Jordan Times
Monday, December 28, 1998
Regent: Sanctions humanly unacceptable, politically futile
By Caroline Faraj
AMMAN — HRH Crown Prince Hassan, the Regent, Sunday told a meeting of Arab
parliamentarians demanding an end to U.N. economic sanctions on Iraq that Jordan remained
committed to principles of international legitimacy but rejected the idea of imposing
embargoes on any state.
“This unfair policy, which is directed against the basic rights of Man's existence, cannot accomplish its objectives; for it is quite unacceptable on humanistic grounds and is futile from a political perspective,” the Crown Prince told the opening session of a one-day emergency meeting of the Arab Parliamentary Union (APU) in Amman.
The Regent, who gave the conference's keynote speech, also focused on the suffering of ordinary Iraqis and said the sanctions — imposed on Iraq after it invaded Kuwait in August 1990 — were not an effective tool to enforce the consensus of the international community on Iraq.
“The Iraqi people, who have suffered a great deal should not be left without a programme of humanitarian aid which secures their needs and eases their suffering which is free from political objectives,” he said.
As the Crown Prince was about to leave the hall, an Iraqi delegate stood up and, referring to a banner of solidarity with the Iraqi people, said the delegation did come not to Amman to hear “Arab words of sympathy but wanted a united Arab stand against Washington and London.”
In an apparent response, Prince Hassan told reporters outside the conference hall that the emergency meeting, attended by 16 APU members, except for Kuwait, should not be held hostage to emotions.
“The conference is not meant to be governed by emotions, rather, it is held at the level of Arab states and their elected institutions... to reflect the will of the Arab people and to take effective steps to end the suffering of the Iraqi people,” he said.
“We hope that the conference does not miss another opportunity to take effective measures to help the Iraqis and their interests because of emotions,” Prince Hassan said.
Before delivering his speech, Prince Hassan asked the audience to recite Al Fatihah on Arab and Muslim martyrs.
Prince Hassan reiterated Jordan's opposition to any plans to divide Iraq and stressed the right for all Iraqis to enjoy freedom, equality and justice.
“In order to avoid the recurrence of the tragedy of Iraq, we should reject any call or plan to divide or partition Iraq on geographical or ethnic grounds,” he said.
Jordan also “rejected the establishment of any state in the north of Iraq or elsewhere based on race or religion, because we do not approve of the Balkanisation of the region.”
“Our stand of solidarity with the Iraqi people does not arise out of pity; but is meant to convey a message to our Iraqi brethren that we are with them with both our heart and soul, defending their dignity as well as their right to free and respectable life,” he added.
He also restated Jordan's rejection of the policy of economic sanctions against any state. “Let us agree from the outset that our solidarity with the Iraqi people and that our defending their basic rights is paramount to defending the people of any Arab country who might be subjective to aggression and suffering,” he said.
On the use of force to resolve conflict, the Prince said: “We contend that it should be the last resort in accordance with the spirit and principle of U.N. Charter, and only after all possible peaceful means have been exhausted.”
He also reiterated Jordan's call for the elimination of all weapons of mass destruction.
“The inspection of weapons of mass destruction... should be compatible with certain criteria that specify the extent of adherence to such conventions and resolutions,” he said.
He pointed out that the Middle East region is the only one that remains without a code of ethics governing multilateral and bilateral relations amongst its countries.
Prince Hassan reiterated his call to decrease the region's military spending. “Since 1991 the region has spent over $300 billion on armament at a time when it was in a dire need to allocate this money in construction and human development,” Prince Hassan said.