Ehren Watada won't go

[2/4/07] 1st Lt. Ehren Watada goes on trial in a military court as the nation's first commissioned officer to refuse deployment to Iraq.

It's a trial with significance beyond Lieutenant Watada. The case will provide a test of how far officers can go in resisting an order and how much they can criticize their superiors – notably the commander in chief. Over time, Watada came to believe that the Bush administration lied about the reasons for invading Iraq and concluded its actions were "illegal and immoral."

The Pentagon, however, argues that no soldier can pick and choose assignments, something that would undermine a core tenet of the military – the command structure. It also says that when people join the Army, they lose some of the free-speech rights of a civilian.

[2/4/07] Army 1st. Lt. Ehren Watada maintains that the crux of his court-martial proceedings is the legality of the war in Iraq, despite what a military judge has said.

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[12/26/06] Letters to the Editor

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A patriotic Eagle Scout who had hoped to make the Army his career, 1st Lt. Ehren K. Watada says the war in Iraq is illegal and that he will not deploy with his Fort Lewis unit when it leaves in two weeks.

Watada, an artillery officer, said even after enlisting he did not believe that "an invasion was fully justified, but I believed the president's claims should be given a benefit of doubt. At that time, I never imagined that our leader could betray the trust of the people over something as serious as war."

Watada could face up to five years in jail and a dishonorable discharge if he is convicted at a court-martial for failing to join his 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Regiment, unit when it begins leaving for Iraq on June 23.

Eric Seitz, Watada's civilian attorney, acknowledged at a state Capitol news conference that Watada will face an uphill battle in making those arguments.
But Seitz said "there is a lot of support" for Watada. "There are a lot of people who are opposed to the war. There has been a crescendo of opposition against the war in the last couple of months.

Watada has drawn the support from various anti-war groups and politicians such as former Gov. Ben Cayetano, U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, former Lt. Gov. Jean King, former Rep. Sam Lee and state Sens. Clayton Hee and Clarence Nishihara.

[not in online edition] However, others, like Rebecca Davis, co-founder of Military Families Voice of Victory, said in an emailed statement that she hopes that Watada is prosecuted "to the fullest extent."

"He is a coward and a traitor. His actions will only serve to get his fellow soliders killed so that he can save himself and become famous," Davis said.