Join the International Campaign Against US Aggression on Iraq By Elias A. Rashmawi

págª mantenida por Lorenzo Peña

Bagdad: tribuna para defender al pueblo de Mesopotamia

índice

Join the International Campaign Against US Aggression on Iraq By Elias A. Rashmawi
THE CAIRO DECLARATION

Join the International Campaign Against US Aggression on Iraq

By Elias A. Rashmawi

Vice President, The International Campaign Against US Aggression on Iraq

Member, A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition Steering Committee

Free Palestine Alliance - USA

The world has called for it. The movement in the US is ALL for it. And thousands and thousands are on their way ... It is time to be part of history ... To take a stand!

This is an urgent call to ask for your active role in the January 18 national/international mobilization in Washington, DC and San Francisco. On that day, the eyes of the world will be on the United States!

At the eve of the pending obliteration of Iraq, this is the time to show our collective resolve, unity of action, and rejection of war ...

On that day, people across the globe will send a clear message for peace, and hope that the people of the United States are equal to the monumental task of halting war. This is a position we in the US cannot abrogate, a moral duty we must undertake, and an historic responsibility that is primarily ours.

To that end, and to expand the essential efforts of peace, a crucial international conference with more than 400 delegates from around the world was held in Cairo, Egypt, on December 18-19, 2002, to launch an international movement to stop war and support self-determination for the Iraqi and the Palestinian people. The conference adopted the call of the ANSWER Coalition and called for January 18, 2003, as the first international day of action against the war to be anchored on that day in the United States. It also adopted February 15 as the subsequent international day of mobilization to be anchored then in Europe.

A steering committee for the international campaign was established, headed by former president of Algeria, the legendary Ahmed Ben Bella, and two vice presidents, Elias Rashmawi of the ANSWER Coalition and the Free Palestine Alliance in the United States and John Rees of the Stop the War Coalition in Britain. Participants of the conference included delegates from at least 20 countries, many Egyptian parliamentarians and prominent political leaders, activists, writers and artists from around the world. British Member of Parliament George Galloway along with Dr. Hans von Sponeck and Denis Halliday, the two former United Nations ranking officials who resigned their UN posts in protest of the Iraq sanctions, and former US attorney general Ramsey Clark, were among hundreds of the distinguished conveners.

In the words of President Ben Bella, «the people of the United States hold the primary responsibility of halting their own government's rapid advance to war, and in securing peace in place of destruction.» The 85-year old historic leader of Algerian independence from France, and one of the primary legends of the decolonization era, emphasized that the world expects the people of the United States to once more take a moral and courageous stand as they have before against the devastation of Vietnam.

There is no doubt that January 18 will again enter history. On that day and as we in the US commemorate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Egyptians will remember the very same day in 1977 as they took to the streets across the country reclaiming their nation from the devastation of austerity measures imposed by the IMF. This is also the time when the first destruction on Iraq was unleashed some 12 years ago, killing so far at least 1.5 million Iraqis between the bullets of missiles and the bullets of imposed disease and starvation.

From Egypt to the United States and to every nation around the world, we are resolved to make this coming January 18 a historic day of solidarity and peace. As thousands and thousands prepare to march on Washington and San Francisco, we echo the call of the International Campaign Against US Aggression on Iraq and urge all to join hands so as to link with all those standing for justice globally.

January 18 may well be our last national/international unified stand before destruction is unleashed, since the Bush Administration has indicated January 28 as the day of decision.

Peace and justice are nonetheless viable, but only if we take a stand!

This is a duty the rests squarely on the shoulders of the people of the United States ... and history will certainly record this stand for generations to come.

Even in the United States itself, war has significantly escalated against the people of the Middle East. In a prelude to prison camps that evoke the memory of the internment of Japanese-Americans, and as a test case to widespread wholesale arrests, the US has begun a hateful and racist policy of selective «registration» and mass detention of men based on their ethnic background alone. This manifestation of the self-serving «war on terror» is indeed terrorizing entire communities throughout. It is a policy that is yanking away bothers, sons, fathers, and husbands from their families for no other reason but their national origin. Holding criminal an entire people is well under way in the United States. It is being normalized and set into law.

But there is more. The campaign of destruction on Palestine has also escalated with active US diplomatic, political, financial, and military support and participation. With an attack on Iraq, Israel will undoubtedly carry out its planned mass expulsion; wholesale destruction of towns and refugee camps; and a higher rate of individual and collective assassinations. Unless challenged globally, Palestinian mass transfer is imminent. Palestine, a primary hurdle to global domination is indeed in the crosshairs of imperial designs.

An Empire has emerged! It is waging a global war to redefine the boundaries of nation-states, appropriate wealth and resources, install governments, and re-shape policies throughout. It was Afghanistan some months ago. It is Iraq today. There are Korea, Columbia, the Philippines, and Palestine. The examples are too many -- Yet, who is next and where?

With every step of imposed destruction, our world is brought closer to a global disaster and the people of the US are pitted against the international community.

A collective answer to the drumbeat of war is a must -- we no longer have a choice, or the luxury of time!

Busses, carpools, and delegations in the thousands are being organized for Washington and San Francisco at hundreds of organizing centers nationwide from coast to coast. The movement in its entirety is united. Join, as we collectively make history and take a step for justice and peace!

Information on how to help and be part of this historic march can be found on the ANSWER website: http://www.internationalanswer.org. Visit today and organize!

Time is of the essence!

For your immediate reference, I have also attached below a copy of the Cairo Declaration for your review and consideration. I urge your immediate support. To indicate your endorsement of the Declaration, please write to: rashmawi@sbcglobal.net

In solidarity, Elias A. Rashmawi

Appendix

THE CAIRO DECLARATION

Against U.S. Hegemony and War on Iraq and In Solidarity with Palestine

The international meeting organized by the Egyptian Popular Campaign to Confront U.S Aggression was convened in Cairo on December 18 and 19 to launch the International Campaign.

We, the participants reaffirm our resolve to stand in solidarity with the people of Iraq and Palestine, recognizing that war and aggression against them is but part of a U.S. project of global domination and subjugation. Solidarity with Iraq and Palestine is integral to the internationalist struggle against neo-liberal globalization. The Cairo meeting is not an isolated event, but an extension of a protracted international struggle against imperialism, from Seattle and Genoa to Lisbon and Florence, to Cordoba and Cairo.

The U.S. provides unlimited support, and even justification, to the Zionist perpetrators of genocidal crimes against the Palestinian people. The suffering of the Iraqi people under a regime of genocidal sanctions lasting over a decade, and the aggressive militarism which they face today is but a logical outcome of the structures of power asymmetry of the existing world order:

The U.S. monopolizes political, economic and military power within the framework of capitalist globalization, to the detriment of the lives of the majority of the world's people
The U.S. imposes control through naked aggression and militarized globalization in pursuit of its rulers' interests, all while reinstating the characteristic direct occupation of classical colonialism
The U.S. global strategy, which was formulated prior to September 11 2001, aims to maintain the existing uni-polar world order, and to prevent the emergence of forces that would shift the balance of power towards multi-polarity. The U.S. administration has exploited the tragic events of September 11, under the pretext of fighting terrorism, to implement the pre-existing strategy.
Attention to this global context helps explain current world developments:
1. Capitalist Globalization and U.S. Hegemony
2. prioritize the interest of monopolistic capitalist circles above those of the people, including Europeans and U.S. citizens.
3. integrate the economies of different countries into a single global capitalist economic system under conditions which undermine social development and adversely affect the situation of women, child health, education, and social services for the elderly. In addition, unemployment and poverty increase.
4. generalize the culture of consumerism and individualism, to the detriment of a sense of collective responsibility, whether towards the thousands of infant and child deaths in Iraq resulting from polluted water, malnutrition and deficiencies in medical supplies, or towards the victims of AIDS, malnutrition and famines around the world. Among millions of people standards of living have deteriorated while unemployment and poverty have become widespread. Globalization has resulted in the marginalization of entire peoples who could no longer acquire the basic necessities to sustain life.
5. In the absence of democracy, and with widespread corruption and oppression constituting significant obstacles along the path of the Arab peoples' movement towards economic, social, and intellectual progress, adverse consequences are further aggravated within the framework of the existing world order of neo-liberal globalization.
6. Admission to restrictions on democratic development in Iraq in no way constitutes acceptance of U.S. justifications for continuation of sanctions, and now preparations for war. Without disregarding long-standing restrictions on democratic development in Iraqi society - as is the case in all Arab societies - it is evident that the U.S.-imposed sanctions have had a devastating effect on Iraq's development. Whereas Iraq had once enjoyed a relatively positive profile according to certain human development indicators, its people now suffer severely as a result of the sanctions regime. Iraq has witnessed a significant rise in child mortality rates, the spread of several diseases, reduction of opportunities in education, and a marked deterioration of the standard of living. As human suffering increases it generates a sense of defeatism.
7. The Palestinian people are suffering as a result of the loss of their land and continued Zionist aggression, which the U.S. supports militarily, economically, and politically, making its administration a de facto accomplice in the crimes committed against the Palestinian people. The U.S. protects Israel from condemnation in international forums under the pretext of combating terrorism, and it asserts additional false claims, such as when it equates the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people to resist occupation, liberate their land, and return to their homes, on the one hand, with terrorism that we all abhor, on the other.
8. The policies of Structural Adjustment associated with neo-liberal globalization have precipitated global crises manifest in a widening wealth gap, increase in poverty and unemployment, and general deterioration of standards of living.
9. U.S. military presence in the Arab region, and its dictates to governments of sovereign nations of the region has compounded the suffering of the Arab people. Interference in the internal affairs of these nations now extends to demands of educational reform, and insistence on «democratization». Ironically this is occurring at a time when civil liberties in the U.S. are clearly under siege, especially with regard to Arab and Muslim Americans, along with other minorities. The U.S. administration also violates international law by its inhumane treatment of the POWs in Guantanamo. Also evident is the wealth gap in the U.S., which is the widest among the industrial nations of the world.
10. Far from secretly, the US intends to partition Arab countries into smaller entities on ethnic or religious basis. This would enable Israel to become the dominant regional power within the framework of the Middle East Project, to the peril of an Arab project of equitable development and regional unity.

The suffering of the Arab people and U.S. unwavering support of the system of apartheid imposed on the Palestinian people, will undoubtedly fuel conflict and lead to the escalation of violence in one of the most sensitive areas of the world. Such danger can easily extend to neighboring Europe, Asia and Africa. Continued preparation for war on Iraq in spite of its acceptance of a UN resolution of aggressive inspection of its armament, as well as civilian industries, signals a predetermined intent to control the Arab region, its oil and indeed the entire world supply of oil.

For all these reasons we declare our total opposition to war on Iraq and our resolve to continue the struggle against U.S. policies of global domination. We strongly believe in the urgency of mobilizing against these policies. All democratic forces in the world that are for genuine Peace and Justice must join together within the framework of an international campaign against neo-liberal, US-centric globalization and promote an alternate globalism based on Equity and Justice. This would mean better utilization of the world's resources and protection of the environment. Together the people of the world are quite able to combat aggression and all forms of injustice, prejudice and racism, and make a better world possible.

The Cairo conference against war on Iraq and in solidarity with Palestine represents the launching of an international popular movement that creates effective mechanisms for confronting policies of aggression. The participation of international activists who are prominent for their struggles for Human Dignity, Rights and Justice, as well as intellectuals, authors, unionists, human rights workers, journalists and artists- from Egypt and the rest of the Arab World, Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, and the United States- will no doubt accelerate this noble endeavor in spite of the numerous obstacles that we have to confront.

It is important that this international popular initiative of solidarity with Iraq and Palestine proceed according to an Action Plan which includes clearly defined priorities:

Condemnation of U.S. military presence on Arab land along with pressuring the Arab governments that allow U.S military bases on their territory to close them down, and not to provide air, naval, or land facilities
Develop cooperation among popular organizations of the South to reinforce solidarity in confronting the policies and practices of neo-liberal globalization and U.S. hegemony
Work towards cooperation with the international anti-globalization movement of the North and South, and participation in activities and meetings organized by this movement
Promote the unity of democratic forces and popular organizations in different parts of the world, and form solidarity committees which oppose war on Iraq, and the genocidal crimes faced by Palestinians, supporting their right to resistance and struggle for liberation
Under the banner «Together against globalization and U.S Hegemony» add Iraq and Palestine to the agendas of international progressive meetings, particularly the next Social Forum at Porte Allegre
Invite Arab and international human rights organizations to evaluate humanitarian conditions in Iraq and disseminate their findings worldwide
Prepare to send human shields to Iraq
Introduce the boycott of U.S. and Israeli commodities in solidarity campaigns in support of Iraq and Palestine, with emphasis on the right of return for Palestinians
Elect a Steering Committee to follow up on the implementation of the Cairo Declaration, and coordination among organizations which commit to its principles, and enhance awareness through appropriate actions ranging from the preparation of posters to organizing marches and demonstrations in solidarity with Iraq and Palestine

Email circulated by: A.N.S.W.E.R.

Act Now to Stop War & End Racism

http://www.internationalanswer.org

iacenter@iacenter.org

<ActionCenter.int-subscribe@action-mail.org>

________________ ________________ ________________

mantenido por:
Lorenzo Peña
eroj@eroj.org
Director de ESPAÑA ROJA