Won't Study War No More

An individual's right to refuse active military service on the grounds of conscience is a "fundamental aspect of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion," according to Europe's Seventh-day Adventists. This is a "significant recommendation," said Maurice Verfaillie of the Adventist Church. "In the past, many Seventh-day Adventists and Jehovah's Witnesses in Spain, Italy, and Belgium have met great difficulties with military conscription." The recommendation affirms the right of all conscripts to "receive information on conscientious objector status and the means of obtaining it" and to receive "genuine alternative service of a clearly civilian nature" that is "not punitive in nature."