Like many of you, I have watched with growing concern the story of the downed Korean airliner that has dominated the news these past few weeks. The Soviet attack on the jetliner was shocking and painful enough, but the official U.S. response has only compounded the tragedy. We have listened in vain for a sane voice and perspective to be brought to these sad events. Instead, the air has been filled with words that have generated much more heat than light.
At such a time one longs for a president who is more a leader than an ideologue. If we had such a president, we might have heard a statement something like this ...
"Today we have received the tragic news of the downing of south Korean airlines flight 007 and the death of all 269 passengers aboard. The ill-fated jetliner was en route from Anchorage, Alaska, to Seoul, South Korea, and apparently strayed off course, penetrating Soviet airspace near the Sakhalin Island. After being tracked by Soviet air defense for two-and-a-half hours, flight 007 was shot down by a Soviet fighter plane using a heat-seeking missile that utterly destroyed the plane and all the people on board.
"We are filled with a deep sense of grief and outrage over this inexplicable act of violence. Our hearts and our prayers go out to the families and friends of those who have become the latest victims of aggressive military violence.
"Thus far the Soviet Union has not provided the full facts and an adequate explanation of this horrible event. Many questions remain. Chief among them is the question—why was this civilian airliner shot down? Did Soviet air defense know that this plane was a civilian jetliner with passengers aboard? And if not, why not?
"We understand that the plane was flying over strategic and sensitive Soviet military installations, but that does not justify this deadly act. Even if the plane had been a reconnaissance plane, or a commercial airliner being used for reconnaissance as perhaps feared by the Soviet Union, other courses of action are available and should always be pursued as an alternative to such precipitous and violent reactions.
"This assault is against more than the passengers of flight 007 and their loved ones. It is also an assault on the safety and security of the international community and its increasingly vulnerable notions of legality and morality.
"The United Nations and the entire community of nations should demand a full accounting by the Soviet Union of this tragic incident, public apologies to the world community, reparation to the families of all the victims, and adequate guarantees that such an attack will never happen again. International, political, diplomatic, and economic sanctions against the Soviet Union are appropriate to the gravity of this action and should be undertaken immediately.
"However, we must all be extremely careful lest we become so self-righteous in our own indignation and anger over this incident that we become guilty of hypocrisy. The root causes of these tragic deaths are to be found in the pervasive climate of fear, distrust, and hostility that has been allowed to develop among many nations. But in particular the poisoned relations between ourselves and the Soviet Union have created a virtual war mentality. The passengers aboard flight 007 were clearly victims of that mentality. The Soviet Union is responsible for the murder of these people, but we must also share in the guilt. On such a dark day, none of us is innocent.
"For too long there has been too much rhetoric and accusation on both sides. Both superpowers have become engulfed in an escalating arms race that seems to have no end. That central reality has put the world on a nervous edge that makes events such as this inevitable.
"Unfortunately, this is not the first time unarmed and innocent civilians have been killed by the Soviet Union and its allies. Even today, in Afghanistan, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, the death toll continues to mount. But here also we must guard against hypocrisy. Innocent and unarmed civilians are also being killed in Central America, South Africa, the Philippines, and the Middle East as a result of the policies of the United States and our allies.
"We must end the practice the Bible speaks of as seeing the speck in our neighbor's eye and ignoring the log in our own. The tragic fact is that both superpowers are guilty of taking the lives of innocent and unarmed civilians.
"Painful but crucial lessons must be learned from this sobering incident. Denunciation is not enough. If we learn nothing from these horrible events, these passengers will have died in vain. The greatest tragedy of all would be for their deaths to be used to further fuel the hatred and hostility that led to this calamity in the first place. Some will even try to use this incident to justify further escalations of arms and animosity.
"At such a time of great emotion we must resist these narrow and self-serving impulses. Rather, we must allow this tragic occurrence to open our eyes and teach us some new things. Our most fitting memorial to the lives of the passengers of flight 007 would be for both the United States and the Soviet Union to admit our guilt and complicity in the creation of such a volatile and hostile international atmosphere which makes such tragedies possible. As horrible as this incident is, things far worse could happen in an atmosphere of 'shoot first and ask questions later.'
"We must recognize in the deaths of 269 airline passengers the common peril we all now face. Let us begin today, with the help of God, to reverse our dangerous course of arms escalation and political hostility. Despite our great differences and vigorous disagreements, we must not allow our conflicts to destroy us and endanger the entire world. Today, in light of this recent tragedy, I have phoned Mr. Andropov and suggested a summit conference at the earliest available opportunity.
"I hope that together we can begin to relax the tensions and lower the barriers between our nations. I am convinced that there is no other way to make our brief passage through this world a safer one for us all."
Jim Wallis is editor-in-chief of Sojourners magazine.
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