Army 2 allow Iraq war objector 2 resign

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Army 2 allow Iraq war objector 2 resign
15
Sun, 09-27-2009 - 1:26pm


 

An update as to how all of this ended up.


Seattle Post-Intelligencer
http://www.seattlepi.com/national/1110ap_us_war_objector.html


Last updated September 25, 2009 10:57 p.m. PT


Army to allow Iraq war objector to resign

By AUDREY MCAVOY
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER





 
photo

 
File - 1st Lt. Ehren Watada poses for a photograph in his Lacey, Wash., apartment, in this Feb. 2, 2007 file photo. The Army is allowing the first commissioned officer to be court-martialed for refusing to go to Iraq to resign from the service, his attorney said late Friday Sept. 25, 2009. (AP Photo/John Froschauer, File)

HONOLULU -- The Army is allowing the first commissioned officer to be court-martialed for refusing to go to Iraq to resign from the service, his attorney said late Friday.


First Lt. Ehren Watada will be granted a discharge Oct. 2, "under other than honorable conditions," attorney Kenneth Kagan said.


Watada told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin he was happy the matter has finally been closed.


"The actual outcome is different from the outcome that I envisioned in the first place, but I am grateful of the outcome," he said.


Fort Lewis spokesman Joseph Piek wouldn't confirm Watada's type of discharge, citing privacy rules. But he said late Friday that Watada's manner of resignation is described in Army regulations as "resignation for the good of the service in lieu of general court martial."


Watada, 31, refused to deploy to Iraq with his Fort Lewis, Wash.-based unit in 2006, arguing the war is illegal and that he would be a party to war crimes if he served in Iraq.


The Honolulu-born soldier was charged with missing his unit's deployment and with conduct unbecoming an officer for denouncing President Bush and the war - statements he made while explaining his actions.


His court-martial ended in mistrial in February 2007.


The Army wanted to try him in a second court-martial, but a federal judge ruled such a trial would violate the soldier's constitutional protection against double jeopardy. The judge said a second court-martial on key charges, including missing troop movement, would violate his constitutional right to be free from double jeopardy.


Watada's attorney said the soldier had handed in his resignation before, but the Army refused to accept it.


"This time, however, it was accepted, apparently only when the Army realized it could not defeat Lt. Watada in a courtroom," Kagan said.



Watada has been lionized by anti-war activists for contending that the war is illegal. If convicted, he could have been sentenced to six years in prison and be dishonorably discharged.


Kagan said he felt history would treat Watada "more favorably" than the U.S. Army.


"It has been our distinct honor to have represented a hero and a patriot," Kagan said.


---


Associated Press Writer Kathy McCarthy contributed to this report from Seattle.






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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2008
Sun, 09-27-2009 - 3:28pm

Good riddance.

If he received any government assistance towards becoming an officer I hope he has to pay it back.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 10:50am

Lt. Watada has stated that he would have gone to Afghanistan without question.


iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2008
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 11:30am

"Lt. Watada has stated that he would have gone to Afghanistan without question. He, like many of us, believe that the invasion of Iraq was illegal & based on lies & deception for motives much different than those given to the American people."

Lt. Watada joined the wrong organization if he thinks like this.

I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

It doesn't say I'll pick which wars I like. Like the song says Thank God and Greyhound you're gone.

Community Leader
Registered: 04-05-2002
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 11:46am
While I don't agree w/ the Iraq war, I'm torn on this. If you join the military, you can't pick and choose which wars you find appropriate. I hope this doesn't set a precedence for soldiers to decide when and where they want to serve. It could disravel the armed services. Also, didn't he sign up after the Iraq war so he knew that was a possibility. Yes, you have the right to refuse unlawful orders which is why I'm torn on it but you can't have an effective armed forces that refuses orders from the top.










Avatar for ddnlj
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 12:01pm

Had he been 10 years younger I might have given him more leeway. Kids often jump into the military without really knowing what they're getting into. This man, however,

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 12:06pm

I happen to agree with Lt. Watada...Iraq is an illegal war based solely on lies, spin & obfuscation.


iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2008
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 12:10pm

Like I said earlier, he picked the wrong line of work.

I just hope he's being made to pay back any sort of financial assistance he got. We could use it on someone who actually understands fulfilling committments made.

Community Leader
Registered: 04-05-2002
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 12:18pm
I think if you sign up for the military you have to accept 1) you might be asked to fight for the country and 2) you have to accept the commander in chief's decisions. If you can't do that, you shouldn't sign up. I agree with the age thing, though. Someone much younger might not understand all the ramifications of joining, as much as we consider them adults. What happens if the person gets, say a free education through the military, and suddenly becomes a conscientious objector? I think that has happened in the past, not uncommonly.










iVillage Member
Registered: 03-23-2003
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 12:30pm

I understand what you're saying and if it had been Afghanistan or some other military action that was based in fact & truth, I would agree with you completely.


Community Leader
Registered: 04-05-2002
Mon, 09-28-2009 - 1:03pm
Yeah, that's why I have misgivings about the whole thing. I don't agree w/ the Iraq War but the fact is that we're there and we're stuck with it. Someone has to clean up the mess and if he doesn't want to do what the POTUS tells him, then don't sign up. There are other ways to serve your country w/out being in the military and maybe he should have explored those options instead.










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