FIFTEEN YEARS IN THE BURMESE GULAG

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 RANGOON 001499 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV; PACOM FOR FPA E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/22/2014 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KDEM BM SUBJECT: FIFTEEN YEARS IN THE BURMESE GULAG REF: A. RANGOON 1491 ¶B. RANGOON 1488 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: COM Carmen Martinez for Reasons 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (C) Summary: One of Burma's best-known dissidents, Min Ko Naing (aka Paw Oo Tun),freed on November 19 after 15 years spent in Burmese prisons, met with Emboffs and discussed his long, isolated, and arduous stint in the military regime's gulag. The 42 year-old former Rangoon University zoology major, arrested in 1989 for his leadership role in the student-led pro-democracy movement, was confident and in remarkably good spirits, though he showed some signs that difficult prison life had taken a certain mental and physical toll. He expressed deep gratitude for support from the United States and enjoyed the opportunity to get briefed on political developments that have taken place over the intervening years. This courageous man--who made enormous personal sacrifice in pursuit of a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma and improved human rights for his fellow citizens--strikes us as a stirring example of what U.S. Burma policy is all about. End Summary. "Thank you, America" -------------- ¶3. (C) During our November 22 meeting with Min Ko Naing at a U.S. mission residence, the recently released activist expressed deep gratitude for support from the United States during, and prior to, his incarceration. As if emerging from a deep freeze after 15 years of virtual isolation, he was amazed to learn about political and technological developments since his 1989 arrest. For example, he expressed disbelief over a digital camera and our ability to e-mail his photo that night to friends and supporters outside of the country and surprise that Senator John Kerry had visited Burma in 1999. He was also delighted to learn about U.S. sanctions and other forms of pressure applied on the regime over the past decade. ¶4. (SBU) Min Ko Naing inquired about U.S. Embassy staff and friends with whom contact was severed in 1989, most notably the last U.S. Ambassador to Burma, Burton Levin (1987-1990). He asked for information on supporters from Congress, including former U.S. representatives Stephen Solarz (whom he had met in 1988) and Bill Richardson (who visited Min Ko Naing at Insein Prison twice during the early 1990s). He also inquired about the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and was saddened to learn that the former Senator had passed away in ¶2003. The Conqueror of Kings -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Min Ko Naing ("Conqueror of Kings," a nickname earned during 1988 student marches) demonstrated a remarkable memory and recalled that the Burmese regime (the then-SLORC) had arrested him on March 23, 1989 and sentenced him in 1991 to 15 years in prison. In 1993, as part of a broader amnesty for political prisoners, the regime reduced his sentence to 10 years. On the basis of provisions in the existing penal code, he should have been released for good behavior on July 20, 1999. However, prison authorities cruelly informed him when that date arrived that he was subject to security provisions of the law and would be held indefinitely. ¶6. (SBU) On November 16, 2004, Min Ko Naing learned from the Sittwe prison director that his imminent release was a distinct possibility. The director, who rarely visited the political ward, told Min Ko Naing on that day that there had been significant changes in the Burmese government: "We are at a turning point and the current situation is good for you." However, the political activist had learned the hard way about dashed hopes and refused to believe the prison director until November 19, when he was whisked from the Sittwe prison for a one-hour flight to Rangoon and freedom. ¶7. (SBU) Min Ko Naing--who spoke to us primarily in Burmese, apologizing that he had had no opportunity in prison to practice his English--said that prison authorities has issued him an "unconditional release." Unlike other releases of political prisoners in the past, the GOB did not require him to sign a confession or agree to limits on his movements or activities. "I cannot explain why they released me," he said, "nor do I know how they will treat me from this point on." He added that o/a November 19 the Sittwe prison released a total of about 30 "regular" prisoners who had already completed their sentences, but freed none of the other handful of political detainees. Ten Years of Solitude -------------- ¶8. (C) Min Ko Naing said he spent the first nine years of his imprisonment at Rangoon's infamous Insein Prison. He described these years as the most difficult of his long sojourn in the gulag, as he spent most of his time in solitary confinement within a so-called "special ward" for political prisoners. Military intelligence agents, disguised in prison guard uniforms, were assigned to monitor the special ward where they prohibited the political prisoners from doing anything without MI permission - including talking, reading, and writing. ¶9. (C) In late May 1998, the regime transferred Min Ko Naing from Rangoon to Sittwe, another notorious prison located in the capital of Rakhine State, near Burma's western border with Bangladesh. He said that although prison conditions were deplorable, authorities treated the political prisoners relatively better than at Insein Prison. Still, he faced considerable hardship. The Sittwe prison is located more than 400 miles from Rangoon (at least two days overland) and family members were only allowed to travel and visit him twice a year. He again spent significant time in solitary confinement (ten out of the combined fifteen years he was jailed at Insein and Sittwe). However, he added that ICRC representatives were able to visit him periodically and that such visits "always helped improve conditions," as well as his morale. ¶10. (SBU) For the duration of his imprisonment, Min Ko Naing said that health care was "essentially non-existent." Neither prison medics nor janitors were allowed regular access to the "special wards" for political prisoners, and during several bouts of illness Min Ko Naing said he was confined to his cell where had to sleep among his own vomit and feces. A Little Help From Another Fourth Class Citizen -------------- -- ¶11. (C) Minimally sympathetic prison guards in Sittwe assigned a regular prisoner to assist Min Ko Naing in keeping his cell clean. He said that they had purposefully selected an ethnic Rohingya prisoner, jailed on immigration charges, who did not speak Burmese "in order to keep me isolated from outside news." However, Min Ko Naing said he "fooled" his jailers by learning Bengali with the Rohingya prisoner, from whom he able to glean an occasional scrap of news about Burmese and world events (prison authorities later punished his guards for "allowing" him to learn Bengali). Nonetheless, he said that the Rohingya prisoner, as well as friendly prison personnel, had very little education and as a result were not able to pass on accurate political news or analysis. He sporadically received tiny notes smuggled in from friends and supporters, but in general he described a 15-year period mostly devoid of news. ¶12. (SBU) Min Ko Naing offered that the years of solitude had taken a tremendous toll on his mental health. In his last few years at Sittwe, he was allowed to spend half an hour daily in a communal bath area and also had occasional access to the prison's death row compound (inhabited primarily by ethnic Rohingyas). During these brief encounters with fellow prisoners, he said he had significant difficulty communicating and making himself understood, causing him to doubt his mental capacities. He further observed that a deterioration in his mental health had led to a number of physical problems. ¶13. (C) Min Ko Naing declined to comment whether he had been tortured in prison. However, during our encounter he showed signs of some eye damage and hearing loss. He also revealed that preliminary results from a physical exam on November 22 indicated heart problems that will require drug treatment. While he had some difficulty responding to open-ended questions, he was quite confident and relaxed and demonstrated keen political insight. He was also disarmingly witty, reflecting on several of his darker moments with humorous anecdotes. He noted that when prisoners were feeling particularly depressed about conditions or the prospects for release, they would declare with bitter irony that "All will be better when Razali arrives," observing that the U.N. Special Envoy (and his predecessors) were rarely allowed to visit Burma and, when they did, were unsuccessful in making any progress. ¶14. (C) As for his future plans, Min Ko Naing said understandably that he will take the time necessary to heal his physical and mental wounds. Given uncertainties about the SPDC's posture toward recently released political prisoners, he said he would keep a low profile for the foreseeable future. However, Min Ko Naing added, he is keen to keep in touch with the U.S. Embassy and will soon make a return visit to our American Center and its library holdings, where he said he gained important information and inspiration when he was a university student in the 1980s. A Profile in Courage -------------- ¶15. (SBU) Comment: Min Ko Naing once published a poem titled "Faith," that read in part: "In this unfinished revolution; Should my soul be gripped with fear, be hesitant and lack courage; Let your souls enter into mine and steer me along." He is clearly grateful for the help and support he received from the United States and others over the years, and yet we saw no signs that fear had conquered this remarkable man. Min Ko Naing's enormous personal sacrifice--in pursuit of a peaceful transition to democracy in Burma and improved human rights for his fellow citizens--is one of many stirring examples of what U.S. Burma policy is all about. End Comment. MARTINEZ