CANADIAN YEARLY MEETING
Ad Hoc Committee on War Tax Concerns
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CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION
AT INCOME TAX TIME:
OPPORTUNITY TO WITNESS
AGAINST PAYING FOR WAR
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Dear Friends:
We are writing to urge you to circulate this letter and attachments immediately to the widest possible audience. Please make sure that everyone in your meeting or worship group receives this information and call to action. But don’t stop there! Forward it also to appropriate contacts in the wider community.
Why? Conscience Canada puts it so well:
”Chances are you and I will never be conscripted to fight in a war. However, as taxpayers we are required to make a financial contribution to war with our taxes. Edith Adamson, [Quaker] founder of Conscience Canada, once remarked that "it only took twelve men to drop the bomb over Hiroshima, but it took millions, perhaps billions, of taxpayers' dollars to develop that bomb." As Canada continues its war in Afghanistan conscientious objection to military taxation is one tangible way to promote peace.”
Therefore, the CYM Ad Hoc Committee on War Tax Concerns urges all Friends and friends to support the Conscience Canada campaign for legislation to make military tax resistance legal and accessible to all. To this end, Conscience Canada has developed a Peace Tax Return form with easy-to-follow instructions that offer you three choices for action (see English and French .pdf files below).
THE SIMPLEST CHOICE (Part A of the Peace Tax Return): Sign the Declaration in support of the Conscientious Objector legislation currently before Parliament. There is no financial involvement in this action. Just sign the Declaration and include it with your paper income tax return. Best of all, write a letter of witness also, stating your convictions on the issue (see below for circulation list). If you file electronically, find out from your local tax office where you should send something to be added to your file.
If we had a thousand people sending in this Part A Declaration, it would enormously increase the visibility of the bill. How many witnesses can your group produce?
THE FINANCIAL CHOICES (two options, both under Part B of the Peace Tax Return):
(a) divert all of the military portion of your federal tax to the Peace Tax Trust Fund run by Conscience Canada.
OR
(b) divert a symbolic amount to the Peace Tax Trust Fund ($25 or whatever you can afford).
Either of these witnesses will boost the credibility of the Part A Declaration. Experience indicates that the Canada Revenue Agency is unlikely to collect a small sum, say under $100. If you have already had all your taxes deducted, this symbolic donation will strengthen your statement of support. Don’t forget to include your letter of witness!
The Peace Tax Return includes detailed instructions for any of these actions. But we invite you to contact any member of our committee or contact Conscience Canada if you want further information.
In friendship,
CYM Ad Hoc Committee on War Tax Concerns:
