Implementation of the Right to Alternative (Non-Military) Service in Sweden: Evolution of Legislation and Current Challenges
Abstract
Purpose: is to analyze Sweden’s system of total defense obligation and the model of alternative (non-military) service as a tool for ensuring the right to freedom of conscience under the conditions of new security challenges in the Baltic region.
Method: The study employs general scientific methods (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, comparison); special legal methods (formal legal, historical-legal); and an interdisciplinary approach (law, security studies, sociology, history). The source base includes legal acts, government documents, parliamentary debates, academic literature, and media publications.
Results of the research: The article establishes that Sweden’s “total defense obligation” model combines compulsory military service with the possibility of alternative civilian service. The reintroduction of conscription in 2017, along with plans to expand the obligation into the civilian sector, demonstrates the adaptation of the total defense concept to new threats. Sweden ensures the protection of human rights in its defense system through clear regulation of the procedure for conscientious objection to military service.
Theoretical implications: The study analyzes the modern reinterpretation of the “total defense” concept as a complex interaction between military and civilian resources. The Swedish model is identified as one of the most balanced in terms of combining national defense capacity with the protection of human rights.
Practical implications: Sweden’s experience can be used in the development or improvement of legislation on alternative services in other democratic countries, particularly in Ukraine.
Value: The findings are valuable for shaping legislative policy in the field of total defense obligation and alternative service. The article proposes elements of the Swedish model that could be adapted in the context of national security system reforms.
Paper type: theoretical.
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References
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