UNITED FOR
PEACE OF PIERCE COUNTY
"We
nonviolently oppose the reliance on unilateral military actions rather than
cooperative diplomacy."
STATEMENT ON
WILLIAM WEBSTER, PRISONER OF CONSCIENCE IN TACOMA,
WASHINGTON
October 28,
2004
We urge the U.S. Army to release
immediately and unconditionally William Webster, whom we believe is currently
being held prisoner at Fort Lewis, Washington, and to restore his
benefits.
On Tuesday, October 26, 2004, the
Times of London called attention to the plight of William Webster, whom
Amnesty International has identified as an important prisoner of conscience and
who is reported by the Times to be a prisoner in Tacoma, presumably at
Fort Lewis, following his court-martial last June (Daniel McGrory, Free My Husband, Pleads Wife of
"Traitor," Times [London, UK], October 26,
2004).
William Webster has been sentenced
to 14 months imprisonment, a bad conduct discharge, suspension of his salary,
and loss of pension and other benefits.
William Webster's "crime" is to have
refused, on grounds of conscience, to fight in the war in Iraq. The Times
of London reports:
"He applied in September last
year to be recognized as a conscientious objector. He withdrew the application
after senior officers told him that he would not succeed, and that they would
ensure that he would not have to choose between following his President's orders
or his faith. [William Webster converted to Islam in 1994.] Instead he
applied to be reassigned to non-combatant services. Mrs. Webster said: 'One of
his senior commanders told him, "Don't resign as you are due to retire early
2005 and you will lose your 20-year pension." Literally a couple of days before
the unit set off his commanding officer said, "Pack your bags, you are coming
with us to Iraq." ' Even then he again offered to leave the army. He was
refused, though he continued to carry out his duties in Germany when the unit
left without him."
Neil Durkin of Amnesty International
says: "Mr. Webster has been imprisoned merely for exercising his right to oppose
a war on conscientious grounds. We consider him a prisoner of conscience who
should be released immediately and unconditionally, with full restoration of his
salary, pension and other entitlements."
William Webster's treatment seems
particularly harsh and unjust. Having served honorably in the United States Army
for almost twenty years, he appears to have taken great pains to apprise the
military of his situation in an attempt to work out a solution, following the
advice of senior officers. As a reward for his efforts, he was ordered on short
notice to do what he had informed his superiors he could not in good conscience
do, and then arrested for refusing.
Amnesty International has taken up the
case and obtained thousands of signatures on a petition in the
hopes that this will embarrass the Bush Administration into reconsidering what
it considers a landmark case.
We, the members of United for Peace
of Pierce County, in whose neighborhood William Webster is being held, join our
voices to those of Amnesty International, and address the following request to
Colonel
William H. Haight III, Lieutenant
Colonel Gerald P. O’Connor, Major David K. Kennedy, and The
Honorable Les Brownlee, Acting Secretary of the
Army:
Release William Webster immediately
and unconditionally, with restoration of his benefits.
We further urge the citizens of
Tacoma to address the same request to the officials of the United States Army
named above, and to petition the organs of the media to call attention to the
injustice of which William Webster seems to be a victim.
UNITED FOR
PEACE OF PIERCE COUNTY
"We
nonviolently oppose the reliance on unilateral military actions rather than
cooperative diplomacy."
