Inter­na­tio­nal Support of Conscien­tious Objec­tors and Deserters

Advocacy Newsletter

June 2024

(22.07.2024) Friends, hello everyone! This is Artem Klyga from the Movement of Conscientious Objectors. The FSB, the Russian special service, is very eager to recruit conscripts into their service on their own. To do this, they are making changes to the bylaws. Starting in September, Russian schools will have a lesson with elements of military training, which could negatively affect conscientious objectors to military service. Good news from South Korea: they have granted asylum to the first conscientious objector from Russia. And some good news from Russia: we received some positive decisions from the Russian court. Enjoy reading!

Report concerning the situation of the right to conscientious objection in Bolivia

UN Univeral Periodic Review

(18.07.2024) Connection e.V. has prepared and submitted to the UN a country based report in preparation of the upcoming 48th session of the Universal Periodic Review of the State of Bolivia. The formal session will take place at the UN in Geneva in November 2024.

Mikita Sviryd: The story of a Belarusian deserter in Lithuania

Stuck between the threat of death penalty in Belarus and illegal refugee status in Lithuania

Mikita Sviryd, a Belarusan deserter who, when the war started in Ukraine, fled illegally to Lithuania because he was afraid that the Belarusan army would go to Ukraine to help Russia. Today Mikita is an illegal refugee, Lithuania has denied the young deserter political asylum. In Belarus, desertion can be punishable by death penalty. Today, he is desperate and expects nothing good in his future. What is for geopolitics the fate of one guy who at the age of 19 decided to give up being a soldier? #protection4Nikita

Resisting war and apartheid from within the Green Line to the West Bank & Gaza

Newsletter of the Refuser Solidarity Network (RSN)

(14.07.2024) Hey, "A queer Palestinian asylum seeker from the West Bank is out on the streets, can anyone help?" This was the text I received early on an October morning, two weeks into Israel’s assault on Gaza. My name is Tal, the new international solidarity coordinator at Refuser Solidarity Network. I would like to share how I found my way to RSN and how you can support us by following our page Voices Against War on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date with Israelis resisting war and apartheid. Share it with your community to help us to amplify their voices.