International Conscientious Objectors’ Day

On Wednes­day, 15 May, mem­bers of Protest in Har­mo­ny sang in Edin­burgh at the annu­al event to mark Inter­na­tion­al Con­sci­en­tious Objec­tors’ Day.

We gath­ered on the cor­ner of Cas­tle Street and Princes Street, to join the event, organ­ised by Peace & Jus­tice Scot­land, in sol­i­dar­i­ty with COs around the world, in present and in past con­flicts. Les­ley Orr spoke of the immense courage of COs in Israel, Rus­sia, Ukraine and all around the world. Protest in Har­mo­ny, led by Pen­ny Stone, sang Lay Down Your Sword and Shield. There was then a mov­ing mes­sage from Israeli con­sci­en­tious objec­tor, Sofia Orr, who 15 years ago, at the age of 18, refused to join her country’s army fol­lowed by a mes­sage from anoth­er young Israeli CO, who declared that he refused to take part in a “war of vengeance that brings only destruc­tion”. PiH then sang We Refuse: a song writ­ten by Jane Lewis, with words from a let­ter writ­ten by Israeli COs. Fur­ther speak­ers includ­ed Edin­burgh Cam­paign Against Arms Trade and Eliz­a­beth Wil­son, whose father had been may­or of Berwick, and whose Methodist faith led him to be a CO in the Sec­ond World War.

Helen Kay talked about the Women’s Inter­na­tion­al League for Peace & Free­dom, and the event then moved to the peace tree in Princes Street Gar­dens, which has been erect­ed as a place to reflect on peace. In the tra­di­tion of the Non-Con­scrip­tion Fel­low­ship in 1914, we all raised a white hand­ker­chief as a sign of peace, and the event con­clud­ed with PiH singing Think of Me, led by Ian Davies.