Another US War Resister From Canada Court-Martialed

In June, 2008, by a vote of 137 to 110, Canadian parliamentarians in
a non-binding resolution asked the Harper government not to deport US
war resisters "who have refused or left military service related to a
war not sanctioned by the United Nations." Yet, one month later, in a
controversial move, Canadian police jailed and then deported on July
15, 2008, US war resister Robin Long for having not reported a change
of address. Canadian Immigration put Long into the waiting hands of US
law enforcement authorities who immediately turned Long over to the US
Army.

In a court-martial convened in record time at Fort Carson, Colorado,
on August 23, 2008, US war resister Robin Long was convicted of being
absent without leave from the Army and sentenced to 15 months
imprisonment and a dishonorable discharge. Long agreed to a plea
bargain with the US Army -- the maximum sentence for the charges was
three years imprisonment.

Long had gone to Canada after he was sent from his non-deployable
unit at Fort Knox, Kentucky to Fort Carson, Colorado to be deployed as
an individual replacement into a unit deploying to Iraq. He was
outspoken publicly in Canada about his opposition to the Bush
administration's war on Iraq. Long lived in Canada for three years
before he was deported. His Canadian citizen partner and their 2-
year-old son still live there.

Long's fifteen month sentence is the longest length of imprisonment
for a war resister. US Army Sergeant Kevin Benderman, a 10 year Army
veteran who had served in Iraq, also was sentenced to 15 months
imprisonment. Although he had never gone AWOL, he refused to deploy to
Iraq in a unit that was incompetently led. Benderman and his wife
Monica also were very outspoken on the war itself. He was imprisoned
for 13 months.

Long is the third US war resister who went to Canada to be
court-martialed. On July 16, 2008, James Burmeister was court-martialed
at Fort Knox, Kentucky and given a six months jail sentence and bad
conduct discharge. Burmeister had served two tours in Iraq and was
injured in 3 Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosions. Despite a
traumatic brain injury and severe post traumatic stress, he was ordered
to return to Iraq. Instead, he went to Canada for 10 months. While in
Canada, Burmeister spoke publicly about the Army's use of a "bait and
kill" technique to lure persons into a kill zone where they were then
shot. He voluntarily returned from Canada and turned himself over to
the military in May, 2008. Because of his dishonorable discharge,
Burmeister's traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress will not
be treated by the Veteran's Administration when he is released from
jail and treatment while in military prisons will be minimal, if at all.

US Marine Ivan Brobeck completed a standard 7-month tour in
Fallujah, Iraq in 2004. While in Iraq, he decided that the US war on
Iraq was the "problem, not the solution." Upon his return from Iraq, he
went to Canada in April, 2005. He voluntarily returned to the United
States and turned himself into the Marines in November, 2006. He was
court-martialed on December 5, 2006 and convicted of unauthorized
absence and "missing a military movement." He was sentenced to
imprisonment for 8 months and a dishonorable discharge. He was released
from prison in February, 2007.

Not all service members who went to Canada have been court-martialed
upon their return to the United States. US Army Specialist Darrell
Anderson served a tour in Iraq in 2004 and was wounded there. When
facing orders for a second deployment to Iraq, Anderson went to Canada
in January, 2005. He was outspoken in Canada about the shooting of
innocent civilians at Iraqi checkpoints. He spent 20 months in Canada
and returned voluntarily to Fort Knox in September, 2006 to get
treatment for his post traumatic stress. Anderson was not
court-martialed by the Army for his absence but instead was given an
administration separation and an "other than honorable" discharge.

Approximately 30 US service members have been court-martialed for
their opposition to the Iraq war. Their sentences have ranged from
confinement to their military base for three months (in one instance)
to 15 months imprisonment. The average sentence is 6-8 months
imprisonment although three have received sentences of 12-13 months)
and either a dishonorable or bad conduct discharge.

Around two hundred US service members remain in Canada awaiting the
Canadian government's determination of whether they will be accorded
refugee status or whether they will be denied and deported back to the
United States. Although Canada has refused to send its military to Iraq
as a part of the "coalition of the willing," Canada is cooperating with
the Bush administration in punishing those in the US military who are
opposed to the war on Iraq. By returning the war resisters to the
United States military, the Canadian government is insuring they will
be court-martialed and imprisoned, a dramatic, 180 degree change from
the Canadian government's policies during the war on Vietnam that
granted immediate political asylum to all US service members and draft
resisters who went to Canada.

In other instances of Harper administration alliance with the Bush
policies, Canada has paid Canadian citizen Maher Arar $10 million
dollars for the Bush administration's kidnapping, extraordinary
rendition to Syria where he was tortured for ten months. Also, the
Harper administration is using the politically tainted FBI's National
Crime Information Center data base to deny entry to US citizens who
have been arrested in the United States for misdemeanor violations
while protesting the war on Iraq and torture.

Please support the war resisters in jail and in Canada with your letters and financial support.