Campaign launched for medicines to Iraq
By Deirdre Sinnott
New York
TThe meeting hall at the United Nations Church
Center was packed Jan. 17. Reflecting growing worldwide anger
at United States/United Nations sanctions on Iraq, a meeting
and video showing had been called to protest this mass murder
of children. People pledged time, money and hard work to
deliver medicine and medical supplies to Iraq and build a
campaign to end the sanctions.
Brian Becker of the International Action Center, which had
called the meeting, told Workers World that the meeting was "a
very successful first step. People not only pledged
considerable funds, they signed up to make phone calls to
potential contributors. And they took the video to use at their
own meetings in schools, churches, mosques and synagogues."
Becker was referring to the video documentary, "Genocide by
Sanctions," which premiered at the meeting. Filmed partially in
Iraq and edited by Gloria La Riva, it covers a trip there in
November 1997 made by IAC founder and former U.S. Attorney
General Ramsey Clark.
The powerful footage shows the horrible impact of sanctions
on Iraqi health care and on the lives and deaths of its
children.
Becker explained that the IAC is asking for funds to
transport medicine. The center hopes and expects to get
substantial donations of medicine and medical equipment-more
than the donated funds can purchase.
Using a similar approach, the IAC-affiliated Peace for Cuba
Appeal has delivered millions of dollars worth of medicine to
that island.
Speaking after the video showing, Clark said: "If we can
reach people with the true effects of the sanctions they will
be outraged. We want to get medicines to the sick and dying in
Iraq because we owe them that and so much more."
The sanctions have "created a stunted generation in Iraq,"
Clark continued. "And that is one of the greatest crimes
against humanity in this most awful 20th century.
"One and a half million people killed outright. Ten to 15
million more who suffer every day from the effects of the
sanctions.
"The life expectancy has been brought down 40 years in
Iraq."
Quoting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s April 1967 speech at
New York's Riverside Church on the horrors of the Vietnam War,
Clark said, "The greatest purveyor of violence in the earth is
my own government."
Vietnam War combat veteran John Jones said: "The war against
Iraq hasn't ended. As a veteran I know what war entails. During
the Vietnam War the truth was kept from workers here. The
Pentagon Papers proved that the news we got from the media was
lies.
"The same scene is being played out in the Middle East. We
are here to launch the Medicine for Iraq campaign and to
condemn the sanctions which have killed more people than the
bombs did."
The audiene applauded when IAC coordinatr Sara Flounders
said: "The sanctions keep chlorine, medicines and detergents
from the Iraqi people. Many die from curable diseases due to
the lack of these items.
"Sanctions are the real biological weapon."
Rania Masri, coordinator of the Iraq Action Coalition, said:
"George Bush said he wanted to bomb Iraq back to the Stone Age
and once again the Pentagon is talking about war. Once again we
wonder will Iraq be bombed?
"Who are the real terrorists? They are in Washington."
The writer recently visited Iraq with the International
Action Center and has been speaking at meetings and in the
media about conditions there.
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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