I. Overview
1. The reasons given by the US and UK governments for the illegal
invasion and occupation of Iraq in March 2003 have proven to be
false. The real motive was to control and dominate the Middle East.
Establishing hegemony over the Middle East serves the goal of
controlling the world's largest reserves of oil and strengthening
the position of the US's strategic ally Israel.
2. Blatant falsehoods about the presence of weapons of mass
destruction in Iraq and a link between Al Qaeda terrorism and the
Saddam Hussein régime were manufactured in order to create
public support for a "preemptive" assault upon a sovereign
independent nation.
3. Iraq has been under siege for years. The imposition of severe
inhuman economic sanctions at the end of the first Gulf war in
1991; the establishment of no-fly zones in the Northern and
Southern parts of Iraq; and the concomitant bombing of the country
were all aimed at degrading and weakening Iraq's human and material
resources and capacities in order to facilitate its subsequent
invasion and occupation. In this enterprise the US and British
leaderships had the endorsement of a complicit UN Security
Council.
4. In pursuit of their agenda of empire, the Bush and Blair
blatantly ignored the massive opposition to the war expressed by
millions of people around the world. They embarked upon one of the
most unjust, immoral, and cowardly wars in history.
5. The Anglo-American occupation of Iraq of the last 27 months has
led to the destruction and devastation of the Iraqi state and
society. Law and order have broken down completely, resulting in a
pervasive lack of human security; the physical infrastructure is in
shambles; the health care delivery system is a mess; the education
system has ceased to function; there is massive environmental and
ecological devastation; and, the cultural and archeological
heritage of the Iraqi people has been desecrated.
6. The occupation has intentionally exacerbated ethnic and
confessionnal divisions in Iraqi society, with the aim of
undermining Iraq's identity and integrity as a nation. This is in
keeping with the fam liar imperial policy of divide and rule.
7. The imposition of the UN sanctions in 1991 caused untold
suffering and thousands of deaths. The situation has worsened after
the occupation. At least 100,000 civilians have been killed; 60,000
are being held in US custody in inhuman conditions, without
charges; thousands have disappeared; and torture has become
virtually routine.
8. The privatization, deregulation, and liberalization of the Iraqi
economy has transformed the country into a client economy that
serves the Washington Consensus. The occupying forces have also
accomplished their primary goal of acquired control over the
nation's oil.
9. Any law or institution created under the aegis of occupation is
devoid of both legal and moral authority. The recently concluded
election, the Constituent Assembly, the current government, and the
drafting committee for the Constitution are therefore all
illegitimate.
10. There is widespread opposition to the occupation. Political,
social, and civil resistance through peaceful means is subjected to
repression by the occupying forces. It is the brutality of the
occupation that has provoked a strong armed resistance and certain
acts of desperation. By the principles embodied in the UN Charter
and in international law, the popular national resistance to the
occupation is legitimate and justified. It deserves the support of
people everywhere who care for justice and freedom.
II. Findings and Charges
On the basis of the preceding findings and recalling the Charter of
the United Nations and other legal documents quoted in the
appendix, the jury has established the following charges.
A. Against the Governments of the US and the UK
1. Planning, preparing, and waging the supreme crime of a war of
aggression in contravention of the United Nations Charter and the
Nuremberg Principles.
Evidence for this can be found in the leaked Downing Street Memo of
23rd July, 2002 in which it was revealed that: "military action was
now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam through
military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD.
But the intelligence and facts were fixed around the policy."
Intelligence was manufactured to willfully deceive the people of
the US, the UK, and their elected representatives.
2. Targeting the civilian population of Iraq and civilian
infrastructure, by intentionally directing attacks upon civilians
and hospitals, medical centers, residential neighborhoods,
electricity stations, and water purification facilities in
violation of the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and the International
Covenant for Civil and Political Rights ("ICCPR"), Articles
7(1)(a), 8(2)(a)(i), and 8(2)(b)(i). The complete destruction of
the city of Falluja in itself constitutes a glaring example of such
crimes.
3. Using disproportionate force and indiscriminate weapon systems,
such as cluster munitions, incendiary bombs, depleted uranium (DU),
and chemical weapons. Detailed evidence was presented to the
Tribunal by expert witnesses that leukemia had risen sharply in
children under the age of five residing in those areas which had
been targeted by DU weapons.
4. Failing to safeguard the lives of civilians during military
activities and during the occupation period thereafter, in
violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention, Articles 13 and 27, and
the ICC Statute, Articles 7 (1)(a) and 8(2)(a)(i). This is
evidenced, for example, by "shock and awe" bombing techniques and
the conduct of occupying forces at checkpoints.
5. Using deadly violence against peaceful protestors, beginning
with, among others, the April 2003 killing of more than a dozen
peaceful protestors in Falluja.
6. Imposing punishments without charge or trial, including
collective punishment, on the people of Iraq, in violation of the
International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR),
Geneva Conventions, and customary international law requiring due
process. Repeated testimonies pointed to "snatch and grab"
operations, disappearances, and assassinations.
7. Subjecting Iraqi soldiers and civilians to torture and cruel,
inhuman, or degrading treatment in violation of the Geneva
Conventions, the ICCPR, other treaties and covenants, and customary
international law. Degrading treatment includes subjecting Iraqi
soldiers and civilians to acts of racial, ethnic, religious, and
gender discrimination, as well as denying Iraqi soldiers Prisoner
of War status as required by the Geneva Convention. Abundant
testimony was provided of unlawful arrests and detentions, without
due process of law. Well known and egregious examples occurred in
Abu Ghraib prison as well as in Mosul, Camp Bucca, and Basra. The
employment of mercenaries and private contractors to carry out
torture has served to undermine accountability.
8. Re-writing the laws of a country that has been illegally invaded
and occupied, in violation of international covenants on the
responsibilities of occupying powers, in order to amass illegal
profits (through such measures as Order 39, signed by L. Paul
Bremer III for the Coalition Provisional Authority, which allows
foreign investors to buy and takeover Iraq's state-owned
enterprises and to repatriate 100 percent of their profits and
assets at any point) and to control Iraq's oil. Evidence listed a
number of corporations that had profited from such
transactions.
9. Willfully devastating the environment, contaminating it by
depleted uranium (DU) weapons, combined with the plumes from
burning oil wells, as well as huge oil spills, and destroying
agricultural lands. Deliberately disrupting the water and waste
removal systems, in a manner verging on biological-chemical
warfare. Failing to prevent the looting and dispersal of
radioactive material from nuclear sites. Extensive documentation is
available on air, water pollution, land degradation, and
radiological pollution.
10. Actively creating conditions under which the status of Iraqi
women has seriously been degraded contrary, to the repeated claims
of the leaders of the coalition forces. Women's freedom of movement
has been severely limited, restricting their access to education,
livelihood, and social engagement. Testimony was provided that
sexual violence and sex trafficking have increased since the
occupation of Iraq began.
11. Failing to protect humanity's rich archaeological and cultural
heritage in Iraq, by allowing the looting of museums and
established historical sites and positioning military bases in
culturally and archeologically sensitive locations. This took place
despite prior warnings from UNESCO and Iraqi museum officials.
12. Obstructing the right to information, including the censoring
of Iraqi media, such as newspapers (e.g., al-Hawza, al-Mashriq, and
al-Mustaqila) and radio stations (Baghdad Radio), targeting
international journalists, imprisoning and killing academics,
intellectuals and scientists.
13. Redefining torture in violation of international law, to allow
use of torture and illegal detentions, including holding more than
500 people at Guantánamo Bay without charging them or
allowing them any access to legal protection, and using
"extraordinary renditions" to send people to torture in other
countries known to commit human rights abuses and torture
prisoners.
B. Against the Security Council of United Nations
1. Failing to protect Iraq against a crime of aggression.
2. Imposing harsh economic sanctions on Iraq, despite knowledge
that sanctions were directly contributing to the massive loss of
civilian lives and harming innocent civilians.
3. Allowing the United States and United Kingdom to carry out
illegal bombings in the no-fly zones, using false pretense of
enforcing UN resolutions, and at no point allowing discussion in
the Security Council of this violation, and thereby being complicit
and responsible for loss of civilian life and destruction of Iraqi
infrastructure.
4. Allowing the United States to dominate the United Nations and
hold itself above any accountability by other member nations.
5. Failure to stop war crimes and crimes against humanity by the
United States and its coalition partners in Iraq.
6. Failure to hold the United States and its coalition partners
accountable for violations of international law during the
occupation, and giving official recognition to the occupation,
thereby legitimizing an illegal invasion and becoming a
collaborator in an illegal occupation.
C. Against the Governments of the Coalition of the Willing
Collaborating in the invasion and occupation of Iraq.
D. Against the Governments of Other Countries
Allowing the use of military bases and air space, and providing
other logistical support, for the invasion and occupation.
E. Against Private Corporations
Profiting from the war with complicity in the crimes described
above, of invasion and occupation.
F. Against the Major Corporate Media
1. Disseminating the deliberate falsehoods spread by the
governments of the US and the UK and failing to adequately
investigate this misinformation. This even in the face of abundant
evidence to the contrary. Among the corporate media houses that
bear special responsibility for promoting the lies about Iraq's
weapons of mass destruction, we name the New York Times, in
particular their reporter Judith Miller, whose main source was on
the payroll of the CIA. We also name Fox News, CNN and the BBC.
2. Failing to report the atrocities being committed against Iraqi
people by the occupying forces.
III. Recommendations
Recognising the right of the Iraqi people to resist the illegal
occupation of their country and to develop independent
institutions, and affirming that the right to resist the occupation
is the right to wage a struggle for self-determination, freedom,
and independence as derived from the Charter of the United Nations,
we the Jury of Conscience declare our solidarity with the people of
Iraq.
We recommend:
1. The immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the coalition
forces from Iraq;
2. That coalition governments make war reparations and pay
compensation to Iraq for the humanitarian, economic, ecological,
and cultural devastation they have caused by their illegal invasion
and occupation;
3. That all laws, contracts, treaties, and institutions established
under occupation which the Iraqi people deem inimical to their
interests, should be considered null and void;
4. That the Guantanamo Bay prison and all other offshore US
military prisons be closed immediately; that the names of the
prisoners be disclosed, that they receive POW status, and receive
due process;
5. That there be an exhaustive investigation of those responsible
for crimes of aggression and crimes against humanity in Iraq,
beginning with George W. Bush, President of the United States of
America; Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; and
other government officials from the coalition of the willing;
6. That we initiate a process of accountability to hold those
morally and personally responsible for their participation in this
illegal war, such as journalists who deliberately lied, corporate
media outlets that promoted racial, ethnic and religious hatred,
and CEOs of multinational corporations that profited from this
war;
7. That people throughout the world launch actions against US and
UK corporations that directly profit from this war. Examples of
such corporations include Halliburton, Bechtel, Carlyle, CACI Inc.,
Titan Corporation, Kellog, Brown and Root (subsidiary of
Halliburton), DynCorp, Boeing, ExxonMobil, Texaco, British
Petroleum. The following companies have sued Iraq and received
"reparation awards": Toys R Us, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Shell,
Nestlé, Pepsi, Phillip Morris, Sheraton, Mobil. Such actions
may take the form of direct actions such as shutting down their
offices, consumer boycotts, and pressure on shareholders to
divest.
8. That soldiers exercise conscience and refuse to enlist and
participate in an illegal war. Also that countries provide
conscientious objectors political asylum.
9. That the international campaign for dismantling all US military
bases abroad be reinforced.
10. That people around the world resist and reject any effort by
any of their governments to provide material, logistical, or moral
support to the occupation of Iraq.
We, the Jury of Conscience, hope that the specificity of these
recommendations will lay the groundwork required for a world where
the international institutions will be shaped and reshaped by the
will of people and not fear and self-interest, where journalists
and intellectuals will not remain mute, where the will of the
people of the world will be central, and human security will
prevail over state security and corporate profits.
Appendix: List of Legal Documents
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
The Convention on the Political Rights of Women (1952)
The Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959)
The Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination (1963)
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)
The Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (1979)
The Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984)
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989)
The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (1998)
The European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
(1950)
The American Convention on Human Rights (1969)
The Code of Conduct for the Armed Forces of the United States of
America (1963)
06/27/2005
81-Year-Old Invited to Join Navy
MAGNOLIA, AR-June 27, 2005 — At age 81, Fola Coats might seem
a little old to join the Navy. But the great-grandmother recently
received a letter inviting her to enlist in the Seabees of the
Naval Reserve.
"I laughed when I got (the letter)," she said. "I told (my family),
I can't wait to get my uniform."
06/27/2005
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