COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Military Service: General
Troops refusing Iraq duty get a haven
MIKE BARBER, P-I
June 15, 2006
Prompted by a Fort Lewis Army officer's decision to refuse to fight in> Iraq, the First United Methodist Church of Tacoma has declared itself a
> sanctuary for servicemen and servicewomen who also don't want to go to
> Iraq.
>
> The 300-member congregation' s administrative council voted last weekend to
> open its doors beginning this Saturday after 1st Lt. Ehren Watada
> announced that he thinks the war in Iraq is illegal and that he has sought
> to resign his commission.
>
> A statement from the church on Wednesday said that service members "who
> are unable to deploy to combat areas for reasons of conscience" can find
> protection behind its doors.
>
> "Our initiative was because of Lieutenant Watada's gesture and a clear
> sense that we have, as a reconciling congregation, deeply involved in
> justice issues throughout the city, that any war, particularly this one,
> is inconsistent with Christian teachings," the Rev. Monty Smith said
> Wednesday night.
>
> Smith said the church stands "in solidarity" with others who hold similar
> social-justice convictions. The church essentially is providing a
> protective space and resources to those contemplating whether to resist
> deployment to Iraq, he said.
>
> Smith said the church so far has received no applications for sanctuary
> from members of the armed forces. It has protocols and precautions to
> ensure that anyone who seeks sanctuary is doing so for legal and religious
> reasons.
>
> The decision marks the latest action by peace activists and war resisters
> in recent weeks in the Tacoma-Olympia corridor near Fort Lewis.
>
> While troop supporters continue their vigils at a bridge near the post's
> main gate, Tacoma and Olympia seem to have become a new epicenter for an
> invigorated anti-war movement usually seen in Seattle.
>
> Two weeks ago, demonstrations in Olympia against the movement of military
> vehicles from Fort Lewis to Iraq via the Port of Olympia resulted in civil
> disobedience and arrests.
>
>
>
> Last week, Watada, a company-grade military officer with the Stryker
> Brigade about to deploy to Iraq this month, said off-post and after
> working hours that he does not conscientiously object to war. He would
> serve in Afghanistan but not in Iraq, which he considers an illegal war.
> Watada, who has tried twice before to resign from the Army, continues to
> work and train as an artillery-targeting officer but is under
> investigation, his lawyer and military officials said.
>
> Smith said he's a bit surprised that activism is taking root in the area.
>
> "Before, the huge demonstrations and marches were in Seattle," he said.
>
> Spokesmen for the Church Council of Greater Seattle could not be reached
> for comment Wednesday.
>
> The Seattle council has expressed support for Watada, and urged support
> for an Interfaith Network of Concern petition to the Seattle City Council
> for a resolution urging an exit strategy from Iraq.
>
> On its Web site, the Seattle church group said:
>
> "The Church Council appreciates the difficulty for Lt. Watada in making
> such an important decision, given his military service, and the potential
> consequences that he likely will face, including a court-martial. Our
> support and prayers go to Lt. Watada at this time. We continue to pray and
> call for an expedited end to the war in Iraq and for the preservation of
> all lives in the areas of conflict."
>
> Smith, joined by other local clergy members, has scheduled a news
> conference for noon Friday to explain the church's position and to answer
> questions.
>
> The church, at 423 Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Tacoma's Hilltop
> neighborhood, has a long history of supporting social justice since
> opening its doors in 1876.
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