TO-DO LIST: Obligations during war

Last week, as the United States and its allies launched a war against Iraq, Bishop Wilton Gregory, president of the U.S. Catholic Bishops' Conference, issued a statement listing some serious obligations that he sees impinging on America (his remarks appear on this page):

1. Every effort must be made to avoid civilian casualties and "to reduce the risk to U.S. forces";

2. Weapons of mass destruction may not be used;

3. Anti-personnel land mines, cluster bombs and other weapons that cannot distinguish between soldiers and civilians must be avoided;

4. The lives of Iraqi civilians must be valued "as we would the lives of our own families and our own citizens";

5. Efforts must be expended "to prevent internal strife and to protect vulnerable groups";

6. "Adequate resources and effective plans" must be arranged in order to "address the humanitarian crisis in Iraq"; and

7. "The United States must accept the long-term responsibility to help Iraqis build a just and enduring peace in their country."

The latter three obligations lie ahead in the post-war period, but it is not too early to assess the first four. From the always remarkable and often disturbing images all of us have viewed from the safety of our homes, we seem to have witnessed a war that has proceeded deliberately and carefully. As this editorial is being printed on Tuesday of this week, American forces appear to have taken care to protect civilians, to target only military sites and even to begin negotiations for peace as they fired the first shots.

We use words like "seem" and "appear" because propaganda is a key weapon of war, and it is aimed not only at the enemy but also at the homefront to boost morale. Analysis in the aftermath of conflict often reveals that what citizens were told is not what actually happened.

Like people around the world of all faiths and no faith, Catholics differed on the justness of the war. Whatever their position on its start, they will carefully watch -- literally and figuratively -- how it is carried out in their names.

(3/27/03) [[In-content Ad]]