QUNO has submitted an Amicus Curiae opinion on conscientious objection to military service to the Constitutional Court of Korea jointly with Amnesty International, the International Commission of Jurists, the International Fellowship of Reconciliation, and War Resisters’ International. This opinion is submitted in relation to the cases bought by six conscientious objectors against the government of the Republic of Korea on the basis of the violation of their right to conscientious objection to military service. The opinion outlines to the Constitution Court the position of conscientious objectors in international law, focusing on recent developments in the UN Human Rights Committee. It is believed that over 10,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses have been imprisoned as a result of their conscientious objection to military service since the year 2000, which gives an indication of the severity of the problem.
Conscientious Objection to Military Service in Wartime
In this QUNO briefing, Rachel Brett outlines the UN’s longstanding recognition of conscientious objection to military service as a universal right that must be upheld in all circumstances, including in wartime and national emergencies. Drawing on UN standards and the...