Today the 25th of February, Cecilia Redner and Marija Fischer from the women's ploughshares group Choose Life were found guilty of attempt to malicious damage and violation of the law protecting facilities important to society (roughly translated). Cecilia, a priest in the Church of Sweden, was sentenced to fines and three years of correctional education. Marija, a student, was sentenced to fines and two years suspended sentence.

"Our action was about protecting human rights. The Swedish judicial system ought to protect human rights abroad as well as in Sweden. Knowing what is happening on East Timor, we should have been found not guilty.", Marija said.

The 19th of April 1997 Cecilia and Marija entered the arms factory of Bofors in Karlskoga. There they planted an apple tree and attempted to disarm a naval canon of the type that is being exported to Indonesia. In a overcrowded court room Cecilia and Marija tried to explain their action, although the judge interupted them continously. Since 1975 Indonesia has been occupying East Timor. Because of the occupation it is estimated that between 200.000 and 300.000 East Timorese have died. In 1996, Bofors sold weapons to Indonesia at the rate of some £5.5 million. Cecilia therefore argued:

"When my country is arming a dictator I am not aloud to be passive and obedient, since it would make me guilty to the genoside on East Timor. I know what is going on and I can not only blaim the Indonesian dictatorship or my own government. Our ploughshares action was a way for us to take responsability and act in solidarity with the people of East Timor."

Using the necessity defence Marija and Cecilia pleaded not guilty. "We tried to prevent a crime, and that is an obligation according to our law", Marija explains and hoped to get aquitted just as the four women in Liverpool 1996. The court obviously made a different conclusion. "Surely we are going to appeal!"

The use of civil disobedience by the Swedish Ploughshares movement always means that the breaking of a law is done accountably and nonviolently. This means that the activists do not try to escape and no one is threatened or harmed. With civil disobedience democratical processes are started and the aim is to change the law or to agree on new political decisions.