https://ymlp.com/https.php?id=www.couragetoresist.org/x/images/stories/email/newsletter-25mar10.jpgKuwait jail for seeking PTSD help
US Army Specialist Marc A. Hall sits in a military brig at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, facing an imminent court martial in retaliation for seeking mental health assistance. Pre-trial hearing officer declares Army can move forward with 6 of 11 charges.

Travis Bishop released from the brig!
Celebration by Travis and local supporters to be held at Coffee Strong (outside of Ft. Lewis) Sunday, March 28 at 3pm. Travis recently had three months knocked off his sentence.

UK Soldier jailed for objection
Joe Glenton, the first British soldier to serve in Afghanistan and publicly speak out against the war, was sentenced to nine months in military jail

April newsletter now available
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Army retaliates and jails Marc Hall in Kuwait for seeking PTSD help

ImageCourage to Resist. March 25, 2010

US Army Specialist Marc A. Hall sits in a military brig at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, facing an imminent court martial for challenging the US military’s Stop-Loss policy in a song — his pre-trial hearing was held last week on March 17. Yet it was not the hip-hop song he wrote criticizing the Stop-Loss policy that landed him in trouble. What put the 34-year-old New York City native in the brig were his persistent assertions of inadequate mental health care that culminated in a Dec. 7 complaint to the Army Investigator General. Just five days later Hall was charged with violating “good order and discipline” at Fort Stewart, Georgia, and was shipped out of the country.

Hall’s court martial is likely to occur late April or early May.

The jailing occurred a full five months after Hall wrote a rap song protesting the Stop-Loss order that halted his discharge after he served his country for 14 months of combat in Iraq. Hall was charged with 11 counts of “communicating threats” related to the song and has since been charged with violating Article 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Conduct. All the alleged violations occurred between last July and December, yet not one warranted warning, counseling, or non-judicial punishment at the time.

On Feb. 20 Hall wrote, “A charge that was not a threat before, but all of a sudden became a threat now. I communicated a need for mental evaluation—not a threat.”

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Travis Bishop released from Ft. Lewis brig!

ImageCelebration by local supporters to be held at Coffee Strong (outside of Ft. Lewis) Sunday, March 28 at 3pm.

March 25, 2010

Afghanistan war resister Sgt. Travis Bishop was released from the brig at Fort Lewis today. Travis originally was sentenced to 12 months in prison in a court-martial at Fort Hood, Texas for refusing to deploy to Afghanistan for reasons of conscience. He later received a 3 month reduction in sentence due to a successful clemency application to the Commanding General at Fort Hood, as well as receiving extra time off for good behavior. He served a total of 7 months and 12 days of confinement, as well as a reduction of rank from Sergeant to Private and a pending Bad Conduct Discharge.

While in the brig, Travis Bishop was recognized by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience and wrote a blog from jail.

He also received support from hundreds of people from around the world who wrote both letters of encouragement to him but also to military authorities calling for his release. Bishop also spoke out about the bad conditions at the Fort Lewis brig, which resulted in some reforms at the facility as well as Travis being placed on the facility's "most difficult" prisoners list.

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UK Soldier jailed for Afghanistan objection

ImageCourage to Resist. March 25, 2010

Joe Glenton, the first British soldier to serve in Afghanistan and publicly speak out against the war, was sentenced to nine months in military jail on March 7th for being absent without leave. Joe believes the war has “further antagonized the Muslim population of the world... and the conflict has become a part of the problem not a part of the solution.” He will spend just over five months in jail due to “previous good character”.“He saw a war that defied everything that he was taught. They sentenced him to teach him a lesson about speaking out, [and] to discourage other soldiers from doing the same,” explained his lawyer after the sentencing. Joe’s mom Sue Glenton agreed and added, “The judge is making an example of Joe. This is a political decision.”


April 2010 newsletter now available

https://ymlp.com/https.php?id=www.couragetoresist.org/x/images/stories/Misc/apr10_newsletter-250.jpgCourage to Resist's 4-page newsletter is now available in PDF format for easy viewing, printing, and sharing. Published three times a year in March, July, and November, our newsletter is meant to provide an brief overview of our daily work for folks who don't already receive our monthly e-newsletters (such as this one).

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