In December 2015, the US Army began the process of court-martialing Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl
for deserting his position in Afghanistan in 2009.
As a result he was captured by The Taliban, and five years later, he was traded for five
Taliban detainees.
House Republicans have criticized this trade as reckless and illegal, and some have called
Bergdahl a “traitor.”
Desertion is a deeply vilified act, and in many countries it can, and has, been punished
with the death penalty.
So, why do soldiers desert the military?
Well, desertion doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve just left without permission.
In the US military, simply leaving is considered “going AWOL,” or “absent without leave.”
After a month, absent soldiers become listed as deserters.
But to qualify as a deserter, it also must be determined that a soldier left permanently,
with the intent to avoid dangerous or important duty.
It is also considered desertion if a soldier joins another branch, or another country’s
military without resigning his current branch.
Even in the United States, during times of war, a soldier can be put to death through
a court-martial for desertion.
Although if the desertion occurs outside of war, capital punishment is off the table.
Desertion is so reviled because it breaks a soldier’s oath and contract with the military,
and can put fellow soldiers in danger.
Executing deserters used to be incredibly common throughout history, especially before
and during World War Two.
Roughly 15,000 Germans were executed by the Nazi government, mostly for deserting their
post.
As for the Soviets, they killed tens of thousands of their own military, although the exact
reasons are not well recorded, and include other crimes besides desertion.
The US only killed one soldier for the crime, the first and only since the Civil War.
So, why would a soldier, who had agreed to serve his or her country, decide to risk death
by deserting?
Well, over time, reasons have differed.
A study from 1921 lists things such as drug addiction, “criminal instinct,” weakness
of character or “youthful wanderlust.”
It also gave reasons such as dissatisfaction with the military, homesickness, entanglement
with women, and cowardice.
But more modern and moral reasons were proposed by Soviet soldiers during the War in Afghanistan
in the 1980s.
In a press conference, deserters claimed feeling demoralized and opposed to the brutality of
war.
The indiscriminately killing civilians, coupled with overall harsh treatment was unbearable
for the Soviet soldiers.
And in fact, deserting as a conscientious objector is a very gray region of international
law.
With the exception of certain periods of horrific war crime, most soldiers when commanded to
perform a criminal act are unlikely to face prosecution for it.
However, the Nuremberg Principles, established specifically to avoid war crimes, state that
a soldier does still have a legal responsibility to defer an illegal command.
Most wars see thousands, if not tens of thousands desert.
Since 2006, more than 20,000 US soldiers have abandoned their posts, and only about 2,000
have been prosecuted.
Sergeant Bergdahl’s court-martial could put him in prison for up to five years for
desertion, and a possible life sentence for endangering the soldiers who went looking
for him.
Still, despite the attention this case has garnered, desertion is a bit more common than
is widely believed, and may be, in some cases, justifiable.
To learn more about Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl and the full story behind why he decided to
desert the U.S. army, check out our video.
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