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22/09/2002 |
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Pope John Paul II has called the international community to take "new initiatives" to resolve "situations of gross injustice" in the world "as an essential part" of its fight against terrorism. After the Sept. 11 attacks he said, "the international community recognized the urgent need to combat the phenomenon of well financed and highly organized international terrorism, which represents a formidable and immediate threat to world peace. "As an essential part of its fight against all forms of terrorism," he said, "the international community is called to undertake runs and creative political, diplomatic and economic initiatives aimed at relieving the scandalous situations of gross injustice, oppression and marginalization which continue to oppress countless members of the human family." He said the international community "can no longer overlook the underlying causes that lead young people especially to despair of humanity, of life itself and of the future, and to fall prey to the temptations of violence, hatred and the desire for revenge." His message was addressed to the new British ambassador to the Holy See, Kathryn Frances Colvin, when she presented her credentials on Sept. 7 - the same day British Prime Minister Tony Blair met President Bush to discuss war against Iraq." G.O. "It's a question of promoting civil society." A senior Vatican diplomat and three Vatican cardinals, addressing the topic of "Religions and Cultures: Between Conflict and Dialogue" at a meeting in Palermo, Italy, voiced opposition to both the Bush administration's threat towage war on Iraq and at the way the war against terrorism was being conducted. It was the first significant public stance by Vatican officials on such matters in recent times, and echoed broad-based concern in Rome at the increasing reliance on military power to solve problems that require other kinds of solution. The Sept. I-3 meeting, which was organized by the Italian Catholic lay group Sant'Egidio, was attended by 450 representatives of the Christian Churches, the major world religions and political and civil society. French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, a close adviser to Pope John Paul l l on issues of justice and peace, said the U.S. threat to wage war against Iraq" shouldn't even be thought about, because it's not by war ... that one can resolve anything."
Cardinal Ignace Moussa Daoud of Syria also expressed hope for a peaceful solution to the crisis, commenting that war "would cause great harm." Fie pointed to Pope John Paul's emphasis on the need for dialogue. Cardinal Daoud saw President Bush's approach as being in direct opposition to the Pope's, characterizing Bush's position as one of threatening "every part of the world suspected of complicity with terrorism." Cardinal Daoud pointedly asked, "Will it [military action] be able to establish the order of peace?" He questioned the feasibility of "avoiding war with war, violence with violence, taking the arms from the enemy by means of arms?" Cardinal Walter Kasper also expressed doubt about the advisability of war. Although he supported the "surgical strikes" against Afghanistan, he said, "there are neither motives nor proofs" for proceeding with a war against Iraq. Cardinal Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, outlined for the audience several conditions necessary for a just war: "it must be the last resort; there must be a pronouncement by a world authority, such as the United Nations; the means used must be proportionate to the end one wishes to reach". He cautioned against thinking any war could be fully just, looking instead for "peace with justice - that is, with full respect of human rights." The keynote address also focused on human rights, calling for greater attention to the crucially important issues of poverty, social injustice and development. The address was given by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Ireland, who cautioned that to ignore these issues is to risk provoking even greater problems.
Archbishop Martin acknowledged the need "to combat terrorism, without ambiguity" and "to stop that crazy desire of a small number of people to impose their ideology of hate on everyone, with violent means." But, he stated, the war on terrorism is "a new kind of war." It is new not just because the enemy is difficult to identify and locate, but because its purpose should be to "re-establish, in a wounded world, the respect for the dignity of persons and their rights. "Such a war" cannot be fought with traditional arms only" because its purpose would be "not simply to block an enemy, but to foster an equitable coexistence between persons, peoples and cultures." Archbishop Martin, who is the Vatican�s permanent observer to the United Nations in Geneva and the World Trade Organization, warned those conducting the war that the less attention they give to "the great social injustices and inequalities," the more they "run the risk of reinforcing that climate of insecurity that has contributed to, and contributes to, the fomenting of the terrorism." Therefore, he said, the situation in Iraq should not be "a question of replacing one leadership with another more acceptable to us. It's a question of promoting civil society." "Neither force by itself, nor the demonstration of one's military superiority, nor pragmatic pacts of realpolitik are suitable instruments for the creation of a new vision of human co-existence," Archbishop Martin said.
The rule of law and sustainable development are essential elements of promoting civil society. "'trade protectionism" is an obstacle, he said, "especially when practiced by the very countries that propose the free market as one of the fruits of the war against terrorism." He warned that the war on terrorism could not be won "through some �quick fix' that resolves the tension for the moment, neglecting a sustainable future for everyone:' It can only be won, he said, "when one seeks to create sustainable communities, which assume their own responsibility to promote the fundamental values of human existence."
Gerard O'Connell
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