Every male Finnish citizen must carry out military service for a minimum period of six months. Alternatively, they can also opt for a longer period of non-military civilian service, which lasts for nearly a year, according to Finland's Conscription Act.
As of now, Finnish law punishes so-called “total objectors”, who refuse both options, with a prison sentence of six months.
According to the Prison and Probation Service of Finland, between January and October this year, 34 men were serving a prison sentence for refusing military or civilian service, which is double the average recorded in the past five years, Sputnik reported.
The Union of Conscientious Objectors (AKL) called this trend indicative of the current situation and named the weakened security situation, the conflict in Ukraine and Finland's bid for NATO membership as the underlying reasons that caused many to question their views on military service. Yet another reason named by experts was Jehovah's Witnesses losing their exemption from the obligation.
Amnesty International considers Finland's jailed conscientious objectors to be prisoners of conscience.
In May, Finland applied for NATO membership jointly with Sweden, marking a formal conclusion to decades of non-alignment. However, this move was not completely unexpected, as both countries kept creeping closer to the US-led alliance under the guise of joint drills, overseas operations and a lively arms procurement.
Russian Foreign Ministry called the NATO accession of Finland and Sweden a “mistake with far-reaching implications,” predicting an increase in the general level of military tension.
The Finnish Armed Forces' active personnel includes some 8,000 staff and 25,000 conscripts, yet boasts 900,000 reservists in a nation of 5.5 million. Due to a general drop in the physical condition of conscripts, the Finnish Armed Forces were earlier reported to review service classes and routines in a bid to accommodate less fit conscripts.