Posted February 12, 2003
Reasons for Avoiding a War
Taken from a letter by Jesuit Father Fernando Franco,
Head of the Secretariat for Social Justice
1. "The 'doctrine' of a pre-emptive war is neither in accordance with U.N. doctrine and law, nor morally defensible. The application of this doctrine would open the door to an infinite war, a 'war without end.'"
2. A war against Iraq would heighten tensions between Muslims and Christians in the Middle East and beyond.
3. A willingness to spend massive amounts of money on a military action, but not on development aid makes one ask "whether the true motives of war against Iraq have to do more with economic than security reasons."
4. The push for a war is being made "unilaterally by the leaders of a few industrialized countries outside the control of the U.N.," and the United States and its allies seem to have disregarded the "obligation to build a broader consensus through legitimate democratic processes."
5. "Experience has shown us that the poor are always the main victims of violence and war."
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