Gazettes of 6,476 Freedom Fighters Cancelled After Scrutiny, Minister Tells Parliament

The gazettes of 6,476 freedom fighters have so far been cancelled after scrutiny over various complaints, Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan told the Jatiya Sangsad. He gave the information on Wednesday (11 November) in reply to a question from Jamaat-e-Islami MP Mashiur Rahman Khan in parliament.

The Liberation War Affairs Minister said the total number of freedom fighters currently receiving allowances in the country is 206,536. Following various complaints, the gazettes of 6,476 people have been cancelled after scrutiny so far.

In reply to a question from Naogaon-4 MP Ikramul Bari Tipu, the minister said preparing the list of martyrs of the great Liberation War of 1971 and a flawless list of genuine freedom fighters is being done on a priority basis. He also said the matter of preparing a list of Razakars, Al-Badr, Al-Shams and those who opposed the Liberation War will be considered at a later stage.

In reply to a question from Kurigram-2 MP Atikur Rahman Mojahid about making the freedom fighters' list flawless, Ahmed Azam Khan said several roundtable meetings have already been held for this purpose with civil society members, academics, researchers, journalists and heroic freedom fighters. More meetings will be organised, and on the basis of their recommendations an effective method will be determined for preparing the correct list of freedom fighters and martyrs. The government believes it will be possible to prepare an impartial, research-based list through this process, he said.

In reply to a question on the same subject from MP Mardia Momtaz, the Liberation War Affairs Minister also said a roundtable meeting has been held to determine the strategy for preparing a flawless list of freedom fighters and martyrs, and more meetings will be held to determine an effective method for preparing the list on the basis of recommendations.

In reply to a question from Sirajganj-4 MP Md Rafikul Islam Khan, the minister said an initiative has been taken to formulate a new project in continuation of the housing construction project for insolvent heroic freedom fighters. A proposal on this has been sent to the Planning Commission. If the project is approved, it will be possible to allocate housing for another 25,000 freedom fighters and their families.

The minister said that in the previous phase, many eligible freedom fighters were deprived of housing benefits because of complications over land ownership. To avoid such problems, genuine freedom fighters who have their own designated land are being scrutinised and listed. This will make it possible to build houses on the right land and deliver government benefits to genuine beneficiaries, he said, adding that if everything goes well, work on the second phase can start from next year.

Under the policy, heroic freedom fighters and collaborators of the Liberation War will receive medical assistance of up to Tk 10,000 a year at upazila-level hospitals, Tk 20,000 at district-level hospitals and Tk 30,000 at divisional-level hospitals. At specialised hospitals, benefits of up to Tk 100,000 a year are given for treatment of general illnesses and up to Tk 500,000 for complex illnesses.

On the other hand, for the treatment of a heroic freedom fighter's wife or husband, assistance of up to Tk 10,000 a year is given at upazila level, Tk 20,000 at district level and Tk 30,000 at divisional level. At specialised hospitals there are benefits of up to Tk 50,000 for general illnesses and up to Tk 200,000 for complex illnesses. Expanding freedom fighters' medical assistance and social security benefits further is under the government's consideration.

In reply to a question from Kishoreganj-1 MP Mohammad Mazharul Islam, the minister said a Liberation War museum has been built at Agargaon in the capital to preserve the correct history and memory of the great Liberation War and spread it among the young generation, and it also has a library. In addition, a project to preserve historic Liberation War sites and build Liberation War memorial museums has been implemented, and these museums are being used as repositories preserving local Liberation War memories.