conscientious objection

conscientious objection
   Conscientious objection to military service was not recognized during the Franco regime. The constitution of 1978 makes provision for exemption from conscription on conscientious grounds, and allows those exempted to substitute civilian social service, which is also compulsory. The relevant legislation, however, was not enacted until 1984. Under this act, the onus is on those claiming exemption on conscientious grounds to apply, stating the grounds. About 90 percent of these applications are granted. By the end of 1996, the total granted exemption since the coming into force of the law was over 400,000. In that year, there were more than 93,000 applications, an increase of 28 percent on 1995. Some 91,000 of these were accepted, 22 percent more than in the previous year. By about 1990, the proportion of those seeking exemption in any one year was typically about 40 percent of those who agreed to serve, or 30 percent of the total called up. The granting of so many exemptions, and the requirement of prestación social sustitutoria (alternative community service) entailed the provision of work placements on a large scale, but these lagged far behind the numbers needing to be accommodated. By the end of 1996, 130,000 recognized conscientious objectors were still waiting to complete their community service, which technically precluded them from obtaining state employment. In the same year, the government modified the 1984 law, which had in any case never been fully enforced, by introducing the Ley Reguladora del Voluntariado Social (Law Regulating Voluntary Social Work), which allowed work for recognized voluntary agencies to be offset against compulsory community service.
   Some conscientious objectors, known as insumisos, refuse even to do the alternative community service, which makes them liable to prosecution. Once again, however, the numbers concerned, and the lack of resources, have in practice often meant that most people in this category escape punishment.
   See also: armed forces; military service
   Further reading
   - Hooper, J. (1995) The New Spaniards, Harmondsworth: Penguin (the last three pages of chapter 8 give a clear account of the changes in military recruitment policy).
   EAMONN RODGERS

Encyclopedia of contemporary Spanish culture. 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • conscientious objection — con·scien·tious objection /ˌkän chē en chəs / n: objection on moral or religious grounds (as to military service or bearing arms) conscientious objector n Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • conscientious objection — noun : objection on moral or religious grounds (as to service in the armed forces or to bearing arms) * * * conscientious objector. refusal on moral or religious grounds to bear arms in a military conflict or to serve in the armed forces. [1895… …   Useful english dictionary

  • conscientious objection — a refusal to behave in certain generally accepted ways because they run counter to one s personal values, which are sometimes based on religious belief. A doctor can legally refuse to perform an abortion on the grounds of a conscientious… …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • Conscientious objection to military taxation — (COMT) is a legal theory (with at least one historical precedent) that attempts to extend into the realm of taxation the concessions to conscientious objectors that many governments allow in the case of conscription thereby allowing conscientious …   Wikipedia

  • conscientious objection — conscientious objector. refusal on moral or religious grounds to bear arms in a military conflict or to serve in the armed forces. [1895 1900] * * * …   Universalium

  • Conscientious objection in East Germany — There was a high level of conscientious objection in East Germany. Contents 1 Introduction of conscription 2 Baueinheiten 3 Reasons for the NVA s lack of tolerance of conscientious objectors …   Wikipedia

  • conscientious objection — noun Date: 1775 objection on moral or religious grounds (as to service in the armed forces or to bearing arms) …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • conscientious objection — refusal to serve in the military on moral or religious grounds; noncompliance on moral or religious grounds …   English contemporary dictionary

  • conscientious objection —  Совести возражение …   Вестминстерский словарь теологических терминов

  • conscientious objection — conscien′tious objec′tion n. cvb refusal on moral or religious grounds to bear arms in a military conflict or to serve in the armed forces • Etymology: 1895–1900 conscien′tious objec′tor, n …   From formal English to slang

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