BRIAN J. GOGGIN,
Madam, - Now that the Shannon Peace Camp has broken up, I would like to pay tribute to its organisers, participants and supporters.
When the camp was set up, few people in Ireland were aware of the extent to which American forces were using Shannon airport. The camp's first achievement was to bring that to our attention.
Its second achievement was to force the Government to acknowledge that arms were being moved through the airport and to insist that our law, such as it is, be enforced. Our rulers resisted that in the most Bunterish of ways: there were no arms on board, and even if there were nobody had seen them, and nobody was going to see them because nobody was going to look.
The third achievement was to force public and parliamentary debate on the use of Shannon Airport. The Government seemed to want to do whatever the Americans wanted without bothering with any public discussion; the campers forced the issue on to the agenda.
The fourth achievement was to heighten public awareness of the forthcoming American smash-and-grab raid on Iraq. And now that the camp has ended, opponents of the "war" (scarcely the right word for such an unequal combat) must concentrate on changing public perception of what seems to lie ahead. That will be a difficult task: I fear that the Irish people are neither as neutral nor as peace-loving as we have liked to think.
But the campers' resolute spirit has already achieved much, and I thank and salute them for it. - Yours, etc.,
BRIAN J. GOGGIN, Stradbally North, Castleconnell, Co Limerick.
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Madam, - Recent developments in the Middle East have provided the Irish people with a perfect opportunity to see a less attractive side to the Irish Green Party.
In being evasive about condemning the acts of vandalism on US planes in Shannon, the party has shown itself to have a selective opinion on what constitutes law and order in this country. Furthermore, it TDs' pathetic and appropriately derided prank in Dáil Éireann last week, when they raised their "No to War sign", showed a lack of respect for our democratic institutions. Personally, I would have to agree with the sentiments of one TD who was in the Dáil chamber at the time of their poor theatre. He suggested that they lift the poster high enough to cover their faces. Let's hope they do that some time soon, permanently. - Yours, etc.,
BRYAN O'DRISCOLL, Chairperson, Fine Gael Inner City Branch,
Charlemont Street, Dublin 2.
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Madam, - I am sick and tired of hearing politicians preaching to us about the wrongness of breaking the law for any reason. Have they never heard of civil disobedience?
Would they condemn Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jnr, the late Philip Berrigan and his brother Daniel or the man called Jesus Christ - all of whom received jail sentences for breaking the laws of their own lands for a higher good? Come to think of it, they probably would - if they could say that it was for the good of the economy.
Have our Government leaders lost all sense of what is right and moral when it comes to supporting a war against Iraq that almost everyone concedes is totally and flagrantly unjust?
It's time the citizens of Ireland thronged the streets of our cities in a silent, peaceful protest to show our politicians that we don't believe George W. Bush, Tony Blair or Bertie Ahern. And while we engage in a quieter form of protest let us not condemn those who adopt a more courageous, active and still non-violent stance.
And shame on those who libel them as violent when their whole raison d'être is pacifism, non-violence and peace. - Yours, etc.,
JUSTIN MORAHAN, Scholarstown Park, Rathfarnham, Dublin 16.
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Madam, - Michael Higgins (January 31st), an American guest in Ireland, takes the Irish to task with a blanket insult because we do not blindly agree with the direction of the American war machine, headed by at least five major oil personalities.
He assumes that the people who own and run Dell Computer, Intel, Hewlett Packard are all in favour of a war with Iraq, and all of their relatives are of the same intent.
Mr Higgins says that Saddam has weapons that he intends to use against America but does not explain where these weapons originated.
Very few Europeans, Irish included, find comfort in the American position that if the United Nations inspectors fail to find the weapons, the US will go to war anyway.
More innocent civilian lives were lost in Afghanistan than in New York. It seems likely that the same could occur in Iraq. If Saddam, like Osama bin Laden, escapes, does Mr Higgins feel that it would all be worthwhile?
Fortunately there are courteous, reasoning Americans who do not share the views of Mr Higgins, but if they did, they would find more civil ways of expressing their views.
I do not believe the US administration would permit Aer Lingus aircraft to land in America with undeclared munitions aboard. - Yours, etc.,
JOHN A. CULLINANE, Coolroe Heights, Ballincollig, Cork.
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Madam, - I refer to the article "Letter to support US poses 'no problem' for Ahern" (The Irish Times, January 31st) which says: "The Polish mission in Baghdad acts as de facto US embassy and is believed to pass on intelligence to Washington".
This is actually not true. In Baghdad there exist two separate missions: the Polish Embassy and the US Embassy, in which a Polish diplomat represents the US interests in Iraq. These are two separate embassies, and are treated as such by the Iraqi government. The Polish mission in Baghdad is not involved in passing intelligence to Washington, as its aim is to represent Poland's interests in Iraq and its staff works for the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Using this opportunity, let me summarise Poland's position on the Iraqi crisis: The events of September 11th, 2001 made Poland aware of the importance of the global context in our policy. Poland has committed itself vigorously to the anti-terrorist campaign and intends to sustain its dedication, for this involves the threats that can be of direct concern also to us. This also goes for the issue of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Our major contribution to the prevention of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction has been our chairmanship of the Missile Technology Control Regime. It is a substantial achievement of Polish diplomacy.
We follow attentively the development of the situation around Iraq. The full implementation of the Security Council Resolution 1441 is of paramount importance for the success of attempts to contain proliferation and stabilise the situation in the Middle East and Central Asia. It is with concern that we receive signals pointing at the gaps and inconsistencies in the Iraqi declarations concerning the armaments programmes (VX nerve gas, anthrax, chemical weapons, etc). We believe that a gross violation of the 1441 Resolution by Iraq would call for a resolute response. Poland is ready to support it.
We still believe that the problems can be solved by peaceful means. We recognise the role of the UN in this endeavour. Armed action needs to be treated as the last resort, but one needs to take its necessity into account. The fate of Iraq is in the hands of the Iraqi leadership. The international inspectors should count on full, unconditional co-operation of the Iraqi regime. Such a situation of non-compliance cannot go on indefinitely. We must uphold the authority of the Security Council. - Yours, etc.,
WITOLD SOBKÓW, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland, Dublin 4.
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Madam, - I welcomed the accession of George Bush to the Presidency of the United States of America and I looked forward to the achievement of a majority by the Republican Party in the Senate and in the House of Representatives. I believed Mr Bush in particular and the Republican Party in general to be more supportive of a culture of life than the Democratic Party.
My belief was and still is based on three things:
1. President Bush's opposition to abortion (which is the deliberate killing of the unborn) and to partial-birth abortion (which is infanticide).
2. The funding of church-based organisations involved in corporal works of mercy.
3. The growing support for the Republican Party among Irish-Americans concerned to protect family values over a period of at least two generations.
I am deeply upset at the prospect of an attack on the people of Iraq who have already suffered so much. I appeal to Mr Bush to allow his Christian principles and his support for a culture of life to inform his intentions twoards Iraq.
I hope this personal appeal may prompt the leaders of all religious and political traditions in Ireland to encourage Mr Bush and his administration to pursue diplomacy rather than war. - Yours, etc.,
Dr CIARÁN Ó COIGLIGH, St Patrick's College, Dublin City University, Dublin 9.