Troops laugh at bonus offer

2004-01-08 09:00

Baqouba, Iraq - On the barren plain east of Baqouba, word of a new US Army plan to pay soldiers up to $10 000 to re-enlist evoked laughter from a few bored-looking troopers.

"Man, they can't pay me enough to stay here," said a 23-year-old as he manned a checkpoint with Iraqi police outside this city 56km northeast of Baghdad.

As he began to speak, he was interrupted by the blast of a Kalashnikov rifle a few metres up the road. An Iraqi policeman fired the rounds for no apparent reason.

"You see what I have to put up with?" asked the soldier. "With two months left in a 12-month tour, there's not enough money in the world to make me stay a month longer."

His comments reflect a sentiment not uncommon among soldiers in Iraq who have spoken with AP reporters since the army announced the increased re-enlistment bonuses. Other soldiers at home were divided about the offer.

Griping about army life is a tradition among soldiers, and it is unclear how many will actually opt out to take their chances in a civilian economy where jobs are scarce.

Ten out of 80

However, Staff Sergeant Julian Guerrero, 38, who runs a re-enlistment programme in Tikrit, said only 10 of one battalion's 80 eligible soldiers have taken the deal so far.

Along the road leading north from Baghdad and into the "Sunni Triangle," the heartland of Saddam Hussein's support and the centre of anti-American resistance, a sergeant from the 1st Armoured Division said he's not interested in the money because he has been shot at a "few times" and "I don't want to die here."

According to the Defence Department, 332 soldiers have been killed by hostile fire since the Iraq war began March 20.

Back-to-back wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have stretched the army thin. Nearly two-thirds of its active duty brigade-sized units are deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. When the troops currently in Iraq rotate out, the US plans to lean heavily on the National Guard and Reserves for replacements. The Pentagon said on Wednesday that the number of US military reservists called to active duty jumped by more than 10 000 in the past week.

Under the programme, soldiers serving in Iraq, Afghanistan or Kuwait who re-enlist for three years or more will be paid bonuses of up to US$10 000, regardless of their military specialty.

It's a tidy sum

It's is a tidy sum for low-ranking soldiers who earn US$25 000 to US$35 000 a year.

Of course, there are also soldiers who said they want to stay on.

Back in the United States "we spend most of our time training and it can get to be a pretty monotonous," said Master Sergeant Rohan McDermott, a single 38-year-old.

But for those with wives waiting at home, life is a lot lonelier in Iraq.

"Maybe if I were single I'd think about it," said Sergeant Dante Legare, 32, of the 4th Infantry Division.

"That's pretty good money... enough to maybe put a down payment on a house," said Legare, a New York City native. "But is it worth it? I've already been away something like nine months. I want to see my wife."

- AP