the Friend INDEPENDENT QUAKER JOURNALISM SINCE 1843

CONTENTS VOL 169 NO 34 3 Editorial the Fox report:

Conscientious objection Written by Derek Brett Edited by Judy Kirby 4-6 Still objecting! 7-11 Conscientious objection in the world (country case studies) 12-13 Once upon a [war] time Rowena Loverance 14-16 Letters 17 Friends & Meetings

Conscientious objection is not a total repudiation of force; it is a refusal to surrender moral responsibility for one’s action.

Kenneth C Barnes, 1987 Quaker faith & practice 24.25

Cover image: The Conscientious Objectors’ Stone was placed in Tavistock Square, London, on 15 May 1994 by the Peace Pledge Union. Photo: Trish Carn. See pages 3-11.

BBC Radio 3: Sunday 28 August at 8.10pm approx. Twenty Minutes: Quakers Don't Sing Many creative people have found a spiritual home amongst the Quaker movement in our noisy modern world but one thing seems to be missing from this most peaceful of all gatherings – music. Actor Judi Dench, novelist Margaret Elphinstone and the composer Sally Beamish contribute to a montage of thoughts, akin to a Quaker Meeting and reveal their own relationships with silence and music.

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Editorial

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the Friend 173 Euston Road, London NW1 2BJ Tel: 020 7663 1010 Fax: 020 7663 1182 www.thefriend.org Editor: Ian Kirk-Smith editorial@thefriend.org • Sub-editor: Trish Carn trishc@thefriend.org • Production editor: Elinor Smallman production@ thefriend.org • News reporter: Symon Hill news@thefriend.org • Arts editor: Rowena Loverance arts@thefriend.org • Environment editor: Laurie Michaelis green@thefriend.org • Subscriptions officer: Penny Dunn subs@thefriend.org Tel: 020 7663 1178 • Advertisement manager: George Penaluna, Ad department, 54a Main Street, Cononley, Keighley BD20 8LL Tel: 01535 630230 ads@thefriend.org • Clerk of the trustees: A David Olver • ISSN: 0016-1268 The Friend Publications Limited is a registered charity, number 211649 • Printed by Headley Bros Ltd, Queens Road, Ashford, Kent TN24 8HH

the Friend, 26 August 2011 Thou shalt not kill

Editorial

The sixth commandment, in the King James version of the Bible, is very clear: ‘Thou shalt not kill’.

It is a commandment that has been ignored by millions of Christians for centuries. Some, however, have taken it literally. They have chosen to love their enemies rather than fight them. Many have suffered for this choice.

In this edition of the Friend the Fox report considers those people, in countries throughout the world, who refuse to fight. Some do so out of a religious principle. Others do not. The report traces the history of the right to refuse to fight from an aspiration into law – to the protection of those who had a ‘conscientious objection’ to military service – and looks at the status of conscientious objectors in the world today. It reminds us that many, even in Europe, are still suffering for their choice. It prompts us to hold them in the light. It challenges us to action.

The subject of conscientious objection is rooted in the history of the Religious Society of Friends. It is part of the Quaker DNA. It is a part of a story that includes distinguished service in two world wars – when Quakers found a practical way to put pacifism into action. It is part of a belief that there is ‘that of God’ in every human being.

The earliest official recognition of conscientious objection in Britain was in 1757 when Quakers were specifically allowed exemption from the militia in the Ballot Act. This act acknowledged that the ‘promptings of conscience’ – of a sincerely held religious belief – should be respected in relation to members of the Religious Society of Friends. The opposition of Quakers to war had become a defining feature of their faith. They were unique in being given this exemption.

Conscription to military service is a system whereby the state requires all men (and in a few cases women) to serve a period in the armed forces: begun in Prussia in the eighteenth century and developed by Napoleon in France, it then spread throughout continential Europe. Conscription, however, was never part of the British tradition until the first world war.

There was no conscription in the early months of the war but, in January 1916, the flood of volunteers had reduced to a trickle. The government was forced to act. Parliament debated the new concept of fulltime conscription, which, at the time, was widespread on the European continent. During the debate the position of Quakers was often quoted.

The Military Service Act of 1916 was unique in conscription history by also providing for exemption on grounds of conscience. Debate had centred not so much on whether conscientious objection should be recognised as on whether it should be limited to Quakers – or defined in some other particular way.

During the twentieth century more and more countries implemented legislation which protected the right of ‘conscientious objection’. But where are we today? What is the situation of conscientious objectors worldwide? How are they treated? The Fox report, researched and written by Derek Brett and edited by Judy Kirby, reminds us of those men and women today who, like the Quakers of 1759, have made a profoundly important personal decision based on the promptings of their conscience.

Want to know more? Derek Brett’s expertise on conscientious objection is wide-ranging. He has a wealth of material about the long struggle of pacifism in a warring world. We would like to ask readers if they would welcome a separate publication containing a fuller report of the world picture than is possible in the Friend.

If there is enough interest, the Fox team will produce a booklet priced to cover the costs of publication.

If you would like a copy of a more comprehensive Fox report on conscientious objection in the world, please let us hear from you as soon as possible. Email Judy Kirby on editorial@thefriend.org or contact the Friend office at the address on page 2.

the Friend, 26 August 2011

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