ILO REP PUSHING FOR GOB ACTION TO MATCH PROMISES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000146 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MLS; PACOM FOR FPA E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/08/2015 TAGS: ELAB PGOV PREL PHUM BM SUBJECT: ILO REP PUSHING FOR GOB ACTION TO MATCH PROMISES REF: A. RANGOON 079 ¶B. 05 RANGOON 1216 RANGOON 00000146 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Econoff TLManlowe for Reason 1.4 (b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: The Government of Burma has reacted to international concern over their 2005 treatment of the ILO Liaison Officer (ref B),swiftly approving his latest request for in-country travel to look at forced labor issues and taking his personal security seriously for the first time. On the other hand, the Ministry of Labor still has not responded to ILO's proposals to develop a framework to address forced labor systematically and continues to persecute others who take a stand on the issue. The ILO Liaison doubts the sincerity of the Minister of Labor or other regime leaders in addressing forced labor through institutional change any time soon, but will use every opportunity to get the GOB back to the bargaining table. End Summary. ¶2. (C) On February 1, ILO Liaison Officer for Burma Richard Horsey briefed the Charge on his first trip outside of Rangoon since the Burmese threat to withdraw from the ILO was made last October. He requested a trip to Tenaserrim Division (along Burma's southern coast with Thailand) on short notice and received swift approval. He traveled in Tenaserrim without any official GOB escort or obvious interference and spoke freely with community and religious leaders. He reported that poverty in the province had significantly worsened over the past year, with more people crossing the border into Thailand. A more prosperous looking village he discovered depended almost entirely on remittances from relatives working in Thailand. ¶3. (C) Horsey described his current working environment as better than last year's. He has good access to the Labor Minister and officials in the Labor Department. The Labor Minister has provided written guarantees of his personal safety, and the harassment that he suffered before appears to have ended. Horsey said he received his visa at the Burmese Embassy in Bangkok within 24 hours, a new speed record for that mission. ¶4. (C) According to Horsey, the ILO will urge the GOB to follow through with substance on its verbal assurances to the ILO last year that it will address the country's forced labor problem systematically. The ILO has proposed a modified compliance mechanism since the Minister of Labor rejected the former Plan of Action in November 2005. The ILO has tried to accommodate some of the GOB's claims that the former Plan impinged upon its national sovereignty by establishing a method of adjudicating forced labor complaints outside of the national legal system. Since any credible and effective mechanism would have to exist outside the current regime-controlled judiciary, Horsey predicted that some GOB officials, especially the Attorney General, would fight it. To bring Burma into compliance with its ILO commitments, Horsey said some "dramatic" institutional changes would be needed in Burma. He doubted that he could achieve agreement on any issues of substance before the March ILO Governing Board meeting, despite the positive reaction offered to the new ILO plan by the Burmese Ambassador in Geneva. ¶5. (C) Charge asked for Horsey's views about the GOB's treatment of Su Su Nway, who was imprisoned for one and a half years in October 2005 for successfully reporting a case of forced labor to the ILO and GOB. Horsey replied that the ILO is following her case closely and did not expect the Supreme Court would honor her appeal (Note: The Supreme Court refused to hear the case on February 1. An appeal for full bench hearing is possible. End note.). Horsey expected that RANGOON 00000146 002.2 OF 002 the March Governing Board meeting would be very contentious without the release of Su Su Nway and other prisoners of concern, and a solid GOB statement of commitment to addressing forced labor issues. The ILO Governing Board will also likely react if the visa of former ICRC Head and current ILO senior advisor Leon de Riedmatten is not renewed before February 22 (ref A). The new mechanism proposed by the ILO envisioned de Riedmatten playing a key role in investigating labor allegations, since this would require someone with appropriate stature and experience in Burma. ¶6. (C) Horsey surmised that Burma's off-again on-again relationship with the ILO in recent years stems from the interventions of Burma's two senior generals. He believes that Vice Chairman Maung Aye may be more supportive of working with the ILO than Senior General Than Shwe, since Maung Aye may want to limit the damage done to the Army's reputation caused by constant labor abuses. The Labor Minister does not seem to want to address tough issues like forced labor, Horsey said, and has the ability to negatively influence the process before it reaches the highest levels. Therefore, Horsey sought to engage others who may have access to the senior leaders. ¶7. (C) When Charge asked how we could help, Horsey said that the international community will have to encourage Burmese compliance with a new mechanism for forced labor investigations, should the GOB commit to the process. Horsey said that looming international pressure from the UN Security Council discussion of Burma and from the ASEAN Summit may have persuaded the GOB to back away from ILO withdrawal, though he admitted this may have been more to avoid losing its dwindling supporters. Horsey added that the Governments of Sweden and the Czech Republic had expressed interest in engaging more forcefully on Burma and could inspire others in Europe to play a more helpful role as well. ¶8. (C) Comment: Horsey told us that the GOB "can't keep lurching from Governing Board to Governing Board" indefinitely, delaying any real action on its widespread use of forced labor while continuing to offer vague verbal assurances that things would be improving soon. International reaction to regime death threats against Horsey and its refusal to consider the ILO's Plan of Action may have prompted authorities to treat Horsey better. However, the regime's continued persecution of Su Su Nway, threats to expel Leon de Riedmatten, and reluctance to consider any effective compliance mechanism on forced labor issues indicates that the GOB intends to continue stalling. This weekend, the remaining Rangoon officials of the Ministry of Labor will join other government departments in retreating to the new capital of Pyinmana, which will only complicate contacts further. Nevertheless, Horsey seems determined to keep up the pressure for regime action against forced labor. End comment. VILLAROSA