From the compulsory military service: Tom Günther's moving story

From the compulsory military service: Tom Günther's moving story

On May 28, 2025, almost 63-year-old Tom Günther disposed of old documents, including a model decision from 1981 and an application for refusing to do so. For him, these actions are part of the reflection on his past. Günther refused military service and wanted to do community service instead. However, this was not an easy process because the authorities put many hurdles in his way. He describes his experiences with the Bundeswehr and the authorities as authoritarian and unfair, which reflects the social acceptance of conscience of military service in Germany, which only increased from the 1970s

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he made his application for the refusal of war on war in 1980. When he was sampling in the district military replacement office in Hanover, he was exposed to insulting statements. Despite the political circumstances and the four-powers status, Günther received a letter from the military area administration, which were sent in neutral envelopes. In order to protest against this inappropriate handling, he finally turned to the Soviet embassy in East Berlin. After the reunification, when he had already completed a university degree, he again received mail from the district defense office, which came up with an impending convention up to the age of 32.

The long way to recognize

Günther received support from a campaign against conscription and forced services. In order to win the time, he did not send a police certificate of good conduct and finally emphasized an important success in 1993 when his application for refusal to make war was recognized. Nevertheless, he had to do community service. In order to avoid calling, he documented health problems and objected to an objection, adapting the reason for his refusal. Finally, he received the announcement that a conversion to civil service was no longer intended.

These experiences reflect the legal framework of the refusal to war in Germany, which are regulated by Article 12a of the Basic Law. This says that nobody can be forced to work against his conscience. Even though the Federal Republic of Germany was the first state to admit this law in 1949, conscientious conscience conscience had to present their reasons for conscience before an examination board until 1983. The community service was introduced in 1961 and was a first step towards social recognition of conscientious conscience.

social acceptance and current developments

The suspension of conscription in 2011 led to the end of the civil service, which presented not only the conscientious conscience, but also the social institutions supported by them. While over 2.5 million young men worked as civil service providers, refusers remained social outsiders for a long time. In recent years, however, there has been a reassessment, whereby civil service providers are increasingly recognizing as valuable support in the social sector.

The legal framework has remained largely unchanged since the 2004 reform. Interested parties can submit an application for refusal to do so, even during the active military service, and are supported by organizations such as the German Peace Society. In view of the geopolitical tensions, there was an increase in applications for the refusal of the war in 2022 alone. In 2023, 1,672 applications have already been registered, which shows that the topic is still of great relevance today.

Tom Günther plans to keep the old sample guidelines for his 19-year-old son. In his considerations, the idea is reflected that dealing with the topic of consciousness of military service and the associated social changes should remain important in future generations.