Let war resisters stay

[6 articles]

Let war resisters stay

http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/1069025.html

By ANGELA GILES
Wed. Jul 23

Dominick Mirabile (July 17 opinion piece) argues that U.S. war
resisters had a choice whether or not to enlist. However, signing a
contract with the U.S. military does not obligate someone to
participate in war crimes. Whether they volunteered or not is
irrelevant. They have a higher obligation to international law than
their "duty" to just follow orders.

Mr. Mirabile argues that war resisters "broke the law. They are in
violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice." But under
Principle 2 of Nuremburg, "The fact that internal law does not impose
a penalty for an act which constitutes a crime under international
law does not relieve the person who committed the act from
responsibility under international law." In other words,
international law trumps the Uniform Code of Military Justice if,
under the guise of the UCMJ, soldiers are being ordered to
participate in war crimes.

We now know soldiers are systematically ordered to violate
international humanitarian law in Iraq – from torture to
intentionally targeting civilians – and there are more revelations of
war crimes emerging every day. The Nuremberg Tribunal ruled that "the
very essence of the (Nuremberg) Charter is that individuals have
international duties which transcend the national obligations of
obedience imposed by the individual state."

A contract runs both ways. Those who argue that the war resisters
should be deported back to the U.S. miss one simple, basic truth.
While the war resisters signed a contract voluntarily, they are not
the ones who broke it. The U.S. administration is. The U.S. soldiers
seeking refuge in Canada signed up to defend their country, not to
commit war crimes.

Canadians recognize this and that is why the majority support the war
resisters and not the war. A recent Angus Reid poll found nearly
two-thirds (64 per cent) of Canadians want the government to allow
war resisters to live in Canada. Eighty-two per cent of Canadians
oppose the Iraq war. Canada's Parliament voted June 3 to let American
Iraq war resisters stay in Canada.

Mr. Mirabile cannot have it both ways. The Iraq war is illegal.
Everyone from Hans Blix and Kofi Annan to Richard Perle admits this.
If the war is illegal, the war resisters have a legal obligation not
to participate under the Nuremberg Principles, pure and simple.
Indeed, 25,000 have deserted from the U.S. military, having
recognized this. Isn't that sending a message to those who put them
in harm's way in the first place?

Given that American war resisters are faced with a government that
doesn't respect international law, how can they expect anything but
persecution for standing up for international law? The harsh
punishment of resister James Burmeister, who was sentenced to nine
months in military prison and convicted of a felony, shows this to be
the case. That means their option is to be complicit in war crimes in
Iraq or to come to Canada. The solution is simple: Heed the will of
Parliament and Canadians. Let them stay.
--

Angela Giles is the Atlantic regional organizer of the Council of Canadians.

--------

A plea from Vietnam war resisters to let Iraq resisters stay in Canada

http://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1127784

7/24/08

A letter from Americans who came to Canada in the Vietnam War era:

Editor:

Almost 40 years ago, being young and idealistic, we came to this
beautiful country to escape the demands that the U. S. military and
government were placing on its citizens and society.

We knew little of the country we came to but soon learned how
important it was that people in Canada cared to help U. S.
conscientious objectors.

In 1968, with the help of the Mennonite, Quaker and United Church
communities, the Canadian government agreed to allow U. S. deserters
and draft evaders to stay in Canada and not be forced to return. This
is not true for the current illegal Iraq war, where the Americans
continue to send troops.

There are hundreds of American Iraq war resisters in Canada. In spite
of the fact that a majority of Parliament voted to allow the
resisters to stay, the Conservative Harper government has stated that
resisters will be deported and returned to the United States to face
prosecution. Only Harper's Conservatives are supporting this
deportation, but they get to decide.

While this small deportation may look unimportant to most Canadians,
Vietnam era immigrants remember the feeling of arriving in a country
that cared about its citizens; a country that believed in aspiring to
fairness and justice.

We know that most Canadians do not agree with Prime Minister Harper's
order for deportation -- recent national polls indicate that 64 per
cent of Canadians support granting permanent residency to U. S. war
resisters -- and we also know that Harper is not about to change
without significant pressure.

We ask that you remember and recognize the value that Vietnam war
resisters brought to this country over the last 40 years and that you
recognize the same potential in these new young U. S. resisters
asking for the same opportunity.

If we help them stay, they will contribute their efforts to Canada as
we did then and they will remember your kindness as we do now.

Please contact your local MP, Prime Minister Harper, Immigration
Minister Diane Finley and Public Security Minister Stockwell Day to
add your voices to the many other Canadians who are saying "let war
resisters stay."

Andrew Armitage, Leith andrew@apropos.ca
Tim Hill, Owen Sound thill@bmts.com
Donald Holman, Traverston, zetlin@bmts.com
Robert Hope, Owen Sound bob@rbhope.ca
Terri Hope, Owen Sound terri@rbhope.ca
Tony McQuail, Lucknow mcqufarm@hurontel.on.ca
Elizabeth Zetlin, Traverston, zetlin@bmts.com

--------

Military resister's father calls him 'a hero'

http://www.workers.org/2008/us/military_resister_0731/

By Dee Knight
Published Jul 27, 2008

When James Burmeister was court martialed last week, he was sentenced
to six months in the stockade and a Bad Conduct Discharge. "I feel
like the case was used as an example to other soldiers," his father
told Workers World. "Not only will you get punished, but your loved
ones will be too."

"They attacked James as more of a sociopath than a patriot," said
Erich Burmeister. "They hammered on the point of his going AWOL and
leaving his unit in great danger. They painted him as a coward."

"I think my son is a hero," Erich continued. "There are many Iraqis
who were not killed because of what he did, and many GIs whose lives
were saved because of it. He made a tremendous service to his country
by standing up and bearing witness to the 'bait-and-kill' war crimes."

After James went AWOL he exposed this program, in which U.S. sniper
teams leave "bait" to lure Iraqis and then kill them. When he
denounced the program, it turned into a media scandal. (See "U.S.
aims to lure insurgents with 'bait,' " Washington Post, Sept. 24, 2007.)

Being on a military base "unnerved me and my wife," Erich said. "In
hindsight it was the perfect 'good cop-bad cop' thing, played to
perfection." Between the JAG lawyer the Army assigned, and the
prosecution, Erich said, "They really had me convinced that the best
strategy for [James] was to plead guilty. We took the bait and got
our butts kicked." He said their JAG attorney "was rotten. Had we
been able to afford good civilian legal defense, we could have
pursued more options. I wish we had done it."

Speaking of James, Erich said, "The amazing thing is he is taking it
better than those of us who love him so much. He's very strong. He
told us, 'Understand this, anything the Army can do to me can't be as
bad as being in Baghdad doing what they wanted me to do.' He's
relieved not to have a gun in his hand anymore. That's what he cares about.

"Once he had achieved his goal, making the public aware of 'bait and
kill,' he was prepared to turn himself back in. He's strong, and I'm
sure he'll do okay. He didn't seem to be as troubled by it as we
were. We're hoping he'll stay that way and will be with us soon."
--

Supporters can write to James Burmeister at Box A, Fort Knox, KY 40121.

--------

Why he ran

http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A315781

BY NATHANIEL HOFFMAN
JULY 23, 2008

Robin Long went absent without leave from the U.S. Army in 2005,
hiding in a Boise basement for several months before seeking refuge
in Canada. Now he is apparently the first U.S. military deserter to
be deported to the United States.

Long was escorted back to his Army unit at Fort Carson, Colo., on
July 18 and promptly went before a magistrate judge. He faces charges
of desertion, and is being held at the jail in Colorado Springs
because there is no detention facility at Fort Carson, according to
Army spokesperson Brandy Gill.

His unit command, the Fourth Brigade Combat Team, Fourth Infantry
Division, will determine how Long's case is handled. He could be
returned to the unit, put on barracks restriction or some other type
of probation or face military court martial.

"He'll very much get a chance to speak to the command," said Karen
Linne, a public affairs officer for the base.

From a 2006 BW interview with Long: "Are you willing to go to prison
for your decision if it comes to that? Yeah, if it came down to that,
I'd be willing to go to prison because I know I did the right thing,
and I can sleep at night and my conscience is still good."

See boiseweekly.com for a transcript of the entire 2006 interview.
http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A161658

--------

Army Deserter From Boise To Face Music At Fort Carson

http://news.opb.org/article/2628-army-deserter-boise-face-music-fort-carson/

By Tom Banse
Olympia, WA
July 18, 2008

A U.S. Army deserter who was expelled from Canada earlier this week
is being escorted back to his post under police guard Friday.

Private first class Robin Long is originally from Boise. Peace
activists from Bellingham held a vigil to oppose his transfer to Army
custody from the county jail. Correspondent Tom Banse has more on
what happens next.

A spokesman for the Army's Desertion Information Center says the
punishment for the Boise native could fall within a wide range.

At the light end: reprimand and return to duty. At the severe end:
court martial and jail time.

This according to the Army's Ryan Bruce.

Ryan Bruce: "It would be treated more seriously if a soldier did
desert his or her unit during a time of war, especially if that unit
was at war or going to war, as opposed to a soldier who just deserted
from initial entry training, for instance."

Private Long fled to Canada to avoid deployment to Iraq. His unit
went to war and has since returned to Fort Carson, Colorado.

Instructive perhaps is the sentence handed down this week to a
soldier from Eugene. Pfc. James Burmeister fled to Canada while on
leave from his unit in Iraq. He got six months in jail after
returning voluntarily to face punishment.

--------

U. S. deserter loses last bid to stay

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=654577

Judge rules no evidence soldier will be mistreated

Brian Hutchinson, National Post
July 15, 2008

VANCOUVER - A federal court judge has ordered the removal of a U. S.
Army deserter from Canada, a decision that signals this country is no
longer a safe haven for American soldiers who decide to evade
military service at home and abroad.

Should he be deported today as ordered, Robin Long, 25, becomes the
first U. S. deserter to be removed from Canada since the U. S.-led
war in Iraq began five years ago. Several other U. S. deserters have
sought refuge in Canada and while some have lost their court appeals,
they remain in this country, pending further deportation procedures.

Madame Justice Anne Mactavish of the Federal Court of Canada heard
legal arguments in a Vancouver courtroom yesterday morning before
deciding that Mr. Long must return to the United States, where he
could face prosecution by military authorities. He could also be
deployed to Iraq and put into a conflict he decided, too late, he
would rather avoid.

His case for avoiding deportation hinged on whether he faced
"irreparable harm" should he be returned to the United States because
of the high profile of his case.

But in a ruling issued yesterday afternoon, Judge Mactavish wrote
that "Mr. Long has not provided clear and non-speculative evidence to
support his contention that he would be singled out for harsh
treatment by the Americans because of the publicity associated with this case."

An enlisted soldier who once believed the U. S.-led war on terror was
justified, Mr. Long conducted basic training at Fort Knox, Ky.,
before deserting his infantry group in 2005, just ahead of its
scheduled deployment to Iraq.

Mr. Long told the National Post last year that he joined up with "a
bunch of hippies" and crossed the border into Canada.

After fathering a child with a Canadian woman, he left for Nelson, a
small city in the B. C. Interior that has long been regarded as a
sanctuary for U. S. draft dodgers and deserters.

On his arrest he received a deportation order. The process was
delayed by various immigration applications and legal appeals. After
his application for refugee status was denied in February, 2007, Mr.
Long asked for protected person status. That was also refused.

Earlier this year, he received a negative pre-removal risk assessment
by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, which led to his final
deportation order. Mr. Long was apprehended in Nelson on July 4 and
has been in custody since.

Yesterday's hearing in Vancouver was his last opportunity to argue
that he should be allowed to remain in Canada. He did not appear in
court. His lawyer, Shepherd Moss, told Judge Mactavish that his
perspective of the war in Iraq had changed soon after he had
completed training at Fort Knox. He became aware of alleged abuses
and war crimes being committed by the U. S. Army.

Mr. Long, his lawyer said, "surmised that these crimes were systemic
and were condoned by the Bush administration.… He didn't want to go
to Iraq and participate in these crimes."

He did not attempt to seek conscientious objector status with the
military. Instead, Mr. Long deserted and entered Canada.

Mr. Moss argued yesterday that errors were made in previous
immigration decisions against his client. Evidence of alleged human
rights abuses by U. S. soldiers in Iraq was "not considered," he claimed.

"New evidence has come to light that war crimes and crimes against
humanity are systemic" in Iraq, said Mr. Moss. He pointed to a
written submission he had delivered to the court. "There wasn't very
much in there that relates to the war in Iraq," countered Judge
Mactavish. "What do you say about that?"

Mr. Moss replied by discussing a conflict in Peru. Again, the judge
pressed him for "new evidence" pertaining to the war in Iraq. Mr.
Moss offered that a United Nations committee had found that detainees
in Iraq "are tortured."

It might come out "later" that more war crimes are being committed by
the United States, he added. "The rest of the world didn't know about
the Holocaust until the end of World War Two," Mr. Moss told the
court. "Mr. Long's submissions are not far-fetched."

Judge Mactavish frequently interrupted Mr. Moss during his submission
yesterday to ask questions. She said several times that she had
trouble understanding his argument, and admonished him for
introducing evidence two hours after beginning his submission. Mr.
Moss apologized.

Before adjourning to consider her decision, Judge Mactavish observed
that Mr. Long had "shown disrespect for Canadian law" by failing to
observe the conditions of his release from custody last year.

In one instance, Mr. Long neglected to report a change of his address
in Nelson to immigration officials. He was also found to have been
working without authorization, court heard.

Mr. Long had just applied for welfare when he was first detained in
Nelson last year. A local police officer stopped him in a local park;
Mr. Long was standing with a group of men who had been smoking marijuana.

The officer discovered that Mr. Long was the subject of a Canadawide
arrest warrant and was wanted by Immigration Canada and the Canada
Border Services Agency, on grounds that he was in the country illegally.

.