"Lt Watada decided a year ago that he would not serve in Iraq. Since then he has spoken out at press conferences and to veterans' groups. These actions infuriated military officials, who have charged him with conduct unbecoming an officer for publicly saying that service in Iraq would make him party to a war crime, and for suggesting that soldiers could bring the war to an end by throwing down their weapons.
"Lt Watada is not the first soldier to voice his objections to the war in Iraq. A number of enlisted men have publicly refused to serve there, citing conscientious objection. Thirteen have sought refugee status in Canada. Thousands more have gone awol. Last year, six senior generals, including some who had served in the invasion and occupation of Iraq, demanded that Donald Rumsfeld, then Pentagon chief, stand down.
"But Lt Watada is in none of those camps and he does not claim to be a conscientious objector. He decided to go public with his opposition to the war, a choice his civilian lawyer, Eric Seitz, believes singled out Lt Watada for prosecution. "They decided at a lower level to make an example out of Lt Watada," he said. "It was this kind of questioning and resistance that ended up destroying the ability of military forces to fight in Vietnam and they are very concerned about a repetition of that."
Angry Arab Again
No comments:
Post a Comment