After Evidence for 'Toppling Saddam' Is Brought Out: News Analysis

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, September 27, 2002

After Evidence for 'Toppling Saddam' Is Brought Out: News Analysis

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At 8:00 am, September 24, the British government published the evidence for "ousting Saddam Hussein" as planned, that is, a report on the "proof of the crime" of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction that pose threat to the world security. The 55-page, richly illustrated report is the crystallization of the painstaking effort Prime Minister Tony Blair has made for quite a while.

The report accuses Iraq of having never given up its plan for the manufacture of chemical and biological weapons and of its storage of 20 Saddam-type missiles with a firing range of 650 km and capable of carrying biochemical weapon warheads; it charges Iraq with implementing its plan for making nuclear weapons and attempting to obtain uranium raw materials from Africa; in addition, Iraq is engaged in the development of a new-type missile which will put the entire Middle East region, Greece and Turkey within its firing range.

Blair wrote a reface for the report. He said Iraq had all along concealed the truth of its research and manufacture of weapons of mass destruction and it had drawn a lesson from the weapon inspection conducted previously by the United Nations in the country. So, even if weapon inspection is resumed in Iraq, Saddam will definitely try his utmost to cover up facts. Blair hinted that even though Iraq had expressed its unconditional acceptance of weapon inspection by the United Nations again, it is still impossible to eliminate the threat posed by Saddam.

On the evening after the report was published, Blair held a two-hour "special cabinet conference". At the meeting, all cabinet members read the report. Blair enumerated Saddam's "crimes" and had talks with several secretaries who hold a doubtful or opposition attitude toward his Iraq policy. When the meeting was over, Short, a woman secretary, who has all along been strongly against armed attack on Iraq, said the meeting was very successful and the cabinet had reached an agreement.

After the cabinet conference, Blair seemed to be all the more full of self-confidence in the "convincing power" of the report. His spokesperson said the report "would nail Iraq's lie that it does not possess arms of mass destruction", indicating that the threat from Saddam "is real and serious", and previous UN policy of containment is no longer effective. The spokesperson said Blair hoped the United Nations would play a major role in handling Iraq's threat, but he stressed that Britain would not ignore Iraq's act of defying UN resolutions.

The report has been favorably received and supported by some people. Some claimed that the evidence provided by the report was of "authority". Duncan Smith, leader of the Conservative Party, openly extended his support. He said the report indicates that Iraq's arms of mass destruction have constituted a "potential threat" to Britain, "when all other efforts proved failure, war should be the final choice."

But Charles Kennedy, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, the third largest party, warned that under the circumstance without the authorization of the United Nations and the support of the international community, rashly taking military actions against Iraq would create a "dangerous precedent" in international affairs. He holds that all present efforts should be concentrated on the question of allowing UN arms inspectors to return to Iraq. He advised Blair to preserve Britain's moral prestige and the authority of the British Parliament and the United Nations.

At a debate, scores of Labor Party parliament members resolutely opposed armed attack on Iraq. A Labor Party parliament member described the report as a "damped firecracker". She said the report "was only reprocessing and reassembling the open information", and "it looked more like a public relations performance". Another Labor Party parliament member called the report a "made-up story". In an interview held at the Independence TV Station, some scholars and experts expressed the view that the evidence cited in the report is "not enough to form a reason for launching war against Iraq".

The report was favorably commented by President George W. Bush, he hailed it as an expression of the British government's support for the stance of the United States. But the report has provoked the vehement indignation of the Iraqis, Iraqi Foreign Minister Sabri said the evidence cited by Blair is all "lie". Russian Foreign Minister also said that the report dished out by Britain is aimed at making "sensational propaganda". Regarding whether Iraq has weapons of mass destruction or not, a conclusion can be drawn only after studies have been made by international experts.

Mass media here in Britain commented that although the report had won "cautious support" from the parliament, the cabinet, which was originally divided in opinions, has at least superficially shown to be "in agreement", the report, however, "failed to completely convince the public". The latest poll shows that 70 percent of those interviewed oppose war to be launched by Britain against Iraq under the circumstance without authorization from the United Nations.

The newspaper, Independence, pointed out on September 25 that there is not the slightest doubt about Saddam's ability to produce certain weapons of mass destruction, but what merits consideration is whether or not he currently has the intention to use these weapons to attack Western countries or the allies of these countries.

A BBC report reveals that a mammoth protest rally will be held in Hyde Park, London this weekend by some anti-war groups and organizations. At the forthcoming autumn meeting to be held by the Labor Party, Blair will sustain the strong impact of the anti-war sentiment within the Labor Party.

The above article, published on Page 3 of People's Daily September 27, was written by the newspaper's correspondent Shi Zongxing stationed in Britain.

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