6 February 2003 58 Legislative Council Resolution #1
UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO
STUDENT UNION
Sponsored
by: Sergio Gonzales Legislative President
John Graham Representative
Michael Bombace Representative
Authored
by: Sergio Gonzales Legislative President
A Resolution
Resolution History
Currently, the United
States is on the verge of entering into a war with Iraq. This potential war
would have definite consequences on the national and international community.
Many fear that an invasion of Iraq would lead to vast economic, political and
social dilemmas. This war would also serve to seriously destabilize the Middle
Eastern region, and lead to increased anti-American sentiment worldwide.
Indeed, President Bush has failed to prove that a war on Iraq is absolutely
necessary and unavoidable. The motives of the current administration are also
under a great deal of questioning, as numerous individuals believe that oil is
at the root of the quest for war. A great number of renowned leaders such as
former President, Jimmy Carter, have voiced their opposition to an unnecessary
war meant to preserve future peace. Thousands of American citizens have also
demonstrated and organized to protest the potential war in Iraq. Many
University of Colorado students have taken part in these national and
international remonstrations of war, and have asked their student government to
address their concerns and represent their feelings.
Resolution Summary
Whereas the decision to start a war
is perhaps the most significant decision the leaders of a democracy can
make; and
Whereas war requires ordering
fellow citizens to kill and be killed in the name of the entire nation; and
Whereas for such a decision
to be just and legitimate, the reasons offered for war must be principled and
arrived at through public debate; and
Whereas to date, the justifications
offered by President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld,
National Security Advisor Rice, their subordinates, and an array of
commentators in the media do not justify a U.S. invasion of Iraq; and
Whereas an invasion of Iraq
would likely make the region and the world less secure as the destruction of
the Hussein regime may lead to prolonged instability in Iraq; destabilization
of the wider Middle East including the possibility of a prolonged and
heightened conflict between
Israel and the
Palestinians; increased popular appeal of radical Islamic movements and
increased anti-Americanism worldwide; and increased terrorism in the U.S. and
abroad; and
Whereas the post-Saddam
regime plans currently being entertained by the Bush Administration are overly
simple solutions and are dangerously unrealistic in their aims; such approaches
could yield greater damage than the status quo, (1) The post-WWII military
government put in place in post-WWII Japan would likely serve as a failing
model to apply to the situation in Iraq according to experts on Japan's
reconstruction, and (2) governance by the fractious and nebulous (many members
have been implicated in war crimes committed during the Iran-Iraq War),
US-funded Iraqi National Congress would not ensure the rights of the Iraqi
people; and
Whereas the claims that this war
will accomplish humanitarian goals are of doubtful veracity as the
administration has already rebuked Kurdish requests for promises of protection
and has assured military ally, Turkey, a state that is oppressive to its own
Kurdish population, that the U.S. will not allow the Kurds in Iraq to make
their own state; and
Whereas the likelihood of a high
cost in lives of both combatants and non-combatants is too great given the weak
justifications that have been offered for an invasion and the limited considerations
for post-war Iraq; and
Whereas key U.S. allies do
not support a unilateral or pre-emptive invasion of Iraq; many nations'
governments and peoples allied with the U.S. are urging restraint, demanding
more evidence of an Iraqi threat, or opposing a U.S. invasion of Iraq;
governmental and popular support in Great Britain, the most stalwart U.S. ally,
is weak at best; and
Whereas the Iraqi threat is
not credible; the opposition to an invasion among senior U.S. government and
military leaders as well as most U.S. allies in the Middle East suggests that
the Iraqi threat is not credible; the Bush Administration has presented no
credible evidence of Iraqi progress toward making nuclear weapons; if they have
such evidence, they should have presented it by now in the face of mounting
international and domestic opposition to an invasion of Iraq; and
Whereas a unilateral invasion of
Iraq would be illegal under the Charter of the United Nations, to which the
U.S. is a signatory; according to the Charter, only the Security Council has
legal authority to start wars, with the single exception of national
self-defense against armed attack; and
Whereas a unilateral invasion of
Iraq would clearly violate international law as it would be illegal under the
recently passed UN Security Council Resolution 1441 which emphasizes that the
Security Council "Decides to remain seized of the matter"; and
Whereas the current position of
administration officials stating that Hussein may provide the
U.S. with a reason to go to
war if he denies having weapons of mass destruction in the required
December 8th listing of the
weapons of mass destruction and weapons programs is one that
would prematurely call off
the inspections process in order to start a war; and
Therefore Be It Resolved by
the Legislative Council of the University of Colorado Student Union, THAT:
Section 1: We urge
President Bush to end his stated policy that indicates that any noncooperation
on Iraq's part with U.S. demands will justify the use of force by the U.S., as
these statements set the standard too low for starting a war with Iraq and, if
carried through, would cause the inspections process to be derailed long before
that option has been exhausted; and
Section 2: We urge
President Bush to acknowledge and apologize for U.S. support for Saddam
Hussein's regime during some of its worse human rights violations; explain what
new standard for foreign policy is being used to avoid such support for dictators
in the future as this is important if any claims of interest in human rights or
democratic government are to be taken seriously; and
Section 3: We urge
President Bush to revoke promises already made that compromise rights of
self-determination which includes his promise to Turkey that a post-Saddam Iraq
will not include an independent Kurdish state; and
Section 4: We urge
President Bush to clearly define the level and form of U.S. commitment to the
human rights and the rights of self-determination of the Iraqi people, rather
than simply alluding to U.S. intentions of promoting human rights and democracy
in the abstract.
Section 6: This Resolution
takes effect upon passage.
2-6-03 Passed 8-7-2
2-13-03 Passed 10-7-0
Sergio Gonzales , Leg.
Council President Latifah
Al-Attas, Tri Executive
Michael Donnelly,
Tri-Executive Kevin
Boyer, Tri Executive