5 October 2023
Report of the Union of Conscientious Objectors (Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto, AKL) regarding OHCHR report on conscientious objection to military service.
CONTACT:
Address of the organization: Veturitori 3, 00520 Helsinki Finland
Website: https://akl-web.fi
Contact persons: Aku Kervinen, Teemu Mölsä
Telephone: +358 40 836 2786
Email: toimisto@akl-web.fi
CONTENTS:
1. Introduction
1.1 About the Union of Conscientious Objectors
2 Basic information on the conscription and conscientious objection in Finland
2.1 The duration of non-military service
2.2 Non-military service under civilian control
2.3 Problems when applying to non-military service
2.4 Punishments for total objectors
3 New developments regarding conscientious objection to military service since 2021
Sources
APPENDIX 1: Numbers of total objectors 2013-2022
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Introduction
This report covers views of the Union of Conscientious Objectors (AKL) on areas of relevance to the UN International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The general description on the Finnish conscription and the conscientious objection is provided in
Chapter 2: Basic information on the conscription and conscientious objection in Finland.
Current changes on the issue are provided in Chapter 3: New developments regarding conscientious objection to military service since 2021.
The report was made on 5 October 2023 by the Union of Conscientious Objectors.
1.1 About the Union of Conscientious Objectors
Aseistakieltäytyjäliitto (the Union Of Conscientious Objectors, AKL) is a Finnish anti-militarist peace organisation. It acts both as an advocacy organisation for conscientious objectors and an anti-militarist grassroots youth organisation.
2 Basic information on the conscription and conscientious objection in Finland
Finland has compulsory conscription for males. Conscripts have to serve 165, 255 or 347 days. As an alternative, they can apply for 347 day-long non-military service in the call-ups or during the military service. Applications to non-military service must be accepted automatically by the law.
2.1 The duration of non-military service
In the seventh periodic report of Finland (CCPR/C/FIN/7) the Human Rights Committee reiterated its concerns that the length of non-military service is almost twice the duration of the period of service for the rank and file, and recommended the State party to ensure that the length and nature of the alternatives to military service are not punitive in nature. The Human Rights Council noticed the same issue in their fourth Universal Periodic Review on Finland in 2023, when Uruguay asked Finland to “ensure that civilian alternatives to military service are non-punitive and non-discriminatory” (A/HRC/52/9).
The duration of non-military service is always 347 days. Meanwhile, those who serve in the army mostly spend shorter time in duty: 43 percent of conscripts serve 165 days in the army, 14 percent 255 days and 43 percent 347 days.1 In military service conscript’s own motivation has an effect for their imposition to certain durated service. The aim is to find enough conscripts willing to serve in the longer services. If there are not enough people willing to do longer service, it is possible to impose one to a certain service.
Those who become conscientious objectors after performing their military service must apply for supplementary service. Supplementary service is obligatory and its duration is 40 days in maximum by law, but contemporarily 5 days in practice. Meanwhile, most reservists of the military are not serving in the refresher courses. When comparing the refresher courses and the supplementary service it seems like conscientious objectors from the reserve are treated in a discriminatory way.
2.2 Non-military service under civilian control
In the last periodic report of Finland, The Human Rights Committee noted “with concern that the regular duration of alternative non-military service amounts to the longest period of military service and that, while such alternative service is under the direction of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, military personnel still take part in relevant working groups and committees determining the nature and duration of alternative service”. Committee also stated that the state party should “ensure that alternatives to military service are not punitive or discriminatory in terms of their nature or duration and remain of a civilian nature, outside military command” (CCPR/C/FIN/7). The Human Rights Council recommended Finland to “ensure that civilian alternatives (…) remain under civilian control” (A/HRC/52/9). There are some matters that implicate that non-military service is not fully under civilian control.
In the Advisory Committee on Non-Military Service Affairs, there are members from The Ministry of Defence, military headquarters and The Union of Conscripts. The human rights expertise and interests of non-military servicemen is left mostly on the shoulders of the member from The Union of Conscientious Objectors. He has raised up and defended alone the concerns and recommendations that The Human Rights Committee and Council have iterated on its periodic reports of Finland.
Military parties are deciding about the issues concerning conscientious objectors to military service. They are often supportive of ideas to change non-military service’s nature more into preparise service for the time of crisis. This kind of development would be against the conscience of many conscientious objectors.
2.3 Problems when applying to non-military service
The Non-Military Service Act obligates authorities to provide information about the possibility to apply for non-military service. Act’s section 104 says: “The Ministry of Employment and the Economy, the Centre for Non-Military Service, and the Defence Forces must provide those liable for conscription with sufficient information on the possibility to apply for, and the content of, non-military service.”2
Also the United Nation Human Rights Council draw attention in the theme in its Resolution 24/17: “[The Council] affirms the importance of the availability of information about the right to conscientious objection to military service, and the means of acquiring conscientious objector status, to all persons affected by military service -- [and] -- welcomes initiatives to make such information widely available, and encourages States, as applicable, to provide information to conscripts and persons serving voluntarily in the military services about the right to conscientious objection to military service.”3
This obligation is not realised. Firstly, there is not much information about non-military service before the call-ups or during the call-ups.
Finnish males receive a call-up letter on the year they turn 18 years old. On the letter there is a call-up notice, a questionnaire to ascertain military service and state of health and a guide book for military service. There is not any information about non-military service in the call-up notice. In the questionnaire there are questions about what kind of wishes the draftee has for army service. There is no possibility to announce about the wish to serve in the non-military service.4 In the 77-page guide book published by The Finnish Defence Forces the non-military service is presented in 7 sentences. There is information that it is possible to apply to non-military service but not information how to do that.5
The call-ups are organised by the Finnish Defence Forces and the municipality. It differs how the non-military service is presented in the call-ups. Normally it is mentioned quickly, sometimes not at all. Often the atmosphere is propagandist in the call-up. There are screenings of films made by Defence Forces and often there are war veterans giving speeches. Sometimes the manner of speaking makes non-military service sound suspicious and negative. Conscientious objectors need to find information about non-military service by themselves from the internet.
The Union of Conscientious Objectors has been collecting experiences from the participants who have not got enough information in the call-ups.6 The Union is also sharing leaflets that inform conscripts about the alternatives for military service. This campaign has continued for decades.
Secondly, the right to apply for non-military service during the army service often has problems.
The Non-Military Service Act’s Section 13 appoints: "Non-military service applications must be processed without delay. Call-up boards or Defence Forces regional offices must approve all applications that comply with the requirements laid down in section 12. Commanders of military units and the Centre for Non-Military Service must pass on all applications submitted to them to a Defence Forces regional office for approval. Call-up boards and Defence Forces regional offices must without delay notify the Centre for Non-Military Service that the non-military service application has been approved."
The Union Of Conscientious Objectors gets dozens of contacts every year from military servicemen who are willing to change to non-military service but who face denial or procrastination by the army brass. It is common that demobilisation happens many days after the draftee has told about their will to change to non-military service to the brass.
2.4 Punishments for total objectors
Conscientious objectors who refuse to perform both military service and non-military service are called “total objectors”. They are sentenced to imprisonment for a period corresponding to half of their remaining non-military service time. Maximum imprisonment period is 173 days. Since 2013, total objectors have had the chance to apply to perform monitoring sentences.
In the seventh periodic report of Finland (CCPR/C/FIN/CO/7) the Human Rights Committee reiterated its concerns that the preferential treatment accorded to Jehovah’s Witnesses had not been extended to other groups of conscientious objectors, but it was expelled. In 2023, the Human Rights Council noticed the same issue in its report on Finland: the Council asked Finland to “End the detention of conscientious objectors to military service” (Uruguay) and to “halt all prosecutions of people who refuse to perform military service on grounds of conscience and release those who are serving prison sentences for that reason” (Panama). (A/HRC/52/9)
In its seventh periodic report the Finnish State Party did not respond about any progress made in extending the exemption from military and civilian service accorded to Jehovah’s Witnesses to other conscientious objectors. There are not any responses concerning the Article 18 of the Covenant and the repealing of the preferential treatment. The total number of total objectors in Finland 2013-2020 is provided in APPENDIX 1.
3 New developments regarding conscientious objection to military service since 2021
After the parliamentary election in Finland 2023, the new government coalition led by prime minister Petteri Orpo published its programme7. The government programme does not refer to the problems that the United Nations human rights bodies have found in treatment of Finnish conscientious objectors. Instead of that, the Government plans to develop the conscription system and extend call-ups to the entire age group, “in line with the report of the parliamentary working group”. In addition, “The Government will utilise the report of the parliamentary working group to develop non-military service and link it more clearly to the comprehensive security model.”
This parliamentary working group published its report9 on 26 November 2021. Some of the Committee’s proposals might have deteriorating effects for conscientious objectors if actualized, including the goals:
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to reshape the non-military service’s training period with preparedness and disruption controlling contents;
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to primarily have service positions which are liable for preparedness and are essential in comprehensive security;
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to serve in assisting comprehensive security tasks that support anticipation and preparedness;
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to enable non-military servicemen’s mutual administrative support;
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to enable the usage of the reserve of non-military servicemen also during other times of crises than military crises;
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to launch complementary training for non-military servicemen to use in different readiness states and
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to reject recognition of already performed service days when applying to non-military service from military service.
The Union of Conscientious Objectors (AKL) is worried that the defence regime has taken more power on the non-military service. The basis for the development work was set by The Ministry of Defence, and as a result, the working group highlights the defensive functions of alternative service and partly overtakes human rights based approach to it. The government programme raises concern that this approach of the defence regime will be adopted to the government policies.
AKL sees that the goal to link the non-military service more closely to the comprehensive security approach and preparedness in society might endanger the conviction based nature of the alternative service when focusing solely at crisis time instead of proactive peace building. On the other hand, it is positive that the report mentions a couple of times that the service should be in line with a person’s conviction. Also, the authorities have implied that service positions would not be diminished from the prevailing state.
The proposal to reject recognition of already performed service days when applying to non-military service from military service means that those who develop conscientious objections during the military service would need to perform a full 347 days of non-military service no matter how many service days they have already performed. The proposal would make non-military service even more punitive than it is today in terms of its duration.
At the moment the already performed military service days are compensated by using certain coefficients. According to the Committee, the reason for the change would be equality. At the moment, those servicemen who have already started performing non-military service can not anymore be accepted to military service. The Committee also pleads that the compensation when changing from military service to non-military service is not appropriate because the increasing comprehensive security content will make the non-military service more demanding.
AKL has been criticising the proposal as an attempt to deteriorate the right of conscientious objection and to diminish switching from military service to non-military service. AKL sees that the parliamentary working group’s task to add operational value to military defence is the real reason for the goal. At the moment almost half of the non-military servicemen have served in the army before choosing the non-military service.
The development of conscription call-ups gets a lot of attention in the report of parliamentary working group and the government programme, but, what is not taken into account, is the Human Rights Committee’s recommendation to intensify efforts to raise awareness among the public about the right to conscientious objection and the availability of alternatives to military service.
Sources
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The website of the Finnish Defence Forces: https://intti.fi/en/in-service
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Non-Military Service Act: https://finlex.fi/en/laki/kaannokset/2007/en20071446.pdf
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A/HRC/17/24 https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/17session/A-HRC-17-24.pdf
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Questionnaire: https://puolustusvoimat.fi/documents/1948673/2258888/PEVIESTOS-Kyselylomake-varusmiespalvelusta.pdf/8fb06fb7-08d0-41ac-affa-551669dbed1d
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Guide book: https://intti.fi/documents/1948673/144336027/Varusmies2023_suomi_saavutettava.pdf/6b2985f3-9e4b-6c9b-e354-b3a34cf642f2/Varusmies2023_suomi_saavutettava.pdf?t=1671696598349
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https://akl-web.fi/fi/posts/kokemuksia-siviilipalveluksesta-tiedottamisesta-kutsunnoista
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A strong and committed Finland. Programme of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo's Government: https://valtioneuvosto.fi/en/governments/government-programme#/
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The conclusion of the Parliamentary Committee: https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/handle/10024/163633
APPENDIX 1: Numbers of total objectors 2013-2023
Number of refusal to perform non-military service and refusing military service authorities reported. (Sources: Statistics Finland)
Notification: It is possible to become a total objector in two ways. The more common way is to apply to non-military service and refuse to perform it. In this case a criminal offence is called Refusal to perform non-military service (Non-military service act section 74). The other way is to refuse directly from military service without applying to non-military service first. Criminal offence is then called Refusing military service (Conscription Act section 118).