Resolution on conscientious objection to military service in Russia

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on conscientions objection <...>;

- having regard to its Resolution A3-0025/92 on human rights in the Member States (from the Council of Europe or of the european Parliament ???);

- having regard to the Resolution 1995/83 on conscientious objection of the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations;

- having regard to the Resolution 193 (1996) of Parliamentarian Assembly of Council of Europe on Russia's apply for membership in Coucil of Europe;

A. confirming that conscientious objection to military service is recognized by the United Nations as legal implementation of the fundamental right to freedom of conscience;

B. whereas the right to conscientious objection is guaranteed by the Constitution of Russian Federation in Article 59-3;

C. considerando la situazione di pesante incertezza che deriva per molti giovani russi dall'assenza delle disposizioni legislative che dovrebbero regolamentare il diritto all'obiezione di coscienza garantito dalla Costituzione russa;

D. whereas the adopting the law alternative civilian service makes an integral part of obligations taken on itself by Russia as a condition for its membership in Council of Europe;

E. whereas the draft law on alternative civilian service has been adopted by the State Duma (lower chamber of Russian parliament) in first reading in December 1994 and since that time it was two times rejected by the State Duma in May and December 1995 in the second reading;

F. whereas, therefore, there is no legal possibility till now to perform alternative civilian service for conscientious objectors;

G. whereas many Russian draftees request according the Constitution about possibility to perform alternative civilian service instead of the military service and do not receive such a possibility from side of military recruitment commissions;

H. whereas many of conscientious objectors whose right to perform alternative civilian service has been denied by military authorities, appeal to the courts in order to defend their constitutional right, and in many cases Russian courts do not satisfy such appeals, placing the conscientious objectors in an uncertain and illegal position;

I. expressing its deep concern about several cases of criminal persecutions for "evading military service" have taken places against such conscientious objectors;

J. whereas in spite of justification verdict passed by Noginsk city court on the criminal case of Vadim Hesse on May 13, 1996, the future of other criminally persecuted conscientious objectors - as Alexander Seryogin from Moscow, sentenced to two years of imprisonment with a 3-years delay of punishment on October 24, 1996, and Denis Yazykov from Yekaterinburg awaiting for trial sentence - still remains unclear;

K. whereas there are fixed several cases of kidnapping conscientious objectors and forcing them to the military service;

L. whereas the draft law on alternative civilian service ready for the second reading and initially introduced into agenda of proceedings for December 1996, still does not have a determined date for examining on the plenary session;

M. whereas the Russian Defence Ministry and parliamentarian committee on defence, which is responsible for further elaborating the draft bill initially prapared in the State Duma of the previous legislation, tries in fact to change by a radical way the draft law adopted in first reading in order to provide performing alternative service within armed forces, to increase duration of alternative service up to 4 years (while 2 years for ordinary military service) and to reduce the convictions which could be reason for recognizing conscientious objection to only religious ones;

N. whereas there is a strong resistance to this draft law from side of Defence Ministry and its lobby in the State Duma;

O. whereas, therefore, there is a serious danger that draft law on alternative civilian service will not be examined in the next months and the legal situation of conscientious objectors will still remain unclear, taking in consideration that even the courts often ignore the constitutional right to conscientious objection;

1. Calls on the authorities of Russian Federation to stop immediately the criminal persecution of conscientious objectors, in particular - to abolish sentence passed for Alexander Seryogin, and to close criminal suite against Denis Yazykov;

2. Asks the State Duma of Russian Federation to pass the law on alternative civilian service, the Council of Federation to adopt it and President of Russia to sign it;

3. Urges the Commission to press Russia to solve the issue of conscientious objectors' rights;

4. Urges the Council, the Commission and the Member States to raise the question of conscientious objectors' rights and law on alternative civilian service during every bilateral contacts with the Russian Federation;

5. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments and the parliaments of the member states and to the Government and Parliament of the Russian Federation.