AFVOA Newletters of Year 2011

Page 10 of 44 somewhat painless. However, where the freedoms of a people have been curtailed the change that comes at the end of the 60 years cycle will be cataclysmic. We are witnessing this in MENA (Middle East and North Africa) countries. Having gained independence in the»1950s they found various sections of their society jostling for power. Slowly the ‘oligarchs’ (leaders who sold the country’s oil wealth and kept the people under control using the armed forces) came to power. Now at the end of the Nakshatra cycle the people are calling their suppressors to question. How is all this relevant to us Veterans? In all MENA countries the Armed Forces were the real wielders of power. No policy was decided without their concurrence. They took whatever precedence they wanted. This is one design. Contrast this with our country where the Armed Forces have been systematically denigrated for the last 60 years. This is another design. Now, a healthy nation has to place its Armed Forces in the correct perspective. Similarly healthy armed forces have to find a suitable place for themselves leaving day to day governance to the elected representatives. Armed Forces need to ensure that the government does not come to harm. At the same they have to warrant that the people too do not get injured at the hands of a government that tries to perpetuate itself. Seen from this point of view the Indian Armed Forces has done well for the country. All that is needed now is for enlightened national leaders to give due regard to the Forces. It is heartening to note that the required wisdom is now slowly dawning on the bureaucracy and elected representatives. This is evidenced by Government letters pertaining to revision in pay and pensions of the Armed Forces and the willingness to discuss OROP. However, the grandest example of Indian fair mindedness is the creation of Armed, Forces Tribunal (AFT). At the inauguration of the new Chennai AFT premises The Honourable Justice Mishra stated that our AFT is unique in the whole world. He went on to explain its significance. In any court martial if the convening authority wants an accused to be ‘fixed’ the JAG rep will ensure that it is done. Earlier the civil courts were the only recourse for appeal against a sentence by a court martial. But the judges in a civil court, ignorant as they are about the procedures in military courts, always upheld the sentences. Now, with the creation of AFT an alternative is available. In the AFT a retired armed forces officer sits besides a judge. With a combination of this personae all sentences by military courts are reviewed in a better perspective and many sentences have been set aside. Added to this is the humane view that AFT takes towards pensions. Particularly in the case of widows pensions AFT is known to have often passed severe strictures against erring record offices and pension disbursing authority. All this augurs well for the society. And now let us talk about our association. During the course of the last few years our association has shown a healthy growth rate. No doubt that this growth is on account of the fact that many newly retiring officers have chosen to settle in Chennai. On the other hand it is also due to the fact that our association serves as a