Petition For Peace
Last February 6, women from the academe, church, legislation and the entertainment industry in the Philippines successfully launched WWW.PEACE. The coalition was formed with the objective of bringing together voices of women opposing US-led war on Iraq.
War increases the vulnerability of women and girls to sexual abuse. The experience of Filipina overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Kuwait during the Gulf War and the Comfort Women during the Japanese occupation are clear demonstrations of how the rape of women and children is used as a tool of war.
Filipino women all over the world certainly cannot remain silent as our sisters face the imminent danger here and abroad. And with the threat of war escalating with each day, louder clamor for peace is needed.
WWW.PEACE will join the Philippine Rally to join millions of advocates all over the world who have voiced their opposition to the US-led war on Iraqas part of our contribution to the international day of protest against US' war on Iraq on February 14.
It will also be spearheading a Gathering of Filipino families for Peace on February 19 dubbed as the peacelink. Send the statement to as many women and women's groups as we can for endorsement.
Please cut and paste the message into a new message, sign it with your own name, and forward it with the petition on to as many people as you know. If you are the 50th, 100th, 150th, 200th, etc., person to sign the petition, please also e-mail a copy back to the WWW.PEACE Secretariat through gab@info.com.ph Thank you very much women working for world peace. NO TO U.S. WAR ON IRAQ coalition.
TODAY WE UNITE FOR PEACE NO TO U.S. WAR ON IRAQ
To day we unite for peace. Our voices ring in unison with our sisters and brothers all over the world, as we declare NO! to the US war on Iraq. US President George W. Bush is all set to launch its offensive against Iraq. US and British forces besiege the Middle East while UN Security Council Inspectors search through Iraq for weapons of mass destruction. War looms.
We cannot help but be troubled for the 1.4M Filipinos in the Middle East, 65% of whom are women domestic helpers. They have endured the pains of separation from their families and now they face the consequent violence of an unjust war.
We cannot help but agonize over what lies ahead for our sisters and their children who will directly bear the brunt of the US-led war. War multiplies the vulnerability of women and children to rape and sexual abuse. Wartime rape is a mode of torture, subjugation and genocide.
The rape of women is an acknowledged tool of war. Those left in their communities will endure the bombings and the ravages of war. Women, children and the elderly will face hunger, poverty and disease, the destruction of lives and communities.
The destitution that war creates, forces women and children into the global sex trade. But thousands of miles away from the Middle East, even we in our country do not feel safe. The Philippines' involvement in the US-led war greatly imperils our nation's security.
War impacts greatly on our economy. Prices of oil and basic commodities are expected to rise. The economic slump that our country presently faces will certainly take a turn for the worse.
All over the world as well as in the Philippines, millions have stood and are standing against the US war on Iraq. Let us resist the US war on Iraq, raise our collective voices and forge our unity today for our children's future, for world peace.
Original Convenors
6. Monique Wilson, Artistic Director New Voice Company
18. Columbia "Bing" Eclipse, President, Women of
Philippine Independent Church
20. Joselyn Navarro, Asian Caregiving Technology and
Education Center
24. Helen Mendoza, Anti-Nuke Coalition
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