KIBRIA FAMILY SEEKS TO REVIVE INVESTIGATION INTO

C O N F I D E N T I A L DHAKA 000034 SIPDIS DOJ FOR OPDAT BARBARA BERMAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/09/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KDEM PTER BG SUBJECT: KIBRIA FAMILY SEEKS TO REVIVE INVESTIGATION INTO FATHER'S ASSASSINATION; GOB MAY REQUEST USG ASSISTANCE REF: 08 DHAKA 1088 Classified By: Ambassador James F. Moriarty. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d) -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) The family of slain former Finance Minister Shah AMS Kibria plans to press the newly elected government in Bangladesh to bring his killers to justice. While hopeful Sheikh Hasina's government will respond favorably, Kibria's children fear the bureaucracy and security forces will try to frustrate the investigation. The Kibria family hopes to convince the GOB to request FBI investigative assistance. They are prepared to resume their international campaign to find their father's killers if necessary. -------------- REQUEST TO RENEW FBI ASSISTANCE -------------- ¶1. (C) On January 7, Ambassador Moriarty and ADCM (notetaker) met with Reza and Nazli Kibria, the children of former Awami League Finance Minister Shah AMS Kibria, who was killed in a January 2005 grenade attack (reftel). Following Kibria's assassination, the FBI provided some limited investigative assistance. Subsequently, his family mounted an international campaign to bring his killers to justice and enlisted the support of Members of Congress. Nazli Kibria, who teaches at Boston University, said that Senators Sununu and Kennedy, and Representative Frank were interested in the case. ¶3. (C) The Kibria children indicated they would ask the new GOB to renew the request for FBI assistance. Ideally, they would like the same agents involved in the investigation. Their fear is that the bureaucracy will simply try to pin this killing on Mufti Hannan and HUJI-B and avoid going after those who the family believes ordered the killing. In particular, the Kibria children believe former Home Minister Babar and Begum Zia's son, Tarique Rahman, were behind Kibria's death. The children would like to see Babar and bureaucrat Emdadul Haque put into custody and questioned about their involvement in the killings. -------------- HOPE THROUGH NEW GOVERNMENT -------------- ¶4. (C) The Kibria family is hopeful the Awami League government will take an interest in the case, but they remain concerned that the politicians will not be able to get the bureaucracy to respond appropriately. They clearly also fear that this will not be a priority for the GOB, despite their father's role in the party. The Kibrias said they were prepared to give the new government "three months" to show progress, and if not, they would resume the campaign to pressure the government to respond. ADCM told the Kibrias that Political/Economic and Regional Legal Adviser would be their points of contact in the future. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶5. (C) Investigating the Kibria assassination is one of many pieces of unfinished business for the Awami League government, along with investigating the 2004 grenade attack on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, beginning a process to investigate War Criminals from 1971, and finishing the case against those convicted of involvement in killing Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Awami League leaders on August 15 and November 3, 1975, respectively. We believe the GOB will pursue the Kibria case, but it may not be as much of a priority as the Kibria family hopes. Sheikh Hasina did not agree to nominate Reza Kibria for parliament as he had hoped, demonstrating there are limits to which she believes she is indebted to the Kibria family. MORIARTY