Romania: Update to ROM33365 of 24 December 1999 on whether alternative service has been implemented and is now available for conscientious objectors
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 12 June 2000 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | ROM34636.E |
| Reference | 5 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Romania: Update to ROM33365 of 24 December 1999 on whether alternative service has been implemented and is now available for conscientious objectors, 12 June 2000, ROM34636.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad6540.html [accessed 4 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
In a 8 June 2000 correspondence, an EBCO representative in Brussels
stated that:
There is an alternative service to the military one that is compulsory. But it can be fulfilled on religious grounds only. It is very difficult for the applicant to get the status because the law forsees business sector as the place of the service and business people are very reluctant to accept COs in their companies because these are mainly Jehovah Witnesses. So some recognized COs do not get place to do alternative service.
For all non-religious objectors there is no legal frame and they go to prison if they refuse military service. The length of the military service is 12 months respectively 6 months for university graduates. The length of the alternative service is double.
Some NGOs are negotiating with the Ministry of Defence for a European standard law fulfilling the criteria set by the European Parliament Campaigns are done in the last three years including the Youth Action for Peace in Romania as an initiator of this.
Recently the European Parliament decided that the commission should give full report about the legal framework for COs in the candidate countries which shall be a criteria if they adapt the Copenhagen criteria on Human Rights.
No further information on the availability of alternative military service to consciencious objectors in Romania could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
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 sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
European Bureau for Conscientious Objectors (EBCO). 8 June 2000. Correspondence with representative.
Additional Sources Consulted
IRB databases
Internet sources including:
World News Connection (WNC)
