Joy and caution at Saddam capture

By Martin Banks

Date: 18/12/03

EUROPEAN Parliament leaders were united in congratulating the US this week following the capture of Saddam Hussein, though they stressed that it would not solve Iraq's problems overnight.

Silvio Berlusconi, in Strasbourg to report on the outcome of last weekend's somewhat overshadowed EU summit, joined political group chiefs in welcoming the news of the 66-year-old former tyrant's arrest.

"Iraq can start to grow, both politically and economically and we will soon see a democratically elected government in the country," the Italian premier told the deputies.

His comments were echoed by Hans-Gert Pöttering, leader of the European People's Party, who said:"The arrest of this criminal will speed up real development in Iraq."

Socialist group leader Enrique Barón Crespo voiced caution: "Saddam's arrest does not mean that Iraq's problems will disappear. If anything, it emphasizes more than ever the need for a multilateral approach."

Daniel Cohn-Bendit, joint leader of the Greens-European Free Alliance group, while describing Saddam's capture as "wonderful news", added: "As long as Iraq is occupied, Iraqis will still feel they have no say in their future."

Liberal Democrat group leader Graham Watson and Jens-Peter Bonde, of the Europe for Democracy and Diversities group, agreed that Saddam should now be tried before an international war crimes tribunal.

Parliament's President Pat Cox said: "It is obviously good news and will, hopefully, help Iraq get back to democracy.

"However, this remains a very complex challenge and there is still a real security problem in the country.

"I fear the security problems there are more complex than one person, whatever that person's political weight."

Their views echoed the reactions of EU leaders following news of the former tyrant's discovery on Saturday (13 December), in a "spider hole" near Ad Dwar, south of his home town of Tikrit.

Javier Solana, the EU high representative for foreign affairs, predicted the capture would "contribute to the stability of the country and to accelerating its reconstruction and democratization".

European Commission President Romano Prodi said that Saddam had suffered "the habitual end for all dictators".

France and Germany, both vehement opponents of the war, were generous in their response.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder sent a message of congratulations to President George W. Bush, saying: "It is with great joy that I learned of the capture of Saddam Hussein. I hope that his arrest will help the efforts of the international community in the reconstruction and stabilization of Iraq."

A spokeswoman said French President Jacques Chirac had rejoiced at the news, adding: "It is a major event which should strongly contribute to the democratization and stabilization of Iraq." His Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said: "France is ready to take its full place within the framework of deeper cooperation with all of its partners.

"The page of the Iraqi dictatorship has been turned by this."

UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said the dictator's capture removed the shadow that has been hanging over Iraqis "of the nightmare of a return to the Saddam regime".

"The tiny minority of Iraqis who wanted Saddam back must now know their cause is a futile one," Bush's staunchest ally in the war said in a televised address.

In Poland, which commands a multinational division of 9,000 troops in southern Iraq, President Aleksander Kwasniewski hailed the capture as "a great success" for the coalition, adding that it would enable a quicker transfer of responsibility to the Iraqis.

Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar said that the groups that had been sowing terror in Iraq were "closer to defeat".

Foreign Minister Teresa Gouveia of Portugal, another country that supported the invasion, said the arrest was "an enormous contribution to the reconciliation and reconstruction of Iraq".

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the Iraqis could now look forward to "one of history's most gruesome dictators" being held accountable for his actions.

His Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen, meanwhile, said that the most interesting question of whether Saddam had stocked weapons of mass destruction still remained unanswered.

NATO chief George Robertson said the capture was "excellent news" and would help to stabilize Iraq.

"This will help to build democracy in Iraq and bring about the reconstruction," his spokesman said. "We hope that it will lessen the terrorist acts against the coalition forces and the Iraqi population itself."

The US president has said that Saddam should pay the "ultimate penalty" for his crimes - comments that put him at odds with member states and the UN, who oppose capital punishment.

However, he insisted the Iraqi people should decide what punishment their former leader deserved.