US embassy cable - 04RANGOON1315

C O N F I D E N T I A L RANGOON 001315 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV; PACOM FOR FPA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/03/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, BM, NLD 
SUBJECT: THE NLD ENFORCES "PARTY DISCIPLINE" 
 
REF: A. RANGOON 1149 
     B. RANGOON 1277 
 
Classified By: COM Carmen Martinez for Reasons 1.4 (b,d) 
 
1. (C) Summary:  On September 29, the NLD CEC suspended three 
local level party leaders following an "unauthorized" quiet 
march in support of several standard NLD policy positions. 
One senior NLD advisor told us that that the CEC, including 
ASSK, believes "party discipline must be enforced--otherwise 
the movement risks falling into chaos."  Regretfully, the 
party's public display of internal fissures signals to the 
regime that the SPDC's pressure tactics, aimed at squeezing 
the NLD and rendering the democracy movement ineffective, are 
showing results.  End Summary. 
 
2. (U) On September 27 several dozen members of the National 
League for Democracy (NLD) undertook a quiet march from party 
headquarters to nearby UNDP offices to deliver a letter 
calling for U.N. recognition of the results of the 1990 
elections, help in freeing Aung San Suu Kyi and political 
prisoners, and other NLD positions.  The march took place 
following an NLD commemoration of the pro-democracy party's 
16th anniversary. 
 
3. (SBU) However, NLD leaders on September 29 suspended at 
least three women members of the party for their role in 
organizing the "unauthorized" demonstration.  According to 
senior party sources, the NLD Central Executive Committee 
(CEC) was unaware of the march and did not direct the action. 
 CEC members were displeased by wire reports covering the 
event, which characterized the contents of the letter as 
official NLD policy.  In addition to addressing ASSK's 
detention and the 1990 elections, the letter reportedly 
called for the convening of a "People's Parliament," an 
action previously advanced by the NLD that provoked the SPDC 
and led to intense repression and harassment of Members-elect 
of Parliament and other activists. 
 
4. (C) One senior NLD advisor told us on October 2 that the 
decision to suspend the three women, local level party 
leaders from Rangoon and Magwe, was "made by all nine members 
of the CEC," signifying that ASSK and Vice Chairman U Tin Oo, 
also under house arrest, used back channels to weigh in on 
the issue.  "The NLD is in a precarious situation," said the 
senior advisor, "and the CEC believes that strict party 
discipline must be enforced--otherwise the movement risks 
falling into chaos." 
 
5. (C) Comment:  The NLD, believed by many observers to be at 
its most beleaguered position in years, is clearly suffering 
the strains of regime pressure.  The prolonged detention of 
the party's two key leaders (16 months and counting), the 
complete shutdown of all party activities outside of Rangoon, 
and an increase in arbitrary arrests and harassment (ref B) 
is taking its toll.  As we have noted recently, the status 
quo is creating considerable frustration within the party, 
where a growing chorus of rank and file voices are demanding 
party action (ref A).  Regretfully, the recent party 
suspensions are an airing of dirty laundry that signal to the 
regime that the SPDC's pressure tactics, aimed at squeezing 
the NLD and rendering the democracy movement ineffective, are 
showing results.  End Comment. 
Martinez