Photos: Regiment Recruit Camp Gets Underway
[Updated with photos] This morning [Jan 12] the Bermuda Regiment’s 2014 Recruit Camp kicked off with 130 young men and women waiting outside the gates of Warwick Camp to begin their two week training.
Over the next two weeks the recruits will rise early each morning for training including; physical training, drill, weapon, field craft lessons and more.
Videos including the recruits arriving, an interview with Regiment Commanding Officer Lt Col Michael Foster-Brown and recruits receiving barrack room duties as well as haircuts can be viewed here.
This year’s camp could possibly be the last one under conscription, as both political parties have spoken in favour of abolishing conscription, it has been included in the last three Throne Speeches and in November 2013 the PLP attempted to table an Opposition Bill abolishing conscription.
Speaking last year Minister of Public Safety Michael Dunkley said “no one can question my commitment and that of the Government to the elimination of conscription.”
“Conscription will be eliminated and the Regiment preserved. It will happen this session and the timelines will be set to reflect the future requirements of the institution and not any version of its past,” said the Minister.
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Articles that link to this one:
- Videos: Recruits Settle In At Regiment Camp | Bernews.com | January 12, 2014
- PLP “Renews Pledge To End Conscription” | Bernews.com | January 12, 2014
What’s the goal here?
Why can’t our Youth serve their country in a way that will better serve the community, fit in with their own goals, career ambitions and morals?
Why can’t they serve let’s say 100 hours as part of the Police Service, Fire Department, Hospital Services, KBB, lifeguarding, helping the elderly? Why can’t someone that wants to be an accountant donate their time helping a charity with their bookkeeping? Why can’t someone that wants to paint for a living, paint the homes of the elderly. Why can’t someone that wants to be a chef, donate their time cooking for meals on wheels. You get the picture.
Why do they have to waste two weeks learning to march in a straight line while being shouted at.
they can do all those things, ever heard of reserve police, hospital auxiliary, St. John’s Ambulance, people have these options, but they choose not to do them, cause they don’t wanna do something for free, people can be adult instructors for boy scouts, sea cadets etc
Plenty of options for people
I did my three years because I didn’t want to do something for free, and I most the most of my time and came out as a Corporal
The money came in useful, was my vacation money
I did my three years, came out as a lance corporal. The Regiment is one of the best things for Bermuda. Keep it as it is.
You did your 3 years hahaahaa what did you do to have to serve 3 years sounds like a prison sentence.
I did my 3yrs also. Went in a private and came out a private though. I was there when I was supposed to be there and did what I was told to do. I didn’t like being there but it was an experience (not all good though lol).
If its left as a volunteer Regiment I think it has got to look pretty convincing to join. When I was there there were only about 5 volunteers (3 women) so based on those numbers it would hardly be a Regiment – more like a small troop.
Since you state the Regiment is the best thing, then ,may I ask why is it you only did the required minimum time to serve?
I did my three years too, full corporal, mostly positive experience, but I still don’t agree with subscription. Millions of Americans volunteers for the military every year. I’m sure we could get a hundred volunteers every year, if they are recruited properly. Right now it’s scare tactics and the threat of being imprisoned that gets soldiers there. Let’s promote the positive aspects of the Regiment to future volunteer soldiers please!
Conscription****
Well the number of Americans that volunteer every year isn’t in the millions…more like several hundred thousand total for all four branches (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines)and except for the Marines sometimes they struggle to meet their requirements. However going all volunteer has been the best thing that has happened to the US military. It’s always better to have people who want to be there than many who have been forced to be there.
Volunteer military works in the states because they have a population of millions unemployed who need a pay cheque.
Bda cannot afford to do the same.Conscription works because all walks of society serve, in a volunteer service it is mainly the poor sent off to war.
Is giving large groups of unscreened (no drug or background checks) young people weapons and field craft training really a good idea, taking into consideration the issues we have concerning firearms? “Timelines will be set to reflect the future requirements of the institution” the institution has the responsibility to move with the times in order to remain relevant , and until the true facts concerning the systemic abuses, who was involved and who enabled and/or covered it up. Timelines should reflect the urgency of dismantling conscription because it is wrong, period
ahhhh shaaaadupp!! These young people will learn a lot more over the next 2 weeks then they probably learned all last year. Those systematic abuses that you don’t speak of are far and very few considering the numbers of persons that pass through the Regiment. I may not be for conscription either but once in the Regiment, I made the best of my time there, learned a lot (which many skills I still use today) and have made friends that are now my best friends today.
Yawn.
Glad to see the RP’s are in shape…
They ARE in shape, round IS a shape isn’t it?
Love it, too true!!!
If Bermuda wants to save money this is where we start! And use the money to make a military style prison!
One of these days Bermuda will come out of the stone ages and get rid of Conscription. You will never get a good soldier from Conscription, they dont want too be there, its forced, labour never good. Make it fulltime get rid of some those lazy officer getting paid for nothing, cause the real soldiers are always out in the field.
Lets have a real army or national guard, something to be proud of cause the regiment is a big joke an embarrassment to the island.
I remember 9/11, when the Regiment were guarding the ports of entry with no magazines clips for there rifles. I asked a friend of mine on patrol where was the clips told me in the truck with the sgt. incase we need them.SMH then a few mins later a tourist ask another soldier the same question and got the same answer.
Let just make it full time or disband it all together and just have them for Ceremonies which they are best for and stop wasting peoples life and time.
A waste of time & money for a hurricane clean up crew & occasional ceremonial squad. OBA, get on with it & reform & downsize the Regiment.
If there is going to be a mandatory period of community service, a good thing IMO, open it up to other services that need the help.
Look at the pictures. I don’t see anyone crying, in fact I am very impressed that they look ready to get on with it in a positive way. Enjoy the experience and make the most out of it. Life is not just a bowl of cherries, some of them may have pits in them but take the good with the little bit of bad. Did 3 and stayed on, my mistake was not making a career out of it.
Your Mistake is that you think you can make a Career out of the Regiment.
You can not, it not a fulltime army.
Solve two problems at once. End conscription. If you are an able bodied man or woman on Social Assistance you have you join the regiment.
Get rid of conscription. it is forced labour. can someone tell me why they herd the new recruits in a cattle like enclosure before they rush them in the grounds like animals shouting at them to hurry up or run – just like cattle. only thing missing is a whip. Why cant they be an organised group with a list of names and mark of everyone as they come in and tell them where the should report instead of waiting till 8am and opening the gates to let them through. The Regiment needs to be abolished like yesterday and save Government money.
I agree, its stupid and there is no good reason why they do it.
why should we be recruiting so much for the regiment, as an ISLAND nation I believe we should have a functioning coast guard. it’s ridiculous that so many people suffer from complications offshore and we have to get the americans to sort out our problems…
Patricia it seems like u have nothing else to worry bout but the army. When ur boss tells u to jump dont u say how high. Lots of people in the army do not have jobs and this is one way they can make money. Patricia if things went in your favor are you going to hire these young bermudians?
Wouldn’t it make more sense to take that money and use it to have these same men and women paint and clean buildings, repair the hundreds of damaged walls on our roads, or clean up parks and shoreline.
and that’s not slave labor, GTFOH, one thing de regiment does is instill structure in some of these young children’s lives, something they don’t get at home nowadays!
Why not just open up plantations and make them pick cotton. Forcing people to work for either low wages or no wages is 21st century slavery. It is wrong. Movement for the abolition of conscription in all forms.
NO leave that for the Prisoners at Westgate, it shouldn’t be a crime to be born a Male Bermudian.
Back to my original question; what’s the goal of the regiment?
After 3 years at $5 million per year, how do we know if it has been successful if no-one knows what the goals are in the first place?
To “build character” – whatever that is?
To make friends?
To learn how to march and make a bed?
To learn how to use a chain saw?
To save Bermuda from Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda?
The regiment seems a bit like the Dept, of Tourism. There are no specific goals but ‘we did this last year, so we’ll do the same thing again this year.’
For you to even ask these questions show how clueless you are. have never been in the regiment or just read the comments and make very uneducated and people comparing the size of Bermuda to the “great” United States have a peanut of a brain and can not make an educated rational logical answer and clearly have no prof of logic or any understanding on the defense act, or that face that the us Congress can reintroduce the draft and any given moment when personal is needed. So Before People B**** about s*** they have no clue what they are b******* about. Read a few facts and come back.
Speaking of peanut brains …
For some the Regiment is an introduction to some form of structure in their life, the alternative keeping Westgate full is far more expensive than the Regiment monetarily and to society.
where was Larry Marshall and company…would have thought protesting or something should have been happening?!
It’s Sunday!! They were taking the day off??? I am a total supporter of the Regiment, the younger generation needs to learn discipline somewhere, because obviously it is not being taught at home??. As the Democratic President said when he was elected, ” Ask not what my country can do for me, Ask what I can do for my country”
Say ‘cheese’! lets make the world think they like being conscripted in 2014. We should be ashamed, what a waste of energy, and time that could be spent on focusing on ones ‘real goals, not to mention trampling all over these men’s human rights.
This reminds me of the slave master saying that slaves don’t mind their status, because they get treated ‘good’, really?
So did they push any one to the ground this year?
oh the conscripts aren’t crying,are you serious? don’t try and justify this distasteful practice. Are you looking at the same pictures I am? so I take it the Regiment are praying for storms eh? that would at least justify their existence in their minds.
come on I hope this is the last group of men who have to be subjected to this nonsense.
would love to have you in Israel. crybaby
Yeah a crybaby like Ali. Like to see you get in the ring with him in his prime. He too fought against the draft. Strange for someone going under the letters PLO to highlight Israel’s policy of conscription. As long as Bermuda has brainwashed, backward people like you there will always be systematic human rights violations.
how about we downsize the regiment and put more money into retraining schemes? people may attain jobs that are actually applicable to bermuda..think about the long run!
It will do them ,good my grandson went in on his own so did his two brothers , and they like it .
It will not harm them ,I’m proud they did it.