VOLUNTARITY AND ALTERNATIVE CIVIL SERVICES

Public campaign aimed at introduction of Alternative Civil Service (ACS) is carried out during the last three years with participation of remedial organizations of Moscow, Ekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Nizhniy Novgorod and other Russian cities. Representatives of human rights advocacy's organizations consider introducing into practice of the alternative civil service as first step toward army reforming, which should be aimed at its professionalism. Here is what Chairman of the Permer Regional branch of the international society "Memorial" A.M. Kalikh thinks about it: "Concerning the military reform we are supporting the concept of Military Forces reduction and professionalism, as well as creating of the relatively small number (USA Army for example - approximately 500 thousand men plus 230 thousand men abroad) but mobile, flexible and modern equipped army, as well as the concept of renunciation of the universal military service (that should be applied during the wartime only) and introduction of the contract conscription.

We should draw attention to three principal theses:

1. We are coming out against army reduction as an end in itself, against senseless reduction, which would only render our army lifeless. The archaic mobilization model, which we inherited from Soviet times, substitutes in reality the regular reduction with creation of mobilization reserves. As a result we have an enormous quantity of outdated equipment and not enough personnel to operate it. While being enormous huge the army is still lacking of people.
2. From our point of view forced conscription is one of the main reasons of the fatal illness of our army: people, who do not want and are not capable, should serve there or let's say imitate serving there. This causes the mass evasion from conscription (yearly average is approximately 40 - 60 thousand), corruption in military registration and enlistment offices and in draft boards. This results in out-of-the-regulations relations, endless escapes of soldiers, shooting down of fellow soldiers etc.
3. The principal question for the society is the following: where are the funds directed, which come as a result of army reduction? It is already announced: to purchase new equipment and arms. Which means - not for financing of army reform, not to make it professional. We think, that the main financial source for the alternative civil service (ACS), in case of adopting of ACS law, should be the funds released in the process of army reduction.

Undoubtedly, professional army is a long way in the future. In this connection the alternative civil service is a step toward the professional army in that sense, that it would partially solve problems of young people, who do not want to take weapons from ideological considerations. On the other hand Alternative Civil Service would relieve the army of those, who are considered there to be loafers and are humiliated, persecuted and beaten unmercifully. We can only hope, that in accordance with it, the percentage of young people feeling be military by vocation will increase in the army.

We consider transition to professional army as a strategic perspective, and introduction of ACS - as one of the approaches to creation of professional army, first of all at the expense of improvement of the quality of conscription's process.

The alternative civil service exists in all civilized countries already for a long time. The world practice displays, that ACS does not loosen army at all, but to the contrary, consolidates it, enables to achieve posed aims. Unfortunately, the right on Alternative Civil Service, written in clause 59 of the Constitutions of Russian Federation, is not confirmed till now by the federal act, its acceptance is designedly delayed not only by State Duma, but also by Government, and, certainly, Ministry of Defense. The situation is made, when the young people cannot take advantage of their constitutional law. Those, who have managed to overcome all obstacles and to defend the right on ACS in court, receive a "remarkable" capability to use legal "shears" not to serve anywhere. Today, under the data of Ministry of Defense, 8 of 10 conscripts do not want to serve in army. From year to year grows number of so-called "rejecters", among which there is a lot of those who does not want to do anything for the Fatherland. However there are many young men wishing to benefit to society, passing alternative civil service. The acceptance of the federal act about ACS would allow fast separating grains from ryegrass, to understand, who is who ".

Today the main efforts of remedial organizations participating in campaign for introduction of ACS are aimed at the advocacy of the rights of "rejecters" in court. However, as the unified approaches to methods of advocacy, its legal and psychological components are not developed yet, the successes of human rights advocates in different regions do not impress too much. The second weak moment is, that the coordination of efforts of remedial organizations with the local authorities which is essential to increase productivity of their activity, is practically lacking. At least, until recently remedial organizations did not put before itself a task of introduction of ACS model into practice.

Perhaps, until now the experiment put by Perm "Memorial" and Center of support of the democratic youth initiatives is unique in this field. In 1999-2000 those organizations have realized in the Perm area the project, with the purpose to work out on practice the model of passing by young people of alternative civil service. The task of the initiators of the project was to receive by practical consideration the answers to following questions:

• What should be the term of alternative civil service?
• What organizations can become base for alternative service (only state and municipal, or public too)?
• What sizes of financing of the employees ACS should be?
• How to organize preparation and training of the ACS officers?
• How to organize the every day routine procedure for ACS workers (nourishment, working day, time of rest)?
• How to decide problems of psychological adapting of the ACS workers to the working conditions in hospices, centers of social protection etc?
• Where should live ACS workers (at home, at a hostel)?
• How to adjust the control behind passing ACS by each of the workers?
• What should be a system of the sanctions for disorderly conducts of ACS and encouragements for diligent officiating?

Besides, Permer human rights defender thought, what like should be the organizational frame, which could undertake management and coordination - both on federal, and at a regional level - of the alternative civil service in case of acceptance of the appropriate law.

Within the framework of this experiment the system of psychological and legal preparation of conscripts was developed.

The participants of experiment - 10 young men - were with assistance of regional and municipal administrations provided a job in the complex regional centers of social care and in hospice, and also, they were provided with jobs by public social organizations ("Memorial " and organization " Children without home"). The initiators of the project consider it as their doubtless achievement that they managed to attract as the allies Department of Education, Youth Committee, and to sign the contracts on cooperation with regional and municipal committees of public social services.

The point of the Perm technique in working with "rejecters" is the following.

At a preliminary stage ALL young people of the call-up age should receive a maximum of information:

• About their rights on ACS,
• About a capability to receive a charge-free legal advice,
• About realization in high schools, technical schools, Lyceums and schools of informational meetings for everyone, who has made a decision to achieve replacement of a military service on ACS.

At the following stage for the young men who have expressed intention to serve in ACS, the 3-month volunteer training in the social service of "Memorial", in state structures (social, ecological, medical etc) is organized. It enables the young men to prove their readiness to serve in ACS and helps to understand the truth of their intentions and convictions.

For those young men, who honestly passed through the volunteer training, the detailed legal and psychological training, legal role games, collecting of the necessary documents, characteristics etc for draft board and court are carried out. Besides they receive necessary help to defend the right on ACS in court. After completion of judicial proceedings - without dependence whether they were successful or not - participants of the project, the regional coordinators do everything possible, that the young man is keeping interest in volunteer activities and is participating in the civil, anti-war actions.

The initiators of the project consider, that for today the model of serving in ACS is basically worked out. On its basis the working out of a packet of documents and materials is finished, which is transferred to Duma (State Parliament) of the Russian Federation and to Government. In this packet is the follows: a bill about ACS (with attempt of the financial substantiation), project of the Rules about passing alternative civil service describing the mechanism of its fulfillment, and other documents.

The writers of these documents, however, soberly evaluate a situation: to make the status of alternative civil service be respectable in public opinion of Russians, it is necessary to make still very much. It is necessary to recognize, that during the last two years the general vector of public moods was shifted in diverse direction. The imperial ambitions of the Soviet past are reanimated, the tendency to militarization of public life, strengthening of the role of power structures - army, secret services etc has become completely obvious.

It is necessary to recognize, that today almost unique public force which is capable to stand these tendencies, are the organizations of the third sector. In conditions, when the federal legislative and executive authorities as a matter of fact sabotage acceptance of the law about ACS, for the organizations of the third sector does not exist other choice than organization of pressure from below, extension of social movement for introduction of ACS in Russia.

How to change the public opinion, frequently being hostile against those, who openly declares their reluctance to serve in the army and who demands to be granted the constitutional law on ACS? We can say that Permer "Memorial" and Center for Support of the Democratic Youth Initiatives attempt to approach the solution of these problems in the new scale project, that has been started by them in October, 2000. The purposes of the project:

• To expand and to make more active the youth movement for implementation of its constitutional law on replacement of a military service by alternative civil service not only in Perm, but also in other regions of Russia (in particularly, in St.-Petersburg, Samara, Ryazan, Tomsk and Bratsk;
• To create conditions for exchange of experience, stored up in Perm, to remedial organizations of the above named regions, to train most active members, future leaders of the movement of the volunteers and "rejecters" on ideological convictions;
• To achieve, that during two years in as minimum 5 regions of Russia the actively operating youth public organizations under a conditional title "Army of good" appear, aimed at development of two closely connected movements - volunteers' movement and movement for introduction of ACS.

In Perm voluntarism has become base for improvement of model of performance by the young people of alternative civil service, however, capability of this movement orientating the young people on humanitarian values, is much wider. Today, when the youth is in conditions of peculiar legal, informational and moral vacuum, to this should more emphasis be placed. Otherwise, we will receive some generations, for whom such values as freedom, democracy, human rights - will be only abstractions, which are not affecting the essences of their lives. The experience of Perm confirms, that the best contact to youth starts with volunteer work and just here young people receive invaluable experience of social work. Volunteer work can become a nutrient medium for many democratic initiatives, but for this purpose the movement should become really wide, receive the official status, recognition of the part of public and authorities. In opinion of Permer human rights advocates the involving young people in volunteer movement should become the basis of youth policy at the state level, and at the level of organizations executing the youth programs.

To receive more detailed information about the campaign for introduction Of alternative civil service you can contact the Permer Regional Branch of the international society "Memorial"
e-mail: pmem@mail.perm.ru
tel.: (3422) 48-35-96