The Pope’s secret. A sucide mission?

Dear editor,

 We may never know the Pope’s secret.  (“Pope’s African peace mission” Washington Post 11-29-15) 

Especially if he is martyred as a result of his risky trip into the heart of an African war zone.  It’s possible he will be successful in brokering a peace that the best UN diplomacy and peacekeeping forces could not produce.  Either way he’s demonstrating something the world needs more of -- the courage of his convictions.  Willing to die for what he believes, but unwilling to kill.

Last night Showtime aired a new documentary “Spymasters” which zeroed in on the causes, costs and consequences of the endless war on terrorism.  All twelve of the living CIA Directors agreed, we cannot “kill” our way out of this problem.  Yet not one leader in the world has offered a policy that would outlaw the killing of innocent people.

ISIS and other violent extremist cults intentionally kill innocent people hoping to draw the ‘civilized’ world into their dream of Armageddon.  The civilized world intentionally allows the killing of innocent people as collateral damage under a ‘just war’ policy. 

The murder of innocent people should be outlawed. Period.  Without this commitment to global justice we will never know the peace and security that the Pope and other spiritual leaders know is possible.

All leaders in the civilized world have options.  They were offered 85 sound recommendations in a report released this summer by the Commission on Global Security, Justice and Governance (co-chaired by Madeline Albright and Ibrahim Gambari).   These recommendations would strengthen the flawed structures and systems created in the UN after the last World War.  Far from fulfilling the UN Charter’s ambitions, the toothless structure cemented into the UN has actually perpetuated killings with immunity by multiple nations, which has given us the world we have today.  If humanity truly seeks an end to lawful killings of innocent people and sustainable security for all, we will give each of the Commission’s recommendations serious and swift attention.

Time is not on our side but December 10^th is the anniversary of the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  This profound UN document was intended to prevent future conflict and offer fundamental freedoms to all the world’s people.  We need to reconsider this document’s rational and take solid steps to putting the global protection of human rights, ahead of the rights of nations to kill as they see fit.  Dead or alive, I believe the Pope would endorse each of these recommendations.

Chuck Woolery, Former Chair, United Nations Association Council of Organizations

Home address: 315 Dean Dr., Rockville, MD 20851

240-997-2209  chuck@igc.org

 (the views expressed above are mine and not necessarily the views of the UNACO)