A joint statement by Australian civil society groups (released 11 April 2003)
We the undersigned groups represent the interests and aspirations of millions in the Australian community. Our areas of expertise and engagement cover diverse constituencies and themes including aid and development, environmental protection and restoration, faith and religion, service provision and advocacy, multicultural Australia, indigenous Australia, trade unionists, working people and social justice.
We view war and military conflict as a failure of both political will and our social contract and primary responsibility to protect human life and the wider environment.
We are committed to work towards a just and lasting peace to follow the current conflict. We support a mediated resolution under the auspices of the United Nations.
Continued fighting at this stage, possibly away from the wider worlds attention and awareness, would only result in further military and civilian death and injury and unacceptable damage to the infrastructure needed to sustain life. It is time for cooperation and dialogue to take the place of conflict and loss.
We believe that the United Nations has the most legitimate and duly empowered mechanisms to facilitate a just peace and we support a UN administered transition process. We urge the Coalition nations to accept and support a UN mandated transitional authority and actively support UN reconstruction efforts.
The Coalition nations, as participants in a military action that has lacked international sanction and support, have a particular responsibility in relation to the future of post-conflict Iraq. Reconstruction efforts should urgently address the human suffering and displacement caused by the conflict as well as the infrastructure needs of the Iraqi population and the issues of environmental repair.
The reconstruction of Iraq is an urgent and complex task and must be approached in an integrated fashion to provide real and lasting outcomes for post conflict Iraq. It is imperative that this process does not become a competitive and unseemly push for contracts on the part of private corporations and nation states. Supporting and rebuilding communities shattered by mistrust and war is a true international challenge, not an opportunity for profit amidst the rubble. Along with the importance of repairing and restoring the physical infrastructure is the urgent need to support and build robust and transparent political institutions and a vibrant and inclusive political culture in Iraq. As civil society organisations whose members play a vital role in ensuring this in Australia we strongly support a primary role for the UN and its agencies in this process in the difficult times that lie ahead.
The Beyond War signatories include:
National Council of Churches in Australia
Australian Council for Overseas Aid
Australian Conservation Foundation
Australian Council of Social Service
Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia Australian Council of Trade Unions
