WASHINGTON, DC – Today, His Excellency, the Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio, J.C.D., Archbishop for the Military Services, USA, issued a statement on U.S. Military assaults against suspected drug smugglers at sea. Go here to read the full statement, which says in part:
“In the fight against drugs, the end never justifies the means, which must be moral, in accord with the principles of the just war theory, and always respectful of the dignity of each human person. No one can ever be ordered to commit an immoral act, and even those suspected of committing a crime are entitled to due process under the law. As the moral principle forbidding the intentional killing of noncombatants is inviolable, it would be an illegal and immoral order to kill deliberately survivors on a vessel who pose no immediate lethal threat to our armed forces….
“Our Nation has a long tradition of responding to injustice, liberating the oppressed, and leading the free world. We cannot tarnish that reputation with questionable actions that fail to respect the dignity of the human person and the rule of law. Efforts to end the drug trade and their illicit use must never exclude employing the rule of law. To be the best, we must give example and do what is right. When we allow the moral law to guide our actions, we not only protect the innocent, we protect our men and women in uniform. These principles have nothing to do with partisan politics, right, left, or center.
“I call on our Nation’s leaders, legislators, and those specifically charged to direct our Armed Forces to respect the consciences of those who raise their right hands to defend and protect the Constitution by not asking them to engage in immoral actions. Show the world our respect for human dignity and the rule of law.”