Armenian Youths Feel Deceived—Military Police Arrest Two YEREVAN, Armenia—Armenian Military Police arrived at a psychiatric hospital in the city of Kapan and arrested two conscientious objectors, Narek Alaverdyan and Arsen Sevoyan. Both of them are Jehovah’s Witnesses who had been assigned to work at the psychiatric hospital as part of their “alternative labor service” after they refused to perform the country’s obligatory military service. Upon arriving for work at the hospital, however, they discovered that it was de facto military service in the guise of civilian service. After they wrote a letter to the civilian director of the hospital stating that the work regime conflicts with their views on military service, Military Police were dispatched to the hospital, where the two were immediately arrested and taken to an unknown location. The case of these two young men illustrates the dilemma faced by conscientious objectors across Armenia who say they feel deceived. Twenty-one young men in Armenia who are Jehovah’s Witnesses and had refused military service on religious grounds had applied to serve under the new alternative service law in Armenia, believing it to be civilian in nature. However, most of them have now expressed their disappointment on realizing that what they were assigned to do is not civilian service but military service. Presently those who opt for alternative service in Armenia are assigned work in hospitals, which in itself is not an unusual form of alternative service. But contrary to the agreements made by the Armenian government, these young men find themselves under the supervision of the military. They are expected to wear military-like uniforms, and their identification cards read: “RA Armed Forces.” Military police visit them regularly, and in the hospitals they are viewed as soldiers. Their printed record of work bears the inscription: “Military Forces of the Republic of Armenia.” Their sentiments are reflected in the comment of one who felt compelled to say, “My conscience will not permit me to continue under these conditions.” Since the alternative service has proved to be military instead of civilian, many of the young men are refusing to continue serving, which almost certainly means that they will be tried in military courts. They face a potentially severe punishment of up to eight years in prison. Armenia’s obligations to the Council of Europe require it to provide an alternative to military service, which is to be nonpunitive, civilian, and equal in time to the military service. The present system does not meet these standards. In addition, there are currently 20 male Jehovah’s Witnesses in prison for their conscientious refusal of military service. Eleven have received the maximum sentence of two years. The young men of Armenia who have conscientious objection to military service still hope that genuine alternative civilian service will become available to them. Contacts
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