Letter to Government Officials

Dear Mr. Foreign Minister:

On behalf of Mennonite Church USA, I write to extend greetings to the people of Iraq and to express our desire for the safety and well being of all peoples.

As a Christian church committed to justice and nonviolent peacemaking, we opposed the Gulf War in 1990 and have called for ending the indiscriminate embargo that, for nearly 12 years now, has contributed heavily to the suffering of the Iraqi people.

We now believe that war may again be imminent. We pledge ourselves to do all that we can to restore peace between our nations. Recently, Mennonites organized a day of "prayer and faxing" -- praying for peace and calling on U.S. government leaders to seek alternatives to another war against Iraq. We are in the process of developing a comprehensive education and advocacy strategy to oppose further U.S. military action.

We believe that the proper task of all governments is to provide for the well being of all their citizens, providing space for them to flourish in safety and security. For this reason, we are asking the U.S. government to put aside military threats and to engage in respectful dialogue with the Iraqi government in support of these aims. We call on governing authorities around the world to support a regional approach to reducing weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East and to support efforts to rebuild Iraq's infrastructure that has been damaged by war and sanctions.

We pray for the day when our nations will be at peace and our peoples again free to visit one another in a spirit of friendship.

Sincerely,