[GushShalom] Mitzna, Don't Join! // Refusnik awaits court martial

[Gush Shalom (Israeli Peace Bloc)]

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     Gush Shalom			International release, Feb. 20, 2003
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[] CO Ben Artzi's court martial due within two weeks 
[] Reminder, support vigil draft resisters at the home of General Finkelstein
[] "Don't give in" - Gush statement of the week
[] Photos of the antiwar demonstrations worldwide - including Tel-Aviv

[For regular updates in Hebrew send a message with subscribe in the 
subject line to: gush-shalom-heb-request at mailman.gush-shalom.org]


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[Dozens of Palestinians killed by IDF aggression, in the Gaza Strip and in 
the West Bank and also redeployment towards the relatively quiet northern 
border  - these are the IDFs rehearsals for the Iraq War, and these are the 
deeds of Sharon which more than his words reveal his intentions. Therefore, 
we concentrate on two things: urging the Labor Party to stay out of the 
government, and supporting the refusniks' hard struggle.]

[] CO Ben Artzi's court martial due within two weeks

Yesterday afternoon, the parents and supporters of the imprisoned 
refusniks, as well as Israeli and foreign journalists and press photographers, 
crowded the small hall of the Military Court in Jaffa (the former home of a 
wealthy Arab family, taken over by the army in 1948), to witness the latest 
developments in the case of CO Yoni Ben Artzi. 
Originally, Ben Artzi gained media interest especially due to the piquant 
fact of being the nephew of Foreign Minister Netanyahu. But by now, he had 
gained a considerable reputation in his own right - a principled pacifist CO, 
who had already served without flinching a total of 200 days' imprisonment, 
in seven 28-day or 35-day installments.  
The latest development, leading Ben Artzi to the Court Martial which is 
empowered to hand down a maximum of three years for his refusal to enlist, 
started exactly a week ago, when he was taken from his prison cell to a 
meeting with a Brigadier General at General Staff Headquarters in Tel-Aviv. 
This personage went out of his way to appear friendly ("I am not talking to 
you as a general to a draftee, but as Avi to Yoni, okay?") and made what 
was supposed to be "a generous offer": Ben Artzi would consent to be 
enlisted and have the legal status of a soldier, and in return the army would 
grant him "an easy service, without a gun, uniform or military training". 
Ben Artzi was given a few days to consider this offer, but in fact his 
response had never been in doubt: he is willing and ready to give three 
years for doing useful service to the benefit of Israeli society - but only in a 
civilian framework having nothing to do with the army; he is absolutely 
unwilling to be part, in any capacity whatsoever, of an army, an organization 
whose main aim is killing and violence; not of any army, in general, and 
certainly not of an army of occupation engaged in large-scale brutal 
oppression of another people.
Upon informing the authorities of his decision, Ben Artzi was informed in 
turn that he would face a court martial, empowered to sentence him to up to 
three years. Also, from that moment on he was subjected to a series of 
petty humiliations, never before experienced during his previous 
imprisonments: being handcuffed whenever taken from one place to another 
(though he has never shown any inclination to run away); being held in a 
cell without any furniture, so that he had to sit on the floor; being given food 
without utensils...
Three days of that were the prelude to yesterday's hearing, on the issue of 
whether or not Ben Artzi should be remanded in custody until the end of the 
court martial. The prosecutor went out of his way to be nasty, describing 
Ben Artzi as "no better than any deserter or drug addict". He was no 
pacifist, since "the competent military committee has already reviewed his 
case" and decided he was not. He must be kept continually in prison, for 
the sake of "deterrence", since letting him go free until the court martial 
renders its verdict would "undermine discipline in the army". 
Ben Artzi's lawyer, Adv. Michael Sfard from the office of the renowned 
human rights lawyer Avigdor Feldman, rebutted these arguments, stating 
that the "competent committee" was composed of military officers with no 
knowledge of or interest in pacifist principles, that they were rejecting 
virtually any claimant who appeared before them, and that Yoni Ben Artzi 
was "the classical, clear-cut case of a principled pacifist: a person who 
already chose pacifism and non-violence as the subject of his elementary 
school essays, who in school refused to attend a judo class since that 
involved using force, and who in the years before his conscription date had 
boned up on the history and philosophy of pacifism - for which he had two 
testimonies of university professors. Further, Adv. Sfard dismissed the 
prosecution's claim of "undermined discipline" as frivolous and vindictive. 
After several hours of often acrimonious debate, a compromise was 
hammered out: pending the end of the court martial Ben Artzi would stay 
neither at home nor in prison, but in "open detention" at the army's 
Induction Center. There was still a further debate on whether or not the 
prisoner would be allowed to spend the night in his parents' home, for what 
may be the last occasion in a very long while. The prosecutor, in another 
display of conspicuous narrow-mindedness, fiercely opposed it. In the ned, 
the judge, who seemed more fair-minded, granted that small boon.
This morning, Ben Artzi presented himself at the induction center for the 
beginning of "the open detention". There had been a new confrontation with 
a lieutenant-colonel who once again demanded that he enlist and 
threatened "the stockade"; upon Ben Artzi's continuing firm refusal, the 
colonel talked with his superiors and backed off - at least for the moment.
So, Yoni Ben Artzi's court martial is due to start sometime in the coming 
two weeks. It is vitally important to make it a major media and political 
event, to have many international delegations present, etc. 
And meanwhile, it is unclear what the army intends for the other ten 
refusniks who have been going in and out of prison over the past half a year. 
This morning ACRI (Civil Rights Association) appealed to the Supreme 
Court on behalf of Dror Beumel, today ending his sixth consecutive term, 
asking it to forbid the practice of repeated CO imprisonments. The court 
refused to grant an immediate injunction, which means that Beumel might 
be sent to a seventh term immediately upon his release today - but a 
hearing on merits of the case is due to take place, also within the next two 
weeks.   
    
[] Reminder, support vigil draft resisters at the home of General Finkelstein

[Gush Shalom supports the struggle of the refusers, and several of its 
members are actully among  the Refusnik Parents.]

At the initiative of The Refusers' Parents Forum; all supporters of the
refusniks invited. 
Contact: Anat <matar at post.tau.ac.il>, Smadar <snehab at netvision.net.il>

In support of the occupation resisters! 
In protest against the repeated imprisonment of draft resisters!

We'll make it clear toMenachem Finkelstein thathis treatment of conscientious 
objectors isunacceptable! 

Tomorrow,21 February, at 14:30, we willremindthe military attorney generalthe 
number of daystheserefuseniks have spent in military prisons and demand their 
immediate release. 

Meeting point for car-owners & those who need a ride : 
Arlozorov Railway Station (terminal El-Al)  at 2.00 pm

How to get there directly: 
Address: 12 Halevi St., Petach Tikva. 
Driving through Jabotinsky St. and passing the Rabin (Beilinson) Hospital, turn 
right into Yitzhak Sade St. (second light after the hospital). The street changes 
names to Trumpeldor and then Ha'nessiim. At the roundabout turn right into 
Halevi St. 

[] "Don't give in" - Gush statement of the week

[To be published in Ha'aretz, Friday, Feb. 21, 2003]

MITZNA,
DON'T
GIVE IN!

Sharon's promise "to set up a Palestinian state" is intended to entice you to 
serve in his government as a political fig-leaf and a military alibi.

For changing his spots, Sharon does not need the Labor party. He can ask 
it to help from the outside. 

Gush Shalom,
Help us with donations to
P.O.Box 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033,
www.gush-shalom.org

[] Photos of the antiwar demonstrations worldwide - including Tel-Aviv
   http://www.hyperreal.org/~dana/
---
Protest against repeated and unlimited imprisonment of draft resisters at: 
http://www.petitiononline.com/091202/

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On our site:
http://www.gush-shalom.org/ (òáøéú)
http://www.gush-shalom.org/english/index.html (English)

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