CO UPDATE

Editorial

Welcome to the May issue of CO-Update - focusing on International Conscientious Objectors' Day See below and main story).

Other developments are the Armed Forces Bill in Britain, and the situation in Colombia - the recent developments in the case of conscientious objector Gustavo Monroy are only one example.

Please watch out for War Resisters' International at the European Social Forum in Athens, and send us your reports of International Conscientious Objectors' Day.

Andreas Speck

Upcoming events

Operation Refuse War

15 May - International Conscientious Objectors Day

For more information, contact the WRI Office, or check for updates on www.operationrefusewar.org.

Globalising Nonviolence, 23-27 July 2006, Germany

• Are you interested in both nonviolence and globalisation?
• Are you campaigning against war?
• Are you involved in nonviolent direct action or curious to learn more?

The War Resisters' International conference Globalising Nonviolence will be a great opportunity to meet activists from all over the world, to get to know what makes them tick, and to see how you can help each make another world possible. Around the world, a movement of movements is converging. This movement seeks to counterpose the perspective and values of people's power to those of global financial institutions, transnational corporations or governments. This is a movement of globalisation from below.

WRI believes that this movement of movements has a major role to play in this globalisation from below. Hence the theme of our upcoming international conference - Globalising Nonviolence.

Conference discussions will:

• Analyse the contemporary situation of economic, cultural and political globalisation. How are capitalist globalisation and militarism related?
• Develop strategies for nonviolent resistance towards the unjust aspects of globalisation. How do we create nonviolent social change?
• Bring together people from the globalisation critical movement and WRI's network of pacifists and anti-militarists for mutual exchange of ideas on nonviolent opportunities for resistance.
• Strengthen networks and create new links between activists from all over the world.

More information at www.globalisingnonviolence.org

CO-Update

Monthly email newsletter of WRI's Right to Refuse to Kill Programme
War Resisters' International, 5 Caledonian Road, London N1 9DX, Britain; tel +44-20-7278 4040; fax +44-20-7278 0444; email co-update-editor@wri-irg.org

Subscribe/
Unsubscribe

To subscribe, you can go to the website of this list, or send an email.
To unsubscribe, send an email to co-update-unsubscribe
@lists.wri-irg.org.

Donate to WRI!

War Resisters' International depends on your donations to be able to carry out its work. Donate to WRI online now at wri-irg.org/en/donate-en.htm.

International Conscientious Objectors Day

15th May is International Conscientious Objectors' Day, and in 2006 War Resisters' International focuses on the situation of and support to US war resisters: GIs applying for conscientious objector status, going AWOL, or finding other ways to get discharged from the military. War Resisters' International has joined with many US peace organisations to organise International Conscientious Objectors' Day in the USA - a series of international events under the title Operation Refuse War, culminating in an International Conference of Resisters to Global War in Washington DC from 13th-14th May 2006.

But activities not only take place in New York and Washington DC. In San Francisco, Courage to Resist is organising two events: on May 15 there will be a rally, a march to a local military recruiting station, and non-violent direct action highlighting youth and members of the community directly affected by military policies. On May 14, Mothers Day, there will be an "Afternoon of Youth Perfromance Art and Short Films" to celebrate resistance to military recruiting and the growing opposition to war from witin the military at the Parkway Theatre in Oakland, CA.

On the Balkans, the peace activist Caravan entitled Objection for Peace, organised by the Regional Network of initiatives for Conscientious Objection (CO) in Southeast Europe is starting its journey through the cities of the region on Tuesday, May the 2nd and will travel until the 15th of May 2006. The Caravan will begin in Skopje and then continue through cities of Prishtina, Belgrade, Novi Sad, Osijek, Banja Luka, Sarajevo, Mostar, Šibenik, ending in Zagreb. Two of the participants of this caravan will also join the events in New York and Washington.

In Frankfurt, Germany, Connection e.V. celebrates International Conscientious Objectors' Day with a day of action. This will include the opening of an exhibition "International Work for Conscientious Objectors and Deserters", which will then be open in the Katharinen Church in Frankfurt until 5 June Mondays to Fridays from 2-6pm.

In London, there will be a International CO Day Commemoration at 12 noon at Tavistock Square with main speaker Chris Cole of Fellowship of Reconciliation.

Britain: New Armed Forces Bill will introduce punishment for refusing to be an occupier

The new Armed Forces Bill going through parliament in Britain now will introduce new harsh punishments. The new article 8 reads:

Desertion

1. A person subject to service law commits an offence if he deserts.
2. For the purposes of this Act a person deserts if he is absent without leave and—
   1. he intends to remain permanently absent without leave; or
   2. he intends to avoid any particular service or kind of service, and that service or kind of service is relevant service.
3. In this section “relevant service” means—
   1. actions or operations against an enemy;
   2. operations outside the British Islands for the protection of life or property; or
   3. military occupation of a foreign country or territory.
4. A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable to any punishment mentioned in the Table in section 163, and any sentence of imprisonment imposed in respect of the offence—
   1. if subsection (5) applies, may be for life;
   2. otherwise, must not exceed two years.
5. This subsection applies if—
   1. the offender was on relevant service or under orders for such service when he became absent without leave; or
   2. subsection (2)(b) applied to him in relation to the offence.

To sum it up: refusal to be part of an occupation can be punished with life imprsionment. This is especially worrying in relation to the recent sentencing of Malcolm Kendall-Smith to eight months imprisonment. Military Families Against the War has an online petition to protest against this new punishments. More information is also available from At Ease, a voluntary organisation providing advice and support to members of the Armed Forces.

Sources: Armed Forces Bill, as brought from the Lords and ordered by the House of Commons to be printed on 30th November 2005

Colombia: Conscientious objector accompanied to military barracks

On 25th and 26th April a delegation consisting of H.V Greisy Rodríguez, Martín from WRI affiliate Red Juvenil, Niko, a volunteer with Fundación IPO, and Eduardo Sagamoso accompanied Gustavo Monroy to the military barracks at Saravena Arauca, to settle a disciplinary case against Gustavo, following his conscientious objection.

Although the Colombian constitution recognises freedom of conscience and religion in its Article 18, the country does not recognise the right to conscientious objection. Forced recruitment is a common practice in Colombia. At bus stops, in market places, on the street the military pick up youths. Those who cannot prove that they have a military service record or have a valid reason to be exempted, are taken to recruitment centres. They are then dispersed around the country to conflict areas, border areas, forests and swamps to perform military service under very harsh and dangerous conditions - this despite Law No. 48 which states that conscripts are to perform their service in their home areas. Such forms of forced recruitment are officially denied by the armed forces.

They were told to be at the barracks at 8am, but once there were not allowed to enter, and told to return at 2pm. However, only Gustavo and his lawyer H.V. Greisy were allowed to enter, accompanied by a soldier. Once inside, the military put a lot of pressure on Gustavo Monroy, and avoided any formal taking of notes, claiming that the computer did not work. At 6pm, Gustavo was told that the procedure could not be finished on that day, and he was ordered to present himself again on the next day at 8am.

However, in consultation with his lawyer and supporters, Gustavo decided not to follow this order, and did not present himself.

Sources: Emails from Martin Rodriguez and Gustavo Monroy, 26 and 27 April 2006

Recent co-alerts

In the previous month, the WRI office issued the following co-alerts:
(a full archive of co-alerts is available at wri-irg.org/news/alerts)

• UK14787-170406: BRITAIN: Conscientious objector sentenced to eight month in prison
• TK14682-110406: TURKEY: Police searching for Turkish/Kurdish CO Halil Savda / fear of safety
• ISR14786-100406: ISRAEL: Occupation refuser Aviv Sela sentenced to 21 days imprisonment