Resolution
Adopted by the CCAR
Call
for Immediate Action to Halt the Genocide in Bosnia-Herzegovina
Adopted by the 104th Annual
Convention of
the Central Conference of American Rabbis
Montreal, Quebec, June 1993
(Due to
the time-sensitive nature of this issue, the full text of this
resolution
to be presented at the
convention is subject to change.) As we mark the 50th anniversary
of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising by
resolving that “never again” will we stand by and
allow attempts to commit genocide to go unopposed,
we the victims and children of victims
of silence are gratified that, though belatedly, the world has
come to grips with
lessons learned
during the Holocaust. We call upon the Canadian and American public
to join us in imploring our
government to assume its rightful moral responsibility
and global leadership by taking the
following decisive measures to end this barbarity.
WHEREAS, we call upon the governments of the United
States and Canada to be more vigilant
to stand up to genocide and “ethnic cleansing” in the
future.
WHEREAS, we hope that the
world will respond in a more timely fashion to any current
or future actions of genocide and ethnic
cleansing.
WHEREAS, we call for
the immediate lifting of the arms embargo in order to provide
defenseless Bosnians with the means
to defend themselves.
WHEREAS, we
call for an increase in humanitarian aid to the civilian
population.
WHEREAS, we call for
maximizing the isolation of Serbia in the world community through
the imposition of more severe
economic and diplomatic sanctions.
WHEREAS, we call upon members of the Conference to exercise
their moral leadership
in the
implementation of this resolution.
WHEREAS, we call for the immediate implementation of all these
measures before the
of the Bosnian
population is completed as the world stands
by.
We hope that as a nation whose highest
principle incorporates a commitment to individual
and human rights, we will be able to look back upon
this tragic episode and say in
good
conscience that our country did what was humanly possible to stop the
carnage, save lives, and promote peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina.