Conscientious objector
Conscription
Military service
National service
Conscription crisis
Conscientious objection
Conscription by country:
Australia
Finland
Germany
Greece
Israel - regular service
Israel - reserve service
Malaysia
New Zealand
Russia
Singapore
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States
Historical Conscription:
Ottoman Empire
A conscientious objector (CO) is an indi-
vidual who, on religious, moral or ethical
grounds, refuses to participate as a com-
batant in war or, in some cases, to take any
role that would support a combatant organiz-
ation armed forces. In the first case, con-
scientious objectors may be willing to accept
non-combatant roles during conscription or
military service. In the second case, the CO
objects to any role within armed forces and
results in complete rejection of conscription
or military service and, in some countries, as-
signment to an alternative civilian service as
a substitute for conscription or military ser-
vice. Some conscientious objectors may con-
sider themselves pacifist, non-resistant, or
antimilitarist.
The international definition of conscien-
tious objection officially broadened in 1998,
when the United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights document
called “Conscientious objection to military
service, United Nations Commission on Hu-
man Rights resolution 1998/77” officially re-
cognized that “persons [already] performing
military service may develop conscientious
objections.” [1]
On June 4, 1967, an address was given at
Western Maryland College, USA by John
Courtney Murray, S. J. concerning a more
specific type of conscientious objection: “the
issue of selective conscientious objection,
conscientious objection to particular wars, or
as it is sometimes called, discretionary armed
service.”[2] See Selective Conscientious Ob-
jection below.
"War will exist until the distant day
when the conscientious objector en-
joys
the
same
reputation
and
prestige
as
the warrior
does
today."[3][4]
– John F. Kennedy (1917-1963),
the thirty-fifth President of th