Calling the petitioners to send their demands to Turkeys chief politicians the petititon encourages Turkeys leaders to stand firm for peace and recalls that in the long run Turkey will receive economic and political help from the entire world that far exceeds that promised by the US.
The petition read as foloows:
Mr. Ahmet Necdet Sezer , President of the Republic of Turkey
Mr. Bulent Arinc , Speaker of the Turkish Parliament
Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan , Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey
Esteemed representatives of the Turkish Parliament
We are following the threat of war, led by the US and England, in defiance of the majority of world opinion, and even the UN, with great anxiety. We recognize the critical position of Turkey at this juncture. We were encouraged by the Turkish parliament's March 1, 2003 decision not to approve the resolution that would have granted US troops permission to use Turkey as a northern front for military action and would have sent Turkish armed forces into Iraq.
By not passing this resolution, Turkey has shown the entire world, most of which is against this war, the tremendous potential it possesses to stop the war and secure peace in the region. By doing so, Turkey has won the hearts of millions of world citizens. Furthermore, Turkey made such a decision in spite of the economic and political incentives constantly highlighted by the US.
We understand the challenges Turkey faces in standing up to such pressure . But please know that Turkey can make significant contributions to the efforts to stop this war, or can at least choose to not participate in this war crime. If Turkey can maintain its current stance and does not join those responsible for the possible war crimes, in the long run it will receive economic and political help from the entire world that far exceeds that promised by the US . We hope that you will take seriously the enormous goodwill that has been created towards Turkey and that you will not value it less than short term gains. We hope to see Turkey as a peace loving country, not a war criminal or collaborator.
Respectfully,
