Romania: Availability of alternative military service in Romania, particularly as it pertains to Pentecostals; details on the procedures to follow; and the punishment for draft evasion

Alternative military service is regulated by Government Decision number 618/1997, Regarding the Performance of Mandatory Public Service as an Alternative to Military Service (Romania 6 Oct. 1997). Article 1, section 1, of the Decision states that alternative service can be "performed by citizens fit for military service who, for religious reasons, refuse to do armed military service" (ibid.).

According to Article 6, section 3, of the Decision, upon the request of military authorities, the Secretary of State for Religious Affairs, also translated as the State Secretariat for Religious Denominations (International Religious Freedom Report 2002 2002), is to confirm that the beliefs of the religious group to which the recruit adheres do not allow for the performance of armed military service (Romania 6 Oct. 1997).

For a complete copy of Government Decision 618/1997, which also contains information on the procedures to be followed when applying for alternative service, please consult ROM28665.E of 20 January 1998.

An October 2000 Amnesty International document stated that Article 6 of Government Decision 618/1997 limits the right to alternative service to those people who belong to a church or group specifically designated by the state authorities (AI 6 Oct. 2000). The document then posits that under Article 6 alternative service would be unavailable to those individuals belonging to religious groups that do not "in principle" oppose armed military service but who have developed a personal "conscientious objection to carrying arms" (ibid.).

For the names of those religions officially recognized in Romania, please refer to ROM40497.E of 21 February 2003.

The Executive President of the Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center in Romania, after consulting the President of the Cluj Regional Pentecostal Community, stated that "young males of Pentecostal religion do the normal compulsory military service" (19 Feb. 2003). Elaborating further, the Executive President added that, for Pentecostals, alternative military service is not a group right; therefore, exemption is not automatically provided to members of the Pentecostal community as is the case with Adventists (ibid. 20 Feb. 2003). Members of the Pentecostal community must request alternative military service individually, as can any Romanian citizen under the provisions of Government Decision number 618/1997 (ibid.).

In its October 2000 document, Amnesty International reported the sentencing of 29 Jehovah's Witnesses who, for reasons of religious conviction, chose not to report for military service (6 Oct. 2000). According to the report, the 29 were sentenced under Article 354 of the Penal Code for failing report for military service, an offence punishable by one to five years imprisonment (ibid.).

For additional information on alternative military service in Romania, please consult ROM40183.E of 17 October 2002, ROM34636.E of 12 June 2000 and ROM33365.E of 24 December 1999.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Amnesty International (AI). 6 October 2000. "Romania Conscientious Objectors Face Imprisonment." (AI Index: EUR 39/006/2000) [Accessed 20 Feb. 2003]

Ethnocultural Diversity Resource Center (EDRC), Cluj-Napoca, Romania. 19 February 2003. Correspondence from the Executive President.

According to its Website, the EDRC's Misssion is "is to contribute to the construction of democracy in Romania, by improving the country's interethnic climate and promoting the principles of ethnocultural peace and justice" (EDRC 3 Feb. 2003)

_____. 20 February 2003. Correspondence from the Executive President.

_____. 3 February 2003. " Presentation." [Accessed 25 Feb. 2003]

International Religious Freedom Report 2002. 7 October 2002. " Romania." United States Department of State. Washington, DC. [Accessed 20 Feb. 2003]

Romania. 6 October 1997. Official Gazette of Romania. Part 1, No. 282. Decision Regarding the Performance of Mandatory Public Service as an Alternative to Military Service. Translated by the Multilingual Translation Directorate of the Department of Public Works and Government Services Canada.

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB databases

NEXIS

Internet sites, including:

Amnesty International

Center for Religious Freedom

Council of Europe

European Bureau of Conscientious Objectors

European Union

Human Rights Watch

International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)

Radio Free Europe

ReliefWeb

UNHCR

War Resisters International (WRI)

World News Connection

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