Conscientious objector Ivan Toms is sentenced to 21 months imprisonment for refusing to serve in the SADF

Dr Ivan Toms was a physician who worked in the informal settlement of Crossroads in Cape Town. In 1983, he witnessed the South African Defence Force (SADF) demolish shacks in the area. When he saw the ill treatment the homeless suffered at the hands of the military, he vowed never to serve in the military again. In 1987, when Toms was called to serve, he refused. He was tried, found guilty and sentenced to 21 months in prison. He was the first conscientious objector to be tried since legislation in 1983 provided for a Religious Board of Objection. Dr Ivan Toms died of meningitis in 2008.