US embassy cable - 05RANGOON896

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000896 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV; PACOM FOR FPA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, CASC, BM 
SUBJECT: COM'S FAREWELL CALL AT FOREIGN AFFAIRS 
 
REF: A. RANGOON 893 
 
     B. RANGOON 845 
 
Classified By: COM Carmen Martinez for Reasons 1.4 (b,d) 
 
1. (C) Summary: During an August 3 farewell call on the 
Deputy Foreign Minister, the COM pressed for the release of 
ASSK and other opposition leaders and appealed for a more 
regular dialogue between GOB officials and Embassy officers. 
The COM also addressed several Amcit cases, gaining consular 
access to one prisoner and a visa extension for a defendant 
in a civil case.  However, a lack of response on issues 
associated with teachers at our American Center is troubling 
and we believe the GOB is attempting to disrupt our highly 
visible outreach programs.  End Summary. 
 
2. (C) The COM and A/DCM met on August 3 with Deputy FM Maung 
Myint, revisiting issues raised earlier in the week (ref A). 
The COM reiterated that the GOB must release opposition 
leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, in order to bring any 
credibility to the National Convention process.  The COM 
added that their release; their inclusion in the political 
process; and the GOB's facilitation of roles for UN Special 
Envoy Razali and UN human rights rapporteur Pinheiro are 
prerequisites for improving relations, especially with ASEAN, 
the EU, and the United States. 
 
3. (C) The COM also appealed for a more regular dialogue 
between GOB officials and Embassy officers.  She noted that 
Burmese authorities rarely make themselves accessible and she 
urged the DFM to meet more often with the Embassy's next 
leadership.  The DFM joked that "you're a workaholic and you 
make us work too hard (by raising too many issues)," and the 
COM replied that the MFA should make working level officers 
more accessible to handle routine issues. 
 
4. (C) The DFM addressed three Amcit cases raised by the COM 
on August 1 (ref A): 
 
--Amcit Andy Chau, arrest case (ref B):  The DFM said he had 
personally spoken with the Home Minister and secured consular 
access at Insein prison for August 4.  He noted that the GOB 
considers drug trafficking an extremely serious crime, but 
suggested that the Embassy request early release for the 
prisoner.  "We have released hundreds of foreign prisoners 
from over 15 countries," he said, "and on a humanitarian 
basis we would be prepared to do more." 
 
--Amcit immigration/civil lawsuit case:  The COM requested 
resolution of the case, noting that it had dragged on for 
months.  The DFM said that lawsuits between relatives over 
family inheritance could take one or two years to resolve, 
but said that the GOB would, "as a humanitarian gesture," 
permit the Amcit to extend her visa and remain legally in 
Rangoon for the duration.  The COM said that defendant should 
be treated fairly, and not prejudiced because of her U.S. 
nationality. 
 
--Amcit contract teacher:  The COM again requested an 
explanation for the visa cancellation and deportation on July 
21 of an American Center contract teacher.  The COM noted 
that the employee had worked at the American Center for four 
years without incident and had renewed her visa in early 
July.  The DFM said the Ministry of Home Affairs claimed that 
the employee had "broken government regulations," but added 
that he could get no further details from the Ministry of 
Home Affairs.  He said he sympathized with the employee, who 
had personal effects in Rangoon; offered that she could 
re-apply for a visa ("but it will be difficult"); and advised 
that the Embassy inquire with the Home Ministry for an 
explanation. 
 
5. (C) The COM also raised the issue of other contract 
teachers at our American Center.  She explained that the MFA 
had recently started redirecting the teachers to the Ministry 
of Education (MOE) for their visa renewals, but the MOE 
refused to accept the requests.  The DFM said that the MFA 
would only process visas for diplomats and demurred on 
explaining why the apparent new procedures had been put in 
place.  He suggested that the Embassy demarche the MOE at 
senior levels and acknowledged the lack of GOB coordination 
on the issue by saying, "You've been here three years and 
know how (our system) works." 
 
6. (C) Comment: Although the DFM was unresponsive on ASSK and 
other political issues, he was well briefed and animated when 
discussing the Amcit cases.  We are pleased to regain 
consular access to the Amcit prisoner as well as the visa 
extension for the Amcit defendant in the civil case. 
However, the lack of response on American Center issues is 
troubling.  We will be pursuing these cases with the 
Ministries of Home Affairs and Education, but we believe the 
GOB is attempting to disrupt our outreach programs at the 
American Center, where we provide quality language 
instruction to 1,100 students a year (including political 
party members and former political prisoners) and library 
access to upwards of 1,000 visitors a week.  End Comment. 
Martinez