PLANS FOR JOINT DEMARCHE ON MISSING HMONG CHILDREN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 VIENTIANE 000496

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, PRM

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/02/2016
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KIRF TH LA
SUBJECT: PLANS FOR JOINT DEMARCHE ON MISSING HMONG CHILDREN

REF: A. VIENTIANE 443


B. VIENTIANE 67

Classified By: Ambassador Patricia M. Haslach, reason 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (U) This is an action cable. Please see para 11.

Summary
--------------

2. (C) With no sign of the Lao intending to release the 26
Hmong children held since December, the "like-minded" group
in Vientiane plans to jointly demarche the Lao government as
soon as modalities can be arranged, perhaps as early as the
week of June 12-16. Timing is an important point: the Lao
will announce cabinet changes June 10 and the Foreign
Minister is almost certain to be replaced. The UN Secretary
General wrote to the Lao President May 18 asking the Lao to
return the children to Thailand; so far the Lao have not
responded to the letter, but UNDP's ResRep will press for an
answer. The Australians have redrafted talking points, while
like-minded countries (with the EU embassies joining
bilaterally) will seek permission to participate. The group
agrees that the demarche is the logical next step in pressing
the GoL on the missing children, and that the pressure from
the international community needs to be kept up. Unless the
Lao turn the children loose in the next week or two, the
joint demarche looks set to go. End summary.

Like-minded meeting
--------------

3. (C) The like minded group (U.S., France, Australia,
Germany, Poland and UNDP) met June 1 at the invitation of the
French Ambassador to discuss next steps on the missing Hmong
children (ref A). The Swedes, who are normally part of the
group, were unable to attend. To date there are still no
signals that the Lao intend to release the group, in spite of
the Thai government's handing over to the GoL two weeks ago
details of the December 5 deportation; the Lao had been
demanding that information as a first step in "locating" the
children.


4. (C) According to the French Ambassador, the details
provided by the Thai were sparse, saying the group had been
deported by "unnamed Thai officials" on December 5 at
Thaphabat district in Bolikhamsai province, the Thai welcomed
the children back, and the return must be done in a "secret"
manner. The Lao reaction to the information was subject to
interpretation: the French Ambassador, like us, believed the
Lao were not satisfied with the amount of detail, for example
wanting to know the names of the Thai officials responsible
for the deportation. On the other hand, the Lao Press
Spokesman had said the Thai details had been passed on to
officials in the province where the children "went missing,"
implying they may have a plan in place to "find" the children
and send them back to Thailand. The Lao also have a copy of
the Thai immigration report, with names of Thai officials,
handed by the Ambassador to the Deputy PM/Foreign Minister
January 18 (ref B).


5. (C) In another important development, the UNDP ResRep told
the group that UN Secretary-General Annan had written to the
Lao President May 18 noting the children's deportation to
Laos and asking that the Lao locate the group and return them
to their families in Thailand. (We have e-mailed a copy of
the letter to EAP.) The UNSG also raised the case of the
children with Thai PM Thaksin during the course of his recent
visit to Bangkok, according to the ResRep. In addition, the
ResRep noted that, per UNHCR in Bangkok, the Vietnamese
Embassy here had recently spoken with the Lao MFA about the
missing children, albeit without a positive response.


6. (C) The Australians had raised the missing children during
a recent, and long-delayed, meeting between the Ambassador
and Foreign Minister. The Australian Ambassador referred to
the meeting as largely a "diatribe" by the FM against the

VIENTIANE 00000496 002 OF 003


U.S., heavy on Cold War rhetoric and haranguing the U.S. for
having "gone public" on the children. Finally, our Embassy's
Political Officer had spoken with the Vietnamese Embassy
First Secretary earlier this week about the case, informing
him that a copy of the Bolikhamsai province police report on
the arrested children was "circulating" in the diplomatic
community and was leading members of the community to believe
the Lao were lying about their claim not to know where the
children were. We assume this information will get back to
the Lao via their friends the Vietnamese.

Joint demarche -- yes, but when?
--------------

7. (C) In view of the dilatory Lao reaction to the new Thai
information, the group agreed that the joint demarche was
called for, although timing was debatable, with the EU (as
usual) making the strongest pitch for giving the Lao more
time. Even the EU Charge came around and agreed, however,
that the time had come to act. The group concluded that the
demarche should be delivered "as soon as possible," meaning
most likely the week of June 12-16, or as soon thereafter as
MFA would grant a meeting. One complication was the likely
cabinet shakeup expected for around June 10; the Foreign
Minister was almost certain to be replaced, and any demarche
after that date would be with a new FM (most likely Deputy
Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith) who would be only vaguely
familiar with the Hmong children issue.


8. (C) In preparation for the demarche, the Australian
Ambassador offered to provide a new set of draft talking
points, while all those present who had not yet obtained
permission to join the demarche (the Germans, Poles and
French) promised to contact their ministries immediately. We
have incorporated the draft demarche points, at the end of
this cable, for Department's clearance. At the same time,
the UNDP ResRep would seek to call on the GoL to encourage a
formal response to the UNSG's letter, as the group felt an
early response to this letter would provide a more tangible
signal of Lao intentions regarding the missing children.

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

9. (C) In view of the Thai request that the return of the
children should be done "secretly," it is possible there is
some move in the works by the Lao to repatriate the children
without our knowledge -- we are keeping our fingers crossed.
However, our experience with the GoL leads us in the opposite
direction. The hints coming out of the government that the
Thai information was insufficient strongly imply they have
yet again moved the goalposts. One thing is for certain: the
Thai have done all that can reasonably be expected to
accommodate the children's return. The Lao now bear all
responsibility for resolving this. The joint demarche is the
next step in reminding the GoL yet again that the entire
international community (and not just the U.S., as the FM so
fervently believes) cares about the welfare of the children.


10. (C) One more thing: In a telling bit of hypocrisy from
the GoL, the FM, who ironically heads the National Women and
Children Commission, only two days ago briefed the press on
the "bright future" for Laos' children. He obviously wasn't
counting among those children the 26 his government is
holding incommunicado and under reportedly appalling
conditions in Bolikhamsai and Phongsaly provinces. End
comment.

Draft talking points
--------------

11. (C) Action request: Embassy requests Department's
clearance of the following draft talking points for the joint
demarche:

-- 29 individuals were arrested in Petchabun province in
Thailand late in November 2005. They were reportedly held at
Khao Khor District Prison before being transferred to

VIENTIANE 00000496 003 OF 003


immigration detention in Nongkhai Province.

-- 27 of the original group, 26 of whom were then between the
ages of 12 and 20, were subsequently illegally deported from
Thailand to Bholikhamsai Province in Laos in early December.

-- The Government of Laos has previously informed us that it
is unaware of the whereabouts of the group, has initiated a
search, and has sought further details, in particular of the
16 girls and 5 boys 18 years old or younger, from Thailand.

-- We understand that UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan wrote
to H.E. President Khamtay Siphandone on 18 May expressing
concern and asking that Laos work to ensure that the children
are reunited with their families as soon as possible.

-- We further understand Mr. Annan discussed the matter with
Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in Bangkok on 26 May, and
was assured that Thailand will accept the children back and
has provided the requested information to Laos.

-- We join the Secretary-General in urging the Government of
Laos to resolve the matter, through renewed diplomacy and the
early return of the children to Thailand. We offer our
assistance to the Government of Laos should it be needed.

-- The international community accepts that the best means of
assuring the early return of the children is through private
diplomacy between Laos and Thailand, and not through
international organizations or resort to public statements.

-- That said, we cannot ignore the increased interest in the
case by concerned communities and individuals within our own
countries, and the prospect of increased public attention and
calls for international action.

-- We look forward to close cooperation and timely
information as to the status of the group, especially the
children, so that those now following the case within our own
countries can likewise be informed.

-- We make this demarche in the spirit of cooperation and
frank and open exchange.



HASLACH