The Port Townsend Friends Meeting, standing in the 350-year Quaker tradition of opposition to war, urges all citizens to join us in calling on Rep. Norm Dicks and Senators Murray and Cantwell to support the following congressional resolution: "It is the policy of the United States to withdraw all U.S. military troops and bases from Iraq."
We join with the Friends Committee on National Legislation and other like-minded Americans in endorsing this resolution as a first step toward ending this conflict. Debates about timetables can come later, as can pragmatic planning for restoring infrastructure – first we must tell the Iraqi people, the insurgents and a disillusioned and cynical American public that the United States respects Iraqi sovereignty and does not have imperial intentions in Iraq.
President Bush has said that America "does not support an indefinite occupation," yet he is not leading the way to international cooperation to get U.S. troops out. Secretary Rumsfeld has said "we have no intention, at the present time, of putting permanent bases in Iraq," yet up to 14 "enduring bases" are reportedly under construction or planned (www.fcnl.org). The perception that the United States intends to occupy Iraq permanently aids insurgent groups in recruiting supporters and fuels violent activity. Former Secretary of State Baker and other leading analysts have said it is critical that the U.S. government declare now its intention to fully withdraw from Iraq.
We hold in our prayers the people of Iraq, the U.S. and international troops and humanitarian workers in Iraq, the leaders of Iraq and the United States, and all others affected by this war. And we urge our fellow citizens in faith communities and of all persuasions to join us in publicly endorsing this withdrawal resolution.
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