t e-anco VOL. 35, NO. 39
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Friday, October 4,1991
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Bishops welcome nuclear arms cuts WASHINGTON (CNS) - With his nationally televised announcement of unilateral nuclear arms cuts Sept. 27, President Bush moved U.S. nuclear policy substantially in the directions urged by the U.S. Catholic bishops since the early 1980s. One key element of the plan the withdrawal and destruction of alliarid-base U.S. tactical nuclear weapons from Europe and elsewhere around the world - corresponds to several principles the nation's bishops spelled out in their 1983 pe'ace pastoral and their 1988 follow-up assessment of U.S. deterrence policy. Another - Bush's invitation to negotiated elimination of all multiple-warhead intercontinental ballistic missiles - also corresponds to one of the main concerns of the bishops. "I'm very enthusiastic," said Archbishop John R. Roach of St. Paul-Minneapolis in a telephone interview. "This is the first major [arms reduction] initiative on the part of the U.S. since the sands shifted" in the global superpower structure. When the U.S. bishops urged' such unilateral actions amid the Cold War atmosphere ofthe 1980s, "it seemed like a rather forlorn hope," said the archbishop, who
heads the U.S. bishops' Interna- terms of "the method as well as the content." tional Policy Committee. In interviews both Carr and "What I was more pleased about than anything," he said, is the po- Father Hehir emphasized that the litical impact of the initiative, be- bishops had urged "independent cause it opens up "the possibility initiatives" to break down political of a significant kind of statesman- barriers to nuclear disarmament and speed up negotiations. ship" on world arms control. "These are substantive initia"Mathematically, not a lot happened," he said. "There's still a tives," Father Hehir said. He said huge nuclear arsenal. There's still Bush's method of approach - by a huge arsenal of conventional unilateral initiative - was espeweapons. The idea of chemical cially significant because an arms and biological weapons really treaty typically involves "prolonged frightens me. The whole question 'negotiations" over several years. Carr praised Bush's "focus on of the arms trade around the world needs to be addressed .... This is [eliminating] tactical weapons." "This goes after the most destanot a total package." But with the rapidly changing bilizing weapons," he said. - Specifically, Bush announced world political situation, he said, the nuclear initiative puts the Uni- that land-based nuclear-tipped ted States in a leadership position artillery shells and short-range on arms control and "sends a mes- ballistic missile nuclear warheads sage that it's not going to be busi- will be returned to the United States, dismantled and destroyed. ness as usual." The new Bush policy "is a very He also said all tactical nuclear serious step forward," said John weapons on ships, submarines and Carr, U.S. Catholic Conference land-based naval aircraft will be secn,tary for social development withdrawn and either qestroyed or and world peace. "Clearly it is a consolidated in "secured central areas." step towards a safer world." Father J. Bryan' Hehir of The bishops had opposed tactiGeorgetown University, who was cal weapons on several ,counts. chief staff analyst for the 'bishops As battle-theater weapons, the in the drafting of their 1983 and bishops said, they "have the effect 1988 statements, called the new of lowering the nuclear threshold Bush policy "extraordinary" in and blurring the difference between
nuclear and conventional weapons." Their placement in areas "likely to be overrun in the early stages of war" could cause "rapid arid uncontrollable decisions on their use," the bishops said. Carr praised Bush's decision to take the nation's strategic nuclear bomber force and Minuteman II missiles off 24-hour alert, saying these were important steps "for symbolic reasons." The actions signal a major effort to move away from the hair-trigger deterrence stance that the United States arid Soviet Union have operated under for decades. With the sharp reductions in strike-ready tactical and mobile weapons, Bush announced that he was moving to consolidate and streamline the operational command structure over U.S. nuclear weapons. This corresponds to the bishops' calls in 1983 and 1988 for "strengthening of command and control over nuclear weapons to prevent inadvertent and unauthorized use." Carr said he was "reluctant" to criticize the Bush initiative in terms of the various goals of the bishops that it does not achieve or address. "This is the beginning of a process, not the end.... There are still a lot more cuts that can be made,
but it is important to look at the achievements here," he said. Father Hehir said the Bush initiative still does not meet the bishops' goal of "deep cuts" in the U.S. and Soviet nuclear arsenals. "We can still go a lot deeper." "Also, the question of targeting is not taken up here," he said. The bishops have repeatedly expressed strong reservations and doubts as to whether any nuclear targeting policy can adequately preserve the moral principle of non-combatant immunity. -Bush did not address a nuclear test ban, which the bishops support, but Father Hehir noted that Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, who has initiated a unilateral test ban on the Soviet side, brought that up in his first public response to the Bush plan. Bush supported continuation of the Strategic Defense Initiative program, about which the bishops expressed major reservations in 1988. Father Hehir said "the nature of the debate over SDI is changing," so what the bishops said in 1988 cannot be ,simply transposed to 1991. When first proposed by President Reagan, he noted, SDI was viewed as a defense system against Turn to Page 13
Questions linger after Jesuit murders conviction SAN SALVADOR(CNS)- A versity have yet to be brought to five-member civilian jury tookjust justice. a few hours Sept. 28 to decide the The jury found Army Col. Guilguilt of two army officers in the , lermo A. Benavides guilty on all murder trial of six Jesuit priests, eight counts of murder and Lt. their housekeeper and her daughter. Yusshy Rene Mendoza guilty in But Jesuits observing the trials the murder of l6-year-old Celina said, as they always have, that the Ramos. the daughter of the Jesuits' instigators of the massacre on the cook. , campus of Central American UniAnother army lieutenant, a non~
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commissioned officer and five enlisted men were acquitted by the jury. Auxiliary Bishop Gregorio Rosa Chavez of San Salvador said'in a Sept. 29 homily that the church is "not satisfied" with the verdict. "It is all too clear that there are intellectual authors of the crimes and that these have not been convicted," he said. The trial. which by Salvadoran law could have lasted up to 15 days, came to a quick conclusion Sept. 28 after defense and prosecution attorneys rested their case. Fourth Penal Court Judge Ricardo Zamora has 30 days to hand down a sentence for' the two military officers convicted. Both men could be sentenced to 20-30 years in prison. Following the convictions, the Washington-based Jesuit Conference said while the outcome was hopeful, several questions 'about the murders remain unanswered. "Could Col. Benavides and Lt. Mendoza actually have acted independently of their su'perior officers?" the conference asked in a Sept. 30 statement. "We doubt it.•, It also asked whethe(
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- The officers will receive special treatment after sentencing. - The case will begin reform of the Salvadoran judiciary.
- The proceedings were a "show trial" for international consumption. - The jurors and their families, who received death threats, are in such danger they will be forced to flee the country. According to press reports, as the trial was about to begin, leading Jesuits had repeated to repor-
ters their claim that the.defendants' were not the only military personnel involved in the November 1989 murders. Father Miguel Estrada, rector of the Central American University, said that the Jesuit order could accept a verdict of innocent for the defendants only if they Turn to Page 13
Diocese of Fall River All the parishes ofthe Fall River and New Bedford Deaneries of the Diocese of Fall River are partic:ipatingin CAI:.LED BY NAME, a program of vocation awareness that begins this weekend. This program offers an opportunity for us to pray for vOcations; to recognize gifts and potential for leadership and service in members of our parish; and finally, to call forth and encourage these members to share their gifts in the priesthood and religious life. Please pray for the success of this pr,ogram and for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
,.,.. ,,(ftA.--_.:....L. &. . GOb u Bishop of Fan River
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