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Demands they put forward

Staff Correspondent
BDR mutineers lashed out at the military authorities in a day-long cathartic outburst during yesterday's breathtak ing siege of their headquarters, proving the long-standing tension between the paramilitary outfit and the military. Speaking out at different times of the mutiny, the mutineers spoke and wrote to the media saying they had their backs to the wall and were forced to move forward with arms.
They vented their anger to the media over low salary, lack of benefits, holidays and the bar on them from going to UN peacekeepingmissions.
Earlier, in an open letter to the prime minister and 'eminent intellectuals' distributed before the ill-fated meeting yesterday morning, BDR troops listed their grievances against the military officers saying "oppression under the military" is worse than what Bangladesh suffered under Pakistanis.
"We have only one demand: sack military officers from all posts.
"Today, please rescue us from the hands of the military. We are being tortured in many ways that were not even done by the Pakistanis," the letter stated. "Today, 45,000 BDR personnel are held hostage by 400 army officers."
The troops recalled their contributions to the Liberation War saying the force that played such a big role in liberating the country is now "subjugated".
In a sweeping attack on the military, the troops questioned the military's role in the paramilitary, police and auxiliaryforces.
"What kind of nation we are that we need army officers everywhere? Why are all the country's people held hostage by them? Why do we even need a home ministry when
BDR, Ansar, Fire Brigade, Jail Guards and Rab are under their command and control?"
The military was also accused of controlling other state organisations such as schools, hospitals, universities and various federations.
The border guards went on to accuse the military of conspiring to raise food prices, saying they forced people to buy rice worth Tk 17-18 at Tk 42 and doubling the price of oil.
"They swindled the people during Operation Daal-Bhaat. They strategically used BDR to sell goods for a high price but low in weight. But BDR had no role in this yet BDR has to carry the bad name." The BDR DG, his wife, and the Dhaka sector commander were involved, the troops alleged.
At around 1:00pm yesterday, mutineers sent out a hand-written letter addressed to the people and the media saying they were forced to take arms as they were repressed by their army bosses.
A number of BDR personnel also vented their anger while talking to the media.
"The DG has siphoned off Tk 7 crore that we were supposed to receive for our election duty," said a partially-masked BDR man while talking to reporters at gate 3 of the BDR headquarters.
He said they received only Tk300 in 'death allowance', do not receive enough holidays and have never been "sent to the peacekeeping missions."
They also said their army bosses downplay their performance and very often misappropriate different funds of BDR personnel including Tk
6,500 crore earned from its Daal-Bhaat programme.
The mutineers lamented that even Ansar members can go abroad for UN peacekeeping mission but army bosses b ar them from going abroad.
They also said army assassinated Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other leaders, but BDR members are truly patriot and performed their duty in all the crises of thp nation