Greens Call for Return of Weapons Inspectors

Thursday April 10, 2003 12:57

by Graham Caswell - Green Party

Press Release

The Green Party today called on the Government to insist on the return of weapons’ inspectors to Iraq and fair treatment of Iraqi prisoners of war. The Greens also backed the call by scientists in the UN for a study of the depleted uranium in Iraq.

Party Chairman and Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, John Gormley T.D., said these three demands were vital in the immediate aftermath of the war. “It’s clear now that Saddam Hussein and his Baath Party Regime are finished. However, this war was obstensibly about weapons of mass destruction and as of yet none have been found. One would have expected that if the Iraqis had been in possession of these weapons they would have been used in a last gasp effort.”

“It is essential, therefore, that the weapons’ inspectors now return to complete their tasks and to prove once and for all whether such weapons existed. If they did not exist then there would not have been any moral justification for this war. It would prove once and for all that this war was primarily about regime change to suit Anglo/American interests.”

“It is also essential that Iraqi prisoners are treated humanely and in accordance with the Geneva Convention. We cannot afford to see a repeat of the treatment of Afghan prisoners in Guantanamo Bay where there was at least 15 breaches of the Geneva Convention.”

“Finally, the Iraqi people have suffered terribly in the aftermath of the second Gulf war, where Americans used depleted uranium shells, which many Iraqi scientists and doctors believe have caused huge increases in cancers. It is time now that an in depth study was carried out to verify these claims. Such an objective study would also help to assist the many Gulf Veterans who also have been suffering from the effects of depleted uranium poisoning”, concluded Deputy Gormley.