Support JOE GLENTON, Afghan War Refusenik
Adam Johannes | 04.08.2009 19:33 | Anti-militarism | Terror War
LANCE CORPORAL JOE GLENTON, aged 27 is a member of the Stop the War Coalition & has become the first serving British soldier to speak out publicly against the Afghan War facing prison. He is making a stand on behalf of all soldiers who question the purpose of the occupation. The British army charged Lance Corporal Joe Glenton with desertion at the preliminary hearing of his court martial this week. Joe denies desertion & has refused to return to Afghanistan to fight in a war he believes is wrong.
PLEASE email messages of support and solidarity to
joeisinnocent@hotmail.co.uk
JOE GLENTON'S LETTER TO GORDON BROWN
Dear Prime Minister,
I am writing to you as a serving soldier in the British army to express my views and concerns on the current conflict in Afghanistan.
It is my primary concern that the courage and tenacity of my fellow soldiers has become a tool of American foreign policy. I believe this unethical short-changing of such proud men and women has caused immeasurable suffering not only to families of British service personnel who have been killed and injured, but also to the noble people of Afghanistan.
I have seen qualities in the Afghan people which have also been for so long apparent and admired in the British soldier. Qualities of robustness, humour, utter determination and unwillingness to take a step backwards. However it is these qualities, on both sides, which I fear will continue to cause a state of attrition. These will only lead to more heartbreak within both our societies.
I am not a general nor am I a politician and I cannot claim any mastery of strategy. However, I am a soldier who has served in Afghanistan, which has given me some small insight.
I believe that when British military personnel submit themselves to the service of the nation and put their bodies into harms way, the government that sends them into battle is obliged to ensure that the cause is just and right, i.e. for the protection of life and liberty.
The war in Afghanistan is not reducing the terrorist risk, far from improving Afghan lives it is bringing death and devastation to their country. Britain has no business there.
I do not believe that our cause in Afghanistan is just or right. I implore you, Sir, to bring our soldiers home.
Yours sincerely,
Joe Glenton Lance/Corporal, Royal Logistics Corps
More info. at www.stopwar.org.uk
PLEASE email messages of support and solidarity to
joeisinnocent@hotmail.co.uk JOE GLENTON'S LETTER TO GORDON BROWN
Dear Prime Minister,
I am writing to you as a serving soldier in the British army to express my views and concerns on the current conflict in Afghanistan.
It is my primary concern that the courage and tenacity of my fellow soldiers has become a tool of American foreign policy. I believe this unethical short-changing of such proud men and women has caused immeasurable suffering not only to families of British service personnel who have been killed and injured, but also to the noble people of Afghanistan.
I have seen qualities in the Afghan people which have also been for so long apparent and admired in the British soldier. Qualities of robustness, humour, utter determination and unwillingness to take a step backwards. However it is these qualities, on both sides, which I fear will continue to cause a state of attrition. These will only lead to more heartbreak within both our societies.
I am not a general nor am I a politician and I cannot claim any mastery of strategy. However, I am a soldier who has served in Afghanistan, which has given me some small insight.
I believe that when British military personnel submit themselves to the service of the nation and put their bodies into harms way, the government that sends them into battle is obliged to ensure that the cause is just and right, i.e. for the protection of life and liberty.
The war in Afghanistan is not reducing the terrorist risk, far from improving Afghan lives it is bringing death and devastation to their country. Britain has no business there.
I do not believe that our cause in Afghanistan is just or right. I implore you, Sir, to bring our soldiers home.
Yours sincerely,
Joe Glenton Lance/Corporal, Royal Logistics Corps
More info. at www.stopwar.org.uk
Adam Johannes
e-mail:
thomas_muntzer_Cardiff@hotmail.co.uk
Comments
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Sure, but
05.08.2009 02:02
Most of these soldiers, especially the officers, hate this guy though for signing up for this war when it was well underway and obviously political, and hate him more for going AWOL without retiring other ways. They have a point, he could be exploiting the war and certainly his replacement on convenient reasons but in his defence I'm sure being on the Afghanistan front-line must focus the mind. It would be great if someone could do a wider interview with him here, hopefully with him answering some questions we can submit. It would be good to know more about the guy as he has appeared out of nowhere in the media - or are there full interviews that I have missed?
Some soldiers have threatened to beat him up too online, so it is not a matter of whether he needs our support or not, he needs a bunch of people to be prepared to defend him when he is in public. I'd suggest approaching sympathetic soldiers first, of which there are certainly a few, as they'd be the most likely to defuse a situation against other soldiers. The StWC doubtless can afford 'private security' and they doubtless should consider that.
Danny