May 29, 2010
Dear Sir,
In his 6th Century BC text, "The Art of War", Chinese military general and strategist Sun Tzu writes: "Subduing the other's military without battle is the most skilful." In many ways, The Bermudians against the Draft (B.A.D.) appeal to the UK Privy Council was also lost before it even begun. In considering the case of BAD, the UK Privy Council Judicial Committee allowed the certification of a sole concern for determination: "Can the Government of Bermuda lawfully enforce compulsory military service against the appellants?" The answer, of course, is and was always going to be "yes".
I can say that with assurance because the 1965 Bermuda Defence Act clearly enshrines in law the legal right of the Governor of Bermuda "for the raising or maintenance of the Bermuda Regiment by means of compulsory military service"" The act also clearly states that this conscription is open to anyone, male or female, between the ages of 18 and 23 years of age, who is included on the military training register and that to refuse this conscription may result in prosecution. However, as history has shown us, laws are not always just or equitable.
To understand the dilemma faced by B.A.D., and indeed all other Bermudian males who choose to fight against conscription, one must examine the history of the military presence in Bermuda and its purpose. The evolution of the Bermuda Regiment into its current context is a lengthy one. At its heart, in my opinion, the primary purpose of the military presence in Bermuda has, and will be until Bermuda is independent, the defence of the British Empire and its assets.
Bermuda's current Regiment was created from the 1965 amalgamation of the Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps, an all-white unit, and the Bermuda Militia Artillery, an all-black unit, but whose commanding officers were also white. Both units were put in service during the First and Second World Wars, with service being on a voluntary basis for the most part, however with conscription being held during the Second World War and after 1950.
These units served in miscellaneous roles according to British need at the time, with their post-war purpose primarily as a north Atlantic British military presence, in particular the Royal Naval Dockyard. Remember that those were the days of the so-called Cold War and the use of submarines and other naval equipment were an important part of the military presence of the world's superpowers during that time.
Bermuda still stands as one of the few remaining colonies of the 21st century, and although one cannot be anything but proud of both the black and white Bermudian military men and women that have served over the years, a frank characterisation of the context of this service would be obviously described as service in pursuit of British imperial interests. The Bermuda Regiment, and its formative legislation, the 1965 Bermuda Defence Act, is a remnant of this imperial, colonial era; a time warp Bermuda still finds its national identity still bound by today. It is representative of a bygone era that also led to incidences like the 1982 Falklands War, whereby British imperial interests clashed with an Argentine assertion of sovereignty over the disputed Falkland Islands.
I firmly believe the BAD. group needs to be commended. There are few true and major causes of justice left fighting for in our increasing acceptance of a globalised society, with deceptively globalised, but essentially inequitable, rules. Bermuda's draft system is one of those causes and represents an obvious denial of human rights. It is a subtle form of "forced labour", in which one must not only serve but endure servitude for an empire that continues to subject. As a young, male, black Bermudian who recognises the historically racist and colonial context by which many of Bermuda's laws were written, including the 1965 Bermuda Defence Act and the 1968 constitution, I applaud and support the cause of BAD. I too was a conscientious objector to forced military service under the Bermuda Regiment. This group of ordinary Bermudian men have sought to stand up and say "no" to a global superpower and a remnant of a 400 year old colonial system.
BAD's struggle is not a selfish one; it is a struggle that seeks to not only increase true freedom for every future Bermudian but also to win one more battle against that poisonous philosophy of holding one people inferior to another. Which one of us has the right to demand servitude of another? In his fight for freedom, equality and justice, Martin Luther King Jr. once said: "Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed." How far BAD, and ultimately the Bermuda people, are willing to go with their fight for equality and justice only time will tell.
DAVID CHAPMAN
London, UK
