REGIONAL UN HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICE BRIEFS WESTERN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BANGKOK 005521

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

NSC FOR PHU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/22/2017
TAGS: PREL PGOV PREF PHUM KDEM KPAO TH BM
SUBJECT: REGIONAL UN HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICE BRIEFS WESTERN
DIPLOMATS ON BURMA, UPCOMING PINHEIRO VISIT

REF: BANGKOK 5375

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Classified By: DCM James F. Entwistle, reason 1.4 (b) and (d).

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) The regional UN Human Rights office (OHCHR) in Bangkok
is focused on gathering information about what happened
during September's protests and subsequent crackdown by the
Burmese junta, as well as pushing the UN to incorporate human
rights in its response, stated representatives from OHCHR in
Bangkok. They added that UN Special Rapporteur for Human
Rights Paulo Pinheiro for Burma is expected to visit Thailand
October 31 - November 4 for meetings with Burmese activists,
the international diplomatic community, as well as high level
RTG officials. Pinheiro would also attempt to obtain a visa
to travel to Burma, a scenario the UN believed is likely. We
encouraged the OHCHR representatives to arrange a meeting
between Pinheiro and Western diplomats prior to any meeting
with RTG officials so that we could present Pinheiro with our
views of the RTG response to the current situation in Burma.
We also suggested that in Pinheiro's dealings with the RTG he
speak frankly about Thailand's so far relatively weak
position on Burma. END SUMMARY.

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OHCHR MOVING SLOWLY ON BURMA
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2. (C) In an October 22nd briefing to Western diplomats in
Bangkok, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human Rights' (OHCHR) representatives Homayoun Alizadeh
(Regional Representative for South East Asia) and Pablo
Espinielua (newly arrived OHCHR Human Rights Coordinator)
claimed that they were in constant contact with international
organizations and people coming out of Burma as part of their
attempt to gather facts and statistics about the recent
protests in Burma. To this end, their office is focused on
training people how to monitor and collect data about events
in Burma. At this point they did not have any specific
numbers regarding arrests or deaths but rather have been
working off the same numbers put forward by many others (i.e.
50-100 killed during actual protests and thousands more
detained). Espinielua stressed that his office has good
sources inside and outside of Burma, particularly within
religious quarters. Once OHCHR has an accurate picture of
what transpired in September and early October, they planned
to release a report detailing events, which they expected to
be ready in about two months' time.


3. (C) In addition to investigating recent events in Burma,
Espinielua presented a detailed review of his office's
attempts to ensure the UN interagency response included a
human rights component. Espinielua reported that UN Special
Rapporteur for Human Rights Pablo Pinheiro met with UN
Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari just prior to Gambari's early
October visit to Burma. Pinheiro passed on messages from
civil society about the ongoing human rights violations in
Burma and urged Gambari to raise the issue of human rights in
his meetings with Burmese officials. But overall the OHCHR
representatives painted a frustrating picture of efforts in
getting human rights onto Gambari's agenda. They stated
Gambair is focused more on getting people released without
addressing why they had been arrested in the first place.
Pinheiro would be speaking at the UN General Assembly October
22, and the OHCHR representatives in Thailand expect that he
would provide more information about Burma's human rights

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crisis during that address.

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PINHEIRO TO VISIT REGION THIS MONTH
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4. (C) In their October 22 briefing, the OHCHR announced that
Pinheiro will travel to Thailand October 31 - November 4 to
meet with a wide range of actors interested in Burma,
including RTG officials. He would also use the trip as
another opportunity to push for a visa to travel to Burma,
which the OHCHR representatives believed would be granted
(though they offered no explanation as to why it would be
granted this time after more than three years of refusals).
Therefore, OHCHR would develop two scenarios for Pinheiro's
visit, one that included a trip to Burma and the other
limited to Thailand. The former would be coordinated with
the UN country office in Burma. The latter would include
meetings with Burmese activists based in Thailand,
representatives from the international community, and with
RTG officials.


5. (C) We made it clear to the OHCHR representatives that
Pinheiro should meet with members of the diplomatic community
prior to any meetings with RTG officials. This would ensure
that Pinheiro understood our views regarding Thailand's
official response to the situation in Burma. Alizadeh
replied that in their meetings last week the Thai MFA assured
OHCHR that those fleeing Burma's recent political crackdown
would be given a fair review, though Alizadeh felt that the
MFA was reluctant to accept the UN as a full partner in any
dealings with Burmese dissidents escaping the political
crackdown. (Note: We received unsubstantiated reports over
the weekend that the Burmese regime had asked the RTG to
crack down on Burmese activists living in Thailand, but
several inquiries to our contacts revealed that no such
action had been taken by any Thai authorities to date. End
Note.) Alizadeh continued that Pinheiro will meet with as
high level RTG officials as possible from the Ministries of
Defense, Foreign Affairs, and Interior, though no meetings
had been scheduled yet. We added that those meetings would
be most useful to all those involved if the UN sent a clear
message to the Thais that it was no longer business as usual
regarding Burma.

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COMMENT
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6. (C) We defer to our colleagues in Rangoon on the
likelihood of the regime there granting Pinheiro a visa after
three years of refusing to do so and on how he might best be
effective if he does get in. Our focus will be on his time
in Thailand. We will encourage him to speak bluntly with the
RTG about their so far mixed approach to the human rights and
humanitarian aspects of what is happening in Burma,
especially in regard to how displaced Burmese, especially
activists coming out now, are treated in Thailand. As reftel
reports, the RTG plans for dissidents leaving Thailand are
still not entirely clear, but appear to limit refugee's
options for third country resttlement or continued activism.
END COMMENT.
BOYCE