February the 25th
March 12, 2009
Our deepest condolences to the families of the officers, and other innocent people who lost their lives during the BDR carnage.
I was in class when my father called, “Fetch your sister from her office and come home as soon as possible, there’s a civil war.” Dubbing a single event as a civil war may have been an exaggeration, but the extent of the cruelty was no less than that of a war, but that was yet to be revealed. I did as I was told. We took a CNG to Green road, we walked home to science laboratory from there after. The scene on the way back home was surreal–panic in the air, people rushing cluelessly to and fro, army three tons and four-barrel canons on the streets of Dhanmondi.
We spent the next two days trapped in our home a mile away from the BDR headquarters, glued to the news on TV. Sometimes we were in touch with others, sometimes the mobile network was shut. Sometimes we heard micings, sometimes we heard gunshots, for the rest of the time a haunting silence hung over the place. We watched the truth unfold in slow motion. First it was two uniformed bodies floating out the sewerage system, then four more, then a few more, then a lot more. I lost count once they found the mass graves. I’d wake up every morning to pictures and video clips of dead bodies–burnt, deformed, mutilated dead bodies. The barbarism was so, so disturbing.
This was not a mutiny, it was genocide. The BDR soldiers may have been oppressed, they may have had low pay, there may have been corruption in the higher order–how does mass murder solve any of these issues to begin with? I fail to adhere reasons to their deeds.How can our own people do it to our very own army officers? What guilt were those individual officers and their families being punished for? The rumours of what really happened inside carried more horrific stories of murder and rape than the media revealed to us. How can they be so decadent? It makes me want to scream in anguish, I don’t want to mourn silently. Nothin justifies a massacre.
The Bangladesh Rilfes is a well-respected organization; two of our Bir Shrestho belonged to the BDR. I saltue them for their undeniable contribution to our liberation war and for guarding our borders sleeplessly. We all would have sympathized with them, had they only brought up their issues, demands, rights they deserved in public eye. Rising against the authority does not require blood shed. The mutiny was just an excuse to shake the country’s defense system. This is a time when we take a strong stance against the murderers, condemn them and stand besides the army officials and their families.
This marks yet another black spot on our history, as if we didn’t already have enough. We have been left speechless, shaken, traumatised.
March 13, 2009 at 5:06 pm
On the first day of the BDR mutiny I was stuck in Banani, couldn’t come back home, which is just 2 roads down from BDR gate-4, while my parents got stuck in Medinova (dhanmondi-5) on their way back home after dropping me off at my office. It was such a terrible experience. I didn’t what was going on back at home, since the mobile networks were off most of the time, while hearing rumors from other people that dhanmondi is under attack and the BDR soldiers anyone at sight. My parents were outside the attacked territory, yet i was half dead from fear thinking about them. I wonder how the people inside BDR headquarters was going through, having the feeling that they might die the next moment. I was so worried that in spite of all the chaos i walked back to my home just to see how my parents were doing. i just think of those people whose relatives were inside BDR headquarters, general people, who had nothing to do any of the accusations made by BDR, yet they had to be so close to death. but above all, i wonder how the BDr jawans were feeling when they killed the officers, what drove them into mass killing, was it only oppression, was it just a fight against corruption?… I just wonder!
March 15, 2009 at 5:54 pm
[...] in the student’s second language no less. I’m proud of you. Take a look here, here, here and [...]
March 19, 2009 at 2:04 am
My sister said that Saif uncle’s family came to visit my mom. Saif uncle was my father’s 2ic when my father was the CO of 12 lancers back in the year 2000. I went to school with his son tito, he was not much of a talker. When saif uncle was killed in the mutiny, his family was sheltered at mirpur cantt where my father is posted. My sister said she had a chance to talk to tito when he came to visit mom. She said he has matured a lot, and the recent events have made him grow beyond his age. He wants to join the army immediately; one could see the fire in his eyes.
Did i tell you i never looked at the list of the dead, scared in case i found people i knew? I told my family to not tell me. Ignorance is bliss.
it’s sad, that in the end it’s all been turned into a blamegame, so typical of our leaders. The masterminds have already fled the country, and they will hang some petite BDR thieves and claim that there was justice. What a sad world we live in.
I followed the link provided by your lecturer and read other people’s blogpost on the issue as well. They are all very powerful.