A Royal Navy medic has been sentenced to seven months' detention for refusing rifle training prior to deployment in Afghanistan after developing moral objections.
conscientious objection
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08/07/2011The Guardian
A third of army recruits are under 18. Is it right to target the young and the underachieving poor?
“A coward and a malingerer”
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Megan Graham looks into modern day conscientious objection in the armed forces.
Navy medic sentenced to seven months in military correction centre for disobeying orders
06/07/2011British Forces News
A Royal Navy medic has been sentenced to seven months' detention in a military correction facility after being found guilty of disobeying orders by refusing to attend rifle training because of his "moral objection" to bearing arms and the war in Afghanistan.
Navy medic detained for refusing training over WikiLeaks claims
06/07/2011The Guardian
Court martial for Navy medic conscientious objector
02/07/2011ForcesWatch press release
A medic in the Royal Navy will face court martial on Monday 4 July despite declaring that he is a conscientious objector.
Court martial raises fears over forces personnel’s right to conscience
19/05/2011ForcesWatch press release
A medic in the Royal Navy, who is facing court martial, will argue in court tomorrow that he has a legal defence. Michael Lyons has been charged with "wilful disobedience" because he asked not to participate in rifle training last September after having applied for conscientious objector status.
British sailor denied right to conscientious objection as world marks CO Day
12/05/2011ForcesWatch press release
ForcesWatch press release
Only a few days after International Conscientious Objectors’ Day on Sunday (15 May), a member of the Royal Navy with moral objections to the war in Afghanistan will be tried for ‘wilful disobedience’.
Navy medic may face 10-year sentence for ‘disobedience’: Plight of conscientious objectors highlighted by man who refused rifle training
29/03/2011Independent on Sunday
A Royal Navy medic with ethical objections to the Afghanistan war could face up to 10 years in prison after refusing to undergo rifle training. The Navy will hold a preliminary court-martial hearing against Michael Lyons on Friday.
Campaigners see the court martial as the Navy's attempt to deter other service personnel opposing military duty on grounds of conscience, religion or freedom of thought.
AT EASE advice
AT EASE is an advice service to those in the armed forces and family members which has been running since the 1980s. It is staffed by volunteers. There is a telephone helpline or you can send an email. There is information on various terms of service issues and conscientious objection on the website.
Procedure for registering a conscientious objection
Information on registering a conscientious objection in the UK armed forces.