POLITICS: U.S. Congressmen Take Anti-War Case to U.N. Chief

By Haider Rizvi Reprint | | Print |

Haider Rizvi

UNITED NATIONS, Jan 30 2003 (IPS) - Two members of the U.S. Congress working against a possible attack by Washington on Iraq brought their message to the United Nations on Thursday.

John Conyers Jr. and Jim McDermott told United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan that they are preparing two resolutions that urge President George W. Bush to stay away from the military adventure in Iraq.

”We react to the people. More and more people are becoming aware of this issue,” said McDermott, a Democrat from Washington state, referring to growing nationwide protests against the war.

Last October, the House of Representatives granted Bush power to invade Iraq without the approval of the U.N. Security Council, a move that was also endorsed by the Senate. The new resolution seeks to curtail the president’s powers and supports the ongoing process of inspections.

”There’s a gradual shift of mood in the U.S. Congress,” said Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan state. ”People are waking up. They want their voices to be heard.”

If the administration decided to go to war alone, the consequences would affect both the United Nations and the United States, the lawmakers said. ”I don’t think they (the administration) have thought through the implications,” McDermott told reporters after his meeting with Annan.

”The U.N. was created after the two world wars to try and prevent war from happening again,” he added.

Some experts believe the war resolution passed in October was illegal. ”Such an invasion would violate the U.N. Charter, which was signed and ratified by the United States. Article six of the U.S. Constitution declares such international treaties as supreme law,” says Stephen Zunes, a professor of politics at the University of San Francisco

Zunes thinks one reason why some Democrats are rushing to stop the war is their defeat in the November elections. ”Among their fear is (that) a resurgent and clearly anti-war Green party could capture enough liberal votes to cause the Democrats defeat in the 2004 election.”

But Conyers said their motivations are not partisan. ”Some of us have to think about what effects the war would have on the United Nations.”

”The difficulty of going alone (on war) undermines the U.N., which the U.S might regret in the future,” he added.

Added McDermott, ”The Vietnam war was ended by the American people. It was not ended by the members of Congress. The power in our system comes from the people.”

On Jan. 18, hundreds of thousands of Americans took to the streets in various cities protesting against a possible war. More giant demonstrations are planned for Feb. 15, in the United States and world-wide.

The two Congressmen admitted they might not succeed in checking the president’s powers to wage a war against Iraq. ”Until the troops march, there’s hope. But if you don’t try, there’s no chance,” said McDermott.