AWOL Iraq Vet Surrenders in California

The fate of a U.S. Army medic who went AWOL rather than return for a second tour in Iraq is unclear today after he turned himself in to military authorities.

Attorneys for Augustin Aguayo filed new appeal papers requesting his immediate release from military service as a conscientious objector approximately 30 minutes before the 34-year-old father of two presented himself at Fort Irwin in California's Mojave desert.

Aguayo had been in hiding since early September.

He first applied for discharge as a conscientious objector in February 2004, about a year after his Army service commenced and as he was beginning his first deployment in Iraq. Aguayo's application was denied by the Pentagon and in 2005 he appealed that decision to federal courts in Washington, DC, which have jurisdiction over cases brought by U.S. military personnel stationed overseas.

"When he joined the military he was very enthusiastic about doing something wonderful for our country," his wife Helga Aguayo told OneWorld. "It was through his experiences in the military that he made the decision to become a conscientious objector."

Before Aguayo's appeal could be heard, however, his unit was sent to Iraq again. So Aguayo escaped through a window in base housing and fled rather than face a second tour. He maintains military commanders told him they would send him to Iraq in handcuffs, if necessary.

"He just walked off the base," said David Spitzman, the former director of the Military Counseling Network, a non-military group of organizations that advocate for GIs in Germany where Aguayo was stationed.

Spitzman says the logistics of going AWOL were easy for Aguayo, as they would be for any of the 70,000 U.S. servicemen and women stationed in Germany.

"We all know that Europe has been critical of the war so finding supporters among local activists and normal citizens is easy," he said.

Sptizman said while Aguayo is the only serviceman based in Germany to speak publicly about his decision to go AWOL, he's hardly the only U.S. soldier to leave the military illegally.

"I wouldn't want to quantify it," Spitzman said. "But we get a lot of calls. Out of the 300 people who've contacted us at least 20 or 30 people have asked about going AWOL."

A U.S. Army spokesman at Fort Irwin told OneWorld that he wasn't sure what authorities would do with Aguayo now that he has turned himself in. "He might be arrested on the spot," spokesman Augustin Rodriguez said, "but I couldn't really say."

Under military rules, soldiers who have gone AWOL are only certified as deserters if they have been gone for more than thirty days. Aguayo went AWOL on September 2, so it is possible he could still be forcibly sent to Iraq to fight alongside his unit.

"Our primary course of action is to attempt to rehabilitate the soldier, reintegrate him/her back into their unit," Major Nathan Banks told Cybercast News Service earlier this month. "Very few deserters are tried by court martial--only 176 in fiscal year 2004. Each case is evaluated on its own merit."

Observers say these developments are reminiscent of the Vietnam War, when the refusal to fight by hundreds of thousands of soldiers was a major force behind U.S. withdrawal.

According to journalist and Vietnam War resister Peter Laufer, 170,000 U.S. soldiers filed for conscientious objector status during the Vietnam War. Between 50,000 and 60,000 fled to Canada. Others deliberately injured themselves or simply went AWOL.

The numbers are smaller this time around, but they're significant nonetheless, said Laufer, who has written a book about the phenomenon called Mission Rejected: U.S. Soldiers Who Say No to Iraq.

Soldiers who publicly refuse to serve "open doors to others who refuse quietly to themselves or have not made a decision," Laufer told OneWorld. "It's empowering for them to know they are not alone. Also, they are on the front line of the battle for the soul of their nation. They are a potent force to convince people who support the war. They are staking their freedom and future on these decisions."

At a press conference Tuesday in Los Angeles, Aguayo's family was joined by many supporters with military ties. Among them, Fernando Suarez del Solar, a 48-year-old cashier whose son Jesus became the first U.S. fatality of the war in Iraq when he stepped on a cluster bomb seven days into the invasion.

"When I see Augustin and other members of the military who refuse to go to Iraq, I believe my son is with him," he said. "More important is the family. Augustin defended his family. My son died and left behind my grandson and the family is destroyed."

"Augustin is a Mexican American like my son and me," he added. "For me, it's an honor to support him. It's very important for people to understand the Hispanic community shows the real patriotism. Immigrants come to this country to serve the United States, not to fight an immoral war in Iraq."

Aaron Glantz
OneWorld US

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