Peace groups appeal for restraint as war clouds gather

By DANIEL JACKSON

New Zealand peace groups are trying to make their voices heard above the clamour to avenge the terrorist attacks in the US.

Auckland Green MP and party defence spokesman Keith Locke said killing more people was not the answer. "We don't think going to war is a solution to terrorism."

He said the Greens were in favour of bringing whoever was responsible to justice.

"But to just go in on some suspicion and go to war on a country like Afghanistan is just wrong. It will create more victims."

He said people needed to question why the attacks happened and look at US policy towards Palestinians and sanctions on Iraq.

Auckland University student Arna Metcalfe said a movement for peace was growing from a vigil in Albert Park on Saturday which attracted about 250 people.

A steering committee had been set up and another public meeting was planned for Saturday at 4 pm in Queen Elizabeth Square.

Michael Payne, a spokesman for the Religious Society of Friends, better known as the Quakers, said the society opposed any war.

The attacks were horrific, he said, but he hoped the US and its allies would think about why they happened rather than blindly seeking revenge.

"Are they going to leave behind a world where all we can do is pick up the pieces?"

The Quakers had written to Prime Minister Helen Clark and the American Embassy expressing their beliefs and would almost certainly protest if New Zealand took part in any aggression.

Marion Hancock, coordinator for the Peace Foundation of Aotearoa, said the group had also been in touch with the Government to stress that New Zealand should not be involved in a military response.

"We're looking for a solution that isn't violent," she said, and more New Zealanders seemed to be forming the same opinion.

Disarmament Minister Matt Robson hoped the US would rethink some policies. Mr Robson said the attacks on the US also raised the spectre of similar attacks using nuclear weapons.

"Terrorists armed with a nuclear weapon are almost too horrifying to contemplate ... The Government's disarmament agenda now takes on an even greater urgency."

The Alliance minister told Waikato University students that "one of the most shocking facts about this recent attack on the States is that no weapon of mass destruction was necessary".

Map: Opposing forces in the war against terror

Afghanistan facts and links