CENTRAL HIGHLANDS APPEAR CALM; VIETNAMESE AUTHORITIES MONITORING CLOSELY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 000396 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV, DRL, PRM, INR NSC FOR EAST ASIAN DIRECTORATE SECDEF FOR ISA/EAP STERN E.O. 12958: DECL: 2/16/2011 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SOCI PINR VM RELFREE HUMANR ETMIN SUBJECT: CENTRAL HIGHLANDS APPEAR CALM; VIETNAMESE AUTHORITIES MONITORING CLOSELY CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 02 HANOI 00396 01 OF 02 161217Z REF: A) HANOI 313 B) HANOI 247 AND PREVIOUS C) 00 HO CHI MINH CITY 1110 C) 00 HO CHI MINH CITY 563 AND PREVIOUS ¶1. (U) CLASSIFIED BY ACTING DCM ROBERT DRY; REASONS 1.5 (B) AND (D). ¶2. (C) SUMMARY: THE CAPITALS OF THE TWO KEY CENTRAL HIGHLANDS PROVINCES OF GIA LAI AND DAKLAK HAVE STABILIZED, WITH NO MORE DEMONSTRATIONS SINCE THE WEEKEND OF FEB. 10- ¶11. POLICE AND MILITARY PRESENCE REMAINS HEAVY IN THE CAPITAL AND OUTLYING AREAS OF GIA LAI, WHICH WAS THE SITE OF THE BIGGEST DEMONSTRATIONS. BUON ME THUOT, CAPITAL OF DAKLAK, IS CALM, AND THERE IS NO VISIBLE POLICE PRESENCE THERE. COFFEE TRADERS SAY THEIR WORK HAS RETURNED TO NORMAL IN THE PROVINCES. THE GVN REPORTEDLY SENT IN DEPUTY PRIME MINISTERS DUNG AND TAC IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE FIRST REPORTS OF DEMONSTRATIONS TWO WEEKS AGO TO MANAGE THE SITUATION. THE GVN CONTINUES TO SAY ONLY 20 VIETNAMESE CITIZENS WERE ARRESTED FOLLOWING THE DEMONSTRATIONS, THOUGH THEY DECLINE TO RELEASE ALL THE NAMES. NGO SOURCES CLAIM SIGNIFICANTLY MORE WERE ARRESTED, THOUGH THIS CANNOT BE VERIFIED. AMBASSADOR IS RAISING OUR CONCERNS ABOUT THE SITUATION AND REQUESTING ACCESS TO THE AREA WITH SENIOR GVN OFFICIALS. END SUMMARY. POLICE PRESENCE HEAVY IN GIA LAI; CALM IN DAKLAK -------------- --- ¶3. (C) AS DOCUMENTED IN REF A AND INFORMAL COMMUNICATION CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 03 HANOI 00396 01 OF 02 161217Z WITH EAP/BCLTV, CALM HAS RETURNED TO THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS PROVINCES OF GIA LAI AND DAKLAK FOLLOWING THE LARGE DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE PREVIOUS WEEK. (THE PROTESTS WERE TRIGGERED BY THE ARREST JANUARY 29 OF TWO ETHNIC MINORITY MEN WHO APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN LEADERS IN PROTESTANT HOUSE CHURCHES IN THE REGION. THE TWO MEN WERE PROMPTLY RELEASED AFTER SIGNING A STATEMENT BEFORE GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES.) WE HAVE RECEIVED REPORTS OF INJURIES SUFFERED BY DEMONSTRATORS AND POLICE, BUT NO DEATHS HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED. THE MFA SPOKESPERSON FEB. 15 SAID THERE WERE 20 PERSONS ARRESTED -- AND NO MORE -- IN GIA LAI PROVINCE, THE SITE OF THE BIGGEST DEMONSTRATIONS. SHE DECLINED TO GIVE THEIR NAMES, HOWEVER. NGO GROUPS, SUCH AS THE MONTAGNARD FOUNDATION IN SOUTH CAROLINA, HAVE ALLEGED 200 OR MORE PERSONS ARRESTED. THE MFA CONTINUES TO DESCRIBE THOSE ARRESTED AS "PROVOCATIVE PEOPLE" WHO DESTROYED PROPERTY AND CAUSED INSTABILITY, BUT THE ROOTS OF THE PROTESTS ARE VARIED. ¶4. (C) EMBASSY AND CONSULATE STAFF CONTINUE TO MEET WITH AND SPEAK BY PHONE WITH A WIDE RANGE OF DIPLOMATIC, NGO, BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT SOURCES ABOUT THE EVENTS IN THE HIGHLANDS. AN ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENT FROM DAKLAK TOLD CONGENOFF THAT ONE OF THE MAIN SOURCES OF THE TENSIONS IS THE CAMPAIGN BY SOME ETHNIC MINORITY PERSONS IN THE PROVINCES FOR AUTONOMY FROM HANOI. HE SAID RELIGION WAS ONLY INCIDENTALLY A CAUSE OF THE UNREST; IT IS WHEN "RELIGION CROSSES OVER INTO POLITICS" (AND PERSONS DEMAND AUTONOMY) THAT IT BECOMES A POINT OF TENSION WITH THE GVN. A VIETNAMESE BUSINESSMAN FROM PLEIKU, CAPITAL OF GIA LAI, SAID THE GVN WAS TOTALLY TAKEN BY SURPRISE BY THE CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 04 HANOI 00396 01 OF 02 161217Z DEMONSTRATIONS FOLLOWING THE ARREST OF THE TWO ETHNIC MINORITY PERSONS. ¶5. (C) THE DANISH EMBASSY (PROTECT) HAS TWO RESIDENT AID/DIPLOMATIC PERSONNEL IN BUON ME THUOT, AND THEY REPORT THE CITY IS QUIET. IN A MEETING THIS WEEK WITH THE CHAIR OF THE DAKLAK PEOPLE'S COMMITTEE, THE PROVINCIAL "GOVERNOR", THE DANES WERE TOLD THE PROTESTERS THERE WERE DEMANDING AUTONOMY AND WERE PROTESTING LACK OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES. (HE DID NOT MENTION LAND RIGHTS OR RELIGIOUS ISSUES, THOUGH THESE WERE UNDOUBTEDLY PART OF THE EQUATION, AS DISCUSSED IN PREVIOUS REPORTING.) THE DANISH EMBASSY TOLD US THEY WERE ABLE TO BOOK A FLIGHT INTO AND A HOTEL IN BUON ME THUOT, SO IT APPEARS THE CITY HAS LARGELY STABILIZED. (GIA LAI IS MUCH MORE ISOLATED THAN DAKLAK, WHICH IS THE MAJOR COFFEE-EXPORTING PROVINCE IN THE AREA. GIA LAI IS MORE INSULAR, POORER AND HAS A SMALLER FOREIGN NGO AND BUSINESS PRESENCE.) ¶6. (C) A GVN SOURCE TOLD A JAPANESE EMBOFF THAT DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER NGUYEN TAN DUNG AND DEPUTY PM NGUYEN CONG TAC WERE DISPATCHED TO THE REGION IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE DEMONSTRATIONS BEGAN TO REPORT ON DEVELOPMENTS AND MANAGE THE GVN'S RESPONSE. (COMMENT: IF TRUE, SUCH HIGH-LEVEL ATTENTION SIGNALS THE GVN'S PERCEPTION OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE DEMONSTRATIONS AND THE DISCONTENT THEY REFLECT. END COMMENT.) ¶7. (SBU) COFFEE TRADERS INFORM FAS THAT NORMAL TRADING AND MARKETING ACTIVITIES HAVE RESUMED IN THE TWO PROVINCES. THEY SAY THE TWO CAPITAL CITIES ARE BOTH CALM. DAKLAK IS THE CENTER FOR ROUGHLY 60 PERCENT OF VIETNAM'S EXPORT COFFEE CULTIVATION. GIA LAI (NORTH OF DAKLAK) AND LAM DONG (SOUTH OF DAKLAK) ARE THE NEXT TWO BIGGEST CULTIVATORS. ¶8. (SBU) THERE ARE NO AMERICAN CITIZENS REGISTERED WITH THE EMBASSY OR CONSULATE WHO RESIDE IN EITHER DAKLAK OR GIA LAI. ACCORDING TO THE EXTERNAL RELATIONS OFFICE OF DAKLAK, HOTELS IN THE PROVINCE ARE STILL CLOSED TO FOREIGNERS AS OF FEB. 14, AND THEIR OFFICE ADVISES FOREIGNERS TO REFRAIN FROM TRAVEL TO THE PROVINCE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. (THIS CONTRADICTS WHAT THE DANES HEARD, BUT IS THE MESSAGE DELIVERED TO OUR MISSION.) ROOTS OF THE DEMONSTRATIONS -------------- ¶9. (C) AS DISCUSSED MORE FULLY REF A, WE CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THE ROOTS OF THE DEMONSTRATIONS ORIGINATE IN DISPUTES OVER LAND, HEAVY-HANDED TREATMENT OF PROTESTANT RELIGIOUS BELIEVERS, AND ONGOING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST ETHNIC MINORITIES. THE SPARK APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN THE CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 03 HANOI 00396 02 OF 02 161217Z HARASSMENT OF PROTESTANT HOUSE CHURCH LEADERS IN THE AREA, THOUGH SMOLDERING RESENTMENT BY MINORITIES OVER THE LOSS OF THEIR TRADITIONAL LANDS TO ETHNIC VIETNAMESE AND OTHER MIGRANTS LIKELY WAS FUEL FOR THE FLAMES. EXTREME IMPOVERISHMENT OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE, EXACERBATED BY THE STEEP DROP IN COFFEE PRICES, ALSO WAS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR. ¶10. (SBU) WE HAVE RECEIVED REPORTS OF HARASSMENT OF PROTESTANTS IN THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS. IN PARTICULAR, THE HOUSE CHURCHES (OR "VILLAGE CHURCHES" IN OUTLYING RURAL AREAS) THAT ARE PREDOMINANT IN ETHNIC MINORITY AREAS COME IN FOR PARTICULAR HARASSMENT. THIS IS LARGELY BECAUSE THESE CHURCHES FACE A CATCH-22: THEY ARE NOT OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED AS LEGAL BODIES, AND THUS MEMBERS COMING TOGETHER FOR PEACEFUL RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES ARE CONSIDERED OUTSIDE THE LAW AND SUBJECT TO HARASSMENT OR ARREST DEPENDING ON THE WHIMS OF LOCAL OFFICIALS. ALSO, THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PETITION TO BECOME LEGAL (AS WERE SOME 250 MORE-ESTABLISHED "EVANGELICAL CHURCH OF VIETNAM" PROTESTANT CHURCHES THAT WERE RECOGNIZED AS PART OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH CONFERENCE THAT CONCLUDED LAST WEEK IN HCMC). RELIGIOUS HARASSMENT IS ONE OF SEVERAL FACTORS INVOLVED IN THE TENSIONS IN THE HIGHLANDS, BUT IT IS ONLY ONE OF SEVERAL. LAND RIGHTS, SOCIETAL DISCRIMINATION, EXTREME POVERTY AND DESPERATION, AND THE CAMPAIGN BY SOME HIGHLANDS PEOPLES FOR AUTONOMY ARE INEXTRICABLY LINKED; ALL OF THESE ARE ROOTS OF THE TENSIONS. COMMENT CONFIDENTIAL PAGE 04 HANOI 00396 02 OF 02 161217Z -------------- ¶11. (C) WE WILL CONTINUE TO FOLLOW THE AFTERMATH OF THE DEMONSTRATIONS CLOSELY AND THE GVN'S RESPONSE TO WHAT WERE UNDOUBTEDLY THE BIGGEST DEMONSTRATIONS AND EXPRESSION OF POPULAR DISCONTENT SINCE THE THAI BINH UPRISING THREE YEARS AGO. THE AMBASSADOR HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO RAISE CONCERNS REGARDING HUMAN RIGHTS WITH TRADE MINISTER VU KHOAN EARLIER IN THE WEEK. HE HAS AN APPOINTMENT TO DISCUSS THE SITUATION IN DAKLAK AND GIA LAI AND OTHER ISSUES WITH VICE FOREIGN MINISTER BIN EARLY NEXT WEEK. WE RECOGNIZE THE NEED TO GET A FIRSTHAND ASSESSMENT OF THE SITUATION IN THE HIGHLANDS AND WILL CONTINUE WORKING TO DO SO. END COMMENT. PETERSON CONFIDENTIAL