“I had to be under special advocacy and that caused a huge psychological impact. For a long time I thought I wouldn’t make it because this is one of the countries where human rights defenders are being killed.” ~Alejandro Parra Macías

Conscientious objection - the refusal to participate in military service based on personal moral, ethical, or religious beliefs - is nothing new, but with increased awareness of human rights, changing attitudes toward military service, and heightened global conflicts that provoke moral and ethical concerns, conscientious objection is becoming more prevalent.

In this episode, we learn more about what conscientious objection is, the enormous challenges many individuals face when it comes to evading military conscription - plus, we hear the fascinating stories of two conscientious objectors who, against all odds, evaded fighting on the front line.

Our guests are:

• Jeff Paterson - a former marine turned conscientious objector from the US

• Alejandro Parra Macías, Co-founder of the Collective Action of Conscientious Objectors (ACOOC) in Colombia

• Sofia Zelenkevich, coordinator for the Get lost project

Your hosts are:

• Dean Peacock, Project Director of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom's initiative on men and militarism

• Reem Abbas, Communications Coordinator for the Mobilising Men for Feminist Peace Programme

Mobilising Men for Feminist Peace is a podcast from WILPF, the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, in which we uncover the transformative power of feminist peace and explore how men can be active proponents of achieving gender equality and peace.

For more resources and information, visit wilpf.org and the Mobilising Men for Feminist Peace project page here.