Going ‘AWOL’, deserting, or not showing up on one’s conscription date may complicate your exemption process because they might eliminate many avenues toward exemption (for example meeting your unit’s mental health officer) and involve risks. As a deserter, a typical check of your ID by traffic police, for example, can lead you to detention and to military prison. The longer the desertion, the heavier the punishment. Conviction of desertion in military court results in a police criminal record, which may affect you in the future.
If you’re in distress and feel you have no other choice – contact us. Also in case of physical/psychological/sexual abuse by your commanders, there are other ways to act. In a situation of severe distress, if you’re afraid you’ll hurt yourself or suffer from irreversible damage, remember there is always a solution. If you’ll just go home it will make the exemption process more complicated, but won’t block it entirely. First of all, take care of yourself. Other problems can be taken care of later.
If you deserted already and want to be exempted from service, it is important you’ll contact us as soon as you can in order to consult with us about your options. It is a delicate situation which might get increasingly complicated if you don’t know exactly what to do. It is not enough only to read or trust what people are saying.