Excerpted from Free Radicals: War Resisters in Prison by CJ Hinke, forthcoming from Trine-Day in 2016.

Incredibly, in the 21st-century, roughly half of the world's nation-states practice military conscription. According to Wikipedia, the countries on this list may still be enforcing military conscription.

In all cases, registration is required but military service may not be; this practice would certainly yield a number of draft refusers. In some cases, other forms of national service are compulsory which also generate principled refusal.

Starred * countries list provisions for alternative service or conscientious objection which exemption would also result in absolutist refusers; in some cases, the right to conscientious objection is constitutional. Failure by governments to provision conscientious objection or alternative service contravenes United Nation conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 18) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Article 18), to which almost all these nation-states are party.

The 1978 UN General Assembly was explicit in its Resolution 33/165 which recognized "the right of all persons to refuse service in military or police  forces." In 1981, UNHRC again supported conscientious objection in its Resolution 40 (XXXVII). In 1982, this was restated in Resolution 1982/36.

The United Nations' Declaration on Human Rights Defenders A/RES/53/144 was begun in 1984 and formally adopted in 1998 by the General Assembly on the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Furthermore, the UN Human Rights Commission on March 5, 1987 in Resolution 1987/46 resolved that "conscientious objection has to be considered as a legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of conscience and religion." This was reaffirmed in UNHCR Resolution 1989/59, stating "all Member States have an obligation to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms and to fulfill the obligations they have undertaken under the various international human rights instruments, the Charter of the United Nations and humanitarian law" and "called upon Member States to grant asylum or safe transit to another State" for conscientious objectors. UNHCR's 1991 Resolution 1991/65 recognised "the role of youth in the promotion and protection of human rights, including the question of conscientious objection to military service."

The UNHRC's 1993 Resolution 1993/84 was also explicit in reminding Member States of the previous UN resolutions.

This was reiterated in 1995 by UNHCR Resolution 1995/83 recognising "the right of everyone to have conscientious objections to military service as a legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion."

UNHCR did so again in 1998 by UNHCR Resolution 1998/77 which restated "that States, in their law and practice, must not discriminate against conscientious objectors in relation to their terms or conditions of service, or any economic, social, cultural, civil or political rights," reminding states with a system of compulsory military service, where such provision has not already been made, of its recommendation that they provide for conscientious objectors various forms of alternative service which are compatible with the reasons for conscientious objection, of a non-combatant or civilian character, in the public interest and not of a punitive nature," and "emphasizes that States should take the necessary measures to refrain from subjecting conscientious objectors to imprisonment and to repeated punishment for failure to perform military service, and recalls that no one shall be liable or punished again for an offence for which he has already been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with the law and penal procedure of each country."