PETITION TO CONGRESS CALLS ATTACK ON IRAQ A CRIME

In his 2002 State of the Union speech, President
George W. Bush said, "America will always stand firm
for the non-negotiable demands of human dignity."
The first one on his list was "the rule of law."

Yet Bush's efforts to attack and conquer Iraq
contradict those words, says a national petition being
circulated by the War and Law League (WALL) and
supporting groups and individuals. "Affirm the rule
of law! To attack Iraq is a crime," the petition is
headed. With directions for printing and handling,
it is featured on the WALL web site:
http://www.warandlaw.homestead.com.

It explains that a president who wages a foreign
war without a congressional declaration of war
violates the Constitution; and an aggressive war, with
or without Congress, violates U.S. treaties -- which
under the Constitution are federal laws. They include
the United Nations Charter and the Kellogg-Briand
Pact. And we can expect the bombing of civilian communities, like Baghdad, in violation of The Hague Conventions on laws of war.

Petition copies, with 10 signatures each, are
meant to be sent to senators and representatives
throughout the country by their respective
constituents.

Signed petitions to the California senators,
Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, are mailed to WALL, P.O. Box 42-7237, San Francisco, CA 94142.

Since July 29, WALL has made weekly fax submissions plus personal deliveries, giving each of those senators petition sheets signed by thousands of
Californians.

On September 5, Senator Feinstein made a speech in the Senate against war with Iraq. She said American lives, prestige, and "respect for the rule of law" are at stake in deciding whether to make our first
unilateral attack on another nation.

The petition drive is so far endorsed by the
national groups Global Exchange, Gray Panthers,
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Veterans for
Peace, Voices in the Wilderness, and the Women's
International League for Peace and Freedom, U.S.
Section; and the regional groups Marin Peace and
Justice Coalition (northern California) and Pacem in
Terris (Delaware). Among many individuals favoring it
are Helen Caldicott, the physician and nuclear peace
activist; and Peter Weiss, constitutional and
international lawyer.

WALL, whose e-mail address is warandlaw [at] yahoo.com, is a 4 1/2-year-old, nonpartisan association that works for the rule of law in America's foreign affairs. It upholds the Constitution, U.S. treaties, and international law in matters of war and peace, opposing any wars initiated by presidents. No one is paid in the group, which has people from 23 states on its roll. It is independent, under the fiscal sponsorship of the Agape Foundation (for nonviolent social change), of San Francisco.

Among WALL's many activities: it sent every member of Congress a letter opposing Clinton's
war on Yugoslavia in 1999; drafted legislation against presidential wars (a version of which was introduced in Congress in March 2001 by Rep. Ron Paul, R-TX); conducted a postal card campaign to stop Bush's bombing of Afghans; and last December started a drive against presidential termination of treaties when Bush moved to scrap the ABM Treaty. #