VZCZCXRO6379
OO RUEHBC RUEHBI RUEHCI RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHDH RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHPW
RUEHROV
DE RUEHKA #0218/01 0610851
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 020851Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY DHAKA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8385
INFO RUCNCLS/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE
RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 1997
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 2781
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0153
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC
RUCNFB/FBI WASHINGTON DC
RHHMUNA/USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHJJPI/PACOM IDHS HONOLULU HI

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DHAKA 000218 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR SCA/PB, SCA/FO, DS, AND CA/OCS; 
NEW DELHI FOR LEGAT 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/02/2019 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR PINS KDEM ASEC BG
SUBJECT:  BANGLADESH FORMALLY REQUESTS USG ASSISTANCE WITH 
BDR MUTINY INVESTIGATION 
 
REF: DHAKA 213 AND PREVIOUS 
 
Summary 
======= 
¶1.  (U)  This is an action request. 
 
¶2.  (C)  The Foreign Minister told the Ambassador Bangladesh 
appreciated the strong support the USG had rendered during 
the Bangladesh Rifles Mutiny and aftermath, and requested 
assistance in conducting the investigation into the mutiny 
and identifying remains.  The Prime Minister's priority 
during the crisis was to minimize the loss of life, the FM 
stressed.  Due to the nature of the attack, the GOB believed 
there was prior planning but had no evidence about who had 
been involved.  The Prime Minister had decided to address 
army officers March 1 despite opposition from her cabinet 
colleagues in an attempt to show solidarity with the armed 
forces.  The GOB did not believe the opposition had played a 
responsible role during the crisis, the FM said.  Action 
Request:  The USG should continue to support the 
democratically elected government, and we recommend a 
positive response to the request for assistance. 
 
Foreign Minister Requests USG Assistance 
======================================== 
 
¶3. (C) The Ambassador was called in to meet with Minister for 
Foreign Affairs Dr. Dipu Moni and State Minister for Foreign 
Affairs Dr. Hasan Mahmud March 2.   The Ambassador expressed 
condolences for the loss of life during the Bangladesh Rifles 
(BDR) mutiny and offered the GOB U.S. support at this 
difficult time.   The Foreign Minister said Prime Minister 
Sheikh Hasina had deeply appreciated SCA Assistant Secretary 
Boucher's March 1 phone call on behalf of Secretary Clinton. 
The Minister termed the mutiny a great tragedy for Bangladesh 
and said the level of brutality had been stunning.   The 
Foreign Minister conveyed a formal request for USG assistance 
with the investigation.  (Note:  While initially asking for 
"FBI" assistance, the Foreign Minister clarified that help 
from any part of the USG would be welcome). 
 
¶4.  (C) The Ambassador promised to convey the GOB request for 
assistance to Washington and asked whether there were any 
specific areas in which help was needed.  The Foreign 
Minister said Bangladesh would welcome USG expertise in 
assisting with the investigation, including forensics.  She 
added that there was a particular need for assistance with 
identification of remains, many of which were in very poor 
condition.   The Foreign Minister said it was particularly 
important for family members to know what had happened to 
loved ones. 
 
Response Intended to Minimize Loss of Life 
========================================== 
 
¶5. (C) The Foreign Minister stressed that the Prime Minister 
had taken swift action in response to the crisis.  Sheikh 
Hasina's primary concern had been limiting the number of 
casualties.  The BDR compound was situated in the middle of a 
built up area and any military action would have affected 
hundreds of thousands of people and certainly resulted in a 
great number of casualties.  For this reason, the GOB had 
decided to exercise great caution.  According to information 
gleaned from survivors, all of the killings had taken place 
immediately after the incident began.  The Foreign Minister 
said military action would have led to thousands of 
additional deaths. 
 
Looking for Hidden Hand 
======================= 
 
¶6. (C) The State Minister characterized this as the greatest 
loss of officers in the history of the Bangladesh Army * 
even greater than the number of officer deaths suffered 
during the Liberation War.  Hasan said the GOB was very 
grateful to the U.S., which had supported Bangladesh's 
democratic transition and now supported the country as it 
faced a plot to destroy democracy.  The State Minister 
 
DHAKA 00000218  002 OF 003 
 
 
claimed the incident had not been simply the result of anger 
but argued that &people who did not want democracy8 had a 
hand in the violence.  He defended the Prime Minister's 
handling of the crisis, saying military action would have 
also provoked trouble at BDR camps outside Dhaka. 
 
¶7.  (C) Responding to a question from the Ambassador, the 
Foreign Minister said it was still too soon to say who was 
behind the mutiny.  She said the nature of the killing showed 
-- it could hardly have been the result of spontaneous anger 
and could only have taken place with a great deal of 
preparation.  She focused on the number of officers killed, 
the efforts to dispose of the bodies, and the planning to 
allow conspirators to flee as evidence of prior preparation. 
The Foreign Minister also said it was hard to believe that 
ordinary soldiers could have committed such brutality.  She 
said that the nature of the murders was reminiscent of 
attacks involving militant groups but cautioned that at this 
point there was only speculation and no hard evidence tying 
any specific group to the attack.   The Minister said it was 
important to have a thorough investigation and bring those 
responsible to justice. 
 
Get A Full Picture Before Drawing Conclusions 
============================================= 
 
¶8.  (C) The Ambassador told the Foreign Minister the USG did 
not have any information that an outside group was behind the 
mutiny.  The USG would keep an open mind and  work with the 
GOB to uncover whether there was an outside actor.   At the 
same time, the speculation about a conspiracy could have 
consequences down the line if an investigation did not 
uncover any outside role: it could lead to later accusations 
of a cover up.  The Foreign Minister agreed that this was 
possible but said that accounts from survivors indicated that 
officers had been killed in a methodical way, strongly 
suggesting advanced planning. The Minister said it would be 
important for investigators to talk to all witnesses to get a 
full picture of what had happened. 
 
¶9.  (C) The Foreign Minister acknowledged Bangladesh's 
violent past, including past mutinies and coups.  She noted 
that over 600 officers and soldiers had been killed in a coup 
attempt in November 1977.  But nothing on this scale had 
happened in decades.  The Foreign Minister also noted with 
concern that the Prime Minister had visited BDR HQ the day 
prior to the mutiny. 
 
Implications for Civil Military Relations 
========================================= 
 
¶10.  (C) The Foreign Minister hoped the incident would 
consolidate the relationship between the civilian government 
and the military.  She said the armed forces were part of the 
government and said it was "our Army."  Whatever had happened 
during the previous two years of the Caretaker Government, 
nobody could condone these killings.   She admitted that one 
or two Members of Parliament had earlier been critical of the 
Army's role in torturing individuals during the State of 
Emergency.  She also said that most people did not like what 
had happened during the past two years, but that did not mean 
they did not support the army now. 
 
¶11. (C) The State Minister noted the Prime Minister had gone 
to the Cantonment March 1 to meet with Army Officers to 
listen to their concerns.  The Foreign Minister admitted that 
she and a number of her cabinet colleagues had not been 
comfortable with the decision and had tried to convince the 
Prime Minister not to go.  In response, the Prime Minister 
had told them she was not only the head of government and 
Defense Minister, but also "daughter of the Father of the 
Nation," and as such had a duty to know the grievances of her 
people.   Both Ministers agreed that this event had given the 
officers an opportunity to vent their frustrations. 
 
Laying down Marker on Army Role In Fugitive Search 
============================================= ==== 
 
 
DHAKA 00000218  003 OF 003 
 
 
¶12.  (C)   The Ambassador noted that the GOB had decided to 
authorize army officers to participate in "Operation Rebel 
Hunt" to capture BDR fugitives (septel).  The Ambassador 
stressed the importance of avoiding human rights abuses 
during the search.  The Foreign Minister readily agreed. 
 
Critical of Opposition Role 
=========================== 
 
¶13.  (C) The Foreign Minister criticized the Opposition's 
actions in Parliament the previous day, saying they "had left 
a bad taste."   The State Minister asked why the Leader of 
the Opposition had not gone to the House on the 25th or 26th 
while the crisis was ongoing.   After all, the Home Minister 
and other Cabinet colleagues had attended parliament 
throughout the crisis at the Prime Minister's instruction. 
The Foreign Minister criticized the Opposition for opposing 
the Speaker's attempt to table the Parliament's condolence 
message without debate.  Instead, the Leader of the 
Opposition and other members had insisted on speaking. 
 
¶14.  (C) The Foreign Minister said that the tragedy had 
touched the government deeply with many members having lost 
family members.  The Foreign Minister noted that one of her 
relatives, an Army major, had died.  The Ambassador stressed 
our calls for all Bangladeshis to work together, including 
the government and opposition. 
 
Comment/Action Request 
====================== 
 
¶15. (C)   The GOB greatly appreciates the strong 
international support it has received during the crisis, 
notably from the U.S.  The Government has indicated its plans 
to request assistance for the investigation from a number of 
countries, beginning with the U.S.   We strongly recommend 
that the USG respond positively to this request. This will 
underscore the value that we place on helping this young 
democracy through its first major crisis.  Assistance will 
also provide us an opportunity to help ensure an honest 
investigation into this tragedy.  A leading US role will also 
be welcomed by a grieving public and armed forces. 
MORIARTY