MORE ON THE CHINESE IN SURINAME

C O N F I D E N T I A L PARAMARIBO 000431

SIPDIS

NOFORN
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR, SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/11/2016
TAGS: PREL PINR CH
SUBJECT: MORE ON THE CHINESE IN SURINAME

REF: A. STATE 70035

B. PARAMARIBO 340

C. PARAMARIBO 425

D. PARAMARIBO 426

E. 7/7 LEONARD-FORDEN E-MAIL

Classified By: AMBASSADOR MARSHA E. BARNES, REASONS 1.4 B & D


1. (C) Summary: Recent interactions with the departing
Chinese ambassador reflect his country's deepening presence
in Suriname as well as a tolerance for unsavory politicians
on the local scene. The new Chinese ambassador to Suriname
comes from the PRC Embassy in Washington, D.C. End summary.


2. (C) At a farewell dinner hosted by Chinese ambassador
Jinghua for his American and Dutch counterparts, Ambassador
Barnes recalled that Assistant Secretary Shannon had been
pleased with his recent visit to Asia to consult on relations
with Latin America. The ambassador noted the opening of new
Chinese Embassies in several CARICOM countries as indicative
of more active Chinese engagement in the Caribbean.
Reflecting that trend in Suriname, Jinghua outlined an
ambitious construction program that would result in a new
Chinese ambassador's residence, chancery, and a townhouse
compound for staff quarters over the next three years, on the
premises of existing Chinese properties along the Suriname
river, not far from the U.S. and Dutch residences. Although
there are substantial numbers of Chinese workers already in
the country from the recently completed construction of
Suriname's new Ministry of Foreign Affairs building, new
groups of Chinese workers would be brought in to work on the
diplomatic compound.


3. (C) This turned the conversation to the question of
Chinese immigrants to Suriname, and the numbers who
naturalize as Surinamers. The ambassador inquired if the
inflow had caused an increased Embassy workload to address
the needs of these citizens. After some discussion between
Jinghua and his deputy, they came to a figure of something
over 100 Chinese nationals acquiring Surinamese citizenship
each year. This process requires divesting of Chinese
citizenship as the PRC does not recognize dual nationality.
Perhaps unintentionally reinforcing the perception that
arriving Chinese in fact view Suriname as a way station to
other destinations (including the United States),the Deputy
said the Embassy's passport renewal workload was not heavily
affected, since most Chinese arrive with a new passport, "and
they are valid for five years." He went on to stress the
Embassy's advice to its nationals to integrate themselves
into Suriname, in particular by learning the local language
Sranantongo.


4. (C) The farewell dinner followed closely on the
Venezuelan national day reception (ref c) to which the former
military dictator, convicted narcotics trafficker Desi
Bouterse, had been invited. Both the American and Dutch
ambassadors expressed disapproval of the Venezuelans'
decision to invite Bouterse, who is the subject of an
internationally recognized arrest warrant based on his
narcotics conviction in absentia in the Netherlands.
Ambassador Jinghua's reply began by stressing the need to
maintain normal relations with all countries regardless of
their policies, referring to Venezuela, but then challenged
the notion that it was inappropriate to receive Bouterse. In
a disquieting exchange that he repeated a few days later at a
U.S.-hosted event, Jinghua dismissed the Dutch narcotics
conviction, duly reported to Interpol, as irrelevant. Citing
the notion that people should be treated as innocent until
proven guilty, Jinghua argued that if Bouterse had not been
convicted in Suriname, his treatment should not be
constrained in Suriname.


5. (SBU) Turning to recent reports that a Chinese company
had been a bidder on new oil exploration blocks, the
Ambassador said his embassy had had no contact with the
Embassy. As noted ref (d),Jinghua speculated that this
company's interest was more likely to be in equipment sales
than actual exploration.


6. (C) Reflecting on his time in Suriname, the Chinese
ambassador expressed frustration with the difficulty of
working with the Government of Suriname and its slow decision
and action processes (note: a characterization none of his
diplomatic colleagues would dispute.) The ambassador
revealed that his successor was coming from the Chinese
Embassy in Washington, where he is a Minister Counselor.
Jinghua described the new Ambassador, Dr. Su Ge, as a
scholar, holding a PhD in international relations,
specializing in the Americas. Per ref (e),Su was formerly
the director of a government think tank called the China
Institute of International Studies, and is the author of a
book on U.S.-China relations. As noted in Ref B, Chen
Jinghua will next be posted to Jamaica, and expects to arrive
there in November. He is outgoing, his English is good, and
he clearly enjoyed his earlier posting to Washington at the
Embassy.
BARNES