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Peace still possible, says pope's envoy amid global anti-war protests
2003-036-2
2/19/2003
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[Episcopal News Service]
A special envoy of Pope John Paul II on a mission to Iraq left Baghdad on February 17 saying that 'peace is still possible in Iraq and for Iraq,' after weekend protesters around the globe resoundingly rejected military conflict. Cardinal Roger Etchegaray met with President Saddam Hussein on February 15 and then briefed the pope before a meeting between the pontiff and UN secretary general Kofi Annan in the Vatican.
Prominent religious leaders and ordinary people of faith made their presence known at rallies and demonstrations held around the world to oppose a possible US-led war against Iraq. In about 600 cities around the world, and dozens in the United States, demonstrators marched, chanted and carried banners against armed conflict over Iraq.
In New York, Desmond Tutu, the former Anglican archbishop of Cape Town, implored the US government to give United Nations inspectors more time to complete their search for possible Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and chemical armaments. Speaking at a multi-faith service prior to a rally that attracted at least 400,000 people, Tutu said a rush to war would be a grave mistake, saying 'God is weeping' at the prospect of war.
The protests began in Asia and the Pacific where Australians turned out in the thousands for the largest protest since anti-Vietnam War marches 30 years ago. One of the world's biggest demonstrations was in London where crowds estimated at between 750,000 and 2 million people took part.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson joined other speakers at the London demonstration to warn that war on Iraq could trigger a long and bloody conflict. 'It is not too late to stop this war. Prime Minister Tony Blair, please take a stand back from war,' he said, referring to Blair's support for possible military action against Iraq.
In Glasgow, thousands gathered for a rally supported by the Church of Scotland just hours after Blair had addressed a conference of the governing Labor Party in Scotland's largest city, telling delegates he wanted to use the United Nations to resolve the situation in Iraq. 'The moral case against war has a moral answer: it is the moral case for removing Saddam,' said Blair. 'Ridding the world of Saddam would be an act of humanity. It is leaving him there that is in truth inhumane.'
In Italy, where crowds estimated at between 600,000 and 2 million demonstrated in Rome against war with Iraq, Tariq Aziz, Iraq's deputy prime minister, took part in a silent vigil at the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi after a meeting the preceding day with the pope. Speaking to journalists, the Vatican spokesperson, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, said the Holy See had told Aziz, a Chaledean Christian, of the need for Iraq 'to respect faithfully, with concrete commitments, the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.'
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