AMBASSADOR'S INTRODUCTORY CALLS AT MFA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 002146 SIPDIS C O R R E C T E D COPY (ADDED ADDRESS) SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/17/2011 TAGS: PREL PTER PHUM PROG BG SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S INTRODUCTORY CALLS AT MFA DHAKA 00002146 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Ambassador Patricia Butenis, reason para 1.4 d. ¶1. (C) Summary. MFA officials assured the Ambassador of their strong support for U.S.-Bangla relations, and of the BDG's commitment to combat extremism and conduct free elections. Foreign Minister Khan hoped the Secretary would soon visit Bangladesh, reiterated his request for CT equipment and other help from the USG, and agreed that the JMB investigation should be pursued wherever it went. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) On April 15, Ambassador made separate introductory calls at MFA on Americas DG Shahidul Islam, Additional Secretary Tauhid Hossain, Foreign Secretary Hemayetuddin, SIPDIS Foreign Policy Adviser Reaz Rahman, and Foreign Minister Morshed Khan. P/E counselor (notetaker) accompanied. Septels report exchanges on the UN Human Rights Council and Guatemala's candidacy for the UN Security Council. Building Bilateral Bonds -------------- ¶3. (C) The Ambassador opened by noting her delight at her warm reception in Bangladesh. Her consultations in Washington had underscored the growing USG interest in South Asia and Bangladesh, with particular emphasis on counter-terrorism, extremism, and the critical importance of a successful election in January 2007. She also raised USG concern about the corrosive impact of corruption on governance and business. ¶4. (C) The MFA officials pledged their full support for U.S.-Bangla relations and any needs of the Embassy. Hemayetuddin characterized relations as "excellent" and the U.S. as "a high priority country" who had demonstrated that it was a "close and trusted friend" of Bangladesh. ¶5. (C) After the Ambassador thanked him for serving as chief guest at last month's "America Week" outreach program in Chittagong, Khan said the thousands of ordinary Bangladeshis who turned out for the events reflected the underlying strength of our bilateral relationship. He regretted, however, that POTUS had been unable to include Bangladesh on his recent trip to South Asia, but earnestly hoped that the Secretary would visit Dhaka in the near future. The SIPDIS Ambassador agreed to convey Khan's best wishes to the Secretary and remind her of what Khan said was her �0A;SIPDIS undertaking at their meeting in Washington to visit Bangladesh. ¶6. (C) Asked about his bilateral agenda, Khan replied that Bangladesh can learn a lot from the U.S. on strengthening democracy and democratic institutions. He had recently received a letter from Senator Lugar, he said, indicating that Bangladesh could expect greater support from the USG on counter-terrorism and other issues once it demonstrated progress in confronting terrorism. Khan expressed confidence that the BDG has met this challenge, and hoped that the political context will reflect that when the USG evaluates BDG requests for duty-free access to the U.S. garment market and to receive Millennium Challenge Account support. Counter-Terrorism -------------- ¶7. (C) Hemayetuddin called for more CT cooperation to address "so-called" militancy in Bangladesh. Recent successes against Jamaatul Mujahidin Bangladesh (JMB) demonstrated BDG resolve and sincerity on this issue, he said. In the climate of fear created by JMB, mixed with government and popular determination to reject JMB and extremism, excesses by the controversial but popular Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) were "sometimes inevitable." He agreed with the Ambassador's interjection that such excesses still must be addressed, but suggested it is hard to second guess law enforcers on the ground. The Ambassador reiterated that human rights are important and cannot be minimized. ¶8. (C) Hemayetuddin noted that Bangladeshis had just celebrated Bengali New Year in "unprecedented" numbers, which reflect the cultural diversity of "the real Bangladesh." Bangladeshis, he said, made a point of participating in public events to underscore their rejection of JMB's exclusionist outlook and their commitment to tolerance and moderation. JMB "is on the run" precisely because it has no grounding in Bangladeshi society, he said. ¶9. (C) The USG, the Ambassador repeated, is deeply interested in the JMB investigation and seeing it pursued to the very end. Hemayetuddin insisted the BDG would show no "laxity" on DHAKA 00002146 002.2 OF 002 this front since that would undermine its prospects in the upcoming election. In response to the Ambassador's question, he said there are some casual, personal ties between JMB and Jamaat Islami, but he had no reason to believe they were substantive. ¶10. (C) Reaz Rahman, four hours off the plane from his trip to the U.S., stated that 2005 was a "terrible year" because it distracted Bangladesh from its real war on poverty. Two years ago, we were "clueless" about militancy in Bangladesh, but the JMB attacks shocked and motivated Bangladeshis to action. "We've broken the back" of the JMB leadership, he continued, but the investigation continues. Thus far, he stated, there is no direct evidence of external funding or other links to JMB. "It took years for us to get out of the basket case image," Rahman lamented. "We don't want to get trapped by a similar image problem with militancy." ¶11. (C) Morshed Khan asserted he is pressing his BDG colleagues hard on JMB. "We caught one Bangla Bhai, but I say what about the next one?" At his last meetings in Washington, USG officials, he reported, had stressed the importance of following the IMB investigation no matter where it led. "I understand what this means, and I took that message back to Dhaka." He reiterated his plea for counter-terrorism equipment in addition to training. "We have learned that unholy money can get better capabilities than a poor developing country like us." Elections -------------- ¶12. (C) When the Ambassador flagged the election as another major USG interest, Hemayetuddin said that although elections are "lively and emotional," as they are in India, Bangladeshis view them as "sacred" and look forward to them as an established right. Khan insisted that the election will be "very fair" and comparable to European standards. He welcomed foreign monitors, and declared, "We can't afford not to have a credible election." Nuclear Power -------------- ¶13. (C) Noting Bangladesh's accelerating power problems, Hemayetuddin suggested that "cheap" nuclear power would provide major benefits to the Bangladeshi economy, and called for international support to expand its non-functional nuclear research reactor. The Ambassador took the point. Corruption -------------- ¶14. (C) When the Ambassador expressed disappointment over the poor start thus far of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), Khan said: "I am not satisfied with the commission." As a private sector businessman, he continued, he understood the damage corruption inflicts on prices, governance, and growth. "Corruption is not at a tolerable level." Comment -------------- ¶15. (C) As the meetings were relatively short and focused on protocol, Hemayetuddin and the Ambassador agreed to meet again before her departure at the end of April for Washington to discuss key issues in greater detail. Khan, though, leaned as far forward as a BDG leader can on JMB and corruption. His "understanding" of the implications of pursuing the JMB investigation to the end refers to addressing widespread allegations that four BNP leaders from the Rajshahi area had ties to Bangla Bhai and Abdur Rahman. While we welcome his statement that he brought that message back to Dhaka, there has been no hint of BDG action to hold those four accountable. Instead, the inclusion of one of them -- Housing State Minister Alamgir Kabir -- on the five-person BDG committee that defused the Kansat uprising illustrates the BDG's continued attachment to these leaders for their major political capital in the run-up to the next election. BUTENIS