NZ churches say no to war

New Zealand's Christian church leaders have called on the Government to exert maximum diplomatic pressure on the United States, the United Nations and Iraq to avoid war.

The leaders said in a joint statement that they wanted to speak out against possible war in Iraq, despite being aware of "the probable evil intentions of the present Government in Iraq".

"Any decision to launch a military operation against Iraq should be made by the United Nations Security Council, and then only after all options have been exhausted," they said.

"As the charter of the United Nations and international law remind us, war is never merely another means of settling differences between nations, except as the very last option."

They said a pre-emptive attack on Iraq would be immoral because it would be launched before all peace efforts had failed.

There was still a chance of resolving the crisis with diplomacy.

"The current intentions of the United States of America towards Iraq constitute a serious threat to world peace and threaten relations between Christians and Muslims."

The leaders said there was a moral obligation to break the cycle of violence.

Peace would have a better chance when people understood that the death of Iraqis was as terrible as the death of people in the September 11 attacks in the US.

"As leaders of churches in New Zealand, we call upon the New Zealand Government to leave no stone unturned in exerting maximum diplomatic pressure on Iraq, the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Nations to find a non-violent solution to the present impasse."

The statement was signed by the presiding bishop of the Anglican Church, John Paterson, Baptist Churches national leader Brian Winslade, Bryce Morris of the Congregational Union, Methodist Church president Norman West, Presbyterian Moderator Michael Thawley, the head of the Catholic Church, Cardinal Tom Williams, and the Salvation Army's territorial commander, Shaw Clifton.

Police, meanwhile, are closely monitoring the threat of terrorism from Iraq war fallout and have sent an officer to gather intelligence in the hotspot of Indonesia.

The counter terrorism chief at police national HQ, Assistant Commissioner Jon White, said the officer was sent last week as an interim measure until a fulltime liaison post was set up in Jakarta.

The detective sergeant would have a broad role in fighting crime and liaising with Indonesian authorities, but one of his main responsibilities would be gathering intelligence on any terrorist threat to New Zealand. The office would eventually employ two officers.

News of the posting comes as police in New Zealand closely monitor events in the Middle East, where a US-led coalition is on the brink of war with Iraq.

Observers believe it is inevitable that an attack on Iraq will be met with outrage by Islamic terrorist groups, with strikes possible anywhere in the world.

Indonesia has been identified as a main source of terrorism after the bombing of two packed bars in Bali in October.

Three New Zealanders and more than 100 Australians died in the attack, believed to be retaliation for America's war on terrorism in Afghanistan.

Mr White said the liaison office in Jakarta had been planned for some time.

"It's continuing the liaison we had pre-Christmas over the Bali bombing. Those investigations are still continuing and we want to maintain that relationship as it goes through the prosecution phase," he said.

"We are monitoring the situation in Iraq very closely for its implications for domestic security, but beyond that I'm not able to go into details."

The Indonesian attachment follows postings to London and Washington after the September 11 attacks.

Although those posts were already planned, the rise of global terrorism increased the focus on contacts with overseas intelligence agencies, now a key part of the liaison roles.

New Zealand's potential as a terrorist target was highlighted for some observers by a Reuters news agency graphic sent around the world on Thursday, which listed New Zealand's role in the US intelligence-gathering machine.

The graphic contained details of New Zealand's involvement in the Echelon satellite spy network, which includes Australia, Britain, the US and Canada.

The network includes a station at Waihopai in the Marlborough Sounds and is credited with allowing the US to gather evidence of Iraq's failure to comply with the United Nations weapons inspectors.

Veteran peace researcher Nicky Hager said the graphic further raised New Zealand's "visibility" among terrorist groups.

"I am getting seriously worried that New Zealand has been put on the map by taking part in Middle East conflicts," he said.

"The Bali bombing was a warning of that and it's something that New Zealand should be taking seriously. This is probably the worst time for decades for a country to be taking sides in Muslim-versus- United-States politics."

- NZPA

Herald feature: Iraq