Webinar: Conscientious objection to military service in Turkey (date updated)
(Updated) Date and time: November 21, 2020, 2pm UTC (3pm CET, 5pm Turkish Time)
This autumn the Conscientious Objection Association (Vicdani Ret Derneği) in Istanbul has launched a new project. The association would like to start a campaign and lobby work to gather international support for pushing the human right to conscientious objection in Turkey. The project also includes research and documentation of the particularly difficult situation of draft evaders and conscientious objectors (COs).
In Turkey, the right to conscientious objection is not recognised and COs face a lifetime persecution, with repeated charges. Alongside hundreds of thousands of draft evaders, conscientious objectors face “civil death”, which means they cannot work legally with social security, travel freely, vote in elections or stand for an office, as well as being charged with multiple fines for not attending the military. In other words, they are robbed off their civil rights. The situation hasn’t changed despite multiple decisions by the European Court for Human Rights prosecuting Turkey for its treatment of COs.
We invite you to participate in a webinar where we will discuss:
- The general situation of conscientious objectors in Turkey today,
- The project of the Conscientious Objection Association,
- How to develop and strengthen the campaign for COs.
The last point is a question to you as well. Would it be possible to strengthen the campaign of the CO Association by organising online meetings with parliamentarians or other high level politicians in your country?
We would be happy to see you at our webinar on 21st November (2pm UTC), to discuss the situation and how we can support the CO association's project.
Registration and background information
It's a free event but registration is required.
Please register here (no later than 19th November): https://wri-irg.org/en/story/2020/registration-form-conscientious-objection-military-service-turkey-webinar
Background information could be found at www.Connection-eV.org/CO_Turkey, www.wri-irg.org, https://vicdaniret.org
This webinar is organised by Connection e.V., War Resisters’ International, Vicdani Ret Derneği, European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, International Fellowship of Reconciliation
We have had a kind offer from an individual donor, who will match up to £5,000 of donations from others - so by supporting War Resisters' International today your donation is worth double!