2/25/07: The army refiled charges against Lt. Watada for
missing movement and conduct unbecoming an officer on Friday. Watada is the first officer who has refused
to fight in the unjust war on Iraq,
saying, “my participation would make me party to war crimes”.
Watada’s defense intended to
argue that the war was illegal, so Watada had a duty to miss troop movement and
speak out against the war. At the first
trial, held in the beginning of February, the military judge refused to allow
the defense to present any evidence or testimony from witnesses that would
demonstrate the illegality of the Iraq war.
But the government’s case
unraveled due to a stipulation Watada had signed in an agreement with the
prosecution. In the stipulation, Watada
admitted to missing movement, but did not admit his guilt, as he saw it as a
crime to fight in an illegal war.
Military Judge Head wanted to question Watada about the stipulation, but
Watada’s attorney objected, saying that any questioning about the stipulation
had to include Watada’s reasoning for missing movement. To avoid dealing with the illegality of the
war, the prosecution asked for a mistrial, which Judge Head granted.
Now the government wants to
try Watada again for the same charges.
The Associated Press reported:
Watada’s attorney, Eric
Seitz, said he would seek to have the charges dismissed as a violation of the
Constitution’s protection against double jeopardy.
“When it’s not going
well for you, you can’t just call a mistrial and start over again,” Seitz
said. “No matter how much lip service they give to wanting to protect my
client’s rights, that just doesn’t exist in the military courts.”
Watada has set an important
example in calling out the war crimes being carried out by the US government, the illegality of the Iraq war
itself, and the immorality of fighting in it.
And he has been willing to risk going to prison for refusing to
fight. This example has given
inspiration to other soldiers, received the support from many people all across
the country (1,000 showed up outside the first day of Watada’s trial to protest
in support of Watada), and has helped fuel resistance to the war.
The government wants to do
everything it can to stamp out Watada’s example, and not allow any debate about
the illegality of the war.
Watada has refused to back
down, and neither should we. Stay tuned
to http://thankyoult.org/ for the latest
updates on Watada’s case, and flood the office of Fort Lewis Commanding General
James Dubik with phone calls demanding that all charges against Watada be
dropped.
Lt. Gen. Dubik can be
reached via his aide at 253-967-0022, and/or through the Ft. Lewis
switchboard at 253-967-1110.