[Peace-discuss] *Soldiers in Revolt*
Jan & Durl Kruse
jandurl at insightbb.com
Wed Oct 25 15:40:57 CDT 2006
Soldiers in Revolt: 218 active-duty troops call to end the U.S.
occupation of Iraq
Christian Avard
Published: Wednesday October 25, 2006
For the first time since the U.S. invasion of Iraq, active-duty members
of the military are publicly appealing members of Congress to end the
U.S. occupation, RAW STORY has learned.
Under the Military Whistleblower Protection Act (DOD directive 7050.6),
active-duty military, National Guard, and Reservists can send a
protected communication to a member of Congress regarding any subject
without reprisal.
Earlier this week, 65 military service members and National Guardsmen
sent appeals for redress to members of Congress to urge an immediate
withdrawal from Iraq. That total is now up to 219 service men and
women, 125 of whom are on active duty.
Three active-duty servicemen (one of whom spoke under condition of
anonymity) held a press conference today, along with a retired Judge
Advocate General lawyer, to discuss their appeals.
"Many of us--who have to follow orders and took an oath to defend the
constitution against all enemies both foreign and domestic--[also] have
reservations about the orders. And," Jonathan Hutto, a Navy Seaman
based in Norfolk, Virginia, concluded, "at this point some of us feel
compelled to let our reservations be known and that the occupation
should come to an end right now."
Hutto added the group are not pacifists or conscientious objectors and
are not urging any actions that might be deemed illegal.
The grievances
Liam Madden, a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps stationed at
Quantico, continued, "The real grievances are, if democracy is our goal
than I believe we are going about it all wrong. The occupation is
perpetuating more violence and I think is the biggest destabilizing
thing we can do to the Middle East."
One service member, who spoke on the condition of anonymity of his
recent year in Iraq, said that he, "was hit by IEDs, by mortars... I
was hit by snipers in my convoy and I’ve seen friends injured and
affected by deaths in my brigade and my unit. I can tell you that many
of them are not quite sure what their purpose or focus is now."
"A lot of people don’t want to admit it," he insisted, "but we are
stuck in a civil war and it’s hard for the soldiers seeing the ethnic
fighting going on around them and feeling like they’re stuck in the
cross fire and not really feeling like there’s anything they can do to
stop it."
"And it’s very frustrating to go out in convoys and get hit and not
really sure why it is and not seeing any tangible results for their
actions," he added. "I think it’s very important that Congress members
and people understand that we do have a voice, and pay attention to our
surroundings and what’s going on--and listen to what we have to say."
Appealing for redress
Hutto explained that the idea of issuing Appeals for Redress originated
in early 2006, when he was deployed off the coast of Iraq on the U.S.S.
Theodore Roosevelt.
"An old buddy of mine, who was a member of the GI movement back in the
early 1970s," Hutto explained, "sent me a 30th anniversary copy of
Soldiers in Revolt, written by David Cortwright. The book chronicles
the GI movement within the military during the Vietnam War who
advocated to end that war and bring the troops home."
Hutto continued, "One of the avenues that they used, which was a legal
one, is appealing to their political leaders in Washington. By 1971
over 250,000 of these active duty servicemen had appealed to the
Congress people."
"None of the Marines know that there is a policy available to them,"
Madden added, "and that it’s everybody’s duty to support democracy and
do it much more effectively than we are in exercising these rights in
Iraq."
J.E. McNeil, a former military JAG lawyer, emphasized that all
servicemen and women still have their rights as U.S. citizens and can
exercise them when need be.
"When men and women join the military and put on the uniform, they
don’t give up their rights as U.S. citizens," said McNeil, though
"there may be some small limitations to their first amendment rights."
"They are supposed to be very clear," McNeil elaborated, "and they have
been, that they’re speaking on their own behalf and not using any of
the military resources to make these statements that are their own
beliefs, and we should be very proud of them to do that."
Fear of reprisal
Many in the military fear reprisals for coming forth, even though they
have the legal right to do so.
One soldier in the Army, who participated anonymously in the press
conference had more information to reveal, saying, "Anyone who’s been
involved in the military does know there are informal means of punitive
actions that circumvent the legal system which are often used in
different means to intimidate soldiers."
"I’ve talked to numerous soldiers," the anonymous soldier said, "and
obviously looking at the numbers now, they obviously haven’t stepped
forward. I will tell you, though--and I don’t think the American Public
realizes--just how many soldiers and service members in general really
do have reservations about the actions going on in Iraq.
"And fear," he added, is a main reason why people aren’t stepping
forward.... I think that once they start seeing momentum going forward
and more and more service members come out, that they will be more
inclined to come out as well."
"It’s costing way too many humans, Iraqi civilians, and American
service member lives," Madden concluded, "and brings us no benefits.
The only people who benefit in my eyes are corporations like
Halliburton. I don’t think that war is being paid for in the right
manner and I think that if people want to support the troops then they
should support us coming home."
#Appeal for Redress may be contacted via their website at
Appealforredress.org.
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