BanglaBhoot
RETIRED TTA
- Joined
- Apr 8, 2007
- Messages
- 8,839
- Reaction score
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- Country
- Location
CREATED - 2008-09-07 03:43
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000939
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/03/2018
TAGS: PTER KDEM BG IN
SUBJECT: PARANOIA TOWARD BANGLADESH THRIVES IN INDIA'S WEST BENGAL
Classified By: A/DCM Gary Mignano. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d)
------
SUMMARY
-------
¶1. (C) Paranoia toward Bangladesh and its majority Moslem
population runs high among some of the elite in the
neighboring Indian state of West Bengal, which is
predominantly Hindu. While Bangladesh and West Bengal share a
common language and a rich Bengali culture, some West Bengal
Hindus allege that Bangladesh at least tacitly supports
anti-India terrorism and express alarm that illegal migration
into the state is fundamentally changing its religious
demographics. The intensity of anti-Bangladesh sentiment
among at least a portion of West Bengal's Hindu elite hardly
augers well for improvement in the often tense relationship
between India and Bangladesh. Some of them have had only
limited contact with Bangladeshi officials and
intelligentsia; regional and private-sector driven "Track
Two" approaches to South Asia security may be one way to
remove misunderstandings between the two sides.
--------------------------------
FEAR AND LOATHING IN WEST BENGAL
--------------------------------
¶2. (C) A cigarette lighter shaped as a grenade sits atop the
cluttered desk of D. Mitra, additional director general of
police for railways in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is
an appropriate accessory for an official of incendiary
opinions on the threat posed from neighboring Bangladesh.
During discussion in Kolkata with visiting Dhaka PolOff on
August 27, Mitra listed a lengthy litany of complaints.
India's archrival, Pakistan, he claimed, had taken over
Bangladesh. Pakistan's premier intelligence agency, the
Directorate General of Interservices Intelligence, backed by
Islamic zealots controlled Bangladesh's army and Directorate
General of Forces Intelligence, all of which were working to
make India "bleed from 1,000 cuts." Meanwhile, he said,
illegal immigration from Bangladesh across a porous border
was sharply increasing the Moslem proportion of West Bengal's
population. Ultimately, Hindus would become a minority in the
state because *******, he said, "breed like pigs." Mitra said
he would flee the state before that demographic change
occurred.
¶3. (C) While Mitra's remarks were particularly crude and
outlandish, they reflected anti-Bangladesh and often
anti-Moslem sentiments held by some other members of
Kolkata's elite with whom PolOff met. These included a former
deputy director of India's foreign intelligence body, the
Research and Analysis Wing; two former generals who run the
Center for Eastern and Northeastern Regional Studies think
tank; and Jayanta Kumar Ray, the director of the Maulana Abul
Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, which is affiliatied
with India's Ministry of Culture. Among their allegations
were Bangladesh was a safe haven for Indian terrorists; the
Bangladesh government supported violent Islam; and Bangladesh
was in cahoots with China against India. "Almost nothing can
be done" to improve bilateral relations, said Ray. "The
Bangladesh government has not taken action against hardline
Muslims."
¶4. (C) What these people say matters. They frequently write
op-ed pieces in local media, shaping popular perceptions
against Bangladesh. And in the case of Mitra, his strident
views toward Bangladesh helped sabotage a renewed rail link
between Dhaka and Kolkata that proponents said would boost
ties between the two biggest Bengali cities. "I was opposed
to the link from Day One," said Mitra, who was assistant
director general of police for borders in West Bengal when
the project was initiated. He said it took two years for the
government to meet the security requirements he demanded,
including beefed up border patrols and several imposing
fences, which greatly irritated the Bangladeshis. Although
the service restarted in April with great fanfare after a
43-year hiatus, ridership has been disappointing because
immigration and customs procedures at the border crossing can
take six hours, about four times longer than for buses. "It's
economically not viable," Mitra said with obvious glee,
Still, he said he would be happier if the train did not run
at all.
---------------------------
IT'S NOT ALL GLOOM AND DOOM
---------------------------
DHAKA 00000939 002 OF 002
¶5. (C) For all the railing against Bangladesh, its people
still maintain close ties with West Bengal. Nahida Rahman
Shumona, Counsellor and Head of Chancery at the Deputy High
Commission for Bangladesh in Kolkata, estimated about 30
percent of West Bengalis have roots in Bangladesh and would
like to see their neighbor prosper. Many Bangladeshis come to
Kolkata for medical care and to go shopping in the city's
vibrant markets and name-brand stores. The Deputy High
Commission issues about 250 visas a day for travel to
Bangladesh, most for family visits and tourism but a small
proportion for employment and investors. A common language
ensures that Bangla-language books and movies are enjoyed by
people on both sides of the border. And despite concerns
about Islamist extremists and illegal immigrants entering
West Bengal from Bangladesh, one leader of the Moslem
community in Kolkata said he did not experience religious
discrimination from his Hindu compatriots as a result.
"There's little discrimination between Hindus and *******,"
said Dr. M. Nuruzzaman, chairman of the Minorities Cell of
the All India Trinamool Congress, the leading opposition
party in West Bengal. "I personally do not feel like a second
class citizen."
--------------------------------------------- ----------------
COMMENT: SEEKING TRACK TWO AND REGIONAL SOLUTIONS TO MISTRUST
--------------------------------------------- ----------------
¶6. (C) The mistrust of some West Bengali Hindus toward
Bangladesh is disturbing and can only harm efforts to improve
the often testy relations between the two countries. The USG
may be able to help diffuse the tension by developing
regional and Track Two, i.e. private, approaches toward
improving security in South Asia. The USG Regional Security
Initiative meeting in New Delhi on August 26 emphasized the
importance of such regional efforts. They could be an
effective vehicle for local officials and opinion-makers from
Indian border states such as West Bengal to meet Bangladeshi
counterparts whom they hardly know. Regular contact between
the two countries' border forces and Home Secretaries suggest
that keeping open lines of communication is essential to
successfully manage the bilateral relationship.
Rollins
DeshCalling: WikiLeaks – Indian attempts to influence US on 2008 Bangladesh elections and deflect investigations into Pilkhana mutiny and massacre
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000939
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/03/2018
TAGS: PTER KDEM BG IN
SUBJECT: PARANOIA TOWARD BANGLADESH THRIVES IN INDIA'S WEST BENGAL
Classified By: A/DCM Gary Mignano. Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d)
------
SUMMARY
-------
¶1. (C) Paranoia toward Bangladesh and its majority Moslem
population runs high among some of the elite in the
neighboring Indian state of West Bengal, which is
predominantly Hindu. While Bangladesh and West Bengal share a
common language and a rich Bengali culture, some West Bengal
Hindus allege that Bangladesh at least tacitly supports
anti-India terrorism and express alarm that illegal migration
into the state is fundamentally changing its religious
demographics. The intensity of anti-Bangladesh sentiment
among at least a portion of West Bengal's Hindu elite hardly
augers well for improvement in the often tense relationship
between India and Bangladesh. Some of them have had only
limited contact with Bangladeshi officials and
intelligentsia; regional and private-sector driven "Track
Two" approaches to South Asia security may be one way to
remove misunderstandings between the two sides.
--------------------------------
FEAR AND LOATHING IN WEST BENGAL
--------------------------------
¶2. (C) A cigarette lighter shaped as a grenade sits atop the
cluttered desk of D. Mitra, additional director general of
police for railways in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is
an appropriate accessory for an official of incendiary
opinions on the threat posed from neighboring Bangladesh.
During discussion in Kolkata with visiting Dhaka PolOff on
August 27, Mitra listed a lengthy litany of complaints.
India's archrival, Pakistan, he claimed, had taken over
Bangladesh. Pakistan's premier intelligence agency, the
Directorate General of Interservices Intelligence, backed by
Islamic zealots controlled Bangladesh's army and Directorate
General of Forces Intelligence, all of which were working to
make India "bleed from 1,000 cuts." Meanwhile, he said,
illegal immigration from Bangladesh across a porous border
was sharply increasing the Moslem proportion of West Bengal's
population. Ultimately, Hindus would become a minority in the
state because *******, he said, "breed like pigs." Mitra said
he would flee the state before that demographic change
occurred.
¶3. (C) While Mitra's remarks were particularly crude and
outlandish, they reflected anti-Bangladesh and often
anti-Moslem sentiments held by some other members of
Kolkata's elite with whom PolOff met. These included a former
deputy director of India's foreign intelligence body, the
Research and Analysis Wing; two former generals who run the
Center for Eastern and Northeastern Regional Studies think
tank; and Jayanta Kumar Ray, the director of the Maulana Abul
Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, which is affiliatied
with India's Ministry of Culture. Among their allegations
were Bangladesh was a safe haven for Indian terrorists; the
Bangladesh government supported violent Islam; and Bangladesh
was in cahoots with China against India. "Almost nothing can
be done" to improve bilateral relations, said Ray. "The
Bangladesh government has not taken action against hardline
Muslims."
¶4. (C) What these people say matters. They frequently write
op-ed pieces in local media, shaping popular perceptions
against Bangladesh. And in the case of Mitra, his strident
views toward Bangladesh helped sabotage a renewed rail link
between Dhaka and Kolkata that proponents said would boost
ties between the two biggest Bengali cities. "I was opposed
to the link from Day One," said Mitra, who was assistant
director general of police for borders in West Bengal when
the project was initiated. He said it took two years for the
government to meet the security requirements he demanded,
including beefed up border patrols and several imposing
fences, which greatly irritated the Bangladeshis. Although
the service restarted in April with great fanfare after a
43-year hiatus, ridership has been disappointing because
immigration and customs procedures at the border crossing can
take six hours, about four times longer than for buses. "It's
economically not viable," Mitra said with obvious glee,
Still, he said he would be happier if the train did not run
at all.
---------------------------
IT'S NOT ALL GLOOM AND DOOM
---------------------------
DHAKA 00000939 002 OF 002
¶5. (C) For all the railing against Bangladesh, its people
still maintain close ties with West Bengal. Nahida Rahman
Shumona, Counsellor and Head of Chancery at the Deputy High
Commission for Bangladesh in Kolkata, estimated about 30
percent of West Bengalis have roots in Bangladesh and would
like to see their neighbor prosper. Many Bangladeshis come to
Kolkata for medical care and to go shopping in the city's
vibrant markets and name-brand stores. The Deputy High
Commission issues about 250 visas a day for travel to
Bangladesh, most for family visits and tourism but a small
proportion for employment and investors. A common language
ensures that Bangla-language books and movies are enjoyed by
people on both sides of the border. And despite concerns
about Islamist extremists and illegal immigrants entering
West Bengal from Bangladesh, one leader of the Moslem
community in Kolkata said he did not experience religious
discrimination from his Hindu compatriots as a result.
"There's little discrimination between Hindus and *******,"
said Dr. M. Nuruzzaman, chairman of the Minorities Cell of
the All India Trinamool Congress, the leading opposition
party in West Bengal. "I personally do not feel like a second
class citizen."
--------------------------------------------- ----------------
COMMENT: SEEKING TRACK TWO AND REGIONAL SOLUTIONS TO MISTRUST
--------------------------------------------- ----------------
¶6. (C) The mistrust of some West Bengali Hindus toward
Bangladesh is disturbing and can only harm efforts to improve
the often testy relations between the two countries. The USG
may be able to help diffuse the tension by developing
regional and Track Two, i.e. private, approaches toward
improving security in South Asia. The USG Regional Security
Initiative meeting in New Delhi on August 26 emphasized the
importance of such regional efforts. They could be an
effective vehicle for local officials and opinion-makers from
Indian border states such as West Bengal to meet Bangladeshi
counterparts whom they hardly know. Regular contact between
the two countries' border forces and Home Secretaries suggest
that keeping open lines of communication is essential to
successfully manage the bilateral relationship.
Rollins
DeshCalling: WikiLeaks – Indian attempts to influence US on 2008 Bangladesh elections and deflect investigations into Pilkhana mutiny and massacre
