In this most extraordinary of times it is now blatantly clear that the human race must abolish war in its entirety. Conscientious objectors worldwide play our part in asserting the human right for people not to be made to participate either physically or financially in the conduct of war.
It is all about the money. It is our money which funds military preparations and actions and we are obliged to pay whether we agree or not. For conscientious objectors the right to divert the taxes they pay to the military, towards nonviolent conflict resolution is a first step in demilitarising the Earth.
CPTI continues to bring this issue before the UN at every opportunity. Every five years, each country has to report to the UN Human Rights Council on its human rights. During this process citizen groups are able to challenge their country’s human rights record. Tax objectors have made statements in person at the UN, the latest being Jan Hellebaut from Belgium in September 2021.
This conference has been planned to coincide with the UN Human Rights Council session at which we expect a resolution on conscientious objection to military service. (Both the resolution and our conference are postponed from September 2021). There will be a possibility before and after the conference to attend the sessions.
We call on peace activists everywhere to join us in Geneva at this crucial time and to give this cause a boost.
Preliminary Programme
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Friday 16 |
Arrivals |
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Supper and informal introductory session– Britannia Pub or La Brasserie (both close to the main railway station |
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Saturday 17 |
Main Session, Part 1: Quaker House, 13 Avenue de Mervelet, 09.00 – 13.00 We will be joined by Dr. Michael Wiener of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (and co-author with past and future UN Special Rapporteurs of the authoritative “Freedom of Religion or Belief: An International Law Commentary”, Oxford University Press 2016), who will discuss with us the history of the recognition of conscientious objection in the UN system, putting into context the quadrennial resolution which comes before the Human Rights Council while we are meeting, and the way forward. |
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Lunch: Tea Room du Bouchet (c200m) Main Session, Part 2, Quaker House 14.00 – 18.00. This will include : a) discussion of a formal report from CPTI’s General As sembly, which for statutory resons took place on-line on 2nd June this year. b) a discussion with people with experience of facilitating non-governmental organisation access to the different UN human rights mechanisms, the Treaty Bodies, the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, and its Universal Periodic Review process, c) An introduction by our local member, Christophe Barbey, to Switzerland’s specific military tax, which has now twice been condemned by the European Court of Human Rights!! and comments from Board member Milena Romero about the parallel situation in Colombia. d) A pooling of experience about the history of CPTI and the broader movement, perhaps with contributions on-line, which should lead into e) a discussion of where, in terms both of organisation and strategy, the movement goes from here. |
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Supper: Fondue at Café de Soleil, Petit Sacconex (c300m) |
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Sunday 18 |
Optional outing, probably to the nearby crest of the Jura Mountains (travel cost approx 35 Francs), followed by historic “peace trail” walk in Geneva. |
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Monday 19 – Friday 30th (and/or Tuesday 13 – Friday 16 September, or any weekdays in this period) |
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opportunity of accreditation to and attendance at UN Human Rights Council, with the possibility of observing debates and side events, and in particular the informal consultations on the expected quadrennial resolution on conscientious objection to military service. . |
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Accommodation
is being arranged, both for the weekend of the conference itself and any extended stays, in the City Hostel, Geneva, close to the main railway station and the UN.
Conference fee
The fee of £240 (with a 50 % supplement for a single room) covers accommodation on the nights of Friday 16th, Saturday 17th and Sunday 19th, meals on Friday evening and Saturday lunchtime and evening and miscellaneous costs. Free local travel comes with the accommodation. Not covered in the fee are breakfasts and any costs on Sunday. Extra nights, for those willing to accept shared accommodation, will be billed at £45 per night.
We hope to set up a voluntary travel cost sharing arrangement which may help to broaden the geographical range of participants.
Languages
It is envisaged that the proceedings will take place mainly in English. Interpretation into – and if necessary from – German will be provided if there is a demand – please indicate on your registration form if you would like to take advantage of this.
On- Line Access
There is clearly a demand for on-line access, so we are arranging to bring in the expertise to set this up for the Saturday sessions. (We cannot however offer online interpretation.) To cover the cost and so as not to discourage in person attendance there will be a fee of £40(€45) for attendance in this fashion. To register for online access please email chair@peacetaxinternational.org.
Contact
We have set up a registration form on this website. The link to it is here.
Enquiries should be made to Robin or Derek :
Robin Brookes, President : chair@peacetaxinternational.org
(+44) 78 380 13619
Derek Brett - Representative to UN Geneva : news@peacetaxinternational.org
(+41) 77 444 4420