Letter: U.S. should lift cruel economic sanctions on Iraq

Activists across the nation declared April 3 a National Day of Action Against the Sanctions on Iraq in the United States.

The time has come to speak out against the atrocities of economic sanctions-another tactic the United States uses to secure its access to oil in the Middle East.

These sanctions are a form of genocide because, according to the United Nations, since their implementation in August 1990 they have been responsible for the death of at least one million Iraqi people, half of those being children. Medicinal supply is so poor such that pregnant women often give birth to babies whose deaths are predestined to occur within a matter of weeks due to poor nutrition and water supply.

What is all the disease and suffering accomplishing for U.S. foreign policy? Nothing. Saddam Hussein remains more firmly in control today than when the sanctions were first implemented as a result of his family being able to monopolize many of Iraq's big businesses, making him richer than ever.

We should be tired of our government telling us what an evil man he is, and that he is all to blame. We know Hussein is an extremely horrible person to say the least, but what does that tell us? Shall we stand by and point the finger at him while another one million innocent Iraqi people, most of whom are children, die as a result of unsuccessful U.S. foreign policy?

The only thing that sanctions have accomplished is greater hostility towards the U.S. on the part of the Iraqi people, and the people of the entire Middle East region. All these people have seen in the past two decades is a U.S. determined to secure its oil supply, regardless of the effects on the people of the region.

This policy will only jeopardize our supply of oil in the future, as new governments take over in Middle Eastern nations with strong anti-American sentiments among citizens.

It is time to take a stand against our country's policy of using cruel and unusual punishment in the form of economic sanctions-not only because of the horrific effects on the innocent people of Iraq, but also because the sanctions are simply not in the long term interests of the United States.