'Bush, Blair should be taken to court'

'Bush, Blair should be taken to court'

Opposition, condemnation and protests against the U.S.-led attack on Iraq are mounting around the world. The war has been deemed to be against humanity and a threat to world peace. The Jakarta Post asked some city residents for their comments on the war.

Joko Supriadi, 44, is a secretary for a mass organization who resides in Matraman, Central Jakarta, with his wife and two children:

I think the war is totally unfair. Bush and his allies have been pressuring Saddam Hussein to disarm for a long time.

How can a war be fair if one side has many kinds of weaponry at its disposal and the other only uses swords? Needless to say, the U.S. will win the war.

I intend to call on people to voice their concerns about Bush's arrogant aggression. Iraq is a sovereign country despite its small size.

So why don't we stage rallies to in solidarity with the Iraqis? They have their freedom as an independent country. Iraq does not deserve to be treated in such a way that even Saddam could be toppled.

I am completely at odds with the misguided belief that it is a religious war. It's a totally wrong and narrow-minded view.

I think the United Nations should be held responsible for this intolerable action. At least U.S. President George W Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair should be brought before an international court and tried for genocide.

In addition, our representatives at the House of Representative and the government should not sleep and just accept money from people. They must do something in response to this unfair war.

Cholis, 30, is unemployed and resides in Pejaten, South Jakarta, with friends:

I think war is such a silly idea in a modern world. It would be far better for the Iraqi troops to surrender to the U.S. and its allies.

Their surrender would benefit them, and at least they would still be alive. Being killed in that kind of war would be ridiculous.

It is unlikely that Iraq will win due to the uneven military might involved and there is no use in its troops continuing to defend the country from an allied attack.

Besides, what would they actually fight for? They would be fighting for nothing because the war is about the egos of the Iraq and the U.S. leaders.

Surrender would minimize the casualties on both sides. Above all, it would prevent gross violations of human rights, if I might say.

On the other hand, if Indonesia continues to stage rallies to protest, it will come to nothing. But I can understand the protesters in a way.

Yanto, 56, is a retired civil servant who is currently serving as a neighborhood unit chief in Palmerah, Central Jakarta. He lives with his wife and three children:

I think the war in Iraq is irrational. For instance, even if Iraq did have weapons of mass destruction, the U.S., as a superpower, obviously has far more advanced and destructive weaponry. It's unfair.

Both Bush and Saddam are just arrogant leaders who want to fight for the sake of pride. They don't side with their innocent people at all.

They are obstinate presidents. It would be better for them to fight a duel, which would stop them from victimizing innocent civilians.

In my opinion, it is of no avail to fight a superpower like America.

I'm of the opinion that it would be better for the smaller country to surrender to the more powerful country. Admitting defeat would in a way create peace as the superpower, the arrogant country, would help nurture those who obey them.

If Iraq were to surrender, the U.S. would stop waging war and that would save many lives. Iraq would also no longer face economic sanctions. Surrendering would be the safest way to survive.

I think surrendering would also be favorable for our country under the same circumstances. We could bow to the superpower to acknowledge its power without losing our sovereignty. By being concerned only about our self-esteem or pride, we would be harming our country because we could not possibly compare ourselves with powers like the U.S. and its allies.

Peace and the survival of many lives are far more crucial. War is no longer acceptable in this era.

I completely disagree with the idea to boycott the products of the U.S. and its allies. It's stupid and would be impossible because we are dependent upon such countries. We have to admit that our people have not reached the stage of brilliance where we can be independent. That's why the other countries tend to play the fool with us.

-- Leo Wahyudi S