Statement from Women in Black against war, Serbia, on the attacks on New York City and Washington DC

Announcement against terrorism and war threats

We join in the condemnation of terrorist attacks and we deplore most sincerely all the victims of the outrageous attacks on New York and Washington on 11th September 2001. At the same time, our sympathy is with the wounded and with the families and friends of the casualties in these attacks. It is our opinion that all the participants in this brutal act have to be brought to justice.

Nevertheless, we believe that it is imperative to resist the drive for retaliation. The war against terror that is being announced by the USA and their allies will cause the loss of many innocent lives and will further aggravate the existing gap between the West and the Muslim world. In order to stop the circle of violence, we urge that the racist campaign waged by the West against the Muslim population and Islamic culture be stopped and that a concerted effort be put in finding a non-violent solution against terrorism in the world.

We demand from the Serbian authorities to deal with the problem of terrorism in a thoughtful and responsible way. We denounce taking advantage of the 11th September tragedy in order to conduct a lynch policy toward members of Muslim denomination in this area, under the pretext of fighting terrorism. Implementing a belligerent policy, mirroring the policies of the American, Israeli, Russian and other governments, means directly assuming responsibility for divisions between "us" and "them", and sharpening differences between us. We expect that our political and military authorities will pool their efforts in search for non-violent strategies that lead to a solution to this problem, in the belief that non-violence and respecting differences are the only way to achieve peace.