Mon, Mar 03, 2003 page8

• Get to the root of the Iraq problem

  • By Paul Shan 單國璽
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  The clouds of war are gathering over the Persian Gulf region, as a US-led war against Iraq may occur at any moment. This crisis is threatening the interests of all humans because world peace would become even less of a reality in the face of another major international conflict.

  Peace activists are extremely worried about the tense situation in the Persian Gulf. They have recently organized anti-war protests worldwide in an effort to stop a war. In fact, war can never solve conflicts and can only sow the seeds of more cruelty. History is an impartial witness to this truth. In 1870, for example, the French were defeated by the Germans in the Franco-Prussian War. Hatred between the two constantly rose in the following years. France took revenge on Germany by defeating it in World War I. Germany's Adolf Hitler seized the chance to instigate people with Nazism and caused the tragic World War II -- during which over 30 million people were killed or injured.

  Indeed, war, being the brutal and vicious mess that it is, can make one lose one's sense of humanity. The notorious "Nanjing Massacre" (南京大屠殺) carried out by Japanese troops was horrifying; the cold slaughter of Jewish people by Nazi troops makes our hackles rise. These were evil acts that could never be done by ordinary people who have their sense and humanity. War is nothing but destruction, killing and ruin. The original objects of punishment targeted by military actions usually hide in the safest places. For example, Osama bin Laden -- the prime suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks -- remains out of the law's reach, while he repeatedly launches terrorist attacks both inside and outside the US. Once a war breaks out, Iraq's military and political leaders will definitely hide in the most secret and safest places. Most of the war victims will be innocent civilians and regular soldiers.

  A US-led war against Iraq will hit the Iraqi people with weapons and indirectly hit the world with economic repercussions. Many countries rely on oil from the Middle East in order to maintain and develop their industries and daily transportation. A war like this will certainly affect both oil supplies and global oil prices. The oil price hikes, triggered by the Persian Gulf War in 1991, are still fresh in our memory. The world economy is suffering from a downturn at present. Once a war takes place, it will worsen the situation -- just like "adding frost on top of snow" (雪上加霜), as the saying goes.

  About 83 percent of the residents in Iraq are Arabic in origin. As much as 92 percent of its population is Muslim. Most Arab countries and the Muslim world will sympathize with and support Iraq, which has the same language, race and religious beliefs as they do. Although certain key Arab politicians have temporarily offered varying degrees of support to the US for personal or national gain, a majority of their people stand by Iraq.

  From a long-term perspective, a war like this will deepen racial hatred and increase religious conflicts. Bin Laden himself is originally from Saudi Arabia. The terrorists under his command are from different Arab countries. Even Muslim extremists in Indonesia and the Philippines also follow his instructions. Not only can war not thoroughly ease the conflicts between theUK, the US and Iraq, but it can also produce more and crueler figures such as Iraq President Saddam Hussein and bin Laden. These people clearly know that they cannot recklessly fight on the battlefield against the countries that possess modern technologies and weapons. But they are capable of launching guerrilla warfare, such as the notorious Sept. 11 attacks, bogging down economies in terror.

  The Middle East problem will not be solved and will be become worse even if the US and its closest allies defeat Iraq on the battlefield and actually catch Saddam alive and have him executed.

  The Arab world and the Muslim world will dislike the US and Britain even more. It will expand the scope and targets of terrorist actions. Thus, there will be more terrorists and actions with better techniques. Under such circumstances, peace will never come to the US and its allies.

  The US and its allies have to seriously study the fundamental cause of conflicts if they want to solve them. After they gain a clear understanding of the cause, they have to resolutely remove the ultimate cause of trouble and create long-lasting peace. Most impartial and neutral observers believe that the Israelis occupied Palestinian land by force when Israel was established in 1948, forcing these people to leave their hometowns for foreign countries, or even refugee camps. Some of them have lived in refugee camps for over 50 years, while their children or even grandchildren were all born in these camps.

  These people worship Saddam and bin Laden as their heroes and saviors, and will certainly follow their instructions and serve them wholeheartedly. Take the Sept. 11 attacks for example, the terrorists took themselves as human bombs and crashed into their targets along with the hijacked planes.

  Palestinian human bombs and car bombs can also be seen in Israel. Such fearlessness is surely a result of the profound hatred against Israel in their hearts.

  The US and its allies should use the money that they spent on both the wars against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and Iraq to save the Palestinians, so as to solve the Israeli-Palestinian issue.

  The Israeli-Palestinian conflicts will then be resolved, and peace will also come to in the Middle East.

  The Arab-Muslim world will no longer produce people such as Saddam and bin Laden at that time.

  Paul Shan is a Roman Catholic cardinal based in Kaohsiung.

  TRANSLATED BY EDDY CHANG
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