Upcoming events: 1-5 April 2009: No to war - No to NATO // 14 & 16 April: Book launch events "Conscientious Objection: Resisting Militarized Society" // 15 May - International CO Day: Focus on South Korea

1-5 April 2009: No to war - No to NATO

NATO will meet on 3 and 4 April 2009 for it's 60th anniversary summit in Strasbourg, France, and Baden Baden, Germany. Groups from all over Europe are preparing protest actions from 1-5 April 2009, which will include:

* Protest camps from 1-5 April 2009
* Days of action on 1-2 April 2009
* A counter-conference on 3 and 5 April 2009
* Activities in Baden Baden on 3 April 2009
* Mass blockades of the NATO summit in Strasbourg on 4 April 2009
* An international demonstration in Strasbourg on 4 April 2009.

War Resisters' International is part of the International Coordination Committee preparing for these activities. An international call No to war - No to NATO was launched on 5 October 2008. More information is available on the WRI website at http://wri-irg.org/node/6990.

14 & 16 April: Book launch events "Conscientious Objection: Resisting Militarized Society"

Refusing to take part in war is as old as war itself. This wide-ranging and original book brings together four different bodies of knowledge to examine the pratice of conscientious objection: historical and philosophical analyses of conscientious objection as a critique of compulsory military service and militarization; feminist, LGBT and queer analyses of conscientious objection as a critique of patriarchy, sexism, and heterosexism; activist and academic analyses of conscientious objection as a social movement and individual act of resistance; legal analyses of the status of conscientious objection in international and national law.

Events:

1. Conscientious Objection: Resisting Militarized Society and the Case of Turkey
Venue: SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies) - Kalili Lecturer Theatre
Date: 14 April 2009
Time: 18.00-20.00 p.m.

2. Sand in the Wheels: The struggle for the right to conscientious objection in Turkey
Venue: Amnesty International UK, The Human Rights Action Centre, 17 - 25 New Inn Yard, London EC2A 3EA
Date: 16 April 2009
Time: 19.00-21.30 p.m.

15 May - International CO Day: Focus on South Korea

Presently, more than 420 conscientious objectors are in South Korean for their
conscientious objection to military service. About 100 conscientious objectors are facing trials without being detained. It has to be expected that most will receive a prison sentence of 18 months.

War Resisters' International and Korea Solidarity for Conscientious Objection are organising an international training in nonviolent action, in Seoul, as the centre piece of the activities for 15 May 2009. An international action in support of conscientious objection in South Korea will take place on 15 May itself.

More information is available at http://wri-irg.org/node/6217.