9/16/07

Tutu: Poverty fueling terror

The global "war on terror" can't be won if people are living in "desperate" conditions, Archbishop Desmond Tutu told CNN.

"You can never win a war against terror as long as there are conditions in the world that make people desperate -- poverty, disease, ignorance, et cetera," the Nobel laureate said.

Tutu said the disparity between the rich and poor in parts of the world causes instability and insecurity, but added that he was hopeful the relationship between the two was becoming clear.

"I think people are beginning to realize that you can't have pockets of prosperity in one part of the world and huge deserts of poverty and deprivation and think that you can have a stable and secure world," he said.

The former head of South Africa's Anglican church is an advocate of reconciliation, and he often speaks out against violence and is a frequent critic of human rights abusers. Tutu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his vocal opposition and leadership against South Africa's apartheid system -- a government-sanctioned policy of racial separation which ended in 1994.

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