by The Stop the War Coalition / United Kingdom –

http://www.stopwar.org.uk/index.asp

LONDON (January 28, 2004) — The Stop the War Coalition today completely rejects the conclusions of Lord Hutton’s Inquiry. Far from providing an impartial analysis of the reason we were taken into war, we have a report of over 700 pages which can only be called a whitewash. We believe that millions of people in Britain will be astonished and dismayed that this report criticises everyone except the government.

Hutton’s remit was always narrow, but he has made a clear decision to believe the politicians rather than anyone else.

The major questions about the war remain unanswered. Why were we lied to about the imminent threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction? Where are the weapons? Did Tony Blair and George Bush agree secretly to go to war as far back as spring 2002?

We accept Tony Blair’s challenge to debate fully the reasons behind the decisions to go to war, including the discredited claim of weapons of mass destruction, and call on him to set up a full an independent inquiry into reasons why the UK entered a war that broke international law.

For all the aforementioned reasons the Stop the War Coalition has called a protest outside 10 Downing Street this Saturday 31st January, from 12 noon to 2pm.

70% of Britons Agree with SWC
Today’s opinion poll by NOP reveals that yet again The Stop the War Coalition is the leading voice of public opinion when it comes to the ongoing conflict in Iraq.

When asked the question, Do you think there should now be a full independent into the reasons given by the Government for the war in Iraq?, an unequivocal 70% answered YES.

The Stop the War Coalition today again calls on Tony Blair and his Government to launch a full and independent inquiry into the reasons he took us into this illegal war.

The so-called evidence that Tony Blair used to take this country into war has unravelled since George Bush proclaimed the end of hostilities. Yesterday, at the first of a number of Senate hearings, David Kay, the recent head of the Iraq Survey group said that there should be an investigation into why we went to war on intelligence that was so flawed.

Last month, George Bush’s first Treasury Secretary, Paul O’Neill, let the cat out of the bag when he revealed that the president of the USA was trying to construct a reason for invading Iraq weeks into his term of office.

Whatever the truth about Dr. David Kelly and what he did or didn’t say to a BBC correspondent, the fact remains that the 45 minute claim that Saddam could launch biological and chemical weapons was false, based on one source, who has now retracted what he said.

Months after the conflict was said to be over WMD’s still have not been found. Months after the conflict was said to be over thousands of Iraqi’s have died, hundreds of troops have perished illegally occupying a foreign land. And months after the conflict was said to be over democracy and freedom of choice for the Iraqi people still is as far away as it was when the war began.

The time has come for Tony Blair to put before the British people, through a full independent inquiry, the evidence that he claims was overwhelming. Until he does, the British people will continue to treat anything he says with the contempt it deserves.