conscientious objection

War and Memory: Pathologising Critique

In the third installment of our series on war and memory we speak with American academic and Vietnam veteran Jerry Lembcke on how resistance to the conflict in South East Asia was framed during the 1960s and 70s.

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Bringing it up to date: 100 years on from the First World War

This article, summarising ForcesWatch work, was first published on the White Feather Diaries website.

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International Standards on Conscientious Objection to Military Service

Published by the Quaker United Nations Office in November 2011, this booklet reflects recent changes in international law and practice that indicates that recognition of conscientious objection to military service as a human right is now stronger than ever.

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The price of pacifism: Refusing to go to war is finally being recognised as a brave act

From the Second World War refusenik to the 19-year-old Israeli, Holly Williams talks to five people who risked shame and suffering to take a stand as conscientious objector.

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Conscientious objector Joe Glenton on being jailed for refusing to fight

Joe Glenton, a former soldier in the British army, has served his country and risked his life in Afghanistan. He’s also been called a coward. The reason? After returning to Britain after his first tour of Afghanistan, he became a conscientious objector (CO) and refused to go back.

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How soldiers deal with the job of killing

"We talk about destroying, engaging, dropping, bagging - you don't hear the word killing”. This article explores the effect of killing on people in the military, how many are unable to kill and others live with the effects of having killed for the rest of their lives. Also see The Kill Factor radio broadcasts.

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Imprisoned Navy conscientious objector to appeal conviction in High Court

Navy medic Michael Lyons, a conscientious objector convicted of disobedience, who was detained in July, stripped of his rank and dismissed from the service, will be at the High Court 13 October to appeal his conviction. A recent European ruling recognises conscientious objection for first time as human right.

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European Court of Human Rights affirms the right to conscientious objection to military service

The European Court of Human Rights, in a ground-breaking judgment in the case of Bayatyan v. Armenia, has ruled that states have a duty to respect individuals’ right to conscientious objection to military service as part of their obligation to respect the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion set out in Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

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Back in the trenches?

Within the same week, the UK conscientious objector Michael Lyons was detained for 7 months and a landmark ruling in favour of conscientious objection was made by the European Court of Human Rights.

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The big red cross

Lillian Lyons, wife of imprisoned conscientious objector Michael Lyons, describes why he refused the “learning to kill” course.

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