Inter­na­tio­nal Support of Conscien­tious Objec­tors and Deserters

April - June 2024: Activities and Developments on the Right to Conscientious Objection in Turkey

Newsletter of the Conscientious Objection Watch Initiative

(25.07.2024) This is Merve Arkun, Conscientious Objection Watch Coordinator. I am writing to inform you about the latest issue of the Conscientious Objection Bulletin, which we publish periodically. In the latest issue, you can find the experiences of conscientious objectors in Turkey between April-June 2024. In the period April-June 2024, conscientious objectors in Turkey were subjected to many rights violations and restrictions, from violations of the right to work to restrictions on freedom of movement. Below you can find a brief summary of Conscientious Objection Watch’s activities in April-June.

41 Israeli reserve soldiers refuse to take part in invasion of Rafah

Newsletter of the Refuser Solidarity Network (RSN)

(02.06.2024) Hi, Mattan here. I am the executive director of RSN and in 2017 I spent 110 days in prison because I refused to serve the Israeli occupation. Two weeks ago, I shared our belief that a new wave of refusal was imminent (...). Last Friday, the first concrete move in this refuser wave went public. 41 Israeli reserve soldiers published a letter declaring that they refuse to take part in the assault on Rafah, endangering uninvolved civilians, the hostages, and themselves. Below is the full text of their letter.

End the Military Service!

Public Statement

(15.05.2024) On the International Conscientious Objection to Military Service Day, the people gathered in the Antimilitarist Assembly of the Chilean region declare:

1. We deeply regret the death of young Franco Vargas, which occurred while he was performing Military Service (MS) in the town of Putre, north of Chile, on April 27, as well as the torture and mistreatment suffered by all his comrades, one of whom suffered the amputation of his hand, as a result of the abuse suffered.

First GI Café in Germany Opens Its Doors

(25.03.2012) U.S. soldiers in Germany now have a GI coffeehouse. The Clearing Barrel Bar and Café opened Saturday, March 24, in Kaiserslautern, Germany, home to Ramstein Air Base and Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, among a constellation of U.S. bases, with 50,000 U.S. military and civilian personnel living in the area. The grand opening was a big success.