Right to Refuse to Kill

On 24th October, Croatia’s parliament approved the reintroduction of compulsory military service, reversing a 2008 decision to abolish conscription.

On 10–11 September, hearings took place in the case of Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, the Thai activist and conscientious objector who is on trial for refusing military service. Netiwit’s case is the first legal challenge in Thailand addressing conscientious objection.

Two recent reports within the UN system have reaffirmed that the right to conscientious objection to military service is an essential part of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.

War Resisters’ International, in collaboration with Connection e.V., is organising a side event during the 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council. The event will focus on the right to conscientious objection in times of war with contributions of conscientious objectors from Russia, Ukraine and Israel, alongside experts from international organisations.

We, the undersigned organisations, express our strong support for Netiwit Chotiphatphaisal, Thailand’s first public conscientious objector, who faces trial at the Provincial Court of Samut Prakan on 10–11 September 2025. Netiwit’s refusal to serve, first declared as a teenager after the Thai military seized power in 2014, is a matter of conscience. His refusal is not only a deeply personal act of conscience, but also a stance that international law recognises and protects.

For the first time in nearly three years, a court is known to have convicted and imprisoned a young man for conscientious objection to compulsory military service on religious grounds. On 30 July, Yevlakh District Court in central Azerbaijan jailed 19-year-old Jehovah's Witness Elgiz Ibrahimov for one year in a general regime prison. He had told conscription officials of his readiness to perform alternative civilian service, but they handed his case to prosecutors for criminal prosecution.

A recent report, "I’ll Never Feel Secure: Undocumented and Exploited Myanmar Nationals in Thailand", by Human Rights Watch, highlights the struggles of Myanmar nationals in Thailand, many of whom fled forced military conscription under the 2024 National Service Law and continue to face severe human rights violations.

Cambodia’s Prime Minister, Hun Manet, recently announced the enforcement of a long-dormant conscription law starting in 2026, requiring citizens aged 18 to 30 to serve in the military. WRI finds this development deeply concerning. Mandatory conscription represents a direct step toward militarising societies. We are particularly alarmed that Cambodia has no legal framework to recognise those who refuse military service on grounds of conscience.

A group of Israeli teenagers has publicly declared their refusal to serve in the Israeli military, protesting against the genocide in Gaza and the ongoing occupation of Palestinian territories. The refusers are calling for an end to the war in Gaza and urging others to resist conscription.

New Profile, an Israeli antimilitarist and feminist organisation, and a member of the War Resisters’ International network, has just published its Annual Report. The report outlines the group’s work over the past year, including their efforts to end the genocide in Gaza, support conscientious objectors, and promote a demilitarised society in Israel.

On 3rd July 2025, peace campaigners from around the UK held an online discussion with Russian conscientious objectors (COs) who are refusing to fight in the war in Ukraine. This online event brought together four Russian COs, coordinated by a contact in Georgia who works with several NGOs to support COs, along with British peace campaigners working to raise awareness about their struggles.

As part of its electoral campaign promises, Gustavo Petro’s government (2022-2026) pledged to follow the recommendations of the Truth Commission on abolishing conscription. In this context, discussions on possible alternatives to military service were relaunched in 2022 and led to the adoption in the same year of the Law of Total Peace which proposed the creation of the Social Service for Peace (SSP) as an alternative to compulsory military service. Until August 2024 the national government succeeded in laying out the regulations and formalising the SSP. And while the proposal for an alternative to military service expands options for participation in peacebuilding in Colombia, it also raises serious concerns.