The Regiment has come under fire from a new group battling conscription in Bermuda.

Bermudians Against the Draft ? or BAD ? has mounted an offensive to stop the Regiment?s ?unfair? conscription methods.

BAD founder Larry Marshall Sr. said on Tuesday the draft was a violation of basic human rights for a disproportionate number of young black men and has pledged to fight Regiment propaganda.

?If this is not slavery then it is the closest thing to it in the 21st Century,? his son, Larry Marshall Jr. said.

He said BAD was formed out of legal wrangling between his conscript son and the Bermuda Regiment.

?We are trying to form a sizeable group so we can abolish conscription in Bermuda,? Mr. Marshall Sr. said. ?In the past it has always been individuals but never a group. We are hoping to attract people who feel their rights have been violated.? He felt there was a considerable amount of opposition to the Regiment but no one had ever formed a group to fight against the extremely unfair institution.

?We want to appeal politically, and if not we will go the legal route locally, to Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and if necessary to the Privy Council,? he said. However, he said BAD did not have a lawyer and was waiting to find an attorney who felt as passionately about fighting conscription as they did. Mr. Marshall Sr. said 30 young men currently absent without leave from Regiment were perfect candidates for BAD because they were unaware of their legal rights to a Tribunal as well as a right to appeal to the Governor or to court.

?A large percentage of the guys up there now, if they had known, they would have done the same thing I did,? his son said. ?Guys run, but they catch you and lock you up. They need to got through the proper process. That?s why we are here to provide an organisation to expedite the process.?

Conscription was not valid under any circumstance, not even war, Mr. Marshall Jr. said, as residents would naturally chose to defend their homes and enlist.

?Even Lt. Col. Lamb said he prefers an army of volunteers,? Mr. Marshall Sr. said. ?But I can?t imagine any scenario when we would need an Army. Who would attack us??

He felt bad because his older brother did not know his legal rights and served three years in Regiment despite hating every second.

?He truly regrets the knowledge at my disposal was not at his,? he said. ?He further described an atmosphere most unhealthy in which vile language and filthy jokes were the order of the day.?

It was ironic that UK citizens were not conscripted because it was banned in 1962, he said, yet Bermudians in the middle of the Atlantic were forced to pledge allegiance to the Queen.

?They said Prince William was honouring tradition by joining the Army but he has a choice,? he said. ?These guys don?t have a choice.?

BAD got most of its information from Audley Campbell ? a blue-collar worker who spent much of his own money researching the legal rights of Bermudians, he said.

Mr. Campbell took out a writ against the Regiment and he was deferred indefinitely.

Mr. Marshall Sr. said his son could easily take out a writ ? which was similar to a class-action suit ? and be deferred but he formed BAD to stop conscription in the future.

?Young people are manhandled up there,? he said. ?This is 2006 and this ignorance is still going on. There are only a handful of countries world-wide that enforce conscription. Prisoners have more rights than conscripts. But conscripts have not done anything wrong.?

He said Governments had been hypocritical and inconsistent in the past because they had abolished capital punishment and legalised homosexuality to keep in step with the rest of the world, yet ignored conscription.

Regiment parades were good entertainment, he said, however should be run by professionals or volunteers.

And as far as the Regiment?s ?role? in protecting Bermuda against internal strife, he said it should be the Bermuda Police Service?s sole responsibility since Police volunteered to put their lives at risk.

BAD has until January 1, 2007 to take legal action against Regiment.

?Hopefully the politicians will do the right thing and abolish conscription,? he said.