Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06HANOI739
2006-03-31 08:54:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Hanoi
Cable title:  

AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES ETHNIC MINORITY ISSUES IN HOA

Tags:  PREL PHUM KIRF ETRD EINV ECON VM 
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VZCZCXRO8354
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHNH
DE RUEHHI #0739/01 0900854
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 310854Z MAR 06
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1309
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 0843
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 000739 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM KIRF ETRD EINV ECON VM
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES ETHNIC MINORITY ISSUES IN HOA
BINH AND SON LA PROVINCES

REF:
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 000739

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM KIRF ETRD EINV ECON VM
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES ETHNIC MINORITY ISSUES IN HOA
BINH AND SON LA PROVINCES

REF: 1) HANOI 697, 2) HANOI 715

HANOI 00000739 001.2 OF 003



1. (SBU) Summary: On a March 13-15 visit, the Ambassador
discussed ethnic minority issues with the leaders of Hoa
Binh and Son La Provinces (reftels). Son La has a much
larger potential problem with ethnic tension arising from
the massive displacement of ethnic minority Thai communities
by the Son La dam reservoir. Each resettled village will
force the Provincial People's Committee (PPC) to make hard
decisions to reduce inevitable disruptions. A model
resettled community demonstrates that these issues will take
significant time to resolve. Son La's focus on
integrationist programs like an ethnic minority boarding
school, however, may go far in helping reduce ethnic unrest
in the province. End Summary.

HOA BINH
--------------


2. (SBU) The Ambassador met with Hoa Binh PPC Chairman Bui
Van Tinh on March 13. As part of a discussion on economic
and religious freedom issues (reftels),Tinh noted that Hoa
Binh's 800,000 people are divided between seven main ethnic
groups. Sixty-three percent of the population is ethnic
Muong, as is the majority of the PPC staff including the
Chairman. All seven groups are "coming together in
solidarity and unity" and "there are no flashpoints for
protest in the province," he said. This is helped by the
fact that, though Muong people are technically a separate
ethnicity from the Kinh (ethnic Vietnamese),they are
considered a related branch of the majority ethnicity so
there is less ethnic tension compared to other provinces.
Most Muong take Kinh names and are not physically
distinguishable from other Vietnamese. (Note: We have not
heard of any ethnic issues arising in this province to date,
which tracks with the Chairman's comments. End note.) The
Ambassador observed that this lack of ethnic tension puts
Hoa Binh ahead of some other highland provinces in its plans
for social and economic development, but warned that
education demands particular attention in majority ethnic

minority areas. On a recent trip to Gia Lai province in the
Central Highlands, for example, the Ambassador said he met
an ethnic family which did not value education at all
because it was not "traditional." None of the children had
been to school and were now too old to be given the
opportunity of education. "Their traditions had closed the
door on their participation in development," he added.

SON LA
--------------


3. (SBU) As noted in reftels, Son La PPC Chairman Hoang Chi
Thuc's approach to most issues was generally a stark
contrast with the Hoa Binh Chairman's attitudes. However,
on ethnic minority issues, Chairman Thuc was much more
attentive than his colleague. During his laborious opening
presentation to the Ambassador on March 14, Thuc noted that
the Son La dam project is one of the main priorities for PPC
policy in this province of 900,000 because the new reservoir
will displace many thousands of ethnic "White" Thai
residents to other communities. (Note: The dam project
management board originally estimated that at least 80,000
people will have to be relocated by 2010, but the likely
number is much higher. End Note). The province has taken
the lead to resettle 12,000 households in locations "better
than their original villages." Over dinner the following
evening, Thuc elaborated that Son La benefits financially
from the resettlement effort despite having to relocate so
many people because the GVN has provided significant funding
for new schools, new roads and new irrigation in resettled
communities. The GVN will also give subsidies directly to
each person resettled so villagers will be able to invest in
their new communities. Son La will receive 100 million VND
(USD 62,000) to move each household, a relatively small
amount of which will actually go to the villagers in cash.
(Note: This equates to roughly USD 744 Million for the total
resettlement project. End Note.)


4. (SBU) Thuc acknowledged that resettlement of the
reservoir basin will be difficult for some people because
they are "very familiar with their former places of
residence" and will need to get used to a new community.
However, Hoa Binh has developed a phased relocation strategy
to reassure people that their new homes will be sustainable.
The first step is for villagers to dismantle their homes and
community buildings. The province then transports the
village to its new location. Villagers reassemble their
homes and community buildings. Once the new community is

HANOI 00000739 002.2 OF 003


built, the PPC reclaims the surrounding land from previous
"owners"; this land is then given to the villagers for
farming. The villagers receive rice and money for two years
to tide them over while their new lands are brought under
cultivation. The final phase of the project will include
new training for the farmers to increase productivity.

Phieng Bung Village
--------------


5. (SBU) On March 14, the Ambassador visited one of the
first resettled communities, the ethnic "White" Thai village
of Phieng Bung. The village is located off the main road
between the Son La dam location and Son La town. It is
reached by a new road, still under construction, that cuts
across three or four miles of cultivated rice paddies and
orchards. Phien Bung was built in the middle of a mango
orchard with regular rows of mango trees interspersed with
well-ordered, reassembled homes. The effect was somewhat
incongruous. A one-room kindergarten and one-room
elementary school are currently under construction in the
village square. The village elder told the Ambassador that
Phieng Bung's 246 people began disassembling their sixty-
five households in October 2005. Each person received 3
million VND (USD 188) directly from the province for the
move. Son La provided trucks for the movement. All houses
in the new location have electricity.


6. (SBU) The headman noted that the province has not yet
provided land for the villagers to farm. They are surviving
only on the rice and other foodstuffs they have been given
by the province. People are generally happy in their new
community, but worried about the land issue. There is also
some difficulty arising from the fact that the original
owner of the mango trees planted throughout their community
still owns and works the trees. Compensation and access
issues have still to be worked out with the farmer.
Provincial officials reassured him that all of these
problems will be resolved by the end of March.

Ethnic Minority Boarding School
--------------


7. (SBU) Following the visit to the resettled village, the
Ambassador visited the Son La Ethnic Minority Boarding
School in Son La town. School Director Cam Van Nghiep
explained that the school was established in 1956 as an
institution to prepare select ethnic minority students for
university or vocational training colleges. In its fifty
year history, more than two thousand students have graduated
from the school of whom forty percent attended university.
There are currently 450 students enrolled in the school's
three classes: grades 10-12. Six of the twenty-three
teachers are "considered excellent by provincial standards"
(i.e., hold high university degrees) and another four are
"excellent by local standards" (i.e., attended university).
The school was renovated in 1994. It is situated on an
island in the middle of a lake reached by a paved causeway.
There are fifteen classrooms and fifty-two dormitory
bedrooms that house eight students each. The school also
boasts a science laboratory and a computer lab. The
language of instruction is Vietnamese. The only foreign
language taught in the school is English, but the faculty
hopes to add Chinese and Russian. The annual school budget
is about USD 150,000 or six million VND per student.


8. (SBU) Nghiep noted that the province covers all expenses
for students. They are selected out of the best students
from a number of ethnic minority middle schools across the
province. Average age is fifteen years at selection but in
a few cases, students as old as twenty have joined Grade 10.
These are usually special exceptions allowed for students
drawn from smaller ethnic minority groups in more remote
regions. Upon admission, students are required to sign a
written agreement that they will obey the law and "avoid
social evils" while enrolled. Students are drawn from all
twelve of the major ethnic minority groups in the province,
but the school tries to encourage each individual to
maintain their own ethnic identities. The school tends to
favor admission of students from other groups besides the
province's majority minority ethnic Thai. Nearly half of
the student body is female, but this is a relatively recent
trend. In 1990, less than two percent of the students were
girls. None of the students profess any religion. The
Ambassador encouraged the director to recruit some of the
ethnic minority children from among the approximately 5,000
Christians in the province. They deserve access to
education as well non-believers and their identity is also

HANOI 00000739 003.2 OF 003


important, he said.


9. (SBU) At the dinner with Chairman Thuc, the Ambassador
applauded Son La's efforts to educate ethnic minority
students for positions of responsibility in the province.
He was especially pleased to see so many girls attending the
boarding school, he said. However, the Ambassador
emphasized the importance of recruiting students from ethnic
minority Christian communities so that all students share in
the advanced opportunities the school offers.

Comment
--------------


10. (SBU) Hoa Binh's ethnic minority majority population
seems far better integrated than the Son La's people, but
Hoa Binh does not face the huge potential problems created
in Son La by the displacement of nearly one ninth of its
residents by the Son La dam. The model resettled village
was impressive, but if it truly represents the size and make-
up of the average displaced community, Son La will have to
repeat this effort at least 184 more times. Even in this
pilot village, after six months the PPC has not begun to
address the hard problems created by its reestablishment.
Each resettled community will force the PPC to decide who
owns the land they live on, how much compensation is due to
previous owners, whose land should be allocated to the new
village, etc. Given the huge amount of money provided by
the GVN to resettle these people, the tensions caused by
their displacement will almost assuredly be exacerbated by
the corruption of officials charged with supervising their
move. The PPC's focus on integrationist programs like the
ethnic minority boarding school seems to reflect growing
concerns about ethnic tension in the province. If they are
able to expand the franchise of such programs beyond an
elite set of ethnic minority individuals, they may go far in
helping reduce ethnic unrest in Son La. End Comment.

MARINE