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Army Deserter Receives Award From
Abbey - METROWEST NEWSPAPER Peace Abbey to Honor
Deserter - METROWEST NEWSPAPER
02.15.05 Camilo released from prison! 9.02:Army officer says deserter is not a conscientious objector. (AP) [.pdf] Camilo Mejia, convicted of desertion, should not be considered a conscientious objector, an Army officer has recommended. 8.30: Mom proud of her defiant deserter (NY Daily News) [.pdf] Maritza Castillo came to New York from Miami this week to remind Bush and the Republicans that the Army locked up her soldier son but no one can hide the truth about the war in Iraq. 07:19: Family fights to free anti-war soldier from military prison. (Workers World) [.pdf] "The mother of war resister Camilo Mejia, the first soldier who refused to return to Iraq, was in Houston in June to visit the Costa Rican Consul General and build support for her son." 06:24: Family claims mistreatment of soldier at Fort Sill (AP) [.pdf] Military officials are mistreating Camilo Mejia at the Fort Sill correctional facility where he's being held, his attorney and family members said Thursday. 06:23: Family says soldier's plea is sincere (AP) [.pdf] Supporters and family of Camilo Mejia voiced their support for his request to be considered a conscientious objector to the war Wednesday. 06:23: Family of convicted deserter pleads for conscientious objector status (AP) [.pdf] 06.21: Convicted Florida soldier pursuing conscientious objector status. from Miami Herald [.pdf]. Camilo's CO hearing will begin Tuesday, June 22 at Ft. Sill, OK. 06.18: Marines Don't Cry, We Kill from Common Dreams [.pdf] Camilo supporter Fernando Suarez del Solar, whose son was killed in Iraq in 2003, has been speaking out against what he considers an illegal and immoral war. 06.17: Amnesty International has sent an urgent call for the release of prisoner of conscience Camilo Mejia Castillo. Visit the Amesty International website to Take Action. 06.14: Read Amnesty International's letter to President Bush calling for Camilo's release. [.pdf] 06.12 The
Guardian [.pdf] 06.05 News stories about Camilo's trial [.pdf] 06.02 Common
Dreams [.pdf] 06.02
Dissident Voice [.pdf] 05.28 Socialist
Worker Online [.pdf] 05.24
Common Dreams [.pdf] 05.21 Chicago
Tribune [.pdf] 05.18
AntiWar.com [.pdf] 05.05
"The Stand" The Guardian [.pdf] 03.27
UK Socialist Worker 04.10 People's
Weekly World [.pdf] SNAFU [.pdf] 04.13 Common
Dreams [.pdf] 03.19 Independent
Catholic News [.pdf] 03.17 BBC [.pdf] 03.31
CBS NEWS: 60 Minutes II [.pdf] 03.26
the Boston Globe [.pdf] 3.16 The Boston
Globe
© The Peace Abbey |
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CAMILO MEJIA
Free Camilo buttons and bumper stickers are available for the asking by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: Free Camilo / The Peace Abbey, 2 North Main Street, Sherborn, MA 01770. Camilo is serving a one-year prison term at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma after being found guilty of Desertion at his Army Court Martial on May 21. He had refused to return to his unit, citing moral reasons and his misgivings about the legality of the war and the conduct of US troops toward Iraqi civilians and prisoners. Amnesty International: Demand Immediate release of US Prisoner of Conscience Sgt Camilo Mejia FREE CAMILO! In an austere room, sitting around a table at a military prison at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma, a drama of monumental significance unfolded like a morality play: A solitary man, refusing to desert his conscience, stood his ground against the war in Iraq, and with his head held high, proclaimed the power and majesty of nonviolence and love. When the hearing was over, despite all the testimonies and the moral imperative of his message -- resolute and confident, Camilo Mejia was led off to confinement like a common criminal to be punished for humanity's sin of waging war. So long as Camilo is behind bars, no one is truly free.
OPEN LETTER FROM CAMILO'S MOTHER My name is Maritza Castillo, a member of Military Families Speak Out, and mother of Sargeant Camilo Mejia. On the 21 of May, after a trial scripted by the Army, my son was found guilty of desertion and sentenced to one year in prison. In their continuing efforts to punish him, a few days following the trial, he was shipped to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, thousands of miles from his young daughter, his family, his lawyers and the peace organizations and friends that support him. He was sentenced for disobeying an order to return to Iraq to kill people of a sovereign nation; sentenced for not hiding but instead returning to the army to denounce abuses being committed against the civilian population, young soldiers, and prisoners of war; sentenced just the same as the executioners who, following orders of their superiors, abused innocent prisoners. I am announcing to the people of the United States of America, of Iraq and the world that I am not giving up my struggle for my son and against this immoral and disgraceful war; I’ll not rest until my son receives justice!!! I am asking people who support Camilo to write to General William G. Webster, Jr. (address below) and ask him to reduce my son’s sentence out of consideration of his request to be considered a conscientious objector. Camilo decided not to return to Iraq for moral reasons, not from cowardice. General Webster has the power to reduce his sentence. Ask Gen. Webster that he make a transcript of the trial available as soon as possible because my son’s appeal cannot be presented without it. Send a copy of this letter to Camilo’s lawyer (address below) so support for the sentence reduction can be documented. We are also asking that you write letters of support to Camilo (address below), with a copy to me to assure his correspondence is not being destroyed – a violation of his rights and another method of making his punishment more severe. We are also asking that people around the world contact the Costa Rican embassy in their respective countries and urge them to demand that the treaty between Costa Rica and the United States of America, which clearly establishes that a Costa Rican citizen can not be forced to extend his military service, be respected. The North American government has ignored this treaty, ordering Camilo to go to war, arbitrarily extending his term of service, and denying defense lawyers the use of this treaty during his trial at Ft. Stewart on 19 May, 2004. This treaty takes priority over Stop Loss, the law that the U.S.A. Army uses to retain U.S.A. citizens in military service in times of war. Stop Loss does not pertain to Camilo because he is a citizen of Costa Rica and not the United States of America. As a sovereign nation, it is important that the government of Costa Rica enforce this treaty. We’re also asking for your financial support to continue working to free Camilo, to continue working for peace and to guarantee that justice will prevail. You can make a tax deductible donations to the Peace Abbey/Free Camilo (address below) Code Pink/Free Camilo (address below). At the bottom, you will find the addresses of Gen. William G. Webster, Louis Font & Gale Glazer, Esqs. (Camilo’s lawyers), Lewis Randa at The Peace Abbey, Camilo and myself. There are also websites listed that offer information about Camilo. Peace for the people of Iraq! Peace for the world! Bring our soldiers home now! Sincerely yours, Maritza Castillo, mother of Camilo Mej?a Major General William G. Webster, Jr., Commanding General, Fort Stewart, 42 Wayne Place, Ft. Stewart, GA 31314 Louis P.Font & Gale Glazer, Font &Glazer Esq., 62 Harvard Street, Suite 100, Brookline, MA. 02445 Lewis M. Randa, The Peace Abbey, Two North Main Street, Sherborn, Massachusetts 01770, 508-650-3659 Pt. Camilo Mejia , Building 1490, Randolph Rd., Fort Sill, Ok 73503, Maritza Castillo., 201 178 Drive # 323, Miami, FL. 33160, www.mfso@mfso.org Thank you so much for your support, Maritza Castillo In Peace and Solidarity for the World!!! Bring Our troops Home Now!!!
Message from Tod Ensign of Citizen Soldier Patriotism of Conscience
Camilo Mejia's Gracious Sentiments Dear Lewis (& everyone at the Abbey), I wanted to thank you for everything you did for my family and I, and for all your support, present and future. You treated us like royalty. I think what you and your family are doing is something that to many people is hard to appreciate. Honestly I say that before the war I would have appreciated The Peace Abbey much like a tourist appreciates a beautiful historical building in some colorful town. Now that I have to live with the experience and the horror of war, The Peace Abbey is a Temple from which I draw strength and wisdom. At times I feel weak and afraid, but spending some time with you at the Abbey, having slept on that bed (where visiting peacemakers from around the world sleep), and keeping the blood of Monsenor Romero by my chest, are all things that fill me with purpose. I have been feeling overwhelmed lately, not just by the task I have ahead of me, but also by the departure of my girlfriend, someone you never got to meet. But I know that I have to move forward, and I know that my sacrifice is minimal compared to what so many other people have done. I am afraid, but I know that what I'm about to do is much larger than myself, along with all my fears and doubts. What I am about to do I will do for the soldiers in Iraq, they too are victims. I am also doing it for the families of the dead and wounded, who have paid a high price for this war. What I am about to do is something I have to do for the people of Iraq, even for those who fired upon me; they were just on the other side of a battleground where war itself was the only enemy. I cannot think of a better place to surrender than The Peace Abbey, where all the insecurities that at times seem to crush my will are humbled, and the real magnitude of my personal sacrifice is put into perspective. So small is my price compared to the children's, victims of mines and depleted uranium, their families, the thousands of unknown civilians killed in war, the soldiers themselves. So small is my price compared to the price Humanity has paid for war. Camilo
PRAYER FROM IRAQ Dear Lord, Thank you for allowing me to live one more day. Forgive me for all my sins, for all the things I should have said and done but did not. I ask of you to soften the hearts of our leaders and soften the hearts of those who attack us. Let there be no more war, and put an end to all violence. Protect my comrades, and protect all those who are affected by this war. Give comfort to the dead and wounded. Give them the wisdom to accept your decision. Put peace in their hearts. Should you decide to take me from this world I will accept your will. Give strength to my family, and protect my little girl. Let there be peace in all the world. Thank you Lord. Sincerely and Deeply Yours,
DAN RATHER INTERVIEW WITH CAMILO:
This is an email received at the offices of The Peace Abbey that we wanted to share with you. "I am not often provoked to write to strangers out of the
blue, but I wanted to find Camilo Mejia and tell him this: You are
my new hero!!! |
CAMILO
IS FREE!
