Mazuz: Conscientious objection could be 'positive phenomenon'
YUVAL YOAZ, GIDEON ALON, and LILY GALILI
Ha'aretz, 11 May 2004
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz shocked the political establishment yesterday by expressing tentative, if qualified, support for conscientious objection, saying he understood what was potentially a "positive phenomenon."
On the right, coalition whip Gideon Sa'ar, MK (Likud), said Mazuz "was wrong to say things that could be interpreted as indifference to the grave practice of political criminality that undermines the foundations of democracy. The attorney general does not have the privilege to say things that could be interpreted as empathy for lawbreakers."
On the left, Yahad MKs welcomed the remarks. Zehava Galon said the Knesset should follow in Mazuz's footsteps and pass a law that would recognize the right of youth from across the political spectrum to refuse army service on conscientious grounds.
She and her Yahad colleague MK Roman Bronfman have already submitted a bill that would allow refuseniks for reasons of religion, faith and conscience to choose alternative national service instead of military service.
And the Courage to Refuse group said "the attorney general has joined a large and respectable group of leading legal authorities and public figures who understand that refusal to serve is founded on morality, caring, and love of the country. That group includes former attorney general Michael Ben-Yair, Prof. Ze'ev Sternhell, and author Sami Michael, head of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel."
According to Courage to Refuse, there are now some 600 reserve soldiers and officers who refuse to serve in the territories for reasons of conscience.
"I can understand the phenomenon of youth struggling over beliefs and opinions," Mazuz told the fourth annual convention of the Israel Bar Association in Eilat.
"This seems like it could be a positive phenomenon that demonstrates social involvement and concern," he said. "Refusal to serve and civil disobedience for political reasons are an integral part of the Israeli reality in the last few decades," he said.
He classified conscientious objection as an expression of human rights, as the Supreme Court had previously ruled.
However, Mazuz warned that a balance must be maintained between the value of conscientious objection and its consequences in any particular time and place. He also discussed the distinction, laid forth by the Supreme Court, between a total refusal to serve in the army and selective refusal.
"The significance of the approach is that the state doesn't see in selective refusal a legitimate cause to refuse to serve, and takes judicial action against selective refuseniks," Mazuz said.
Analysis / Refuseniks rejoice over boost from Mazuz
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz's surprising statement boosted conscientious objection just when the trend seemed to be weakening.
Conscientious objection, which existed in Israel since the declaration of the state as an individual option, became an organized movement with the establishment of Yesh Gvul during the war in Lebanon. At that time the movement was roundly denounced by the public, and even the left saw conscientious objection as beyond the consensus.
The last intifada, which created a semblance of consensus in Israeli society, brought a far-reaching change in the extent of refuseniks and the attitude toward them. The sweeping social condemnation cracked as left-wing politicians, public figures and senior academics openly supported them.
From something beyond the pale, conscientious objection forced itself into the public discourse. One of the main fears of the left was that supporting it would legitimize right-wing disobedience when it comes to evacuating settlements.
In view of the concern in the army and the military's sharpened response to refuseniks, the attorney general's utterance, from the heart of the Israeli establishment, is all the more unexpected.
Over the past three years, organized conscientious objection has increased. First came a letter signed by 50 fighters in the Ometz Lesarev (Courage to Refuse) group, who refused to serve in the territories. Then came the pilots who said they would not take part in targeted assassinations in the territories, and criticized the occupation. Today there are more than 600 Ometz Lesarev members. Members of elite commando units followed in a statement against the occupation. All these groups consist of reserve soldiers refusing selectively to serve in the territories or participate in actions connected with the occupation.
The high school students who are totally refusing to be called up for reasons of conscience are another reflection of the trend. They include a pacifist group, which refuses army service and political objectors who reject being part of an army of occupation.
The Israel Defense Forces officially recognizes sweeping pacifism, but refuses to recognize selective, i.e. political, conscientious objection.
The pacifists' main representative is Yoni Ben Artzi, who served more than a year in prison. The army refused to recognize him as a pacifist, and he was exempted from service on grounds of "unsuitability."
Despite the exemption, the IDF insisted on sending him to prison for two more months. Meanwhile, girls in high school are increasingly refusing to be called up for reasons of conscience. Five of them are now facing a military tribunal, and the army is harshening its treatment of them.
The IDF's conscience committee has also undergone a change after the High Court blasted its lack of clear criteria and criticized its composition. Although a civilian - a philosopher - was added to the committee, it is still having difficulty defining the elusive concept "conscience." - by Lily Galili