Pepe Beúnza pioneered conscientious objection to military service in Spain in . He was recently interviewed for el Periódico. Excerpts [my translation]:
On , Pepe Beúnza, 23, was tried by a military court in Valencia for refusing to perform military service, then mandatory. He was sentenced to a year of imprisonment in a punishment battalion in the Sahara.…
- There are many things to object to.
- Yes. Not to accept military propaganda, nor military expenditures. That is to say, tax resistance. Now the army, which lacks all prestige, and needs to find soldiers, searches for young people. Also the schools must object.
- Who must we obey?
- Our own consciences, with responsibility. A person must have dignity, responsibility, and freedom. This is what it is to be human.