#RefuseWar Everywhere! - Take action with us on 15th May

On May 15, the International Conscientious Objection Day, we want to send out a powerful joint message for peace and the right to refuse to kill. Especially in times of global armed conflict, it is more important than ever to promote public debate on conscription, conscientious objection and alternatives to the military.

Through #RefuseWar international action we have been able to collect voices from around the world standing for peace and objecting to war.

The International Conscientious Objection Day is an opportunity to restate our commitment and to raise our voice against war and in favor of disarmament. This is becoming even more urgent because of all the new plans and public discussions on the so-called need for re-armament and stronger armed defence by many State actors across the world today.

Therefore, we invite you to reinvigorate the #RefuseWar international action in solidarity with all those who object to war and refuse to take up arms break their weapons  all around the world. Write your solidarity messages with conscientious objectors, as well as your own refusal to war, using our website here: www.refusewar.org.

There are more ideas of what could be done. You can find out more at https://objectwarcampaign.org/en/ideas-for-organizing-an-event-during-the-action-week-around-the-international-human-rights-day/

War is being waged around the world

War is currently being waged in many countries today – from Ukraine, Russia to Palestine/Israel, to Sudan to Turkey, to Syria, Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of Congo and elsewhere.

The response of governments is militarization instead of peace processes

Global arms exports, including to armed conflicts areas, are on the rise. Arms production is being boosted. Military and armaments budgets are being significantly increased and financed with additional loans. Instead of preventing wars, the focus is placed on being able to wage wars. In many countries, reintroduction of conscription has been implemented or discussed. Peace is referred to, incongruously, as an ultimate outcome of a stronger militarized initiative or compromise backed by threats, instead of an objective based on negotiations, multilateralism, human rights and conflict resolution process alternative to war.

Conscientious objection to military service is a human right

Open borders to war refugees

Protect persecuted opponents to war!

There is no just outcome in war

Politicians and officials increasingly talk about the need to achieve a just outcome for one of the sides in a war, forgetting about the consequences that war brings to the people it affects. There is no just result in war. War is not a sports event where those sitting in comfort cheer for one team or another. War means death and destruction that must be stopped.

Rejection of refugees

Asylum seekers are turned away and access to asylum procedures is effectively stopped. The right to asylum is being suspended. Refugees are illegally turned back at external borders via pushbacks.

War refusers

We need to remember, in all countries at war, there are also people who refuse to go to war, who actively campaign for peace, who resist militarization and war. Soldiers on the front line want to lay down their weapons in the face of horror. Others are resisting forced recruitment. They do not want to kill other people and do not want to die in a war. They all face repression and prison sentences for doing so.

Conscientious objection to military service is an important building block for overcoming war and thus death and destruction in war.

• We demand unrestricted compliance with the human right to conscientious objection, even and especially during a war.
• We demand protection and asylum for all war refugees, persecuted conscientious objectors and opponents of war.

We support them!

We invite all of you to take action and:

• Use the hashtags #RefuseWar and #ObjectWarCampaign
• Post pictures, videos and messages on your social media referring to www.objectwarcampaign.org or www.refusewar.org
• Use www.refusewar.org to upload individual messages and to spread them. (You can also add there a link to your personal social media posting)
• Let us know in advance what you are planning, at which time and place. We will publish it on www.objectwarcampaign.org

Let’s be creative, loud and visible against war and stand taller for peace and the human right to conscientious objection to military service!