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September 27, 2002
Action Alert - The Use of Force Against Iraq
Action:
Urge the President (202-456-1414) and your Members of Congress (202-224-3121) to step back
from the brink of war, and to work with other nations and the UN to pursue alternatives to address
Iraq's threats.
The Issue:
Both the Senate and the House of Representatives are expected to debate resolutions authorizing
the use of military force against Iraq as early as the week of September 30. President Bush sent
Congress an expansively worded draft resolution that would authorize him to use all means that he
determines to be appropriate, including force, in order to enforce United Nations Security Council
Resolutions, defend the national security interests of the United States against the threat posed by
Iraq, and restore international peace and security in the region. House and Senate leadership are
currently negotiating with the Administration to develop compromise language that would authorize
the use of force against Iraq. Negotiations could be completed in days and debate could then begin.
USCCB Response:
In a September 13th letter to President Bush, Bishop Wilton D. Gregory, President of the United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) said: "We conclude, based on the facts that
are known to us, that a preemptive, unilateral use of force [to overthrow the government of
Iraq] is difficult to justify at this time." Bishop Gregory welcomed, however, the President's
efforts to focus the world's attention on the need to address Iraq's repression and pursuit of
weapons of mass destruction in defiance of the United Nations.
Rationale:
The United States and the international community have two grave moral obligations: to protect the
common good against Iraqi threats to peace and to do so in a way that conforms to traditional
moral norms. The USCCB fears that resort to force, under these circumstances, would not meet the
strict conditions necessary to override the strong presumption against the use of military force.
- The Iraqi threat. One should have no illusions about the behavior or intentions of the Iraqi
government. The international community must mobilize to ensure that the Iraqi leadership
ceases its internal repression, ends its threats to its neighbors, stops any support for terrorism,
abandons its efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction, and complies with UN
resolutions.
- Just cause. Reflecting widely accepted moral and legal restraints, Catholic teaching limits
just cause for military attack to cases in which "the damage inflicted by the aggressor on the
nation or community of nations [is] lasting, grave and certain" (Catechism of the Catholic
Church #2309). Therefore, the Bishops "find it difficult to justify extending the war on
terrorism to Iraq, absent clear and adequate evidence of Iraqi involvement in the attacks of
September 11th or of an imminent attack of a grave nature."
- Legitimate authority. Moral credibility also depends on whether there is legitimate authority
for using force. Decisions of such gravity require compliance with U.S. constitutional
imperatives, broad consensus within our nation, and some form of international sanction,
preferably by the UN Security Council.
- Probability of success and proportionality. The use of force must have "serious prospects
for success" and "must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated"
(Catechism #2309). War against Iraq could provoke the very attacks it is meant to prevent
and could have unpredictable consequences not only for Iraq, but also for peace and stability
elsewhere in the Middle East.
- Norms governing the conduct of war. The use of massive military force to remove the
current government of Iraq could have incalculable effects on a civilian population that has
suffered so much from war, repression, and a debilitating embargo.
- Alternatives to war. There are no easy answers to the threat posed by the Iraqi
government, but we must actively pursue alternatives to war, including:
- Continued diplomatic efforts aimed, in part, at resuming rigorous, meaningful
inspections;
- Effective enforcement of the military embargo, and other legitimate ways to contain
and deter aggressive Iraqi actions;
- Maintenance of political sanctions and much more carefully-focused economic
sanctions that do not threaten the lives of innocent Iraqis;
- Non-military support for Iraqis who offer democratic alternatives.
Action Requested:
Urge the President (202-456-1414) and your Members of Congress (Capitol switchboard -
202-224-3121) to step back from the brink of war and to work with other nations and the UN to
pursue alternatives to address Iraq's threats.
For further information:
Gerard Powers, USCCB, 202-541-3160 (ph); 541-3339 (f) http://www.usccb.org/sdwp; Kathy
Brown, Catholic Relief Services, 800-235-2772, ext. 7232, kbrown@catholicrelief.org.
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