EASTON, Brian Robert (Bob)

Family Name:

Easton

Given Names:

Brian Robert (Bob)

Gender:

Male

Birth-date:

Unknown, probably 1949

Death-date:

Unknown

Marital Status:

Unknown, probably single

Age:

20 years old

Location:

SA, Morphettville

Occupation:

Secondary Schoolteacher

Primary Motivation:

Draft Resister-Opposed to Conscription

Reason for Court Appearance:

[1] Refused to attend medical examination, failed to appear in court

[2] Breach of the National Service Act

Court Name and Location:

[1] Unknown, Adelaide

[2] Unknown, Adelaide

Court Hearing Date:

[1] 6 January 1972

[2] 1972

Court Outcome:

[1] Jailed for 7 days on 28 January 1972

[2] Jailed for 22 days

Military Event:

National Service and the Vietnam War 1964-1072

Further Information:

Robert Easton was an Adelaide secondary school teacher from Morphettville in South Australia. He registered for national service as required by the National Service Act 1964 (NSA) during August 1969 for the selective conscription ballot of birthdates. As an alternative he applied to join the Adelaide University Squadron of the Citizen Air Force. He was to attend a meeting on 9 March 1970 where his application was to be considered, but he chose not to attend. He had a change of mind and decided he could no longer comply with the NSA. He mentioned this in a letter, dated 3 March 1970, to the Minister of Labour and National Service. He stated, I did not attend and thereby reversed my decision about breaking the law. I did this fundamentally because it became clear to me that I cannot obey any law that is immoral. My objection in this case do not lie in the fact that I think all war is immoral. But what I believe is immoral here is conscription for war. To me any war that forces ‘’free” men into involuntary servitude in war is immoral. If a person is conscripted then he clearly has not enough reason for the taking of the life of any other human being-otherwise he would have been prepared to volunteer.

Robert refused to attend the mandatory medical examination on 9 March 1970. He was summoned to court on 6 January 1972. He failed to attend the court hearing. He was jailed for 7 days on 28 January 1971. Subsequently a warrant was issued for his arrest on 7 January 1972. He was sentenced to 22 days jail later in 1972. It is not known if he had any further interaction with the authorities until the newly elected Whitlam Labor Government suspended the NSA in December 1972. All pending prosecutions for NSA offences were ‘dropped’ and non-compliers serving prison sentences were released.

Confirmatory Sources:

Peacemaker, May/ June 1970, p.2; August/ September 1970, p.7; January/ February 1971, p.10. Bobbie Oliver, Hell! No! Resistance to Conscription in Postwar Australia, Interventions, Melbourne, p.248.