ISLAMIC GROUP MEMBERS ARE BIG MEN ON CAMPUS AT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000293 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT PASS TO SCA/PB E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2018 TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL BG SUBJECT: ISLAMIC GROUP MEMBERS ARE BIG MEN ON CAMPUS AT LEADING BANGLADESHI UNIVERSITY Classified By: CDA a.i. Geeta Pasi. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: The leading Islamic student group in Bangladesh is a very big deal at Rajshahi University, one of the country's top schools. Local journalists and secular-oriented university students alike speak with near awe of the power wielded on campus by Islami Chhatra Shibbir, saying its vast influence extends beyond the student body to who is offered faculty jobs. Shibbir leaders put up a modest front, playing down not only their influence but their universally acknowledged ties to Jamaat-e-Islami, the country's biggest Islamic political party. They insist their goal of increasing the role of Islam in national life must be achieved democratically and without violence. Although these claims are met by skepticism by others, the USG should consider reaching out to Shibbir leaders as there is little doubt they will remain influential well beyond their university years. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) Islami Chhatra Shibbir (Shibbir) is a nationwide student group associated with Jamaat-e-Islami (Jamaat),the Islamic political party that was a junior partner in the 2001-2006 coalition government led by the much larger Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Shibbir is disdained by student groups aligned with secular-oriented parties, which has prevented it from organizing above ground at Dhaka University, the nation's most prestigious school. It is openly active on many other campuses, and an Embassy team took advantage of a government vulnerability assessment trip to Rajshahi in mid-February to speak with Shibbir leaders at the main local university. ¶3. (C) Meet Delawer Hosen, president of the Rajshahi University chapter of Shibbir. Wearing a red-and-white striped button-down shirt with cufflinks and a sporty brown jacket, his hair fashionably blown back and a Yaser Arafat-style stubble on his otherwise fresh face, Hosen was eager to portray his group in the manner in which he dressed -- sensibly moderate. Shibbir, he said, seeks a larger role for Islam in national life via democratic and non-violent means. He decried the Islamic extremist group that not long ago terrorized the area around Rajshahi, Jamaatul Mujahedin Bangladesh (JMB),as "totally destructive." Mohammad Mijanur Rahman, the Jane Austen-reading education secretary of Shibbir at Rajshahi, immediately added in flawless English: "We also don't support the destructive programs of al Qaida and the Taliban." When anti-government riots broke out on campus in August, the Shibbir leaders said they immediately ordered members not to join to ensure the group's image was not sullied by participating in violence. The Shibbir leaders also insisted their group was completely independent of Jamaat -- a claim made incredulous not least by the fact that Jamaat members put the Embassy team in touch with them. ¶4. (C) Shibbir does not have quite the moderate, violence-averse reputation its Rajshahi leaders suggest. Earlier this year Shibbir members fought the student wing of the Awami League political party at a Dhaka-area university. Rezaul Karim Raju (protect),a Rajshahi-based reporter who is the assistant secretary general of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists, said local Shibbir members at times resort to violence as well. He also said Shibbir, which claims up to 700 members out of a student body of about 25,000 at Rajshahi University, is so influential on campus it can ensure that a strong legion of like-minded people are hired onto the faculty. Jamaat leaders in Rajshahi confirmed their supporters dominate the governing board of the school. After insisting that Shibbir held no influence over the university, Hosen conceded that he personally spoke with the school's top official about personnel matters. ¶5. (SBU) The Shibbir leaders further described their group as highly organized and intently focused on spreading and deepening the influence of Islam. Their main tasks, they said, were teaching fellow students the Koran and the words and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad known as "hadiths." Other Shibbir activities at Rajshahi University include running a library with a selection of Islamic literature; collecting donations; providing assistance to select impoverished and "meritorious" students; and offering English seminars. Hosen went on to say that the national education system did not provide students a sufficient grounding in morality, ethics and good citizenship, but it was unclear what changes Shibbir members seek. He and his colleagues were consistently vague when they were asked to explain their vision of a more DHAKA 00000293 002 OF 002 Islamic society -- at one point they mentioned the abolition of interest charges but refused to venture much further, careful again, it seemed, to not say anything they believed might offend Americans. ¶6. (C) Comment: Most Shibbir members go on to join Jamaat; indeed, all four leaders said supporting an Islamic-based party or otherwise promoting the spread of Islam were foremost among their life goals after graduation. Although Jamaat is the country's largest Islamic political party and Shibbir its main feeder organization, Embassy Dhaka contact with Shibbir is limited since they are not overtly active in Dhaka. Although they were far less forthcoming than one would hope, the Rajshahi Shibbir members appeared to enjoy their engagement with the Embassy team. Post recognizes a need to better reach out to this group, many of whom will be in positions to influence Bangladesh's more Islamic-minded people, and will work on strategies to do so. Pasi