Madam, - Messrs Bush and Blair, in their frenzy to invade Iraq, have split the EU, paralysed the UN and sowed discord and distrust among nations worldwide. In going ahead with their invasion they have defied the UN Security Council, while at the same time claiming to defend the credibility of that organisation.
Does anyone honestly believe that their illegal and immoral invasion of Iraq is about democracy and the liberation of the Iraqi people? Bush and his ardent acolyte Blair must think we are all fools. It is about oil and power. It is about installing a US client regime in Baghdad as part of a plan to bring the entire region under US-Israeli control. It is about the ultimate Bush aim to control a new world order. And it is also about the next presidential election in America.
The lives of countless thousands of innocent Iraqis are a small price to pay for such "noble" aspirations, it would seem, especially to a man who has presided over the legalised murder of hundreds of his fellow Texans. How sickening it now is to hear him promise that there will be no more executions of dissidents in the new Iraq. The hypocrisy is staggering. Bush and Saddam have much in common!
In hindsight it is now clear that this imperial adventure never stood a chance of being halted or deflected. It was a fait accompli from the moment it was conceived. Washington, in its arrogance, assumed that it would be able to bully and bribe UN member-states into giving it full support. In doing so it debased international diplomacy and made a mockery of democracy. It raised every obstacle to the hope of a peaceful solution and derided the arms inspection chief, Hans Blix, telling many lies.
Whatever the outcome of the war, Bush, Blair and their collaborators are nothing less than international criminals. Is it any wonder now that America rejects the recently established Internatinal Criminal Court? If ever there was a rogue state, this is one.
Ireland cannot and must not ally itself to such hypocrites. If our weak and unprincipled Government does not prevent war planes using Shannon airport, we, the people of Ireland, will have to take action. On February 15th we saw how people power can be such an effective expression of real democracy in action. If our elected leaders are spineless and craven, we must let the world know that Ireland is still an independent nation, and not just a willing tool of George W. Bush and his rag-bag regime of oil barons and arms manufacturers. - Yours, etc.,
GEAROID KILGALLEN,
Dun Laoghaire,
Co Dublin.
Madam, - If knowingly I permitted some friends of mine to use my house in committing a crime, I too would be guilty of a crime. Kofi Annan, the UN General Secretary, affirms that the US and UK are acting in contravention of the UN charter in their attack on Iraq.
Therefore is our Government not complicit in this illegal act by continuing to give the use of Shannon Airport to US forces? Shame on all those who support this action. - Yours, etc.,
BRENDAN O'DONOGHUE,
Straboe,
Co Carlow.
Madam, - Bertie Ahern and his colleagues appeal to our long friendship with the US in justification of continuing to allow Shannon to be used for the transport of US troops to the war in Iraq. Is he not aware that when someone close to us embarks on a dangerously misguided and probably illegal course of action, lending a helping hand is the last thing a true friend should do? - Yours, etc.,
FERGUS LALOR,
Summerhill North,
Cork.
A chara, - Members of the self-styled "Irish Anti-War Movement" should reflect on the fact that they are able to protest outside Leinster House and that we live in a democracy.
If they had pinned a Minister in Saddam Hussein's regime against a door, one wonders how lightly they would have escaped serious penalty, including death.
This same group opposed any intervention in Kosovo and wanted the West to stand idly by as Slobodan Milosevic murdered tens of thousands. Many of its leading exponents are members of the Socialist Workers Movement which in the past would have defended regimes such as that of Ceaucescu in Romania.
I do not believe that the action currently undertaken by the US and Britain is entirely in the interests of the human rights of the peoples of Iraq, but now that war has started, Ireland must use its influence to ensure that in the future, those peoples enjoy the same freedoms, including the right to protest, that we do here. - Is mise,
MALCOLM BYRNE,
Gorey,
Co Wexford.
Madam, - So George Bush and his lackeys are going to take on the responsibility that the UN has apparently shirked. It seems that if the UN doesn't agree with the US then its opinion is now no longer valid. The fact that UN stands for "United" nations, appears to have been lost on the US. The fact that there are five permanent Security Council Members, each of whose opinions is equally important, appears to have been lost on the US.
The US berates France for threatening to use its veto. France has used its veto once before. The US has used it 77 times. Quod erat demonstrandum. - Yours, etc.,
PETER ROYCROFT,
Mount Temple,
Malahide Road,
Dublin 3.
Madam, - What authority have the US and UK to act against the Security Council? It is only the Security Council that could legitimately decide whether or not Iraq has complied with the UN resolution. No matter what spin is put on it now, Britain and the US are responsible for undermining the UN and in demonstrating that might is right. Democracy is the loser and we need not be surprised if other countries with armaments of mass destruction decide to follow suit.
It's a sad day for civilisation when barbarity is introduced to effect regime change . Lesser nations should tremble. Who will be next? - Yours, etc.,
Mrs MARY STEWART,
Ardeskin,
Donegal Town.
Madam, - It is past time to examine the role of sections of the media in preparing the way for war.
It is beyond question that Saddam Hussein has for many years betrayed his people. The disastrous decision he took to invade Iran at a time when that country was undergoing deep fundamental change is one instance of his bloody and stupid record. His second major blunder was in believing that the United States would allow him to invade Kuwait, despite what its Ambassador told him.
His third and most telling crime was to allow his people to suffer for years under sanctions imposed by Washington and refusing to accept the reality of his situation and co-operate with the United Nations inspectors to do their work. This would have enabled him to retain power and to rob the United States of any credible reasons for invasion of Iraq.
Any sensible leader who had the interest of his people at heart would have resigned years ago. The fact that Saddam did not do so says much about his ego and his dictatorial leadership.
All of the above is well known yet it still does not justify the actions of the United States in waging war against the people of Iraq who will ultimately pay the price in blood for Saddam's crimes.
The crimes of the United States and its allies, Britain and Israel, will eventually be brought home to their door. For now it is time to examine the role of some sections of the media, especially the media under the control of Rupert Murdoch.
It is most revealing that, of the 187 newspapers worldwide under the control of Mr Murdoch, not one editor has a different viewpoint on the war against Iraq from Mr Murdoch's. The hate-filled pages that the Murdoch press, in particular, have spewed out over the past weeks against the French government and people, indeed against any person or organisation which dares to have a different view on this war, is testimony to the need for a press council with teeth and for a strong law which will make it illegal to foment hate or violence. - Yours, etc.,
SEÁN GARLAND,
President,
The Workers' Party,
Hill Street,
Dublin 1.
Madam, - On a recent visit to the former home of Mahatma Ghandi in Ahmedabad I noted down a memorable comment from General Douglas MacArthur who at the time of Ghandi's assassination in 1948, was Supreme Allied Military Commander in Japan.
"In the evolution of civilisation, if it is to survive, all men cannot fail eventually to adopt Ghandi's belief that the process of mass application of force to resolve contentious issues is fundamentally not only wrong but contains within itself the germs of self-destruction".
Is there any civilian out there who could have posed our dilemma better? - Yours, etc.,
JIM BLAKE,
Grosvenor Mews,
Douglas West,
Cork.
Madam, - Congratulations on your clear analysis of the Iraq situation in your Editorial of March 18th. Congratulations too on your consistently excellent coverage and reportage in many areas. - Yours, etc.,
GERALDINE McDERMOTT,
Uggool,
Moycullen,
Co Galway.
Madam, - As President Bush and Prime Minister Blair conduct their invasion of Iraq to bring democracy to that country, will the irony of doing it from the autocratic monarchies of Kuwait and Qatar be lost on them?
I submit it is another example of how reality has confounded the supposed nobility of their purpose. - Yours, etc.,
PAUL DIX,
Willington Avenue,
Templeogue,
Dublin 6W.
Madam, - My sense of belonging, my identity, my faith in the intrinsic goodness of what it is to be Irish has withstood proof of institutionalised brutality and sexual abuse; corruption among our elected representatives; neglect in our health services; deceit in public office.
Ascribing such acts to individuals, I held my head high, knowing that to be Irish was still a good thing.
Now, I am undone by the Government's support of the US. For the first time, I am ashamed to be Irish. - Yours, etc.,
ORFHLAITH RAMSEY,
Ballyvooney,
Stradbally,
Co Waterford.