Stop the War Coalition
The following letter was handed in to Downing Street and the US Embassy on 19 March 2005 at a demonstration of thousands on the second anniversary of the attack on Iraq:
Dear Mr Bush and Mr Blair,
On behalf of the thousands of people demonstrating in London today – alongside millions around the world – on this, the second anniversary of the unlawful and unnecessary aggression against Iraq, we urge you to change the dangerous policies being followed under the heading of the “war on terror”.
In particular, we demand that you:
- Set an early date for the swift withdrawal of your troops from occupied Iraq, as the Italian government has been forced to do, and restore full and unconditional sovereignty to the Iraqi people.
- Pledge not to launch attacks against Iran, Syria, or any other sovereign state, to abide in future by international law, abandon the pernicious doctrine of “pre-emptive war” and to seek the peaceful resolution of international disputes.
- Cease placing restrictions on the human rights of the citizens of the USA, Britain and other countries of the world, end the torture of detainees and all imprisonment without trial – at Guantanamo Bay above all.
- Cease all support for Israel’s illegal and brutal occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, as a pre-requisite for any peace between Israel and the Palestinian people.
- Comply with your obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and begin to disarm your own nuclear weapons.
Only such a change of policy can start to ease international tension, in the Middle East in particular, and restore respect for human rights.
Yours,
Andrew Murray, Chair Stop the War Coalition
Kate Hudson, Chair, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Anas Altikriti, Muslim Association of Britain
