Inter­na­tio­nal Support of Conscien­tious Objec­tors and Deserters

New report: Right to Conscientious Objection to Military Service in Turkey

“I do not know how many records were issued against me”

(02.06.2023) Conscientious Objection Watch has published a new report about the still missing right of conscientious objection in Turkey, not only describing the prosecution and punishment but also the consequences for conscientious objectors to live in a state of civil death. The report has been released with the support of Bertha-von-Suttner-Stiftung and in collaboration with the European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, Connection e.V., International Fellowship of Reconciliation and War Resisters’ International.

 Download the full report

 

Supreme Court of Ukraine releases a prisoner of conscience: conscientious objector Vitaly Alekseenko

(26.05.2023) Yesterday, 25 May 2023, at the Supreme Court of Ukraine in Kyiv, the court of cassation overturned the conviction of prisoner of conscience Vitaly Alekseenko (who attended by video link from prison), and ordered his immediate release from prison and his retrial in the court of first instance. EBCO delegate Derek Brett travelled from Switzerland to Ukraine and attended the court hearing as international observer.

Nearly 50,000 signatures handed over in Berlin on the International Day of Conscientious Objection

Conscientious objection is a human right. This includes the right to asylum!

(15.05.2023) On this year’s International Day of Conscientious Objection, 30 organizations from Europe called for protection for all those who refuse military service in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. During a festive event, almost 50,000 signatures of the #ObjectWarCampaign collected on the platform WeMove.eu were handed over to the European Commission in Berlin. The presentation of the petition was accompanied by speeches of national and international guests from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, additional actions and music.

Russia: Release all those who object to engage in the war

Illegally detention in the Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine

(28.03.2023) The European Bureau for Conscientious Objection (EBCO), Connection e.V. (Germany), the International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR), and War Resisters’ International (WRI) strongly denounce the reported detention by the Russian authorities of large numbers of soldiers and mobilised civilians in a number of centres in Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine, because they refuse to participate in the war. Russian authorities are reportedly using threats, psychological abuse and torture to force those detained to return to the front.