Right to Refuse to Kill

Ivano-Frankivsk police told Protestant conscientious objector Vitaly Alekseenko "to be ready to be taken to prison" on 20 February. He lost his appeal against his one-year jail term on 16 January. "The court gave me the decision to take him to prison. It's my job to carry this out," the police officer told Forum 18. His would be the first wartime conscientious objector jailing. "Unfortunately, the right to alternative service does not extend to martial law," said Viktor Yelensky of the State Service for Ethnic Policies and Freedom of Conscience.

On the 20th of February 2023, we - Nash Dom, Ukrainian Pacifist Movement, Connection e.V., Federation for Social Defence, European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, International Fellowship of Reconciliation, Agir pour la paix and War Resisters’ International – call for demonstrations outside Belarusian embassies across Europe. These protests will draw attention to the danger of Belarus joining Russia by sending military personnel to attack Ukraine.

You’re invited to the webinar series “The right to conscientious objection to military service in times of war”. The series will include a number of webinars each focusing on a particular conflict zone with the participation of conscientious objectors and campaigners on conscientious objection to military service. This first webinar will take place on 9th February at 4pm CET with the participation of activists from Ukraine, Colombia and Eritrea.

In Ukraine, on 16 January 2023, Ivano-Frankivsk Appeal Court rejected the appeal of 46-year-old Christian Vitaly Alekseenko against his conviction for refusing call up to the military on conscientious grounds. The organisations signing this statement express their full solidarity with Vitaly Alekseenko and urge the Ukrainian authorities to drop all charges against him immediately. The organisations underline that his conviction occurs in the context that Ukraine has suspended the right of conscientious objection in the current emergency and call for the relevant decree to be immediately reversed.

On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, 21st September, Connection e.V., the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, the European Office for Conscientious Objection and War Resisters’ International have launched a signature campaign for deserters and conscientious objectors from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Read more and sign here.

In a joint appeal to members of the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, a broad civil society alliance from 20 countries has called on the European governments to grant protection and asylum to Russian and Belarusian as well as Ukrainian conscientious objectors and deserters. They need immediate protection and asylum.

This article was first published on the Forum 18 website on 16th December 2022.

Mark Romankov, aged 22, had attended university in Germany for some prior to 2022. It was during the days just before the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops that he returned to Germany – and sought asylum just there soon after.

No legal or practical provision exists for alternative civilian service (ACS) during mobilisation, despite the Constitution guaranteeing this right for every citizen. This has led to military recruitment offices refusing applications for ACS and sending conscientious objectors to military units.

This Thursday, 1st December, is Prisoners for Peace Day, a day to show solidarity with those activists who have been imprisoned for their work for peace and conscientious objectors imprisoned for their refusal to take up arms.

This year, we want to highlight the situation of many people in Russia and Ukraine that are imprisoned or facing imprisonment for resisting the current war in Ukraine. 

You can find the list of Prisoners for Peace here.

Yekaterinburg-based artist Ivan Lyubimov has been fined three times for "discrediting" Russia's armed forces for protesting against Russia's war in Ukraine with posters with religious themes. Police have also taken him to court twice for conducting an illegal demonstration and jailed him for 30 days. A Moscow court fined 72-year-old Catholic Galina Borisova for pinning a note to the Russian flag outside St Louis' Church. Another Moscow court acquitted district deputy Konstantin Yankauskas, saying that reposting Pope Francis' words on social media had not "discredited" the army.

This Thursday, 1st December, is Prisoners for Peace Day, a day to show solidarity with those activists who have been imprisoned for their work for peace and conscientious objectors imprisoned for their refusal to take up arms. See a list of those imprisoned for their peace activism and conscientious objection here.