Dokument #1279104
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
Military service is compulsory for all
Salvadorans between the ages of 18 and 30, and there is no
provision for conscientious objection or alternative service. [A.
Eide and C. Mubanga-Chipoya, United Nations, Conscientious
Objection to Military Service, Commission on Prevention of
Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, (New York: United
Nations Publications, 1985) pp. 23, 26; Blaustein and Flanz, eds.,
Constitutions of the Countries of the World, (Dobbs Ferry:
Oceana Publications Inc., 1984), p. 111 and 153.]
Regarding desertion, in a well-documented
article Karen Musalo, an attorney practising in the United States,
discusses the penalty for desertion from the Salvadoran armed
forces from a theory and practice standpoint, indicating that "...
there is a discrepancy between the law and actual practice on the
issue of punishment for refusal to serve or desertion. Pursuant to
the law, in cases of failure to report, the term of imprisonment is
six month to one year in peace time, and one year to three years in
time of war. The well-documented reality is that individuals who
attempt to refuse recruitment, or who desert subsequent to being
inducted, are assumed to be guerrillas, or guerrilla sympathizers,
and face a high probability of torture or death." [Karen Musalo,
"Conscientious Objection to Military Service Accepted as Valid
Basis of Claim to Political Asylum for Salvadoran Men",
Immigration Newsletter, Volume 16, No. 3 May-June 1987.
p.5.] The source Musalo uses to substantiate her analysis comes
from a former Salvadoran Lieutenant Colonel who in a sworn
statement indicated that "... a refusal to serve would be
interpreted as disloyalty to the government and would result in
torture or death." [Ibid, p.7.]