| WASHINGTON
- February 1 - The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination
Committee (ADC), the nation’s largest grassroots Arab-American
organization, applauds the new Congressional letter to President Clinton
calling for the lifting of economic sanctions against the people of
Iraq, which was delivered to the White House at noon today. The letter,
which was prepared by Reps. Tom Campbell (R-CA) and John Conyers (D-Mich)
and was also signed by a bipartisan group of 67 other members of Congress,
calls on the President to “lift the economic sanctions” against
Iraq.
The Congressional letter points out that “Reports
from UNICEF (the United Nation's Children's Fund) and other United Nations
agencies operating in Iraq estimate that over one million civilians,
mostly children, have died from malnutrition and disease as a result
of the embargo. UNICEF also reports that, despite the UN's Oil-for-Food
program, several thousand children under the age of 5 die every month.”
ADC President Hala Maksoud said “We applaud the
moral position taken by these members of Congress, and are gratified
by the growing support for the lifting of sanctions. This sensitive
response to the plight of the Iraqi people will be the yeast for a future
of understanding between the American and Iraqi peoples. Such courageous
moral leadership will constitute the grounds on which reconciliation
can be built.”
The Congressional letter reflects the increased public
opposition to the sanctions which have imposed siege-like conditions
on Iraqis for almost a decade. In recent months a growing and increasingly
visible and vocal constituency of conscience has been pressing the case
against sanctions as the human tragedy in Iraq has grown out of all
proportions. In the fall, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops
called for the lifting of sanctions, and 24 leaders of 23 major denominations
and religious organizations joined in a similar statement. Several city
councils and labor unions have called for an end to sanctions, as have
numerous student government organizations. In October, activists from
around the country met at a National Organizing Conference on Iraq.
In September, a group of Congressional aides traveled to Iraq to study
the humanitarian crisis, and dozens of delegations of educators, public
health professionals, human rights activists and religious leaders have
made the same trip. Sanctions against Iraq have been criticized by UN
Secretary General Kofi Anan, the Vatican, UN Humanitarian officials
Denis Halliday and Hans von Sponeck, the Red Cross, and even some UN
Weapons Inspectors, among many others. In October, 1998, a similar letter
to the President initiated by Rep. Conyers gained 43 Congressional signatures.
###
TEXT OF LETTER:
Dear President Clinton:
We are again writing to you to ask that you de-link economic sanctions
from the military sanctions currently in place against Iraq.
More than nine years of the most comprehensive economic embargo imposed
in modern history has failed to remove Saddam Hussein from power or even
ensured his compliance with his international obligations, while the
economy and people of Iraq continue to suffer.
Reports from UNICEF, (the United Nation's Children's Fund) and other
United Nations agencies operating in Iraq estimate that over one million
civilians, mostly children, have died from malnutrition and disease as
a result of the embargo. UNICEF also reports that, despite the UN's
Oil-for-Food program, several thousand children under the age of 5 die
every month ("Situation Analysis of Women and Children in Iraq," 1998,
UNICEF).
Earlier this year, a special United Nations Security Council panel
reported that "the gravity of the humanitarian situation is indisputable
and cannot be overstated." Iraq has "experienced a shift from relative
affluence to massive poverty." Prior to sanctions, Iraq's healthcare
was regarded as amongst the best in the Middle East. Today, children
die from epidemics of once preventable diseases. The special Security
Council panel reported "infant mortality rates are among the highest in
the world." Meanwhile the embargo effectively prevents Iraq from
purchasing equipment and spare parts required to restore water
purification, sewage treatment, medical infrastructure, electrical,
transportation, agricultural, and industrial production systems that
were severely damaged during the 1991 Gulf War.
The U.S. Administration has argued that sanctions remain necessary to
prevent Iraq from threatening its neighbors and rebuilding its arsenal.
The goal of these sanctions, however, seems to have changed. The
original UN resolutions imposed sanctions to pressure Iraq to eliminate
its weapons of mass destruction programs. Statements by U.S. officials,
including Secretary Albright and Sandy Berger, however, suggest that
sanctions will remain in place until Saddam Hussein is removed, or even
beyond. This policy clearly undermines the original intention of the
sanctions, around which the international consensus against Iraq was
originally based, and makes the children and families of Iraq into
virtual hostages in the political deadlock between the U.S.
and the government of Iraq. Morally, it is wrong to hold the Iraqi
people responsible for the actions of a brutal and reckless government.
Politically, this policy deprives the Iraqi regime of any incentive to
comply with UN resolutions and international norms.
The time has come to turn a new page in our dealings with Iraq. While
we have no illusions about the brutality of Saddam Hussein, the people
of Iraq should be allowed to restore their economic system. We simply
ask you to do what is right: lift the economic sanctions. At the same
time, we support the continued embargo on military equipment and
materials.
Sincerely,
Tom Campbell - Member of Congress
John Conyers
- Member of Congress
LIST OF SIGNATORIES
Tom Campbell (R-CA)
John Conyers (D-MI)
Bruce Vento (DFL-MN)
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Bernard Sanders (I-VT)
Michael Capuano (D-MA)
Gregory Meeks (D-NY)
Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI)
Albert Wynn (D-MD)
Lynn Rivers (D-MI)
John Olver (D-MA)
John Lewis (D-GA)
Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Bob Clement (D-TN)
David Bonior (D-MI)
James Barcia (D-MI)
Dale Kildee (D-MI)
Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)
Cynthia McKinney (D-GA)
Earl Hilliard (D-AL)
Collin Peterson (D-MN)
Bart Stupak (D-MI)
James Oberstar (D-MN)
Peter DeFazio (D-OR)
William Jefferson (D-LA)
Anna Eschoo (D-CA)
Jim McDermott (D-WA)
Jack Metcalf ((R-WA)
Neil Abercrombie (D-HI)
Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX)
William “Bill” Clay (D-MO)
David Wu (D-OR)
Xavier Becerra (D-CA)
Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Melvin Watt (D-NC)
Rick Boucher (D-VA)
Eva Clayton (D-NC)
Danny Davis (D-IL)
Sam Farr (D-CA)
David Minge (DFL-MN)
Nick Rahall (D-WV)
Mike Thompson (D-CA)
John Tierney (D-MA)
Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)
Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
Paul Ryan (R-WI)
Major Owens (D-NY)
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)
John LaFalce (D-NY)
Ted Strickland (D-OH)
Mark Udall (D-CO)
Donald Payne (D-NJ)
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Bill Luther (DFL-MN)
Ron Paul (R-TX)
Diana DeGette (D-CO)
Bobby Rush (D-IL)
Pete Stark (D-CA)
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
Bennie Thompson (D-MS)
Elijah Cummings (D-MD)
Ed Royce (R-CA) (the Chair of the Africa Subcommittee of the
International
Relations Committee)
Brian Baird (D-WA)
Bob Filner (D-CA)
Chaka Fattah (D-PA)
David Phelps (D-IL)
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