Marine corporal Tahan K. Jones faces witchhunt for antiwar views

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SAN FRANCISCO—Now that the U.S. war against Iraq has ended in a resounding "victory," what will happen to all those GIs who resisted serving in the Gulf?

One of them is Tahan K. Jones, 22, a corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve who refused to be deployed to Saudi Arabia and applied for Conscientious Objector (CO) status in October 1990.

Tahan believes he is now a young man with an uncertain future.

Acting on his moral opposition to the war in the Gulf, he refused to ship out with his unit to Arizona, where it was being trained for eventual deployment to Saudi Arabia. Consequently, he is now "Absent Without Leave" (AWOL).

While thousands of GIs around the country had applied for CO status, hundreds of them had to make a critical decision when their units were called for duty in the Gulf: To go or not go.

Tahan chose to act on his beliefs and now finds himself a "fugitive" from a military judicial system that he knows is intoxicated with "victory" and hell-bent on making an "example" out of him and other GIs who spoke out against the war.

"I'm not the only one"

I was able to interview Tahan recently. He will soon turn himself in and have to conduct a defense that will have important implications for all GI resisters.

Tahan told me that he faces charges of "unauthorized absence," "desertion," "missing a troop movement," and maybe more. He could be sentenced to five years at hard labor. He has heard that some resisters have already been locked up in the brig.

Tahan applied for CO status on Oct. 26, 1990, but the maze of red tape erected by the Marine Corps meant that he would have to disobey orders if he were to remain true to his beliefs.

When I asked him if he thought the military authorities would come down hard on him and other resisters, he responded, "Oh yes, of course they will. The military is arrogant, you know. Now they feel they can do whatever they want to do. They will come after me and others. And I'm not the only one."

I asked him if he was opposed to the war in the Gulf. "Yes. But not just this war, all wars. I see no gain in it."

Blacks are singled out Tahan, a native of Oakland, Calif., says he has a lot of support in the Black community. He believes he will be singled out because he is Black-and outspoken.

In a message he sent to a University of California, Berkeley, teach-in on Dec. 7, 1990, Tahan stated, "I believe that it is immoral and hypocritical that AfricanAmericans are asked to make the ultimate sacrifice for a nation that refuses to enact a Civil Rights Bill to end employment discrimination."

Tahan says the white investigating officer assigned to his case, Capt. Swanson, evinced a racist attitude. "During a two-hour interview, " Tahan said, "he came to the conclusion that my beliefs are not sincerely and deeply held, and that my CO status should be denied."

Tahan showed me a transcript of his first Joseph Ryan/Socialist Action 43308 review at a Marine Corps hearing on his request for CO status. Capt. Swanson, the "impartial" investigating officer, stated, "After observing Corporal Jones throughout this investigation, I believe that he is incapable of articulating any discernible thought or perceptions concerning such subjective matters as conscientious objection to all war. It also leads me to believe that without a considerable amount of coaching and influence, Corporal Jones would not have produced his initial letter stating that he was a conscientious objector—or pursued the matter at all."

Tahan sees this statement as racially motivated. "It creates stereotypes," he said. It infers that Blacks are "less intelligent, ignorant, lazy, and unpatriotic. much a slander."

I asked him what he thinks will happen when he turns himself in. "They might send us to Camp Pendleton or Camp LeJeune back East in order to isolate us from our base of supportand then 'hang' us."

"You understand," he said, "I expressed my opposition to war on Oct. 26. This means I expressed my opposition to the military, which means you face repercussions."

"Next time-it might be you"

Tahan, a native of Oakland, Calif., says he has a lot of support in the Black community. He also believes that it is critically important for the fight for civil liberties that all GI resisters be defended unconditionally.

"It would build support and raise people's consciousness on the issue. ... Domestic and foreign policies are related," he said. "It would raise the public consciousness that we have to change domestic and foreign policy. We would be helping other resisters. We're all in the same boat together. This time it might be me. But next time, it might be you."

I asked Tahan about the Jeff Paterson case. Paterson was a Marine stationed in Hawaii who refused to board the plane to Saudi Arabia with his unit in early September 1990. He was subsequently court-martialed, but given an administrative discharge. At the time, this was considered a victory. "That was then, this is now," Tahan said. "At the time, there was public support for Paterson, but things are different now."

It's apparent the U.S. government will try its utmost to victimize the hundreds of GI resisters who spoke out, refused orders, and thereby put their lives on the line in the cause of opposition to Washington's war drive.

Every sector of society that participated in the antiwar mobilizations-unions, peace groups, churches, Black and Latino organizations, and students-must now pick up the banner of defense of these brave young men and women. The antiwar movement was proud to introduce them at rallies and marches; we should be committed to defend them against the witchhunt the government is now unleashing.

On April 6, 1991, the San Francisco-based Mobilization to Bring the Troops Home Now-the coalition which organized a march of 200,000 people on Jan. 26—will sponsor a fund-raising rally for all GI resisters in the Bay Area. The money raised will go to pay the legal defense costs of the GI resisters and to mobilize public support for the right of all GIs to free speech and dissent. For more information, call (415) 626-8053.