Aseistakieltaytyjaliitto

Forum voor Vredesactie

Case Hermaja:

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Background Information

An introduction to Case Hermaja

Why am I a conscientious objector?

Conscientious Objection in Finland

Links to related websites

Finnish Civilian Service Act

Download "Case Hermaja" leaflet (.pdf)

Finnish C.O.s in prison:

Prison addresses

Online support petition

Sign the petition

Recent signatures

Photos:

Manneken Pis (9/1/2006)

Prisoners for Peace (1/12/2005)

Brussels Embassy Occupation (1/12/2004)

Raad van State hearing (14/1/2004)

Brussels Demonstration (1/12/2003)

Brussels Demonstration (2/12/2002)

Brussels Demonstration (1/12/2001)

Brussels Demonstration (3/10/2001)

Latest News:

Manneken Pis dressed as "Prisoner for Peace": demands release of prisoners

9/1/2006

Finnish Presidential Election, questionnaire

9/1/2006

"Prisoners for Peace" day, Brussels

1/12/2005

100th Birthday of Finnish Pacifist Arndt Pekurinen (August 29th 1905-November 5th 1941)

29/8/2004

Actions at Finnish Embassies and Consulates in several countries on the Prisoners for Peace day

1/12/2004

ACTION ALERT: international peace prisoners' day 1st December -focus on Finland

Asylum request of Finnish Conscientious Objector rejected by Belgian High Court

3/3/2004

Finnish conscientious objector appears before the Raad van State, Belgium

14/1/2004

Freedom for Finnish political prisoners!
-demonstrations outside Finnish Embassies in several countries

1/12/2003

Finnish Embassy occupied by peace activists in Brussels

2/12/2002

Amnesty International would adopt Hermaja as prisoner of conscience
28/1/2002

Finnish civil service system punishes conscientious objectors
23/1/2002

Asylum application rejected
21/1/2002

Decision in Case Hermaja expected soon
9/1/2002

Prisoners for Peace actions
1/12/2001

CO demands Asylum in Belgium
3/10/2001

Demonstrations in Belgium, Scotland and Finland on 'Prisoners for Peace' -day

1st December marks the international 'Prisoners for Peace' day. Forum voor Vredesactie and For Mother Earth are organising a demonstration at the Finnish Embassy in Brussels. The organisations demand immediate release of the 20 conscientious objectors serving their 6 months sentence in Finnish prisons at the moment. At the same time similar actions will take place in Edinburgh and in Finnish cities Helsinki and Jyväskylä.

In Brussels the demonstrators will bring a cage in front of the finnish embassy. In the cage there will be « a concientious objector serving a sentence. » The meaning of the action is to make it clear, that there are currently 20 finnish political prisoners serving their sentence in finnish jails. By the end of this year it is expected that over 60 Finnish conscientious objectors will have been sentenced to jail.

Finland still has a very intensive conscription system, giving young men a choice between army (6 months) and civil service (13 months). The number of young men choosing consciensus objection because of the punitive length of civil service goes up every year.

The organisations behind the demonstration in Brussels will hand a letter to the Finnish Embassy. In the letter they demand the immediate release of the poltical prisoners, the recognition of concentious objecting as legal and the correct of the failures in Finnish civil service system.

According to Amnesty International, Finland is the only European Union state with prisoners of conscience. Since 1999 AI has adopted up to 27 Finnish total objectors as political prisoners. The latest adoption of five was made on 8th of November this year. AI says that the punitive length of civil service discriminates people according to their conscience.

Both peace organisations For Mother Earth and Forum voor Vredesaktie support Jussi Hermaja, the Finnish pacifist who fled Finland and came to Belgium to seek political asylum October this year. His asylum procedure is still going on. Case Hermaja builds growing pressure for improving the human rights situation in Finland. The Finnish government not only has a growing number of political prioners, but a political refugee. Those facts cannot be ignored in European Community.