Making War Illegal
So you complain and bitch about the sad state of the world with all its killings and grasp for every little hope that things would take a positive spin at any time. Then you stumble over an article and think "hey this it it" "this could change everything" until you recognize the huge propaganda machine behind current day politics and economics. Yet its my place here to at least put one little grain of gold to the counterbalance propaganda. The Kuala Lumpur Initiative To Criminalise War was a peace forum in early december 2005 and they have put out a very notable declaration that is worth bringing to the world attention. Those brave people want to simply outlaw any and all warfare - west east red blue. Whoever kills innocent civilians in whatever name is put on a war trial. Is human kind ready for a step like this? Are we ready to leave our bloody past behind and descent into a new era of prosperous peace? One can hope and dream - but as long as blood and oil stained dollars rule this world I see not much hope. Nevertheless here is the declaration for a world without war:
THE Kuala Lumpur Global Peace Forum of concerned peoples from all five continents
UNITED in the belief that peace is the essential condition for the survival and well-being of the human race,
DETERMINED to promote peace and save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,
OUTRAGED over the frequent resort to war in the settlement of disputes between nations,
DISTURBED that militarists are preparing for more wars,
TROUBLED that use of armed force increases insecurity for all,
TERRIFIED that the possession of nuclear weapons and the imminent risk of nuclear war will lead to the annihilation of life on earth.
To achieve peace we now declare that:
1. Wars increasingly involve the killing of innocent people and are, therefore, abhorrent and criminal.
2. Killings in war are as criminal as the killings within societies in times of peace.
3. Since killings in peace time are subject to the domestic law of crime, killings in war must likewise be subject to the international law of crimes. This should be so irrespective of whether these killings in war are authorized or permitted by domestic law.
4. All commercial, financial, industrial and scientific activities that aid and abet war should be criminalised.
5. All national leaders who initiate aggression must be subjected to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.
6. All nations must strengthen the resolve to accept the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and institute methods to settle international disputes by peaceful means and to renounce war.
7. Armed force shall not be used except when authorised by a Resolution passed by two-thirds majority of the total membership of the General Assembly of the United Nations.
8. All legislators and all members of Government must affirm their belief in peace and pledge to strive for peace.
9. Political parties all over the world must include peace as one of their principal objectives.
10. Non-Governmental Organisations committed to the promotion of peace should be set up in all nations.
11. Public servants and professionals, in particular in the medical, legal, educational and scientific fields, must promote peace and campaign actively against war.
12. The media must actively oppose war and the incitement to war and consciously promote the peaceful settlement of international disputes.
13. Entertainment media must cease to glorify war and violence and should instead cultivate the ethos of peace.
14. All religious leaders must condemn war and promote peace.
To these ends the Forum resolves to establish a permanent Secretariat in Kuala Lumpur to –
IMPLEMENT this Initiative.
OPPOSE policies and programmes that incite war.
SEEK the cooperation of NGOs worldwide to achieve the goals of this Initiative.
Signed by:
Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, Prof. Francis A. Boyle, Dr. Helen Caldicott, Mr. Matthias Chang, Prof. Michel Chossudovsky, Prof Shad Saleem Faruqi, Mr Denis J. Halliday, Dato’ Mukhriz Mahathir, Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, Dato’ Michael O.K. Yeoh, Mr. Hans-Christof Von Sponeck