The final language that passed the Resolutions Plenary of the AIUSA Annual General Meeting on Sunday, April 21, 2002:
B2: REQUESTING AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL TO ASK FOR THE LIFTING OF SANCTIONS ON IRAQ
Resolution passed overwhelmingly.
WHEREAS the United Nations, particularly the United States, has enforced the most extensive embargo in history on the Iraqi people for more than 8 years; and
WHEREAS Amnesty International expects the United States to recognize the 5th Article of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment"; and
WHEREAS the sanctions, according to the U.N. research, are directly responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians, including nearly five thousand children under the age of five each month; and
WHEREAS more than 33 US Representatives wrote a letter to then-President Clinton condemning the sanctions as causing the "serious deterioration of the humanitarian situation," and unabated "tremendous suffering" for the Iraqi people; and
WHEREAS according to the former director of the Iraqi oil-for-food program, Denis Halliday, the sanctions are "incompatible with the UN charter, with the Convention on Human Rights, with the Conventions on the Rights of the Child and probably with many other international agreements"; and
WHEREAS under the current policy, Iraq is only able to import about one-quarter of the food the population needs under strict international supervision; and
WHEREAS the sanctions have had no apparent impact on the Iraqi government, but have had a profound and devastating impact on the Iraqi people; and
WHEREAS the people of Iraq live under a dictatorial government in which they have no influence whatsoever on foreign or domestic policy; and
WHEREAS the Iraqi people have more than suffered enough for the crimes of an unelected dictator and do not deserve to be "living from hand to mouth" (The Economist 12-12-98); and
WHEREAS these sanctions have had a devastating impact on the infrastructure of Iraq, such that they have been unable to rebuild after repeated bombings; and
WHEREAS the sanctions clearly violate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (established December 10, 1948 by the U.N. General Assembly) specifically, the articles of the preamble: Article 5, that "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." Article 25, that "(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care...";
WHEREAS, AIUSA has twice passed resolutions (at the 1999 and 2000 AGMs) addressing the UN-imposed sanctions against Iraq and the violations of economic rights and International Humanitarian Law resulting from those sanctions; and
WHEREAS, Decision 12 of the 2001 International Council Meeting (ICM) established a new policy on sanctions, allowing AI to both support and oppose sanctions within the framework of defined guidelines;
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Amnesty International supports and works towards the lifting of the U.N. and U.S. economic sanctions against Iraq; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the International Executive Committee (IEC) adopt guidelines for AI's sanction policy (allowing AI to support or oppose sanctions regimes by the Fall 2002 IEC meeting;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, upon adoption of sanction policy guidelines, the IEC will initiate a pilot project addressing the violations of economic rights of the Iraqi people resulting from the UN/US-imposed economic sanctions, and calling for the lifting of the economic sanctions against Iraq;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the AIUSA Board of Directors will vigorously pursue full implementation of the 1999 and 2000 AIUSA AGM resolutions regarding Iraq.