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Case Hermaja:[ English | Suomeksi | Nederlands | Français ]
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FIRST EUROPEAN CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR DEMANDS POLITICAL ASYLUM IN BELGIUMThe Belgian presidency of the EU works full speed on a European intervention army for 'humanitarian operations'. The humanitarian image does not take away the objections against the military. The construction of a military intervention force only creates the illusion that we have a good instrument to handle crises. Security is not a matter of the military. Since Belgium abolished together with the military service as well the possibility to demand the statute of conscientious objector, principal objections against the military can not anymore be officially voiced. This does not mean these objections do not exists anymore. Elsewhere in the EU, where military service still exists, the new humanitarian image appears not to make any difference. When the military start to coöperate internationally, objectors have to do the same. Forum for Peace Action (Forum voor Vredesactie) and For Mother Earth present today the first 'European Conscientious Objector', Jussi Hermaja, coming from Finland to demand political asylum in Belgium. The first 'European Conscientious Objector' means here not the first conscientious objector in Europe, but the first EU-citizen asking for that reason political asylum and the first in our support campaign for conscientious objection in the new European context. OBJECTIONS AGAINST THE MILITARY EUROPESecurity is not a matter of the military. Security only arises by tackling the structural causes of conflicts. The European Union has an enormous potential for the prevention of violent conflicts. The European Union is an economical giant, with the biggest budget for development coöperation and a worldwide represen-tation. By using that potential in a well-considered way the capacity for prevention increases enormously. Tensions between population groups in a state can be defused when education, language and culture of minorities is protected and a real political dialogue exists. The answer to ethnic tensions is community building, intercultural contacts and the promotion of dialogue. The answer to economical decline and inequality is not to let the situation escalate followed by a military intervention, but fair trade. Interference in conflicts must be focussed on creating space for political solutions and to prevent violent escalation. A military intervention is always to late: when the conflict has escalated already into violence. Such an intervention diminishes the space for political solutions. Instead the EU imposes her idea of a solution. The EU becomes a party in the conflict and looses all potential for mediation. Violence becomes the only mean by which a party can become politically relevant. The idea that the use of military power can create the conditions for a later peace is by consequence an illusion. Choosing to build a military capacity is to choose to deal with conflicts in a military way. Little confidence is created into its mediators role, proclaimed by the EU, when she is herself as well the cause of escalating conflicts. We think about poverty, the debt problem, unequal North-South relations, and of course weapon trade. CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION IN A EUROPEAN CONTEXTSince Belgium abolished together with the military service as well the possibility to demand the statute of conscientious objector, principal objections against the military can not anymore be officially voiced. This does not mean these objections do not exists anymore. Elsewhere in the EU, where military service still exists, the new humanitarian image appears not to make any difference. Finland for example has a long tradition of total resisters, people who both refuse military and civilian service. Total resisters get a prison sentence of 197 days, except when the person is a Jehova Witness. Reason enough to demand political asylum. Untill now Finland was not involved in the new military interven-tionism. But now the EU sets up its intervention force the Finnish military is as well involved. This means Finnish conscripts could be involved in so-called humanitarian missions. These new 'humanitarian' tasks had no influence on the people resisting military service. Instead the numbers of conscientious objectors and total objectors stay rising. Jussi Hermaja, here present, is a total objector from Finland. In Finland he is sentenced to 197 days imprison-ment. At this moment 24 conscientious objectors are in jail. Jussi is member of the board of the Finnish Union of Conscientious Objectors. This organisation and Forum voor Vredesactie are part of War Resisters International, a pacifist network which has supported conscientious objection since it started in 1919. The Finnish civilian service can be described as discriminative and punitive. Military service lasts 180 days, while civilian service lasts 395 days. For these reasons since 1999 Amnesty International adopted 22 Finnish conscientious objectors in jail as prisoners of conscience. It are the only prisoners of conscience in the EU according to AI criteria. The treatment of objectors is also different according to the reasons of objection: Jehova Witnesses are exempted, others not. This is political persecution and political asylum should be granted. Also the Council of Europe has been complaining about the differences in treatment of conscientious objectors. In a declaration of 23 may 2001 it asked for a "genuine alternative service of a clearly civilian nature, which should be neither deterrent nor punitive in character" and demands to incorporate the right of conscientious objection into the European Treaty of Human Rights. THE LEGAL CASEThe legal case is first a demand for asylum. Belgium is the only country where EU-citizens can still apply for political asylum. When the Treaty of Amsterdam was negotiated in 1997 also a protocol was added in which all EU countries declared each other as being a 'safe country of origin'. This means that applications from these countries are refused without looking to the individual case. Belgium opted out and stated in a separate declaration that it would stay considering applications on a individual base. So a Finnish citizen is still able to apply for asylum in Belgium. Second is to be accepted for political asylum. As mentioned before the civilian service system is full of discriminations. While refusing to do military service is no ground for political asylum, a treatment which gets harsher depending on political reasons has to be seen as political persecution.
Case Hermaja:
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