June 29, 2005

PHILADELPHIA, PA – June 29 – This week, faced with documents that discredit his reasons for war and plunging poll figures among the American public, President Bush addressed the nation in the wake of the growing death toll in Iraq. Once again the President urged Americans to ‘stay-the-course,' rather than accept his responsibility for the nightmare scenario his Administration has created. He tells us that our sacrifice will prove worthwhile to the Iraqis and to Americans.

We disagree. Far too many have already died in this failed, misguided war that dishonors the sacrifices Iraqis and Americans have made.

The very presence of the U.S. is causing instability in Iraq. Violence continues to escalate. Every time we drop a 500-pound bomb or invade a town, innocent men, women and children are killed. Every time there is a neighborhood sweep, Iraqis are arrested, mistreated, and often disappear into a prison bureaucracy.

An estimated 100,000 Iraqis have already died in the war and occupation. Rather than hindering, our policies have helped terrorist recruitment.

More than 1,700 U.S. military persons have died; more than 13,000 are wounded. We are spending over $5 billion a month to fight the war in Iraq. Each dollar spent for the war and occupation threatens education, heath and vital human services here at home. Tragically, by our administrations' own admission, there is no end in sight.

The truth is glaring. Pre-emptive war is a dismal failure.

If we follow the President's course, the future promises only further deaths and injuries, more widows and orphans, more separated families in Iraq and in the U.S.

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) believes that there is no military solution to the Iraq war. We urge the Bush Administration and Congress to chart a future course using diplomacy and broadening a deep and honest dialogue that includes all aspects of Iraqi society.

We call for the immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops and bases from Iraq. Construction of permanent military bases has become a major point of contention for a growing number of members in the newly elected Iraqi government.

By calling on the U.S. to leave Iraq, we do not mean we should abandon the Iraqi people. Rather, we call upon those governments participating in the international coalition to pay full compensation to Iraqis for any and all damages – from this war and the sanctions policy that deliberately starved the country for so many years. These obligations should be carried out through substantial economic and technical support to the people and institutions of Iraq.

We should invest in life, not death. Giving hope for the future must be the next steps in Iraq. We can support Iraqis' efforts to rebuild their society. These measures will build bridges with a country that has experienced isolation over the past thirty-five years.

Across the globe more and more voices recognize the immorality of this war and call for it to end. When faced with the alternatives – more deaths, surging violence, increased resistance to occupation and heightened animosity toward the U.S. – the choice becomes clear.

The President's call for sacrifice includes no plan to end the war or to rebuild the Iraq that years of war and sanctions have so damaged. Human life is sacred. This war must not go on indefinitely. The road to Peace in Iraq is the path that leads U.S. troops home. It's time for the President to lead us out of Iraq – not next year, not next month, but right now.

The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice, peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.