Letter: Protesters spread lies about U.S. policy in Iraq

As if the die-in wasn't enough, I open The Chronicle to read, "Protesters take over DSG meeting." I was always under the impression that it was the U.N.'s responsibility to create unenforceable resolutions regarding Iraq, not Duke Student Government's. My mistake.

The issue of sanctions came up during the DSG teach-in and it comes up on a regular basis with regard to the legitimacy of the current action in Iraq. When the anti-war movement went to DSG to protest the war and "educate" the legislators it was reported that they "included statistics on the deaths caused by U.S. sanctions on Iraq." It is an oft quoted statistic that child mortality rates have gotten out of control in Iraq and that over 500,000 children under the age of five have died since the early 1990s. That is a tragedy of almost unimaginable proportions, but who is responsible? The anti-war movement on campus has repeatedly blamed the U.S. for those deaths, but have they presented a scrap of evidence proving direct U.S. responsibility? The answer is no. What protesters often construe as U.S. sanctions are actually U.N. sanctions, an important distinction that should not have been missed by individuals that always preach about the supposed holiness of the United Nations. The current program of sanctions in Iraq was drafted and accepted by the United Nations, which includes the latest version of an "oil for food" program in Iraq whereby the government can purchase as much food and medicine as necessary for the people of Iraq. Both in 1991 and 1995 the Iraqi government blocked the creation of oil for food programs, clearly hoping to use sanctions as a political tool. Since oil for food shipments began in 1997, the program has faced continuous opposition and mismanagement from the Iraqi leadership. While health conditions have rapidly deteriorated in central and southern Iraq, the northern region currently has higher health standards than before the Gulf War. This also happens to be the only part of the country where the U.N. is able to directly administer the program to the Iraqi people, free from Saddam's influence. Coincidence? Throughout the 1990s Saddam continued to buy missiles and supplies for the 300,000 man Iraqi army (which more often than not is used against the Iraqi people themselves), while failing to avert a humanitarian crisis of horrific proportions. During that same period he spent $2 billion on presidential palaces while Iraqi children lacked simple vaccinations.

I remember a protester at the die-in imploring passing students to "educate themselves," and this DSG meeting turned teach-in is further evidence of their warped agenda. Part of that agenda is convincing students that the U.S. has killed 500,000 Iraqi children over the last decade. Such a statement has no basis in fact. Educate yourself; don't let a small minority of radicals do it for you.