Break out peace, since violence hasn’t worked

Fr. Peter Vasko, President of the Fransiscan Foudation for the Holy Land, has released this statement:

“Today, more than ever, confusion, hate, and mistrust among the people of Palestine, the people of Israel and the people of Lebanon continues to soar. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Michel Sabbah said years ago… ‘Military victories by themselves do not bring about security. Only peace built on justice and the respect of human rights could bring about security.’

These are very dark days for this region. The Franciscan Foundation echoes the voice of the Holy Father, Pope Beneict XVI when he said, ‘The three pillars for a stable peace in the region are the right of the Lebanese to the integrity and sovereignty of their country, the right of the Israelis to live in peace in their state, and the right of the Palestinians to have a free and sovereign homeland.’ We also call for an immediate ceasefire among the parties, and for President Bush to use his power to restore a sense of fairness among the conflicting groups.

We abhor the killing of innocent men, women and children on all sides and call for a cessation of violence. For Hezbollah or Hamas to think that the sending of more and more rockets to Israel is going to force the Israelis to raise the white flag, or for the Israeli government to think that continual bombing of Lebanon or Gaza with more sophisticated bomgs or missiles will bring Hamas or Hezbollah to ‘their knees’, is sadly mistaken.

It has proven to be futile! Instead, all sides must cease their attacks and return to a sane policy based on reciprocity, compromise, and reasonability. It is then that an international force must be put in place to keep that peace.”

The FFHL is one of the few groups in the Middle East struggling daily to bring vital relief to a war-torn people, to restore their dignity and give them hope. Their daily work is to build the infrastructure of support, education, employment, housing and the free practice of religious beliefs.

Their site is www.ffhl.org.