The following statement was issued on the above date by The Bishop of Derby to regional media in relation to mounting anxiety about possible war with Iraq. A statement made by the Very Rev'd Michael Perham, Dean of Derby on January 20th also follows below.

"Most bishops and other clergy have no privileged insights as to how to stabilise the Middle East, but they can confront society with the overwhelming imperatives of peace and justice, pointing in those directions which offer promise.

"Debates in the House of Lords, for which I have been present, have reiterated that disarming Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction is best pursued by facilitating and strengthening the work of UN weapons inspectors and that a conclusive case has yet to be made in favour of military action against Iraq.

"Only this week in the House of Lords I was able to seek a response from the Minister to a report last month to the UN Security Council, which addressed a serious degradation of the Iraqi infrastructure - electricity, water, food, sanitation - in the event of military action. A tide of refugees would be inevitable. I wanted to know what contingency humanitarian plans the Government had in hand or in prospect. No details were forthcoming but I was assured of the Government's concern.

"Iraq has neither attacked nor threatened the USA. In contrast, in 1990 the Gulf War happened because Kuwait sought allies in its self-defence against Saddam’s invasion. So this must not become an East–West polarisation. In our inner cities, not least Derby itself, action outside the UN increases a serious risk of a blurred confusion in the public perception. That in turn could threaten the equilibrium locally between different ethnic and faith communities. Since 9/11, minorities, not just Muslims, have felt vulnerable, with their identity as British citizens questioned. As a church we are working on that front with steps to anticipate such dangers.

"In their public statements the churches acknowledge that ultimately force may be necessary, but the world is not yet at that point. There are earlier steps to be taken. In the actions we have taken so far we are simply delivering our mandate from HQ: “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you” and “blessed are the peacemakers”. These words of Christ echo in St. Paul’s injunction, “Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good”.

The Rt Rev'd Jonathan Bailey, Bishop of Derby

The Dean of Derby, The Very Revd Michael Perham, spoke out strongly against the likelihood of a war against Iraq.

Preaching in the Cathedral’s Bridge Chapel, he said:

"There are insufficient grounds for war at this juncture. We are not at the last resort stage.

"First of all there is not yet incontrovertible evidence that Iraq possesses effective weapons of mass destruction. Secondly, even if it has, there has been no threat to use them. Thirdly, there is no compelling reason why Iraq should be disarmed in preference to other equally dangerous states that are just as much in breach of United Nations resolutions and that make no secret of their possession of nuclear weaponry. If there were incontrovertible evidence of a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda, the matter might be different, but there has been no such evidence given to us."

He went on to list three dangerous consequences of a war:

1. We cannot say with any confidence that a war will improve the situation. On the contrary, we can say that, if Iraq has a chemical arsenal, a first strike by the west is the single provocation most likely to cause its use.

2. We can also see that a war could have a devastatingly destabilising effect on the whole of the Middle East, which is always a tinder box.

3. More locally, we would fear a decline in good community and inter-faith relations in our towns and cities. We only have to have British casualties in the Gulf for some communities in this land to turn sour - and there are malicious racist people just ready to take advantage of that mood. Not, I hope, in Derby, where we have good community relations and handle tensions well. But not so very far away we know that it doesn’t take much for violence to break out.

The Dean spoke strongly in support of the Anglican Bishops’ Statement on Iraq last week and he ended by saying:

". . So upon us all is laid the duty of passionate prayer. For some political action will also seem right. For those whose voices can be heard in the community there is a duty to speak out. The path down which we seem to be going at some speed is premature and therefore wrong."

For further details or the full text of the Dean's sermon contact:
Melanie Allen, Cathedral Marketing Officer, on 01332 341201

Or

The Very Revd Michael Perham, Dean of Derby,: Tel 01332 341201 (Cathedral Office)