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Right to Refuse to Kill

The Right to Refuse to Kill programme

War Resisters' International's programme The Right to Refuse to Kill combines a wide range of activities to support conscientious objectors individually, as well as organised groups and movements for conscientious objection.

News from WRI's campaign Support Israeli conscientious objectors

The life story of a true Israeli: On the militarization of youth in Israel
17 May 2012
English

“A true Israeli doesn't dodge draft!” [1] – this slogan stands at the centre of a large-scale publicity campaign in Israel. The campaign was not run by the Israeli military, and it was not aiming to add more soldiers to the dwindling ranks of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). Israel has (at least de jure) universal conscription, for both men and women. But this slogan did express, and strengthen, how most Israelis understand the role of military service in the life of an Israeli – a true Israeli.

News from WRI's campaign Support Turkish conscientious objectors

Turkey: Military courts recognise right to conscientious objection
01 May 2012
English

Following the recent judgements of the European Court of Human Rights in cases of conscientious objectors from Turkey - Demirtaş v. Turkey from 17 January 2012 and Erçep v. Turkey from 22 November 2011 - two Turkish military courts have now for the first time recognised the right to conscientious objection, albeit with serious and highly problematic limitations.

The judgements

News from WRI's work on countering the militarisation of youth

Stop drift towards militarization of brave new democracy
23 May 2012
English

On 27 April the Defence Review Committee appointed by the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans published its Defence Review draft report. The last time South Africa undertook a Defence Review was in the late 1990s and it was in the context of a new democratic dispensation. However, those civil society organizations who participated in the 1996-98 review were disappointed and felt compromised by the final outcome.

The Militarization of Young People in Chile
21 May 2012
English

When examining militarisation and young people in this country, we must necessarily look back and take into account the hundreds of years of militarism in the area's history: land occupations and violence by European colonists, construction of the 'national heroes' to motivate patriotism, legislation of obligatory military training, exponential military spending versus the social spending diet, introduction of of military training in civilian schools, and mutation of the armed forces according to the dominant economic model.

Recent Right to Refuse To Kill publications

War Resisters' International visit to South Korea
01 May 2012
English

In March 2012, two representatives of War Resisters' International visited Seoul in South Korea for meetings with World Without War, the South Korean organisation of conscientious objectors. While the main purpose of the visit was a 2-day workshop with activists from World Without War on strategies for the right to conscientious objection, the visit was also filled with other activities.

Turkmenistan: UN Human Rights Committee demands right to conscientious objection while objectors go to prison
01 May 2012
English

While another conscientious objector was sent to prison for two years (see co-alert, 1 May 2012), Turkmenistan's human rights record was for the first time examined by the Human Rights Committee during it's 104th session in New York.

Egypt: New conscientious objectors
01 May 2012
English

Emad El Dafrawi in May 2011Emad El Dafrawi in May 2011On 12 April 2012, Emad El Dafrawi declared his conscientious objection to military service, and thus became the second publicly known conscientious objector in the country, after Maikel Nabil Sanad. In his conscientious objection declaration, Emad El Dafrawi writes: "I’m pacifist and anti-militarist, which means that the military activities including holding weapons and using violence contradict my beliefs. I’m a conscientious objector to the military service. I refuse to obey military orders and I consider all wars to be crimes."

Turkey: Military courts recognise right to conscientious objection
01 May 2012
English

Following the recent judgements of the European Court of Human Rights in cases of conscientious objectors from Turkey - Demirtaş v. Turkey from 17 January 2012 and Erçep v. Turkey from 22 November 2011 - two Turkish military courts have now for the first time recognised the right to conscientious objection, albeit with serious and highly problematic limitations.

The judgements

Other news related to the Right to Refuse To Kill

Turkey: 14 More Conscientious Objectors
22 May 2012

At the end of Conscientious Objection Week, 14 people declared their conscientious objections following the march from Tünel to Taksim Square.

At the end of Conscientious Objection Week, conscientious objectors and anti-militarists came together at Tunel district and marched to Taksim Square. Following the march and the press statement, 14 people declared their conscientious objections.

IDF searching for 4,500 deserters, draft dodgers
18 May 2012

Military Police mounts operation to catch deserters, draft dodgers as their rate significantly increases

Yoav Zitun
Published: 05.10.12, 11:07 / Israel News

The Military Police launched a large scale operation to apprehend deserters and draft dodgers, whose number has significantly increased in the past year. The operation will last for 10 days and expected to see hundreds arrested and indicted.

La militarización de la juventud en Chile
17 May 2012
Spanish

Al relacionar militarización y juventud en este país, necesariamente debemos mirar hacia atrás y percatarnos de los cientos de años de militarismo en la Historia de esta zona: ocupaciones territoriales y violentas por colonias europeas, construcción de "héroes de la patria" como ejes motivacionales del patriotismo, legalización de la formación de militares por medio de la obligatoriedad, gasto militar exponencial versus la dieta del gasto social, inserción de prácticas militares en las escuelas civiles y mutación de las fuerzas armadas acorde al modelo económico imperante.

Die Militarisierung der Jugend in Chile
17 May 2012
German

Um Militarisierung und Jugend in diesem Land in Verbindung zu bringen, müssen wir einen weiten Blick werfen und uns die Hunderte von Jahren des Militarismus in der Geschichte dieser Region bewusst machen: die gewaltsame Besetzung durch europäische Kolonialmächte, die Erfindung von „Helden des Vaterlandes“ als Haupt-Motivationsspender des Patriotismus, die Legalisierung der militärischen Ausbildung durch die Wehrpflicht, die wachsenden Militärausgaben im Vergleich zu den Sparmaßnahmen im Sozialbereich, die Einführung von militärischen Praktiken in den zivilen Schulen und die Veränderung des Mil

Antimilitarism and gender – the challenge of integration
08 May 2012
English

Talk by Andreas Speck, staff at War Resisters' International, at the launch of Cynthia Cockburn's book ‘Antimilitarism: Political and Gender Dynamics of Peace Movements’ at Housmans Bookshop, 21 April 2012

First of all I want to thank Cynthia for giving me the opportunity to say something today, although I haven't read the whole book yet.

Burma: Teenager seeks protection after deserting army
08 May 2012

A teenager, who was forcibly recruited by the military four years ago, is seeking protection from the International Labour Organisation’s liaison office in Rangoon after deserting the army.

Ye Min Oo, 19, was convinced to leave his hometown Chanmyatharzi in Mandalay division by a man who promised him a construction job in Kyaikhto township in Mon state that would pay twice the amount he was currently making.

Contra la Militarización de la Juventud - programa provisional de la conferencia
03 May 2012
Spanish

Este programa no es definitivo, pero proporciona una idea general de los temas que se debatirán en la conferencia del 8 al 10 de junio de 2012. Por favor, póngase en contacto con nosotr@s en militarisationofyouth@wri-irg.org con sus comentarios o propuestas.

Viernes, 8 de junio 2012

6:00pm: Cena
7:00pm: Inicio de la conferencia de estudio.
Dinamización: Andreas Speck, War Resisters' International, y Monty Schädel, DFG-VK, Alemania
Bienvenida y presentaciones

7.30pm: Plenario

Job opening at WRI
01 May 2012
English

War Resisters' International is looking for a Right to Refuse to Kill programme worker (full-time)

The RRTK worker will share the responsibility for organising work from WRI's international office and have specific responsibility for running WRI's international work on conscientious objection and military recruitment. A commitment to pacifism, good computer skills, and language skills are essential.

Salary: £24,136.26 per annum.
Deadline for applications: 31 May 2012
start date: 1 September 2012

Russia discourages conscientious objectors: activist
24 Apr 2012

Russia is discouraging requests from conscientious objectors to swap compulsory military service for stints of alternative service, a rights activist complained Monday.

"The main problem is that following the strategy of the General Staff the government is doing all it can to torpedo everything that concerns citizens' rights to alternative service," said Sergei Sorokin, a member of the Moscow Helsinki Group.

"The government is doing all it can not to let this happen," Sorokin told reporters. "Hundreds of thousands of people are fighting for this right."

Second Egyptian conscientious objector declares his conscientious objection
13 Apr 2012
English

Emad El DafrawiEmad El DafrawiYesterday, on 12 April 2012, Emad El Dafrawi declared his conscientious objection to military service, and thus became the second publicly known conscientious objector in the country, after Maikel Nabil Sanad.
 
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