war or peace the choice is yours

8/10/2019 War or Peace the Choice is Yours

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WAR OR PEACE - THE CHOICE IS YOURS

A REPORT FOR THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE INQUIRY

INTO THE UKS FOREIGN POLICY TOWARDS AFGHANISTAN

MAKE WARS HISTORY OCTOBER 2010

Exec!"#e $%%&'(

This submission sets out new evidence relating to Britains foreign policy in Afghanistan and concludes

that it is unlawful, illegal, immoral and must be reconsidered.

We came to this conclusion after checking the etent to which Britains foreign policy meets, eceeds or

falls short of our treaty commitments and legal obligations to the Afghan people. We found that!

W&' "$ &)*&($ "))e+&) &, !.e UN Sec'"!( C/,c") c&, ,e#e' &!./'"$e !.e $e / &'%e /'ce

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/' &)) !.e c'"%e$ c/%%"!!e ( ISAF /'ce$ &, &'e c'"%",&))( )"&)e !/ &''e$! 4'/$ec!"/, &,

4,"$.%e,! ,e' !.e R/%e S!&!!e &, !.e I,!e',&!"/,&) C'"%",&) C/'! Ac! 2001

T.e F/'e"+, &, C/%%/,*e&)!. O"ce &, !.e A!!/',e( Ge,e'&) +e &)$e )e+&) "ce !/

P&')"&%e,! &, !.e 4)"c /, !.e )e+&)"!( / !.e *&'$ ", I'&: &, A+.&,"$!&,6

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A+.&,"$!&, *e'e )&*) &, .& ee, &!./'"$e ( !.e UN Sec'"!( C/,c")6

"ur recommendations are that the #oreign Affairs $ommittee!

$arefully considers the validity of this new legal evidence%

$ontacts the #oreign &ecretary and 'rime (inister and )asks them to halt the fighting%

*nforms 'arliament of the new evidence and tables an emergency debate to end the war%

&ets up an independent *n+uiry i- to investigate the causes and sources of the problem and

ii- to recommend new ways of ensuring that Britain upholds and enforces its treaty obligations.


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The charges in the indictment that the defendants planned and waged aggressive wars are

charges of the utmost gravity. War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined

to the belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. To initiate a war of aggression

therefore, is not only an international crime, it is the supreme international crime differing only

from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.

Nuremburg War rimes Trials !"#$

A!./'

$hris $overdale. $hris is a behavioural scientist, governance consultant, peace campaigner and memetic

engineer. After /0 years working as an organisation development consultant he changed course in 1

and focused on eposing the corrupt practice that causes Britain to violate international law and wage

unlawful war. *n 002 he helped to found Make Wars History. 3is primary skills and interests are in

cognitive science, memetics and the development of innovative governance systems and structures.

A"% &, /9ec!"#e$

1. The aim of this report is to persuade the #oreign Affairs $ommittee and 'arliament to stop the war and

the killing in Afghanistan whilst it reconsiders the legality and purposes of the conflict.

. We are also aiming to increase readers understanding of the laws of war and the illegality of the conflict

in Afghanistan, epose the false nature of the legal advice provided by the #$" and 4overnment lawyers,

provide a simple way of checking the +uality of foreign affairs and persuade ('s to reverse their decision

to continue the war in Afghanistan. "ur longer term intentions are to reform the 56s systems structures

and safeguards concerning war and peace.

I$ B'"!&",$ /'e"+, 4/)"c( !/*&'$ A+.&,"$!&, &44'/4'"&!e;

/. To establish whether the 56s foreign policy approach is appropriate we identified the principal treaties

governing warfare and relationships between nations, picked out the main terms of each treaty and

developed a check list 7page 108 to establish whether Britain has met, eceeded or fallen short of its

commitments and obligations to other nations. We then listed the main components and achievements

of Britains foreign policy in Afghanistan over the past nine years and compared them with the legally

binding promises given to the Afghan people.

W.&! &'e !.e 4'",c"4&) !'e&!"e$ +/#e',",+ *&'&'e;

9. The main treaties which govern warfare and the relationships between states are!

i- The 4eneral Treaty for the :enunciation of War 7the 6ellogg;Briand 'act8 12%

ii- The 5nited eclaration of 3uman :ights 192,

v- The 4eneva $onventions and 'rotocols 19, 1??%

vi- The


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W.&! c/%%"!%e,!$ &, /)"+&!"/,$ / !.e$e !'e&!"e$ c/,!&",;

War between nations was renounced by the signatories of the %ellogg&'riand Treaty. This

means that it has become throughout practically the entire world an illegal thing. (ereafter,

when nations engage in armed conflict, either one or both of them must be termed violators of

this general treaty law. We denounce them as law brea)ers.*

(enry +timson, +- +ecretary of +tate !"/

=. We collated the terms of these treaties into 1= main pledges relating to war and peace. @ach pledge is a

legally binding promise. Breaches of any of the first nine pledges are crimes in international law and

render all those involved criminally liable for arrest prosecution and punishment.

N",e 4)e+e$ 'e)&!",+ !/ W&'

i- never to plan initiate or take part in aggressive war%

ii- never to support condone or fund aggressive war%

iii- never to threaten, attack or occupy another &tate%

iv- never to use armed force ecept in self;defence%v- never to take a human life or wilfully kill a person%

vi- never to harm or kill a person because of their race, nationality, ethnicity or religion%

vii- never to torture or inflict mental or physical harm on a person%

viii- never to steal or destroy property%

i- never to manufacture possess trade or use prohibited- weapons%

S"x 4)e+e$ 'e)&!",+ !/ Pe&ce

- to settle all disputes peacefully whatever their nature or origin%

i- to uphold and abide by the law%

ii- to enforce the laws of war arrest and prosecute war criminals-%

iii- to respect human rights%

iv- to promote social progress and better standards of life for all%

v- to work together in a spirit of brotherhood and co;operation for peace and ustice.

W.&! &'e !.e %&", c/%4/,e,!$ / B'"!&",$ A+.&,"$!&, 4/)"c(;

. The current phase of Britains foreign policy towards Afghanistan began on "ctober ?th001 when the

British 4overnment switched from peace to war and Tony Blair announced that at the re+uest of 4eorge

Bush British forces were using submarine launched missiles to attack targets in Afghanistan. &ince then

the main components and achievements of the policy have been!

i- The illegal use of disproportionate overwhelming armed force%

ii- The illegal invasion and occupation of an independent nation state%

iii- The illegal use of indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction 7missiles, rockets, drones,

cluster bombs, mortars, white phosphorous and depleted uranium8 against civilian targets%

iv- The murder of approimately =0,000 civilians, including 00,000 children%

v- &erious inuries to approimately 1.=m men women and children%

vi- >riving 9m people into eile and destitution internally and in neighbouring states%

vii- The removal of the legitimate Taliban 4overnment%

viii- *nstalling the 5& friendly 6arCai 7puppet8 4overnment%


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i- 3uge cash payments to gain warlord support for the 6arCai 4overnment%

- An eight fold increase in opium production%

i- @pensive corruption;plagued attempts to elect a nominal 'arliament.

ii- :ecruiting, training, e+uipping army and police forces to support the 6arCai 4overnment.

iii- Widespread increases in bribery and corruption%

iv- A ninetyfold increase in ependiture over the previous decade%

v- #$" propaganda to ustify the illegal and unlawful actions of the 56 4overnment%vi- (anipulation of 5


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11.


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ouncil has ta)en measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. =easures

ta)en by =embers in the e4ercise of this right of self defence shall be immediately reported to the

+ecurity ouncil and shall not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the +ecurity

ouncil under the present harter to ta)e at any time such action as it deems necessary to

maintain or restore international peace and security.

1=. As there is no evidence whatsoever that the Taliban 4overnment of Afghanistan launched or supported

the attacks on the World Trade $entre !.e'e "$ ,/ )&*) 9$!""c&!"/, /' !.e ",#&$"/, /' /cc4&!"/, /

A+.&,"$!&,. As the 4overnment and people of Afghanistan made no attempt whatsoever to attack

Britain, !.e'e "$ ,/! ,/* &, ,e#e' .&$ ee, & )&*) 9$!""c&!"/, /' B'"!&",$ 4&'!"c"4&!"/, ", !."$ *&'.

1. 5nder the 5< $harter the only people authorised to use armed force in the Afghan conflict are the

people of Afghanistan 7the Taliban8. 5nder Article =1 they have the right to defend themselves from the

unlawful invasion and occupation of their country by British, American and *&A# forces. *f they notify the

5< &ecurity $ouncil of the unlawful attacks they can lawfully continue to use armed force 7rockets and

*@>s8 to repel *&A# forces until the 5< &ecurity $ouncil implements peacekeeping measures.

H/* eec!"#e "$ !.e F/'e"+, &, C/%%/,*e&)!. O"ce$ c/,!'"!"/,;

1?. We believe that the main reason why so many British citiCens hold the false belief that the 56s use of

armed force in *ra+ and Afghanistan is lawful stems from the fact that for decades they have been given

false and misleading legal advice on the use of armed force by 4overnment and #$" lawyers.

12. To illustrate this serious deception consider the following statements taken from a letter written on 1?th

Eune 00 on behalf of Bill :ammell, the #$" (inister, and >aniel Bethlehem the #$" legal advisor in

which they again attempt to ustify the legality of the wars with Afghanistan and *ra+.

I should also li)e to add that under -rticle /# of the nited Nations harter >its =embers confer on

the +ecurity ouncil primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security;.

nder hapter ?II of the harter, the ouncil may decide what measures shall be ta)en 9 to maintain

or restore international peace and security. nder -rticle /8 the members of the nited Nations

agree to accept and carry out the decisions of the +ecurity ouncil in accordance with the present

harter9

1. *n the sentence the ouncil may decide what measures shall be ta)en 9 to maintain or restore

international peace and securitynote the / small dots signifying that parts of $hapter F** have been left

out. This is etremely important because the phrase that has been left out is not involving the use of

armed fore! Articles 91 and 9 from $hapter F** of the 5< $harter state!

#! The +ecurity ouncil may decide what measures not involving the use of armed force are to

be employed to give effect to its decisions, and it may call upon members of the nited Nations

to apply such measures. These may include complete or partial interruption of economic

relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio and other means of communication, and

the severance of diplomatic relations.


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#/ +hould the +ecurity ouncil consider that measures provided for in -rticle #! prove to be

inadequate, it may ta)e such action by air, sea or land forces as may be necessary to maintain or

restore international peace and security. +uch action may include demonstrations, bloc)ade and

other operations by air, sea, or land forces.

0. By deliberately omitting one of the most important clauses in the 5< $harter the #$" reversed the

meaning of the Article and successfully deceived 'arliament and the public into believing that the armed

attacks on Afghanistan and *ra+ were authorised by the 5< &ecurity $ouncil under $hapter F** of the 5eclaration of 3uman :ights, the 4eneva

$onventions, the


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//. C/,!&c! !.e F/'e"+, Sec'e!&'( &, P'"%e M","$!e' &, &$3 !.e% !/ .&)! !.e "+.!",+ % *t is imperative

that the needless unlawful killing is stopped immediately. *t takes only a few minutes to give the orders

to start a war and it takes even less time to command it to stop. The 'rime (inister, the >eputy 'rime

(inister, the #oreign &ecretary and the >efence &ecretary all have the power to end or call a temporary

halt to the killing within minutes, so remind them that every hours delay means further innocent lives

lost and that ,/-/,ehas the right to condemn an innocent person on either side of the conflict to death.

/9. I,/'% P&')"&%e,! / !.e ,e* e#"e,ce &, !&)e &, e%e'+e,c( e&!e !/ e, !.e *&'6 When

'arliament voted recently to continue the conflict and fighting in Afghanistan it did so on the grounds

that it was lawful. * hope that this document has shown that war is never lawful, that the only time

when the use of armed force is condoned is when it is used in self;defence to counter an armed attack,

that the legal advice from the #$" and 4overnment lawyers was false and that nothing about the conflict

in Afghanistan is or has ever been lawful. 'roviding that every (' is carefully briefed on the laws of war,

together with its prohibitions and implications, prior to a new debate, it should be a formality to table,

debate and vote on a motion to end the conflict.

>8 Se! 4 &, ",e4e,e,! I,:"'( ?"@ !/ ",#e$!"+&!e !.e c&$e$ &, $/'ce$ / !.e 4'/)e% &, ?""@ !/

'ec/%%e, ,e* *&($ / e,$'",+ !.&! B'"!&", 4./)$ &, e,/'ce$ "!$ !'e&!( /)"+&!"/,$


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#or nine years Britain has been waging unlawful wars killing and inuring several million innocent Afghan

and *ra+i civilians, including 1m children. These are the two worst atrocities in British history and yet no;

one with the power to stop them has done so. This is a plea to every member of both 3ouses of

'arliament to take action now and force the 4overnment to uphold the law and end the killing.

*f you need further information or clarification on anything contained in this document or if you still have

doubts about the veracity of any of the claims then please contact me on 00 2=90 2= or by e;mail at

ccoversIgooglemail.com. * am always available to assist.

$hris $overdale Make Wars History

and thus you are to act as though the destiny of human life hung solely from your deeds andyou and you alone were accountable.

-dapted from D.


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Never to threaten, attack or occupy another State (5) ______

Never to use ared force e!cept in self"defence (5) ______

Never to take a huan life or wilfully kill a person (5) ______

Never to har a person #ecause of their race, nationality or religion ($0) ______

Never to torture or har a person (5) ______

Never to steal or destroy property (5) ______

Never to anufacture possess trade or use (prohi#ited) weapons (5) ______

Total ______/100

The White List

%o settle all disputes peacefully whatever their nature or origin (&0) ______

%o uphold and a#ide #y the law (&0) ______

%o enforce the laws of war (arrest and prosecute war criinals) ($0) ______

%o respect huan rights ($0) ______

%o proote social progress and #etter standards of life ($0) ______

%o work together in a spirit of co"operation and #rotherhood ($0) ______

Total ______/100

c7c =a)e Wars (istory +ept /A!A

war or peace the choice is yours

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