WRI homepage > Publications > The Broken Rifle > No.40, November 1997

Prisoners for Peace 1997

Prisoners for Peace Day 1997

Editorial

International Prisoners for Peace Day, 1 December, is a time to remember, to salute nonviolently, and to send our love, letters and cards to imprisoned antimilitarists around the world. Pacifist prisoners are often at the heart of anti-militarist struggles. and it's fitting that they should enjoy a special place in our calendar as well as in our hearts and minds.

Prisoners for peace find themselves at the heart of a violent institution - the day to day grind and isolation of prison life is a form of state violence that should neither be forgotten nor under-estimated. The line between a tolerable day and getting on the wrong side of a prison officer or fellow prisoner is a thin and vulnerable one.

Such vulnerability can be counter balanced by good, reliable and loving support from the out-side, but it never disappears.

Such vulnerability is an essential part of nonviolent philosophy and practice. If the worst comes to the worst, we are prepared to endure violence but never prepared to inflict it. It's a clever naiveté, but by no means guarantees bloodless revolutions, prison-free lives or hassle-free prison sentences.

The struggle against conscription by anti-militarists in the state of Spain has been a dynamic and fascinating one. Hundreds of insumisos - total resisters who refuse both military service and alternative civilian service - have spent up to 28 months (and one day) behind bars, and have created and sustained a vital anti-militarist movement capable of making links with, and engaging in, other struggles. On page ii of this Prisoners for Peace supplement, Pedro Oliver evaluates the role and effects of such wide scale imprisonment.

Serdar Tekin from Turkey evaluates a more specific case of imprisonment that of Osman Murat Ülke - and the rippling effects just one act of conscience has had on Turkish society (see page vi).

It is not just antimilitarists who end up in prison and voiced our support throughout the world, people engaged in struggles for peace and justice find themselves in potentially lonely prison cells. On page vii, Grace Livingstone writes about the landless peasants movement of Brazil.

And on page viii we include a controversial piece by Xabi Agirre Aranburu arguing that peacemaking includes the imprisonment of war criminals.

To our imprisoned pacifist friends, known and unknown, throughout the world we send our love - whether you're having a good day, a bad day or just another boring stuck-in-the-cell-wish-you-were elsewhere day ... La lucha continua!

PRISONERS FOR PEACE HONOUR ROLL 1997

CYPRUS

There are religious COs currently imprisoned in southern Cyprus, but they do not wish to have their names published. They face up to 26 months in prison.

FINLAND

Jukka Lassila
Uudenmaan Laaninvankila
Avovankilaosasto
PL 20
05401 Jokela
Finland
(in 2/6/97 -- out 18/12/97)
Total objector

Timo Saarelma
Same address as above
(in 03/11/97 -- out 20/05/98)
Total objector

Markus Drake
Helsingin Tyosiirtola
PL 36
01531 Vantaa
Finland
(in 25/9/97 -- out 12/4/98)
Total objector

Janne Ruotsalainen
Naarajarven Varavankila
PL 1
76851
Naarajarvi
Finland
(in 23/10/97 -- out 25/4/98)
Total objector

GERMANY

Over the past few months, five total resisters have been sentenced to between 6 and 16 months jail. They are all awaiting the results of their appeal and could be imprisonned in the next few weeks.

Martin Gyampoh
Hooge Sand 32
D - 26 723 Emden
Germany
Jailed from 03/09 till 29/10. Facing another arrest in November for at least 21days.

Caspar Bothmer
email: hbothmer@ukrv.de
(6 months)

Lennert Niemeyer
Behninger Str. 14
D-29 643 Neuenkirchen
Germany
(6 months)

Timo Pasche (6 months)
Matthias Seebode (16 months)
No addresses

GREECE

On 5 June 1997 the Greek Parliament adopted a new military law, which recognises the right to CO for the first time. The law will come into force in January 1998. All COs currently imprisonned -- around 250 -- are Jehovah Witnesses. Their names are not available, but letters of support can be sent to their lawyer.
Thanasis Reppas (Lawyer)
27 A Paraschou Street
GR-11473 Athens
Greece

ISRAEL

Mordechai Vanunu
Ashkelon Prison
PO Box 17
Ashkelon
Israel
Kidnapped in Italy in 1986, sentenced in 1988 to 18 years for exposing Israel's nuclear programme. Still in solitary confinement.

SINGAPORE

All male citizens and permanent residents are required to do 2 years' full military service, followed by reserve duty periods of up to 40 days annually until they are 40 years old. Singapore does not recognise the right to CO. Objectors are court-martialled and sentenced to 12 months in military detention. They are then called up again and non-compliance results in further 24-month sentences. The following COs are all Jehovah's Witnesses. Those with stars by their name are serving their second sentence.

Ngai Siew Chyit (Norman)*
Suthintheran Nair*
Foo Song Whai (Jason)*
Tai Kai Meng (Kenneth)*
Tan Lee Keat (Michael)*
Kok Kok Chuan*
Smith Marcus Dominic*
Tsay Chong (Martin)*
Kang Ching Siong (Jonathan)*
Chok Robert*
Hou Sing (Samuel)*
Tan Wai Cheng*
Yeo Kim Huei (Henry)*
Lee Kok Ling (Brendon)*
Chua Sin Li (Adrian)*
Sim Wee Siong (Gabriel)*
Leong Yew Kum (Donald)*
Wan Vhong Yee (Gerald)*
NG Chee Keong (David)*
Lim Boon Hwee*
Say Poh Heng*
Chua Tong Jin (Edgar)
Cheong Beng Huat
Tan Tien Lye
Chai Tsun Chieh
Ng Chun Siang (Wilson)
Aw Jee Siang
Lee Han Liang (Jason)
Chong Kim Heng
Chew Chi Kong (Adrian)
Lee Yuen Hsien (Jeremy)
SAF Detention Barracks
AFPN 1325
Mindef General Comcen
Singapore
669638

SLOVAK REPUBLIC

Martin Bednar
05401 Levoca
Veznica
Slovak Republic
(in 24/02/97 -- out 02/98)

Miroslav Albert
97528 Banska Bystricu
Veznica
Slovak Republic
(in 11/04/97 -- out 04/98)

Jehovah's Witnesses imprisoned for their conscientious objection.

STATE OF SPAIN

Total resisters currently fall under two different laws. Most of those judged under the previous law are held in open regime, while a few (marked with a *) remain in jail day and night. Since the application of the new Penal Code in May, total resisters are not imprisoned any more, but sentenced to between 8 to 14 years of "disqualification" from working in the public sector or receiving any public funds. Total resisters taking part in the "Insumision in the barracks" campaign and declaring their objection after starting their military service, are judged by a military court and held in a military prison. The names of the total resisters imprisoned in Navarra were not available at the time this list was compiled.

Placido Ferrandiz Albert*
Elias Rozas Alvarez*
Ramiro Paz Correa*
Prisión Militar de Alcala
Carretera de Meco Km 5
28805 Alcala de Henares
Madrid
State of Spain.

Gorka Martinez
Iñigo Mendibil Arando
Centro Penitencario de Basauri
C/ Lehendakari Aguirre 92
Basauri, Bizkaia
State of Spain

Pedro Camacho Rios
Centro Penitenciario
Carretera de Ayora Km 72.
02071 Albacete
State of Spain

Lluis Miguel Orviz Menendez
Centro Penitenciario de Villabona
Finca Tabladiello
Modulo CIS
Villabona, Asturies
State of Spain

Roberto Diez Pereda "Paridas"
Arturo Escobar
Jon Montegi Agirrezabala
Gorka Fernandez Urien
Aitor Bitorika
Iñaki Basterra
Roberto Mendibil
Jorge Laiseka Santos
José Antonio Santamaria Ortiz
Aritz Tudela Belasko
Unai Bilbao Solaetxe
Mikel Garcia Gonzalez
Alonso Egia Hernandez
Roberto Barrueta Alonso
Ander Agia Cruz
Eneko Arandia Mendizabal
Benjamin Barandalla
José Luis Minquez Arellano
Haritz Olabarri Pujana
Joseba Rodriguez Arza
José Alonso Seco
Joseba Sanz
David Merino
Txabi Delkorte Elduayen
Garikoitz Correa Juez
Gabriel Ibarra Oier
Madariaga Mugarza
Fermin Ayo Cuesta
Aitor Larrea Principe
Joakib Gonzalez Garcia
Daniel Yaniz Aramendia
Alberto Rafael Fernandez Urizar
Aitzol Euba
Unai Resanez Torron
Unai Murillo Alija
Atxio Burgoa Gumuzio
Raul Santelicos Gonzalez
Centro Penitenciario de Bausauri
c/ Lehendakari Aguirre 92
Basauri, Bizkaia
State of Spain

Iñigo del Hoyo Onandia
Andres Gutierrez Movillo
Centro Penitenciario Caceres I.
Apdo 190
Caceres
State of Spain

Zigor Diez Gamboa
José Luis de la Mata
José Maria Perez Moral
Prisión Provincial de Santander
C/Alta 95
39008 Santander
Cantabria
State of Spain

Asia Rodriguez
Centro Penitenciario
Apdo 394
15002 A Coruna
State of Spain

Yosu Lombide
Jesus Artola
Antonio Garcia
Prisión Provincial de Martutene
20014
Donostia, Gipuzkoa
State of Spain

Juan Manuel Bello Losada
Centro Penitenciario de Vigo
Avenida de Madrid 106
Vigo, Pontevedra
State of Spain

Antonio Moreno
Centro Penitenciario Sevilla II
Carretera Mairena
Alcor Km 3
State of Spain

Mikel Hernansanz
Centro Penitenciario
47080 Villanubla
Valladolid
State of Spain

Fernando Gimeno Ruiz
Guillermo Ladrero Canales
Javier Plaza Deistegui
Centro Penitenciario de Zaragoza
Avenida de America 80
50007 Zaragoza
State of Spain

Rafael Ruiz Travieso
Centro Penitenciario Puerto II
Apdo 600
11500 Puerto de Santa Maria
Cadiz
State of Spain

TURKEY

Osman Murat Ülke
1. Taktik Hava Kuvvetleri Komutanligi
Askeri Cezaevi
Eskisehir
Turkey
(in 23/10/97 -)
Total resister sentenced to 10 months and a fine on 23/10/97 on charges of "desertion" and "continued disobedience". Although he already completed his sentence while awaiting trial, he remains in a military prison and expects to face trial again for having refused to present himself to a military unit after a first release from jail last May.

USA

Carl Kabat
OMI #03230-045 Teller Unit
PO Box 5000
Florence, CO 81226-5000
USA
(in 01/04/94 -- out 08/98)
Served a prison term for the 1994 disarmament action at a Minuteman III missile silo in North Dakota. Sentenced to an additional 18 months after the court determined that the North Dakota action constituted a violation of his parole conditions for a previous action in 1984.

Philip Berrigan (24 months)
Mark Colville (13 months)
Steve Baggarly (13 months)
Susan Crane (27 months)
Steve Kelly, S.J. (21 months)
Tom Lewis-Borbely (8 months)
c/o Jonah House
1301 Moreland Ave.
Baltimore MD 21216
USA
All 6 prisoners are members of the Prince of Peace Plowshares, convicted of conspiracy and $28,000 alledged damage to government property after they hammered and poured blood on the tomahawk cruise launching system installed on the USS The Sullivans in Maine. All also sentenced to 2 years supervised release/probation, and a $4,000 restitution fine.

Donna Howard-Hastings
Tom Howard-Hastings
12833 E St., H. 13,
Maple, WI 54854
USA
(sentenced to 3 years)
Cut down three transmission line poles at US Navy's transmitter antenna for nuclear submarines. Spent 11 and 7 months in prison, respectively, and now serving the rest of their time under electronically-monitored house arrest.

WRI staff arrested for compiling Prisoners for Peace list!

Well, okay... not exactly. So far, we are still safely in our seats. But if we were in Tibet, it could be a very different story. A 60-year-old tailor and a 58 year-old businessman were sentenced to nine and six years respectively after a court found them guilty of putting together a list of cur-rent and released Tibetan prisoners. They were convicted of espionage, since their alleged intention was to send the list abroad. Apparently one of the men had committed the "crime" of passing this letter on to another Tibetan for delivery to India. Though the men were convicted last year, Information about their arrest and trial has only become available in the past month.

The situation in Tibet was the focus of Prisoners for Peace In 1996. Unfortunately, it could easily have provided enough material to be the focus of this year's as well. For more information, contact. Tibet Information Network, 188-196 Old St, London EC1, Britain (tel+44 171 814 9011; fax:814 9015; email tinadmin@gn.apc.org).

Prisoners for Peace in other languages

This Prisoners for Peace list was originally published as a supplement to the December 1997 Peace News, which is sent to Broken Rifle subscribers as issue number 40. It is also published in French, Spanish and German in those language editions of The Broken Rifle. If you would like a copy of the newsletter in one of these languages, please contact the WRI office at 5 Caledonian Road, London N1 90X. Britain (fax +44 171 278 0444; email office@wri-irg.org). The list and individual articles can also be forwarded by fax or by email on request.

Aegis Plowshares activists in court

Three US peace activists - Audrey Stewart, Jessica Stewart and Steve Cohen -acting in solidarity with the recently imprisoned Prince of Peace Plowshares [see page v), boarded the Aegis destroyer US Mahan at the Bath Iron Works, Maine, USA on 10 November. They spattered the ship with their own blood, scattered flowers and left statements declaring their stance against the Aegis destroyers and all other weapons of mass destruction. "One Aegis has the capability to destroy an entire continent," they said. "We find the construction and uses of these ships to be an unspeakable crime." The three are due to appear in Bath Court on 3 December, to answer charges of criminal trespass and criminal mischief.

Messages of support to: Jonah House, 1301 Moreland Ave, Baltimore, MD 21216, USA (tel +1 410 233 6238; email dlsarmnow@aol.com).

Greece passes CO law but stiff sentences stand

Bart Horeman reports: About 250 conscientious objectors - all of them Jehovah's Witnesses - are currently imprisoned In Greece Usually sentenced to four years, COs start their jail term in a military prison and are later transferred to a civilian one, where they can work in exchange for a sentence reduction. When they have completed two-thirds of their sentence, the rest is conditionally suspended.

On ~ June 1997 the Greek parliament finally passed a new law on conscientious objection providing for alternative civilian service. Unfortunately, this law is one of the worst of its kind, as it requires COs to perform up to 42 months of alternative service - 18 months more than military service. It remains unclear whether imprisoned COs may "benefit" from the new law, which will come into force in January.

There Is yet another cause for concern: the Greek government has lust presented a draft law on Universal Defence, according to which all women aged between 18 and 50, and all men aged between 18 and 65 not currently serving in the armed forces or the National Guard, are compelled to complete a period of training in "universal defence units". Members of the units, partlcularly those based in border areas, will be trained in the use of arms. The draft law prescribes penalties of from six to 12 months' imprisonment for those who refuse to comply. In a period of "general mobilisation", such as has existed in Greece since 1974, the maximum penalty is three years' imprisonment.

Unless the Greek parliament rejects this draft law, there could be more than 250 Greek COs in next year's Prisoners for Peace list.

Contact Association of Greek COs, Solomou 27, 10682 Athinai, Greece (+30 1 3802 773; fax 3301 686).

Moments of almost total rebellion

Pedro Oliver of KEM-MOC (the Basque CO Movement) evaluates the prison experience of insumisos as a political tool.

From the very beginning, in 1989, MOC and other anti-militarist groups have endeavoured to make their total resistance campaign ("Insumisión") its own best antidote against state repression. From the outset training sessions were organised so that the experience of imprisonment could be transformed and realise two objectives: firstly, prison itself should become a tool in the struggle against militarism; secondly, the experience should be a positive one for those undergoing it - the insumiso, his family and friends.

Generally speaking, both objectives have been attained with flying colours. It soon became quite clear that even a closed disciplinary and alienating institution like prison could not dampen the spirit or alter the personality of prisoners of con-science. On countless occasions the trial and imprisonment of just one total resister, even for only a few months, has led to protests whose reverberations were felt well beyond the local area.

The anti-militarist movement has made significant progress. The number of COs - including total resisters - has continued to rise.. this year alone over 110,000 men have requested CO status. Several medium-sized cities have enjoyed their largest demonstrations of recent years - as was the case in Pamplona, whose ancient jail housed hundreds of insumisos, either in closed (2nd grade) or open (3rd grade) conditions.

All this has made opposition to compulsory military service a popular issue. But the campaign's methods and its focus on demilitarisation have allowed participants to deal with other aspects of social reality less directly related to the anti militarist struggle.

Insumisión behind bars

One such reality is prison itself. Once put behind bars, how could insumisión become more than mere resistance to the brutality of prison? How could prison be used to beat the drum of anti-militarism?

Even though prisoners of con science inhabit a gloomy and confined space, their thoughts, words and ideas become amplified and broadcast widely by the very fact of confinement - even more so if they are connected to an active social movement. Prisoners of conscience are able to transform prison bars into tools for breaking down the isolation caused by prison walls.

Despite serious fears - real and imagined - imprisoned insumisos have engaged in opposition and disobedience towards the human rights abuses and senseless, quasi-militaristic discipline rife within prison walls.

Pamplona' s experience

From 1994 onwards, groups of four, 10 or even 40 insumisos - held in the jails of Pamplona, Zaragoza, Asturias, Bilbao, Guipuzcoa and other such places, have held meetings to see how they could oppose the oppressive nature and practice of prison. Another function of these meetings was to reach an emotional consensus which would enable them to both recognise their fears and accept them.

In an institution that is a microcosm of a dictatorship, employing a certain "democratic radicalism" was a very effective way of questioning the legitimacy of the prison system itself - the contradiction between the prison system and the "democratic" laws and values it allegedly defends was made increasingly apparent.

Insumisos launched a wide range of initiatives - all inspired by the methods of nonviolent protest they had learned and used "on the outside". Many actions were planned even before the objectors reached the prisons. Tactics included hunger strikes, the publishing of communiqués, etc.

Against armies and prisons

In addition to anti-militarist actions, total resisters also orchestrated anti-prison actions. Many "ordinary" prisoners gave their support, but few took part openly - they were well aware that the authorities would punish them first and more harshly than the insumisos, who were somewhat cushioned against repression thanks to the enormous social support and media interest they enjoyed from outside the prison walls.

Legal avenues were some-times used, as a way of engaging in dialogue over prison conditions and specific injustices. There was also a growing use of non-co-operation and disobedience: refusing to carry out certain chores and punishments, rebelling against strip searches after "unscreened" visits, subverting ridiculous schedules and so on.

Total resisters also worked with other prisoners to encourage mutual co-operation and support protesting against prisoners being transferred away from their home areas, passing on legal and administrative information to inmates with limited personal resources.

Another very effective tool has boon the use of the press and of prisoners' rights groups to counter the official propaganda and to denounce injustice and arbitrary behaviour within the prison. A magazine was produced from hand-written articles smuggled out of all - and this was even used in the Human Rights Commission of the Spanish Parliament.

Finally. high profile, collective protests were held on several occasions: mass refusal to carry out orders, silent sit downs, demonstrations with cell made placards and banners There were moments of almost total rebellion.

Prison authorities respond

The prison administration soon realised that they would have to curb the spread of anti-authoritarianism In Pamplona, they first decided to "neutralise" some insumisos by transferring them to other, more distant jails. but this did not stop the unrest. Protest almost became the norm and the administration had to intervene again and again They usually did not opt for direct and harsh repression - a few minor reforms were even made over health, hygiene and food but some total resisters did see their jail terms prolonged as a result of their activism behind bars.

Outside prison, however, a majority of society -- and even some institutions -- protested against the transfer of prisoners. Prison, which had been so avoidable, so invisible, more transparent than ever before.

Incomplete assessment

This is not to say that no errors were made. It was sometimes difficult to prevent the protest nourishing the defensive corporatism of the prison wardens. There was also a great deal of improvisation. bordering on amateurism. But probably the biggest problem was the miscommunication that occurred at times between imprisoned insumisos and the activists outside - the latter fearing that the fight for prisoners rights might take too much attention away from the political struggle against militarism The total resistance movement has still not fully assessed the impact of the work done in prison by prisoners of conscience, but our experiences. developments and discussions are relevant to any movement intending to use imprisonment as part of a civil disobedience campaign.

Pedro Oliver has been a MOC member for 17 years. He has spent over two years in jail for insumisión. Being one of the main "agitators" within the Pamplona pnson, he was later transferred to Madrid.
In May 1996 the Spanish authorities introduced a new punisnment for insumisos, the imposition of "civil death" - withdrawing access to public funds (eg student grants) and denying them public administration jobs. In response, insumisos are developing the new tactic of "resistance in the barracks" - actually joining up and resisting from within the military, thereby placing thernseves under military rather than CMI jurisdicton, and being sent to miltary prisons but avoiding "civil death".
Contact (in the Basque Country): KEM-MOC, Iturribide 12-1o D, 48006 Bilbao, Euskadi, state of Spain (+34 4 4153772; fax 415 0826; email betxea@lander.es); In Catalonia: MOC-Catalunya, c/De La Cera 1 bis, 08001 Barcelona, Catalunya, state of Spain (+34 3 3290643; fax 3290858: http://www.pangea.org/mocbcn); In Cantabria: MOC-Cantabria, Casa Santa Ana, 39697 Soto-lruz, Cantabria, state of Spain (+3442 596245).

Timorese in prison in Britain for BAe trespass

On Friday 14 November six East Timorese refugees were remanded to a prison in Preston in the north of England, awaiting trial on charges of "trespass" following an action at British Aerospace's nearby Werton factory.

The six were arrested on 12 November along with three British activists after they climbed into the factory as a protest against the export of BAe Hawk warplanes to Indonesia. All six refused to give the police their names and were held in police cells for two days, before being remanded to prison.

The British activists, who eventually gave their names and addresses, were released on bail - on charges of trespass and obstruction.

If Interpol, the courts, the police, the immigration or prison authorities are able to identify any of them, then there Is a possibility that they will be released on bail. Letters of support will be forwarded to them whether they are in prison or not. Collective letters/cards of support should be addressed to "Los Palos Six"; individual letters/cards should be addressed to Anonymous One, Anonymous Two, Anonymous Three, Anonymous Four, Anonymous Five and Anonymous Six: do Catholic Worker, 1 Home Street, Liverpool L8, Britain. For more information:.

Liverpool Catholic Worker, 1 Home Street, Liverpool LO, Britain (tel +44 151 264 8741; email stephen@gn.apc.org).

Resisting militarism in Turkey

Serdar Tekin of ISKD (Izmir War Resisters) reflects on the impact that Osman Murat Ülke's well-publicised conscientious objection has had in Turkey.

In Turkey, all men over 20 are required to do 18 months of what the Constitution euphemistically calls "Fatherland service". Despite our country's strong militarist tradition, for years there has been widespread avoidance of conscription: by buying oneself out; by taking advantage of deferments; by evading the draft; or by deserting.

In 1990, however, for the first time a conscientious objector publicly announced he was refusing the draft. His friends and supporters followed his case anxiously. More objectors publicly followed suit. Most of them were not draft evaders, and they continued their political activities openly. They were judged in military courts, sentenced and imprisoned, but never officially on charges of conscientious objection. They were not even ordered to report to the military after serving their sentence and we started to think that it was the state's policy to ignore conscientious objectors, since it is well known that prisoners can become all too famous.

More than a year ago, however, Osman Murat Ülke ("Ossi") was arrested and the real examination of conscientious objection began. In ISKD (Izmir War Resisters), we became aware that the prison and military authorities - those responsible for oppressing him and attempting to break his resistance - also felt some respect towards him. Rather than simply criticising his opponents, Ossi was successful in explaining clearly the reasons for his action. His honest, decisive, and rational attitude made his time in prison a lot less difficult than we had expected, as did his high level of consciousness as a war resister - even in times of duress he knew what he could or could not accept.

CO and the Turkish left

For us, outside the prison, the first days were incredibly tiring and tense. We were concerned for his life, but discovered, with some surprise, that many people supported us. Even some leftist groups - which have traditionally been involved in violent and conspiratorial struggles - were impressed by his action and concerned about his fate.

But still they did not take up conscientious objection as one of their own struggles - for three essential reasons: firstly, we are against all wars; secondly, we advocate nonviolence (and for them, this means we are against revolutionary violence as well); and thirdly, they tend to misunderstand the concept of conscientious objection - viewing it as an individual resistance, rather than as an avenue for social change.

We believe that conscientious objection is not only a matter of nonviolent revolution", or a so-called "utopian idea", but also a matter of human rights, especially in a country where a war - against the Kurdish people - is still going on. So, we try to explain to other groups that we do not need to have identical political views to work together against the army - the institution most responsible for the militarisation of society and the violation of human rights. The development of conscientious objection and anti-militarism in Turkey will not just depend on the efforts of pacifists - it will also depend on the evolution of the left in general.

The general public

Ossi's case has had two main effects on the public: it has raised and explained the notion of conscientious objection; and it has made CO a practical option, something possible and marlageable. It is not a heroic act from the past, but something that is going on now. And the actor is just one of us.

International solidarity

The support we have received from outside Turkey has been even stronger than we expected. This did not come entirely as a surprise, since we had been involved in international work for years. We were able to count on the support of the Alert Network in Germany and of the War Resisters' International (both from its groups and the central office). There were also the international or European CO meetings and long speaking tours in several European countries. After one year it is still difficult to assess the full extent of international concern, but it obviously took the authorities by surprise. It certainly threw the director of the Mamak military prison into a right state of panic at the time of Ossi's hunger strike, shortly after his first arrest.

In the future each new arrest of conscientious objectors will necessitate the launch of new campaigns. But there are also other forms of international co-operation, covering other areas of the anti-militarist struggle, which could advance the CO movement here. For our part, we believe that the promotion of nonviolence for example through trainings and the publication of written material - will have a decisive impact on the future of anti-militarism in Turkey.

Contact: ISKD, 1438 Sok No 1213, Alsancak, Izmir, Turkey {+90 232 464 2492; fax 464 0842; email ossi@info-ist.comIink.de).

Land for the people

Landless people in Brazil are resorting to direct action to meet their needs; Grace Livingstone reports.

Rural landless labourers converged on Brasilia last April after a 1000km march. They were met m the Brazilian capital by a 50,000 strong cheering crowd waving banners, throwing flowers and offering baskets of food. The government agreed to meet the leaders of the landless. Never before had the plight of the rural poor gained such spirit in the cities; the Brazilian Landless Movement (Movimento Sem Terra, MST) has succeeded in bringing the demand for agrarian reform to the centre of the Brazilian political stage.

ln Brazil, 58,000 large land owners occupy 46% of the land, 62.5% of which is unproductive. At the other end of the scale, 2.96 million smallholders live on 2.2% of the land. The official agrarian reform programme is agonisingly slow; according to the government's own statistics, at the cur-rent pace it will take 250 years to resettle Brazil's 4.5 million landless families.

The Landless Movement originated in southern Brazil in the as agribusiness squeezed smallholders off the land. Their tactic of occupying unproductive land spread to the north and northeast. Over 42,000 families currently live on 207 land occupations across the country.

Land occupations are meticulously organised. A vacant or idle plot of land is identified. Men, women and children then take the land, either by surprise, or by sheer force of numbers. MST activists argue that their actions are not technically illegal: the Brazilian constitution states that land should have a "social function and allows for the expropriation of unproductive land.

Working collectively

The landless then plant crops on the settlement or demand that the government provide alternative plots. The MST has settled almost 140,000 families in this way. Sometimes families decide to continue working the land collectively; in other cases the MST encourages families to work co-operatively, sharing expensive technical equipment, enabling smallholders to compete with agribusiness. Schools and clinics are organised on established MST settlements and all occupants are involved in running the camps.

In spite of widespread support, both domestically and internationally, the landless continue to face violence. Landowners still kill with impunity. The Pastoral land Commission estimates that 97 peasants were assassinated between 1985 and 1995. Police killed 19 landless activists in April 1996 -- no one has been tried -- and last January hired gunmen shot dead five people, including a 16-year-old boy.

Peaceful protest

The MS'I' believes in peaceful protest and its best defence against such violence is strength in numbers. At times its members have armed themselves with sticks or machetes to face military police and land-owners guns, but they are not the violent agitators portrayed by conservatives. Last March, for example, 2200 rural labourers occupied an estate in Minas Gerais, in central Brazil. The military police patrol, taken by surprise, was surrounded and disarmed. Rather than keeping the weapons, the occupiers handed them in to the local state authorities.

Social democrat president Fernando Henrique Cardoso pays lip service to the need for agrarian reform, but he relies on the votes of the rural elite and therefore resists wide-reachirg structural changes. Unsatisfied with condemning MST's direct action, the government attempts to criminalise the movement, as shown by the wrongful imprisonment of MST leader José Rainha Junior (see box).

Popular support

Attempts to characterise MST as lawless political agitators have, it seems, failed. A poll by the Confederation of Industry found 94% of the, population in favour of agrarian reform and, more surprisingly, 84% supporting the illegal occupations.

Rural conflicts will inevitably continue as long as Brazil's inequitable land tenure exists. When the landless of Minas Gerais handed in the arms they had confiscated, the Chief of Police demanded who was the organiser of their occupation. "Hunger," they replied.

Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra, Alameda Barão de Limeira,1232 Campos Eliseos, 01202-002 São Paulo, Brazil (+55 11 3361 3866; email semterra@ sanet.com.br; http://www.sanet.com.br).
Friends of the Brazilian Landless Movement, 41 Park Road, London N1S 3HR, Britain.

Politically motivated judgements

Last June a national leader of the Landless Movement, José Rainha Junior, was found guilty of "co-authoring" the murders of a policeman and a landowner In the southern state of Espirito Santo eight years ago. Rainha was 1900km away when The killings took place. He has been sentenced to 28 years' Imprisonment.

"it was clearly a politically motivated judgement", says Fiona Macauley of Amnesty International "The prosecution has absolutely no evidence, they called no witnesses and produced no material evidence." The trial was not impartial, since it was heard in the tightly-knit community where the killings had occurred. Local landowners sat on the jury.

Rainha will have a retrial In December. If he is convicted again and returned to jail, Amnesty plans to adopt him as a political prisoner. According to Fiona Macauley: "The case against Rainha is an attempt to discredit the movement's most prominent leader and is pant of a wider campaign of harassment, designed to intimidate the landless."

Amnesty International's report Brazil: Politically motivated criminal charges against land reform activists, August 1997, is available from Amnesty International, 1 Easton Street, London WCIX BDJ (+44 171 413 5500; fax 956 1157; amnestyis@gn.apc.org; http://www.amnesty.org/).

Prosecuting war criminals

As we remember imprisoned peacemakers, Xabi Agirre Aranburu argues the case for imprisoning those responsible for war crimes as a necessary step in preventing war.

The town of Stolac's position on the front-line had made it an obvious target of Serbian artillery ever since the war In Bosnia begun. One particular morning In the summer of 1992 began with the usual Serbian bombardment. This time, the shells landed, but did not explode. They had been deactivated, and in one shell lay a hand-written message: "Dear neighbours: this is all l can do for you.".

I heard this anecdote from a refugee woman from Stolac the first time I went to Bosnia-Herzegovina iIn 1992. Five years later, I find myself in The Hague, among piles of papers on war crimes, and this story returns to me. It reminds me that someone - above and in spite of that anonymous disarming soldier and many others like him - had the power to choose bombardments, killings, and mass deportations.

The role of the tribunal

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia was established In 1993 by the United Nations Security Council with the goal of identifying, prosecuting and punishing those responsible for the war. It. legal tools are basically the laws of war and humanitarian international law. In contrast to War Resisters' International's principle, "War is a crime against humanity" (ie, any war), the laws of war consider certain warfare practices criminal and others legitimate, thereby allowing the possibility of a "just war".

The Tribunal is an institution without precedent since the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials of 50 years ago. It has faced widespread acclaim. Many observers expected ft would be satisfied with prosecuting a few minor perpetrators, while leaving the most guilty untouched. Some doubt was assuaged when the Prosecutor's Office issued indictments In 1995 against Karadzic and MIadic (political and military leaders of the Serbian forces In Bosnia), and against Blaskic and Kordic (notorious Bosnian Croat leaders). The Prosecutor's Office has stated repeatedly that the prosecution proceedings know no limit other than the available evidence.

Once the Tribunal had issued indictments and warrants, the problem became the arrest of those indicted. The first responsibility for arrest lies with the states in which they live. But because of the Involvement of these very states in the war, this system Is problematic. An arrest could also be made by international forces deployed in the area (eg the NATO-led forces), but this has its own set of problems and has not yet been successful.

The Tribunal's budget is also an issue. For the huge size of the Investigation and prosecution work involved, it suffers a great lack of resources. This leads to the limited scope of crimes examined and the slow pace of the proceedings. An obvious question arises: What's the point of establishing an International Criminal Tribunal if international leaders don't commit themselves to the enforcement of its arrest warrants, or provide the necessary resources to carry out its mission properly?

Universal principles

The ad hoc character of the Tribunal is in open contradiction to the universal essence of its laws: universal principles applied in a selective manner are no longer universal. Why is there a Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. but not for all other, similar cases? The Yugoslav Tribunal did set a precedent - an International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was established after the genocide of 1994, but, sadly, received far less public attention and international support. The problem remains that such ad hoc tribunals fail to address the global Issues inherent in any serious examination of war.

One response to this problem has been the proposal to establish an International Permanent Tribunal (IPT) with world-wide jurisdiction. This Ides, first discussed after Nuremberg and Tokyo, has gained momentum again due to the experience of the two ad hoc tribunals. An IPT conference has been scheduled for June 1998 In Rome, and while it seems certain that such a tribunal will be established, the reach of its powers remains unclear.

Positive aspects

Among the most positive aspects of the Yugoslav Tribunal are its spirit of independence and its commitment to the defence of war victims. Unlike other international initiatives, the purpose of the Tribunal is not appeasement among politicians, but a truthful account of events. Its task is to call the crimes by their names and determine individual responsibility for those crimes. A whole field of discussion has been opened on the nature of these crimes: are they exceptional events or the predictable result of certain social and international models? The ideological, economic and political links between the system of nation-states and warfare extend far beyond the scope of this Tribunal.

As the proverb says, "It is better to foresee than to regret." Foresight and prevention of war crimes is possible through democratisation and demilitarisatlon. But prevention is not enough. Punishment for crimes already committed is the first step In breaking the cycle of impunity. It is also a necessary tribute to those, like that soldier from Stolac, who choose coexistence over war, even at the risk of their own lives.

Xabier Agirre Aranburu works as an analyst in the Office of the Prosecutor of the Intemational Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. The views expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations.
The Institute for War and Peace Reporting produces Tribunal, a newsletter monitoring the War Cnmes Tribunal. Contact: IWPR, Lancaster House, 33 lslington High street, London, Ni 9LH, Britain (+44.171 7137130; fax7137140; email warreport@gn.apc.org; http://www.iwpr.org).

Thank you!

A big thank you to all our translators without whom this supplement would not have been possible: Sebastian Haywood-Ward, Gerd Büntzli, Carola Jueptner, Andreas Speck, Rafa Sainz de Rozas, Kutxo Sarasola Anzola, Pierre Arcq, and Simone Saillard.