TOUGH(ER) GUYS MOVE UP IN RANGOON: BIOGRAPHIC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 001372

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV; INR/B, PACOM FOR FPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/20/2014
TAGS: PREL PGOV MOPS PINR BM
SUBJECT: TOUGH(ER) GUYS MOVE UP IN RANGOON: BIOGRAPHIC
INFORMATION ON THE NEW PRIME MINISTER AND S-1

REF: A. RANGOON 1370

B. RANGOON 1359

Classified By: COM Carmen Martinez for Reasons 1.4 (b,d)

1, (C) Summary: The two SPDC members promoted in the
shuffle that led to Prime Minister Khin Nyunt's "retirement"
in Rangoon on October 19 have apparently been chosen
primarily for their loyalty to Senior General Than Shwe and
their willingness to subordinate themselves to him. They
have also shown themselves to be ruthless, opportunistic
operators. Biographic information on the promoted officials
follows. End Summary.


2. (C) Lieutenant-General Soe Win, General Khin Nyunt's
replacement as Prime Minister of Burma, has advanced his
career and reputation as a capable, loyal supporter of the
Burmese strongman, Senior General Than Shwe, Chairman of the
State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). Cunning and
ambitious, he has shown willingness to go the extra mile for
the Senior General and those closest to him. There are
credible reports that he directed the May 2003 attack in
Depayin on Aung San Suu Kyi and her supporters.


3. (C) After joining the SPDC in 1997, Soe Win was promoted
to "Secretary Two" and rapidly advanced to "Secretary One" in
August 2003. He has consolidated his power base as a
"patron" of the Union Solidarity Development Association
(USDA),the regime's mass organization and political arm (and
a pet project of General Than Shwe). He is said to now
control the entire USDA organization. Unlike the deposed
Khin Nyunt, who had a strong following among his former
subordinates in the now bruised military intelligence (MI)
wing of the armed forces, the new Prime Minister has formed
his primary power base among civilians in the USDA. He had
previously demonstrated ability to deal effectively with
civilians while serving as the military commander in Monywa.
He has also shown a flair for the dramatic, pulling himself
out from a pile of troops who had been killed--while under
his command--in a battle with communist forces in the '80s.
This earned him the nickname, "Strong Life."


4. (C) Born in the Shan State on May 10, 1949, the newly
appointed Prime Minister graduated from the Defense Services
Academy in 1970. While holding the rank of Major in 1988, he
commanded Light Infantry Division (LID)-22 under Lt. General
Tin Hla (Deputy Prime Minister for Military Affairs,
2000-2001). LID-22 played an important role in the crackdown
on the 1988 uprising for democracy. Unconfirmed reports
suggest that then Major Soe Win issued the order to fire the
first shots at City Hall on August 8, 1988.


5. (C) The new Prime Minister was quoted by the Democratic
Voice of Burma (DVB) in January 2003 as saying the SPDC would
"never negotiate with Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD." This
comment was reportedly made at a meeting of the USDA with
local authorities and civil servants in mid-January 2003,
well before the May 2003 attack. He has also reportedly said
that Burma can rely on China to protect it against the United
States.


6. (U) Lt. General Soe Win is married to Than Than Hwe, but
little else is known about his personal life. He has
delivered public addresses in understandable English, but is
said to have limited ability to speak the language
extemporaneously.

Lieutenant-General Thein Sein--Another Loyal Follower of the
Senior General


7. (C) Lieutenant-General Thein Sein has been chosen to move
up from "Secretary Two" to replace Soe Win as "Secretary One"
in the SPDC. By all accounts a quiet personality who shuns
the spotlight, he was born on April 20, 1945 in Pathein,
Irrawaddy Division. In 1988, then Major Thein Sein served as
commander of Light Infantry Division (LID)-55, one of the
elite organizations loyal to the Burmese Socialist Program
Party (BSPP). In that capacity, he distinguished himself, as
did Soe Win, in the crackdown against the 1988 uprising in
support of democracy.


7. (SBU) In late 1996, Thein Sein was promoted to the rank
of Brigadier General and assigned to the then newly formed
Triangle Region Command in Kengtung. He became a member of
the SPDC in 1997. In 2001, after being promoted to Major
General, he was transferred to Rangoon and assigned to the
post of Adjutant General. In this capacity, he was
responsible for the MoD's business interests. He was
appointed "Secretary Two" of the SPDC on August 25, 2003. As
are Prime Minister Soe Win and other members of the SPDC,
Thein Sein is a "patron" of the USDA (note: The
organization's "patrons" form, in effect, its policy making
body). He is also Chairman of the National Convention
Commission, Chairman of the Central Organizing Committee for
War Veterans, Chairman of the Committee on Prevention of
Recruitment of Child Soldiers, and Chairman of the Police
Reform Committee. He is slated to accompany Senior General
Than Shwe to India on October 24.


8. (U) The new "Secretary One" is married to Khin Khin Win,
who is not known to have any important political connections.
He is thought to have limited English ability and little, if
any, experience in the West.
Martinez