Political Quotes

“I would like to include for the Record a publication from the International Civil Society Action Network, ``What the Women Say: Killing Them Softly: The Stark Impact of Sanctions on the Lives of Ordinary Iranians.'' What the Women Say: Killing Them Softly: The Stark Impact of Sanctions on the Lives of Ordinary Iranians--Brief 3: July 2012 The unprecedented, devastating and counterproductive impact of sanctions, coupled with the on-and-off threat of war, is an ever-growing reality in the lives of ordinary Iranians. For the generation of Iranians whose childhood was punctured by nightly bombings, fear of chemical attacks, and eight years of death and destruction resulting from the Iran-Iraq war, the current state of uncertainty, prospects of hardship and unraveling of the lives they rebuilt is overwhelming. In New York, London, Washington and Brussels the rationale for sanctions vary. Central to the case is the notion that only crippling sanctions can slow Iran's nuclear program and bring about change. A number of the sanctions also target state institutions and individuals implicated in human rights violations. Regardless of their political leanings, among western leaders, policymakers and pundits, no one denies that economic sanctions are blunt instruments that typically harm the civilian population far more than the state.…”