Peace and Justice Post

The evidence is that war crimes have been committed

By Christopher King | Redress, June 17, 2009

Christopher King argues that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s announcement that an inquiry into the Iraq war would be held in secret is an attempt to dismiss the appalling consequences of the Iraq war, and is an insult to the country and to the British dead in Iraq and the London bombings.

Gordon Brown’s inquiry into the Iraq war will:

• Be in private, that is, secret

• Be held by privy councillors

• Not seek to apportion blame

None of this is in the public interest or the interests of the country.

• The secrecy of the hearing is transparently to enable a cover up of the facts.

• Privy councillors are core pillars of the establishment and share the interests of the wealthy rather than those of democracy and the country as a whole.

• The Iraq war was a war of choice, a pre-emptive war and on all the evidence a war of aggression – a war crime. As such it would be in breach of the United Nations’ Nuremberg principles, falling under the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.

The effects of the Iraq war were of extraordinary seriousness:

• Over one million Iraqis killed, many more wounded

• Four to five million Iraqis made refugees, most still displaced

• Destruction of much of the country’s infrastructure, still unrepaired

• Widespread destruction of housing and buildings

• 179 British soldiers killed, probably about 1500 wounded, 222 seriously

• Waste of approximately GBP 9 billion in direct costs

• Reprisal attacks and deaths in London and elsewhere, decreased UK security together with huge costs and inconvenience of security precautions

• Destruction of the United Nation’s authority, loss of UK credibility, a precedent for aggressive warfare, breach of international law, thus decreased world security.

Gordon Brown’s attempt to dismiss these appalling consequences by a secret inquiry is absurd. It is an insult to the country and to the British dead in Iraq and the London bombings. Brown himself voted in Parliament for the war as a member of the Blair cabinet at that time.

Nor could any form of parliamentary inquiry do justice to this disaster to Iraq and this country. We have a Parliament of professional politicians who are for the most part both incompetent and corrupt. They are not politicians of principle; they are politicians of self-interest. Most, with a few honourable exceptions, voted for the Iraq war. They did not read the weapons inspectors’ reports; they did not read the United Nations proceedings, yet they voted to invade another country and collude with the dangerous fool whom America chose as its president, not once, but twice. Their vote showed contempt for the British people whose money they take and who marched peacefully, a million strong in London, to tell them that the Iraq war was wrong.

On his resignation as premier, Anthony Blair, who marketed the war for George Bush, was immediately rewarded by the Americans with a job at the investment bank JP Morgan at a salary of GBP 2.5 million per year. This is reported to be the first of a series of posts that could gain him GBP 40 million. JP Morgan is now involved in Iraqi oil and stands to make huge profits by mortgaging future Iraqi oil production. One must ask, “Would Mr Blair have gained these rewards if he had refused to place the UK armed forces at America’s disposal and market the Iraq war to the rest of the world?” All the evidence is that the objective of the war was the seizure of Iraq’s oil resources and Anthony Blair’s objective was money.

This secret, disgusting, cover-up inquiry organized by Gordon Brown should be ignored. It is a waste of time to oppose it or to attempt modification of its terms of reference, whatever they might be. Those named to hold it would do well to reconsider as they will henceforth be regarded as apologists for and concealers of war crimes. Those concerned with peace, justice and the rule of law should concentrate their effort where it will bear results. The future morale, reputation and direction of the country are at stake. The country needs to be cleansed.

There is only one possibility for demonstrating that the United Kingdom has returned to the rule of law. The Iraq war inquiry must go to the International Court of Justice.

Gordon Brown is obliged to call an election in less than a year. Those political parties or independent candidates who stand on the undertaking to take the Iraq war to the International Court of Justice will gain overwhelming public support. The country is sickened of its self-serving politicians. A means of expressing public opinion is needed. Coalitions of the minority parties for this purpose should be formed since the major parties will not support this action. If our serving soldiers, the injured and families of the dead want the truth, they will find it at the International Court of Justice – not in Gordon Brown’s secret whitewash inquiry that he hopes will get him past the next election.

At the last parliamentary election, the Liberal Democrats had the opportunity to stand on a platform of withdrawing our forces from Iraq. Anthony Blair successfully bluffed them that it would be “disloyal to our brave troops”. The evidence is that Anthony Blair’s lies and cynical use of our troops for his personal enrichment put them in harm’s way and left 179 of them dead.

Christopher King is a retired consultant and lecturer in management and marketing. He lives in London, UK.