mars 10, 2003

Carter

Greinin eftir Jimmy Carter í New York Times í dag er ansi beinskeytt, a.m.k. ef haft er í huga að hún er skrifuð af atvinnudiplómata.
Just War — or a Just War? - m.a.s. orðaleikurinn í yfirskriftinni er hvass.
Hann segir m.a.
As a Christian and as a president who was severely provoked by international crises, I became thoroughly familiar with the principles of a just war, and it is clear that a substantially unilateral attack on Iraq does not meet these standards. This is an almost universal conviction of religious leaders, with the most notable exception of a few spokesmen of the Southern Baptist Convention who are greatly influenced by their commitment to Israel based on eschatological, or final days, theology.
Svo nefnir hann fimm ástæður sem hann telur þurfa fyrir "lögmætri" árás:
  • The war can be waged only as a last resort, with all nonviolent options exhausted.
  • The war's weapons must discriminate between combatants and noncombatants.
  • Its violence must be proportional to the injury we have suffered.
  • The attackers must have legitimate authority sanctioned by the society they profess to represent.
  • The peace it establishes must be a clear improvement over what exists.
Að lokum segir hann:
What about America's world standing if we don't go to war after such a great deployment of military forces in the region? The heartfelt sympathy and friendship offered to America after the 9/11 attacks, even from formerly antagonistic regimes, has been largely dissipated; increasingly unilateral and domineering policies have brought international trust in our country to its lowest level in memory. American stature will surely decline further if we launch a war in clear defiance of the United Nations. But to use the presence and threat of our military power to force Iraq's compliance with all United Nations resolutions — with war as a final option — will enhance our status as a champion of peace and justice.
Tilvitnanir: © 2003 The New York Times Company.

Í dag birtist líka leiðari í NYT, Saying No to War, þar sem segir m.a. "If it comes down to a question of yes or no to invasion without broad international support, our answer is no." Held að ritstjórn dagblaðs geti ekki gefið skýrari skilaboð um stefnu sína en þetta.
Agust skrifaði 10.03.03 00:24

Flokkun: Meðmæli , Mið-Austurlönd , Stjórnmál