This international
gathering of women takes place in the midst of heated controversy of the deaths of two young girls killed by a U.S. Army military tank in Hyochon-ri, Kyonggi Province, South
Korea. Their deaths continue to represent the human cost of the unfolding War on Terrorism led by the U.S. government. This increased militarism in response to the attacks on
September 11, 2001, represents a heightened state of violence against women, children, and our communities that is rooted in U.S. economic and military dominance around the world.
The U.S. government
has coerced other nations into adopting policies and laws that have created fear, insecurity, violence, and repression in South Korea, Vieques, Puerto Rico, the Philippines,
Okinawa, Japan, and also in the United States. The U.S. Patriot and Homeland Securities Act and the Military Emergency Bill in Japan gives the U.S. government and the nations
pressured to comply with its military policies, carte blanche, to take away civil liberties, violate human rights, ignore existing laws, and mask its economic interests as
“national security”. These new policies also perpetuate inequalities based on race, class, gender, and nation, and deny basic rights for immigrants and poor people.
Pending bilateral
agreements such as the Mutual Logistics and Support Agreement (MLSA) in the Philippines compound the negative effects of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) by giving the U.S.
military unhampered access to areas in the Philippines. We oppose these policies that use the military as an excuse to push for expanding U.S. global economic and military
influence, increasing global inequality, and the denial of democratic processes and self-determination for our communities and nations.
As women we fully
recognize that the militarization created by the relationships between the global economy, U.S. military, and complicit nations is reflected in the past and current patterns of
violence against women, children, and the environment. Our lives are fundamentally interconnected across national boundaries through the ways in which our communities are
negatively affected by U.S. militarist policies and programs. We recognize our collective responsibility to oppose the practices and policies of our respective governments in
supporting U.S. President Bush’s policy of war and to support women and women’s leadership in voicing our opposition and envisioning true security.
Women continue the
struggle for reparations for past military crimes against women such as those women who were victimized by the Japanese military in sexual slavery during World War II, and the
massacre of whole communities in the Philippines, Vietnam and Korean Wars and the Battle of Okinawa. We claim our histories and past memories and denounce the devastation the U.S.
military has caused in our lives, our communities and our environment, despite hypocritical policies such as Good Neighbor Policies that try to cover up the real nature of
military operations and current expansion. We as women carry the scars of militarism’s injustices and atrocities and we keep firm our vision for true security that guarantees the
safety, well-being and long-term sustainability of our communities.
We issue the
following demands to the leaders of the U.S. and the countries that host the U.S. military:
Stop the War on Terrorism and policies that threaten genuine global security
