Conscientious objection

May 15th has been proclaimed the international conscientious objectors` day on the ICOM (International Conscientious Objectors Meeting) in the year 1983. Yet, it was only this year that the antimilitarist network, consisting of NGO from many towns in Serbia and Montenegro, organized, let us say, a notification of this day. The action of notifying this date took part in 17 towns simultaneously. Although in most of the towns the basic action consisted of delivering leaflets and sticking posters, even such modest actions were not allowed in some places by the police.

Reference Materials

Glossary

1503 Procedure

A confidential Procedure of the Sub-Commission and Commission on Human Rights, aimed at identifying patterns of gross violations of human rights.

This report was commissioned by QUNO, the Quaker United Nations Office in Geneva, and has been published by CONCODOC in London.

CCPR/C/79/Add.120
25 April 2000

(...)

16. The Committee regrets the absence of specific information on freedom of religion and beliefs and notes that, in its decision of 12 January 1994, the Constitutional Court considered that certain aspects of the Law on the Relationship between the State and the Church were unconstitutional.

The Commission on Human Rights,

Bearing in mind that it is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person, as well as the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and the right not to be discriminated against,

CASE OF THLIMMENOS v. GREECE

(Application no. 34369/97)

JUDGMENT

STRASBOURG

6 April 2000

In the case of Thlimmenos v. Greece,

The European Court of Human Rights, sitting as a Grand Chamber composed of the following judges:

Mr L. Wildhaber, President,
Mrs E. Palm,
Mr L. Ferrari Bravo,
Mr L. Caflisch,
Mr J.-P. Costa,
Mr W. Fuhrmann,
Mr K. Jungwiert,
Mr M. Fischbach,
Mr B. Zupančič,
Mrs N. Vajić,
Mr J. Hedigan,
Mrs W. Thomassen,
Mrs M. Tsatsa-Nikolovska,
Mr T. Panţîru,
Mr E. Levits,
Mr K. Traja,
Mr G. Koumantos, ad hoc judge,

Antimilitarist strategies focusing on conscientious objection differ widely from individualist approaches concerned with the individual right of the human being to refuse military service to collective actions of civil disobedience against conscription. What are the results of this different strategies in various circumstances? Are they contradicting each other or can they be combined?

In this workshop human rights record of the military towards its own, and the fate awaiting both conscripts and "volunteers" within an unaccountable and largely unscrutinised "state within a state", was examined. In particular how Britain and "New NATO" is evangelising its brand of professionalisation based on human rights violations, and on coercing the most vulnerable members of society (poor, marginalised) under the guise of "social integration", was looked at.

The ways of recruitment to the military vary greatly from country to country (see Refusing to Bear Arms). Mass armies based on some sort of conscription and professional armies based on "voluntary" service are the main two types. Accordingly, recruitment needs different strategies and different means of legitimisation. A wide range of people and skills is needed for the military, from highly educated officers to foot soldiers with basic education.

(...)

85. The national legislation reportedly does not guarantee the right to conscientious objection on grounds of religious belief.

Views of the Human Rights Committee under article 5, paragraph 4,

of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil

and Political Rights

- Sixty-seventh session -

Communication No 682/1996

Submitted by: Paul Westerman(represented by E. Th. Hummels, legal counsel)

Alleged victim: The author

State party: The Netherlands

Date of communication: 22 November 1995

The Human Rights Committee, established under article 28 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

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