Greenpeace activists anchored a large banner to a boat today, reading 'When Will the U.S. Disarm? No War' and sailed it in front of the United Nations headquarters.
Greenpeace has been actively lobbying at the United Nations
against the war, and many delegates have expressed both publicly
and privately their distaste for what they see as US attempts to
"strongarm" the world community to do as it is told. One delegate
was so incensed with the memo circulated by the US that he leaked
the full document.
The Uniting for Peace resolution, which the US is trying to head
off, has a long history of stopping conflict. Ironically, it has
most often been invoked by the US to overcome vetoes by the Soviet
Union during the cold war. Under its terms, the full 191 member
United Nations General Assembly can gather to make recommendations
for restoring the peace when the Security Council is deadlocked or
unable to take action. Somewhat hilariously, one of the reasons the
US says the General Assembly should not take up the issue of war in
Iraq is that the "Security Council remains seized of this matter."
Seized is certainly the correct term: the engine of peace is simply
not turning.
There are those who say that the United Nations has been harmed
by the Security Council debate on Iraq and the US coalition action
without authorisation. However, it can also be said that the UN
showed extraordinary strength in withstanding the pressure to
rubber-stamp an illegal invasion. The only course of action open
now to the global community is to demand the immediate end of
hostilities and a return to UN-sanctioned disarmament measures.
It's the right thing to do for world peace, it's the right thing to
do for the future of the United Nations.
In the past two weeks, Greenpeace Cyberactivists have been part
of the global outcry for an emergency session of the UN. We've sent
a record 60,000 appeals to United Nations representatives calling
for the General Assembly to denounce the war in Iraq and to call
for an immediate cease-fire. And despite the fierce US pressure, it
looks like our global demand will be met.
A press announcement by the Arab League Monday confirms that
they will be invoking the "Uniting for Peace" resolution to bring
all 191 member nations of the UN together. "The point of the
request is to save the lives of Iraqi civilians," one Arab diplomat
said to the Associated Press. "We will ask for a cease-fire and a
return to peaceful disarmament in Iraq."
Dozens of other nations have already gone on record saying they
will support the call for an emergency session. We urge the General
Assembly to meet swiftly and give shape to the global voices that
are demanding an end to this illegal war.
Please
write to the Foreign Ministers of Cuba, South Africa, Malaysia,
Indonesia, Nigeria, New Zealand, Switzerland, Fiji, Mexico, Chile,
Germany, Russia, and France, and ask them to support 'Uniting for
Peace' You can write all of them by clicking here.
If
you've already done that, you can send an e-card to your friends
and colleagues asking them to support the Uniting for Peace
resolution as well.
And if you've done
both of those things, please help Greenpeace continue its work
against this war by becoming a financial supporter.