Sergei Ashin, a Christian pacifist from Haifa, was arrested at 8.30 pm on Monday, 4 November by Israeli civilian police. He has been sentenced by an officer to 28 days of imprisonment and on 6 November was transferred to Military Prison No 6 in Atlit.
Sergei was awaiting a date for a hearing by the Israeli High Court of Justice of his petition against a military committee's refusal to grant him an exemption as a CO.
BACKGROUND
Sergei Ashin and his parents came to Israel from Kazakhstan in 1994 when he was 16 years old. At the age of 17, he was called up for medical tests for the military. The more contact he had with the military, the more he became aware of the violence it entailed, and the more he realised the contradiction between war and death and the message of Jesus.
On 10 June 1996, Sergei Ashin filed a formal application for an exemption from military service on grounds of conscience. Israeli law authorises the Minister of Defence to grant such exemptions. Sergei was then called to appear before a military committee consisting only of active military officers involved in recruitment. After posing questions such as "what's violent about the army?" and threatening imprisonment, the committee found Sergei's refusal to do military service "not sincere" on two grounds: a) that his application had been filed only one month before the date of conscription. (There is nothing in any Israeli law about a date for filing applications for exemption.) b) that alternative service would only be acceptable to Sergei if it was in a completely civilian framework and without him even receiving any income support from the Israeli Defence Forces.
On 31 July, Sergei was supposed to be conscripted. Through advocate Lynda Brayer, he petitioned the Israeli High Court of Justice against the decision. However this court refused a request that they should issue a temporary injunction preventing his arrest while the petition is pending.
A hearing scheduled for 8 October was posptoned, because the state's response to the petition was given too late. One of the judges reminded the representatives of the State that as no injunction had been issued, the petitioner should either be in jail or doing basic training!
In Israel around 50% of all Israeli citizens are not drafted. Israeli Palestinians are not drafted out of fear of disloyalty and are consequently denied certain social benefits reserved for army veterans. Ultra-Orthodox Yeshiva Students are not drafted but they are not denied any benefits. Religious Jewish young women may be offered voluntary service, or if they are conscientious objectors they may (with difficulty) be exempted.
ACTION
Conscientious Objectors in Israel ask for letters of protest against this "violation of international law with regard to freedom of religion and conscience" to the following addresses:
Yitzhak Mordechai
Minister of Defence
Hakirya, Tel-Aviv
fax: +972 3 6916940
Tzahi Tanegbi
Minister of Justice
29 Saleh E-Din Street
East Jerusalem
fax: +972 2 6285438
Sergei Ashin's home address is:
Sergei Ashin
HaMelech Uziyahu 9/5
Newe David
Haifa 35422
Israel
prison address:
Military Prison No 6
Atlit
Israel
alert sent out by:
War Resisters' International,
5 Caledonian Road,
London N1 9DX.
tel: +44 171 278 4040
fax: +44 171 278 0444
email: warresisters@gn.apc.org
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