Lessons from Peelkhana tragedy
The BDR is going through a major reorganization to avoid recurrence of another tragedy and to restore the pride of the institution. The Darbar hall, where the unfortunate carnage had started a year ago, has recently got back to its original use - to sit down with the Jawans for one-to-one communication and exchange of views with the highest commander. The profession of arms with its tough environment and harsh demand in many ways is also democratic where a junior person can ask for redress of grievances or clear doubts from the top most people in the chain. Darbar is the name of those periodical meetings in the BDR and army where free and fruitful discussions take place between the commander and his under-command. The present Director General (DG) is a thoughtful soldier with a strong personality. A leader of his kind is the need of the time to salvage the BDR or whatever name chosen, into a fine paramilitary force to guard our frontiers. Confidence building between men and officers is the utmost challenge of the time. He is on a salvage operation of a great institution in flux. The raging fire has subsided; the ongoing reforms will surely salvage and inject pride in the force. The border guards will surely uphold its past traditions of valour and courage and enhance its image in public eye. The profession of arms makes the members psychologically more honour-bound than a job merely for a living. Imagine a soldier facing the danger of death in combat, which is a reality any day any time. If he is a bachelor, as they are for at least fist half decade of their service, he thinks of the consequences of his death or incapacity on his ailing parents, dependent siblings living on his meager income; on the other hand, he could be married with a young wife and children. Such men as caring father, son or brother may hesitate to risk his life. If a military or paramilitary man is not honour bound; he is not likely to take high risks in a combat situation to uphold the cause of the nation. Serving in BDR is not far from army soldiering. Year after year one had witnessed how happily soldiers and paramilitary forces risked their lives under severe constraints to help people after natural calamities that frequent Bangladesh. I have not served in BDR but have seen them from close quarter: how bravely they have fought to uphold the flag of Bangladesh. It is not so much from the command chain but humanitarian appeal from the heart that motivates soldiers to go and help the people suffering due to man-made or natural catastrophes. They were the first to suffer in Peelkhana on that black night of '71 and raise their arms as a body against the repression to liberate Bangladesh. Few culprits cannot erase the brilliant history of this institution. The worst thing that could happen to an officer is allegation of financial irregularities. A distinguished Lt General of the Indian army is now facing court martial for allegedly taking some government land for personal purpose. It is difficult to immunize commercial activities from corruption anywhere, much less in Bangladesh. Commercial activities erode pride of profession. The decision of the DG to close down the BDR chain shops is right, thoughtful and courageous. The inherent character, institutional training and safeguards build honesty in a soldier. Honesty is directly related to the ability of uniformed men to sacrifice for the nation. A dishonest person is likely to find excuse to get out of the demand of his profession during needs of the time. There is absolutely no scope for corruption, more precisely, weakness towards money and wealth in this profession. When the subordinates are armed it is not enough for the leaders to be honest. The leaders will have to be extra careful to not only be honest, but also let the subordinates know of their honest behavior. A soldier needs to feel confident of the professional efficiency and character qualities to trust the judgment of his commander to risk his life on his orders. Honesty again is not an absolute trait in human behavior. It mostly thrives on training, institutional safeguards, and communication between the commander and his men. Trust and confidence should come first from the subordinates than superiors in the ability of a commander. It is a bottom to top situation for efficiency of command. Business has many loose ends; if members of disciplined forces are exposed to such activities, need, if not greed, may tempt them for personal gratification. A slip and the first thing they lose is the pride of profession and then there is nothing to stop them from going down the drain. Disciplined forces have nothing to do with profit making ventures. The need for discipline in the armed forces cannot be overemphasized. It is important to keep uniformed men contended within the limited resources of the state. The state must ensure satisfaction of the soldiers in the working condition, pay and benefits without which discipline will not be natural but imposed. Imposed discipline is always susceptible to blowouts. Uniformed men are educated today and well informed and know how much the nation can do for them. We still do not know the causes of the mutiny; the government has said that there was neither foreign hand nor any conspiracy that instigated the mutiny. The leaflets distributed and the propaganda spread before the fateful day contained many allegations. The nation must know why this propaganda worked to spark the gruesome killings and brutality that spread over all the BDR establishments. The taxpayers want to know the causes and remedies, not a witch-hunt. We should draw lessons from this tragedy. The Peelkhana catastrophe offers the nation an opportunity to review the commercial activities of all uniformed forces. One year on, let us convert the heart rending wailing of the near and dear ones of the victims into a resolve to discard all irrelevant and non-professional activities of the uniformed forces. Corruption, commerce and politics must be purged from the military and para-military forces as a first step towards restoration of professional pride. The author is an ex DG of SSF.
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