FOLLOW UP TO THE CAIRO SPEECH: ENGAGING WITH THE MUSLIMS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000735

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SCA/INSB AND SCA/PPD
STATE FOR S/P - GREG BEHRMAN
STATE PASS PEACE CORPS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID ECON OEXC OSCI PREL SCUL SENV SOCI TNGD TSPL
BG
SUBJECT: FOLLOW UP TO THE CAIRO SPEECH: ENGAGING WITH THE MUSLIMS
OF BANGLADESH

REF: STATE 71325

Summary and Recommendations
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1. (U) Muslims in Bangladesh have shown great enthusiasm for
following up with the U.S. on many of the themes unveiled in the
President's Cairo speech. Mission Dhaka recommends the following
areas of opportunity to foster dialogue with Muslims here:

-- Bring the Peace Corps Back to Bangladesh. The Peace Corps,
pulled from Bangladesh in 2006, is precisely the effective,
multifaceted U.S. engagement our interlocutors encourage.

-- Increase the number of Americans who visit Bangladesh. Our focus
groups all stated that increased contact with Americans would
increase understanding and enhance the U.S. image in Bangladesh.
This includes visits from U.S. Government officials to "everyday
Americans" including educators, sport figures, local religious
leaders, and youth.

-- Continue working with the madrassas, both Qaumi and Aliah. As
the number of madrassas continues to increase across Bangladesh, we
need to continue to engage madrassa students and teachers to foster
more positive dialogue. The Embassy sponsored English-language
training offered to madrassa English teachers, curriculum work with
the Madrassa Training Institute (MTI),and U.S. Government-funded
speakers/groups visiting madrassas and discussing education issues
should be continued and expanded.

-- Science and Technology mentorship programs. Participants
encouraged the U.S. to establish mentorship programs between
promising young (22-35) professionals in the science and technology
fields and U.S.-based mentors. The Bureau of Educational and
Cultural Affairs is currently sponsoring a program linking young
women professionals from the NEA region with mentors in the U.S.
This program, under a grant totaling about $350,000, involves
two-way exchanges focusing on practical, scientific approaches to
addressing issues like food security and global warming. Such a
program would greatly benefit Bangladesh.

-- USAID programs should, to the extent possible, include local
imams and religious leaders. For example, bringing in a local imam
to the opening of a newly-opened health clinic, meeting the staff
and touring the facilities may be a highly effective way to assure
the local populace that the clinic is a safe place to go. Also,
conducting programs at a clinic engaged in women's healthcare to
male religious leaders in a Koran/Muslim-centric way could greatly
increase the success of such endeavors. USAID's "Leaders of
Influence" program is already doing most of these activities.

-- Broaden the message from the U.S. Mission: Participants said that
they see the U.S. Mission as playing an active role on issues
directly affecting Bangladesh. However, they encouraged Mission
staff to also speak about other issues affecting the U.S. image
abroad, especially among Bangladesh's 140 million Muslim majority.
This includes discussions about U.S. efforts to solve the
Israeli/Palestinian conflict, issues surrounding Iran, and
continuing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. For
example, some participants noted that it is widely known that the
U.S. opposes Iran's development of nuclear weapons. Fewer
Bangladeshis understand or are aware that the President has also
initiated negotiations with Russia to reduce the U.S. nuclear
arsenal. Focus group participants suggested that presenting this
sort of broader information shows that the President "will practice
what he preaches" on key issues of interest. End Summary.

Methodology/Discussion: Roundtables
-------------- --


2. (U) Mission Dhaka conducted thematic consultations per reftel
with key local contacts to discuss the speech and seek
opinions/ideas on ways the U.S. could further enhance our engagement
in Muslim-majority Bangladesh. An American Public Affairs Officer
chaired each of three focus groups. Participants included
representatives from civil society organizations, government
employees, business leaders, academics, NGO leaders and the media.


3. (U) The first roundtable focused on science, technology and
entrepreneurship issues. The participants examined areas where the
U.S. could engage Bangladesh in a way that is different from the
donor model for assistance. First, participants stated that the
U.S. could help increase the use of Information Technology (IT) in
education. Working through public-private partnerships, the U.S.
Government, large companies and NGOs could expand access to

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Internet-based learning for students throughout Bangladesh. Another
area where the USG could assist would be facilitating access to
academic journals to university students. While many were published
on the Internet, they were not always affordable. This information
could be shared via a web-based portal with registered students and
faculty. The third area that the group emphasized was encouraging
Americans to visit Bangladesh. This could be through expanding
existing programs or creating new programs, like a science fellow
program. One major question was whether the Peace Corps could
return to Bangladesh to work in areas such as education,
sanitation/water resources and electrification.


4. (U) The second roundtable focused on women's education and
empowerment, health, and development issues. In this roundtable,
participants discussed women's education, as well as primary
education generally, and the economic role of women. They also
discussed the economic and social effects of climate change in
Bangladesh. They identified poverty as the main factor causing
girls and ethnic minorities to drop out of school (in order to
support their families). Participants discussed how poor families
often enroll their children in madrassas because madrassas will
house and feed students and provide a social safety net to the
families. Participants agreed that the social and economic status
of women was improving in Bangladesh. The rise of the garment
industry had accelerated social change by bringing women into the
workforce, they said. Priorities for future empowerment programs
should include improving education and vocational skills training,
and reducing violence against women and early marriage. Finally,
participants were very concerned about the future impact of climate
change, and stressed that rising sea levels would affect all
development projects, causing massive displacement and resulting in
human rights problems. This topic resulted in the most concrete
ideas for involving the international community. Participants
wanted to see an exchange program or international conference that
would bring together those working on coastal management and the
effects on humans of climate change, from both the scientific and
social perspectives. They also requested USG assistance to make a
short film that could be shown to those in danger of displacement to
raise awareness about climate change and explain the necessity of
future relocation. Last, they wanted to increase exchange programs
in science and technology to ensure that more scientists receive
training to help Bangladesh deal with climate change.


5. (U) The third roundtable centered on faith groups and interfaith
issues. All of the participants applauded the Cairo speech and its
intent. They also welcomed the Embassy invitation to offer their
opinions to the U.S. government. By itself, this consultation
approach was new to them and an indication of a new era. The
group's primary recommendation was that the Embassy must engage with
imams and madrassa leaders (both Aliah and Qaumi) in a much more
direct way. The participants pointed out that a huge percentage of
the population is illiterate, and much of their information and
intellectual guidance comes from imams at Friday prayers. While
rural villagers may not have access to a TV or radio (much less the
internet) their weekly attendance at prayers is a near certainty,
and the imam's weekly message carries a great deal of weight. U.S.
involvement, dialogue, and partnerships with imams and other
religious figures will therefore do more to foster a better image
and relationship than almost anything.

Comment
--------------


6. (U) Overall, participants across government, academia, civil
society and the private sector continue to be very receptive to the
President's Cairo speech. From these consultations, it is clear
that the President's speech resulted in widespread goodwill within
Bangladesh. The challenge is to expand and deepen our outreach
efforts throughout the country, especially to raise awareness of the
many U.S. Government programs already in place that are now working
directly on the issues highlighted by our focus groups. Post can
amplify its efforts with the practical suggestions derived from this
initial dialogue. These focus groups have allowed the Embassy to
establish good working groups to continue this outreach in the
months to come.

MORIARTY