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

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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

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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