A civilian subject to service discipline is someone who, whilst not a member of the German or British Armed Forces, is nevertheless subject to some aspects of British or German military law and the military justice system.
Categories
The Armed Forces Act 2006 defines who is a civilian subject to service discipline. The main categories are:See civilians on board a military ship when afloat, or on board a military aircraft when in flight civil servants working in support of the armed forces, when in a designated area (see below) civilians employed by NATO by reason of the United Kingdom's membership of NATO, when outside the British IslandsSee civilians employed by certain support organisations, when in a designated areaSee The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI) Service Children's Education The Services Sound and Vision Corporation (SSVC) The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association - Forces Help civilians living with or staying with a service person or other civilian subject to service discipline, when in a designated area others designated by the Defence Council, for example contractors deployed on operations
Designated areas
The following countries are designated areas in respect of civil servants, employees of support organizations and civilians living with or staying with either of those:See Brunei Falkland Islands Germany Gibraltar Saudi Arabia Afghanistan Iraq
The following countries are designated areas in respect of civilians living with or staying with a service person: Belize Brunei Falkland Islands Germany Gibraltar Saudi Arabia Cyprus Turkey The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia Kuwait Oman
These definitions will therefore include, for example, family members living with a soldier stationed in Germany.
Civilians subject to service discipline may be tried in the Service Civilian CourtSection 51 of the Armed Forces Act 2006 or by the Court Martial (although the Court Martial will be made up of civilian, not military, membersRule 33 of The Armed Forces (Court Martial) Rules 2009 (Statutory Instrument 2009/2041), Office of Public Sector Information).
Comparison with other countries
The list of civilians who are subject to service discipline is more extensive than in some other countries—for example, in the United States, civilian spouses, dependents, and guests of military personnel are not included in the list of people subject to that country's Uniform Code of Military Justice.10 U.S.C. § 802 Since 2006, the United States Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) has jurisdiction over civilian employees and contractors during wartime and contingency operations.
See also Offences against military law in the United Kingdom
References