CHARGE DEMARCHES KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT ON POSSIBLE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BISHKEK 000183 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/15/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL MARR KG SUBJECT: CHARGE DEMARCHES KYRGYZ GOVERNMENT ON POSSIBLE BASE SHOOTING CHARGES BISHKEK 00000183 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: CDA Lee Litzenberger, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. On February 15, Charge demarched Minister of Interior and Deputy FM regarding information that Kyrgyz investigators into the December 6 shooting incident were under political pressure to charge the U.S. Airman with intentional homicide, notwithstanding the facts of the case. Both interlocutors agreed to convey U.S. concerns to higher levels in the government. The Minister of the Interior implied he suspects Hatfield was guilty of a criminal act, but encouraged the U.S. to present information indicating it may have been a case of manslaughter rather than intentional homicide. End Summary. Pressing Charges? -------------- ¶2. (C) Acting on complaints from Kyrgyz investigators working on the case to their U.S. counterparts about political pressure being applied to them to recommend charging Hatfield with intentional homicide, Charge met separately on February 15 with Minister of the Interior Nogoibaev and Deputy FM Sarbayev concerning the status of the Kyrgyz MVD investigation into the December 6 base shooting incident. Charge explained to both that it had come to the Embassy's attention that the MVD has completed its investigation and is preparing its report. ¶3. (C) The Charge told each of his interlocutors the Embassy had learned that the MVD was being told to charge Airman Hatfield with intentional homicide, despite the fact that Kyrgyzstan has no jurisdiction over Hatfield and any charges filed would have no legal standing. Furthermore, the Charge noted, while the U.S. investigation is still underway, the Embassy was not aware at this time of any evidence that would support such a charge. The Charge said that this was not a professional approach to the issue. It appeared to be a clear case of political manipulation of a tragic incident, and would only serve to complicate both the investigation and our broader relations at a time when the U.S. was making every effort to work through all the Kyrgyz concerns about the base in a productive manner. The Charge urged Nogoibaev and Sarbayev to help avoid an unnecessary dispute. ¶4. (C) Charge's first meeting was with Deputy FM Sarbayev, who replied that he could not provide a substantive response, but pledged to pass Charge's concerns to the Minister and other government officials. Sarbayev noted that there is great public concern over the incident, and recalled that President Bakiyev had told the Ambassador that when there is a crime, people must answer for it. An MFA lawyer present noted that he could not comment on the conclusions of the MVD report since it was still being prepared, and asked about the status of the U.S. investigation. The Charge said that the U.S. investigation was still underway, pending laboratory analysis of evidence. The Charge noted that the pistol was in the U.S. for testing, and would be provided to Kyrgyz investigators after completion of the testing, but added that we were still waiting for the Kyrgyz to hand over other evidence for testing. Aircraft Damage Claims -------------- ¶5. (C) Sarbayev next asked about the status of the compensation claim regarding the September collision between a U.S. tanker aircraft and a Kyrgyz passenger jet. Charge responded that the DOD lawyer processing the claim was still BISHKEK 00000183 002.2 OF 002 in country, and had been meeting with experts to determine the extent of the damages and losses to the Kyrgyz plane. Sarbayev responded that it is a pity this issue had not been resolved, as President Bakiyev has had to postpone his recently announced trip to Brussels at the end of February because he has no plane. Sarbayev explained that the plane provided by Russia after the collision does not have the correct paperwork, and Kyrgyzstan does not have any other planes with the technical specifications necessary to land in Brussels. (Note. Kyrgyz-operated aircraft do not meet EU maintenance requirements. End Note.) Charge responded that this appeared to be an issue to raise with the Russian Embassy. Sarbayev shrugged and threw up his hands, saying, "They've done all they can do." Nogoibaev: No promises -------------- ¶6. (C) Minister of Interior Nogoibaev, who had been briefed about the Charge's meeting with Sarbayev, said he would raise Charge's concerns with the political leadership, but claimed this went above his pay grade. He assured Charge that President Bakiyev does not want to create an incident and the report's conclusion would not be politically dictated, but he left open the possibility that Airman Hatfield may face Kyrgyz criminal charges of some kind. He said it would help if the U.S. side could provide information indicating that the incident was a case of manslaughter, and not intentional homicide. He also indicated it would help if compensation could be provided to teh widow of the driver. Nogoibaev acknowledged that it was possible the driver was at fault, but said that it is hard for the average Kyrgyz to understand how a driver with a small knife could threaten a fully-armed soldier who resorted to deadly force without warning. ¶7. (C) Comment. Nogoibaev, head of the Drug Control Agency prior to his appointment as minister this month, has worked well with us in the past and has a reputation for being relatively clean. He is close to the President, however, and did not offer much hope that he would go against political guidance from on high. Sarbayev was focused more on the collision than the shooting incident; the difficulty with the plane had apparently just come up and was clearly a major headache for him. We fear that a political decision may have been made to press charges against Airman Hatfield. Even if the charges have no legal basis (due to lack of jurisdiction),a charge of intentional homicide would have an enormous public relations impact and severely complicate other looming base-related issues. We are not sanguine that we can reverse the decision to press charges, but perhaps our demarches will give the Kyrgyz pause to reflect on lowering the charge from intentional homicide to manslaughter, which might mitigate the public relations damage. LITZENBERGER