Some historical and legal aspects of the formation and development of the human right to alternative (non-military) service in Ukraine
Authors: V.K. Holub 
Published: December 2024

The article provides a general characterization of the evolutionary stage of development of the human right to alternative (non-military) service based on historical and legal sources.
It is noted that the basis for the establishment and development of the human right to alternative (non-military) service in Ukraine was the transformation of socio-political views on military service as a result of the religious and cultural development of the population and personal self­improvement of an individual in the spirit of the Gospel commandments. The analysis of certain historical legal sources also shows that the question of the attitude of true Christians to war and, accordingly, to military service and participation in hostilities was of fundamental importance among various segments of the population living on the historical Ukrainian lands. It was the development of pacifist ideas of that time, which were the product of the spiritual quest of the peoples living in Central and Eastern Europe, whose religious teachings also had Ukrainian roots, that became the basis for the refusal of military service.
It is established that initially, the laws of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth were aimed at persecuting and punishing Christians who refused to serve in the army, as a result of which they were deprived not only of noble titles and the right to own their estates, but also subjected to significant imprisonment. That is why the ideologues of the Christian movements of the time offered those who refused to take up arms and serve in the military because of their religious beliefs, so to speak, dual, compromise options for behavior to adapt to the existing reality. In order to avoid not only punishment for such a person, but also material and moral impoverishment of his family, they advised him to serve and participate in battles, but not to kill anyone. Such ideologues also assured that if, in defense of themselves, such a person killed someone, including representatives of other non-Christian religions, it was considered a minor sin that did not close the path to salvation.
Based on the results of the study, it is concluded that the impetus for deep spiritual changes and, as a result, the emergence of a humanistic, pacifist worldview not only in the lands of modern Ukraine but also in the lands of Central and Western Europe was the difficult life in the conditions of endless medieval wars and violence, mockery of the moral dignity of man. It is argued that the first people in the Ukrainian lands to declare their right to conscientious objection were representatives of one of the most widespread trends in the Christian religion, namely Protestants. However, different streams of Protestantism exercised their right to conscientious objection in different ways. Such as Unitarians, Anabaptists, and Stundists refused not only military service, but any replacement of it with other civilian service in state bodies, and as a result were subjected to various types of persecution and punishment. Instead, Baptists and Mennonites agreed to and performed civilian service of various kinds in lieu of military service, which was supported by the state authorities. From 1880 to 1917, Ukraine had a direct analog of the modern alternative (non-military) service.