Amnesty International Questions Letter I by John G

^ssiq^K flip MM •m •P wmam •• ^Xc3S <it ban Af mio (•c'rurunity Inside Sports Runners con tinue iidnning season —page 9 President Bush justifies war by PrMident George BMh President of the United States aggressitm. I have been in war. I have known the terror of combat. And "There are times in life ' If armed men invaded a hom* in I teU you this with all my heart: I where we confront this cotutry, killed those in their don't want there to be a war ever values worth fighting way, stole what they wanted and again. I am determined to do ab then announced the house was solutely everything possible in the for" now theirs, no one would hesitate search for a peaceful resolution to about what must be done. this crisis — but only if the peace —George Bush And that is why we cannot is genuine, if it rests on principle, hesitate about what must be done not appeasement. halfway around the world in But while we search for that Kuwait. answer, in the Gulf yotmg men and ThOTe is much in the modem women are putting their own lives would be to end the promise of oiu* world that is subject to doubts or on hold in order to stand for peace New World Order. To reward ag questions — waahM in shades of in our world and for the essential gression would be to destroy the gray. But not the brutal aggrea- value of human life itself. Many United Nations' promise as inter aion of Saddam Hussein ag^dnst a are yoimger than my own children. national peace keeper. To reward Your age, most of them. Doing aggression would be to condone tough duty for something they the acts of those who would believe in. desecrate the promise of human "The terror Saddam Hnaaein has imposed upon Let me tell you about one of the life itself. Kuwait violates every principle of human decern^'* soliders over there, S.F.C. Terry And we will do none of this. Hatfield, a young man from There are times in life where we Georgia. He sent me a Christmas confront values worth fighting for. — Gedrge Bush president of the United States card. And thu is what he wrote. This is one such time. "Mr. - President, I just wanted Each day that passes means you to know my soldiers and I are another day for Iraq's forces to dig ready to do whatever mission you deeper into their stolen land. decide. Freedom as we know and Another day Saddam Hussein can peaceful^ sovereign nation and its The man who used chemical war enjoy has been taken away from work toward building his nuclear people. It's black and white. The fare on his own people-once again another country and must be arsenal and perfecting his facts are clear. The choice is including children — now oversees restored^ Although we are chemical and biological weapons unambiguous. public hangings of dissenters. Dai separated ^rom family, friends, capability. Another day for Right vs. wrong. The terror Sad ly his troops commit atrocities loved ones, we will do what must Amnesty International to docu dam Hussein has imposed upo^n agamat Kuwaiti .^citjsena. This be dime..,W« stfutd r««j^ and ment. Another day of interna Kuwait violates every principle oif brutality has reverberated waiting. God Bless you and the tional outlaws, instead of interna himian decency. Listen to what throughout the entire world. If we U.S.A." tional law. Amnesty International has do not follow the dictate of our in Terry understands the moral I ask you to think about the documented: "Widespread abuses ner moral compass and stand up obligation that has compelled our economic devastation that Sad of human rights have been for human life, then his lawless extraordinary multinational coali dam Hussein would continue to perpetrated by Iraqi force8...ar- ness will threaten the peace and tion to make this stand in the wreak on the world's emerging bitrary arrest and detention democracy of the emerging new Gulf. To look this international democracies if he were in control Thein Wah was among the many people protesting the United without trial of thousands... world order we now see, this long terrorist straight in the eye and of one-fifth of the world's oil States Involvement in the Middle East. widespread tortiu-e...imposition of dreamed of vision we've all work say: no concessions. To proclaim reserves. And to reflect on the the death penalty and the extra ed toward for so long. for now and for the fact that ag terrible threat that a Saddam Hus our coalition partners, ensure that servicemen and women, as they judicial execution of hundreds of A year after the joyous dawn of gression will not be rewarded. sein armed with weapons of mass this aggression is stopped aiid the stand ready on the frontier of unarmed civilians, including freedom's light in Eastern Europe, Terry waits thousands of miles destruction already poses to principle on which this nation and freedom, willing to do their duty children." a dark evil has descended in froi.1 the White House, yet we human life and to the future of all the rest of the civilized world are and do it well. They deserve our Including Children. There's no another part of the world. But e share the; same thoughts. We nations. founded are preserved. complete and enthusiastic support horror that could make this a more have the chance and we have tue desperately want peace. But we Together, as an America united And so let us remember and sup — and lasting gratitude. obvious conflict of good vs. evil. obligation — to stop ruthless know that to reward aggression against these horrors, we can, with pose Terry Hatfield, all our fine Amnesty International questions letter I by John G. Healey abuses priw to August 1990? Why might not be digging in for war to detention and torttire are routine Executive Director of Amnesty in Morocco, and that country's International USA does he remain mute about abuses day. Tomorrow's tensions in the conunitted by other governments, region may well be mapped by the govenmient persists in responding "We can teach our our so-called coalition partners in human rights records of our long- to "disappearances" with secrecy Clear facts. Black and white. the region? term "friends," such as the Saudi and silence. Oiu- government fails political leaders that Unambiguous choice. These are Iraqi soldiers' behavior in Arabian Government, and new to act with determination against people*8 human rights the terms President Bush used in Kuwait does not constitute a sud found "friends." such as the the torture suffered by tens of are not convenient issues the letter he sent to over 450 col den shift to the brutal side. Iraqi Syrian Government. We've heard thousands of prisoners held in lege and tmiversity newpapers last civilians have suffered such cruel little from the United States Turkish jails. for rhetorical arsenals." week. The subject was Iraqi oc The Egyptian Government has cupation of Kuwait. The object subjected many thousands of was to prepare yoimg people for "Exploiting human rights to justify violent con political prisoners to detention military confrontation in the Per without charge or trial. The tor — JoJ^n G. Healey sian Gulf. frontation is itself indecent** ture of political prisoners, especial The letter cited Amnesty Inter ly supporters of Islamic groups op national's recent r^ort on Iraq as posing the government, is evidence to support the ad reportedly common in Egjrpt. In ministration's position. Perhaps —John G. Healey executive director of Amnesty In the Israeli Occupied Territories, human rights to jusiiiy violent presidential advisers know that ternational USA thousands of Palestinians have confrontation is itself indecent. Amnesty volunteer groups are been detained without charge or Anmesty International Fakes no now active on more than 2,600 trial. Many of the detainees com position on the territorial disputes campuses in this country. I hope the future. But the United States mitted the "offense" of peaceful now raging in the Persian Gulf. the administration will soon learn public should not tolerate selective ly exercising their ri^ts to free ex But we do support international that Amnesty members and other indignation by its own govern and degrading treatment by Govonment in recent years about pression and association. IsraeU coalition building to prevent all student activists cannot be misled ment. We can teach oiu- political govemm^t personnel for more the appalling tactics of repression troops, often engaging in ex egregious human rights violators ^ by opporttmistic manipulati<» of leaders that peof^'s human rie^ts than a decade, us detailed in used in Saudi Arabia and Syria. cessive use of force, have killed from conducting business as the international human rights are not convenient issues for numerous Amnesty International Torture is reportedly a common hundreds of Palestinian civilians. movement. usual If President Bush is sincere rhetorical arsenals. reports. There was no presidential practice in Saudi Arabia, and President Bush's selective in about "desperately want(ing) Amnesty published its rqxirt on Whffli taken at face value. Presi indignation, for example, in 1989, political detainees have been jail dignation over Iraq's abuses in peace" and if he wishes to remove the Iraqi Government's gross dent Bush's condemnati<» of tor whm Amnesty released its fin ed there for prolonged periods Kuwait imdermines the norms of ambigu from his invocation of human rights violations for one ture and pcrfitical killings by Iraqi dings about the torture of Iraqi with' t charge or trial.

Load more