28 June 2007
On the 20th anniversary of the chemical bombing of the Kurdish city of Sardasht in western Iran, a crime committed by the puppet Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussain and with full provision, support, and acquiescence of Western governments, the Campaign Against Sanctions and Military Intervention in Iran (CASMII), commemorates the forgotten victims of this crime who are still suffering the consequences of the effects of mustard gas, by launching a joint statement with Iranian NGOs, “The Society for Chemical Weapons Victims Support” (SCWVS) and “The Organisation for Defence of Victims of Violence” (ODVV), to express their opposition to sanctions, military intervention, and foreign interference in Iran.
The joint petition highlights the catastrophic consequences of the Iraqi-imposed war on Iran in the 1980s, the tragic impact of over a decade long Security Council sanctions on the Iraqi population as a prelude to the invasion of 2003, and finally the US/UK illegal invasion and ongoing brutal occupation of Iraq.
Based on the experiences of all the above, the joint petition voices urgent concern about the “dire and irreparable human consequences” on Iranian people of military intervention and sanctions. It states that “Sanctions or military intervention in Iran will serve to strike a massive blow to the nascent civil society in Iran” and “will put to waste all attempts at building an indigenous internal democracy and the promotion of human rights. This will reverse for years, or even decades, the domestic process of reforms.”
The joint petition demands an end to foreign intervention, sanctions, and threats of military intervention against Iran and urges the United States and its allies to end their policy of threats and confrontation with Iran and instead enter “direct dialogue without precondition.” It further calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran to create the grounds for a stronger and greater unity of the people of Iran in the face of foreign pressures and threats by paying more attention to the observation of human rights.
The Society for chemical Weapons victims Support (SCWVS) provides medical, social, legal, and cultural support to more than 50,000 Iranian survivors of chemical weapons, who are still suffering from the long-term effects of exposure. SCWVS aims to improve the victims’ quality of life as well as that of their family members.
The Organization for Defending Victims of Violence (ODDV) works in the area of human rights and humanitarian activities. As well as educational courses and seminars to promote a culture of nonviolence, it has established the Rehabilitation Institute for Victims of Social Violence and the Disabled which provides psychological, legal, physical rehabilitation and financial support for victims of violence.
In circumstances where Iran’s survival and sovereignty is at stake, CASMII calls upon other Iranian NGOs to lend their voice to this cry of opposition to sanctions and military intervention against Iran by signing this or similar petitions.
To view the petition please visit <www.campaigniran.org/casmii/index.php?q=node/2513>
or contact CASMII for more details.
This statement is also available in Persian [PDF].
CASMII is an independent campaign organisation with the purpose of opposing sanctions, foreign state interference and military intervention in Iran.
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