BURMA: WFP STRUGGLES TO REACH THE STARVING

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 001155 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO PACOM FOR FPA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM SUBJECT: BURMA: WFP STRUGGLES TO REACH THE STARVING REF: RANGOON 1146 RANGOON 00001155 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. Burma's ruling military regime places significant restrictions on the movements of World Food Program (WFP) officials, as well as its cooperating partners and donor organizations. Attendees at a November 29 meeting on WFP issues complained that, with only a few exceptions, it has become more difficult and time-consuming to get permission to deliver food to relief areas throughout the country this year. Plans to expand WFP programs in Kachin State in 2008 will probably be postponed due to the recent regime closure of roads leading into restricted areas. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) On November 29, the World Food Program (WFP) hosted a meeting with its donor and partner organizations to conclude the first year of WFP's three-year "Assistance to Vulnerable Families in Myanmar" program. To date, the project has received $52 million from donor organizations, including $300,000 from the United States. The WFP and its partner organizations work throughout Burma to establish food security in remote areas. Its largest sub-project, "Food for Education," provides families in selected areas with 10 kilograms of rice each month if their children attend school regularly. The project has benefited 175,000 children thus far. In the future, the WFP plans to enhance its partnerships with other organizations, to focus more on nutrition and HIV/AIDS, and to conduct a survey that maps the vulnerability and needs in particular areas of the country. Chris Kaye, Country Director of the WFP, contrasted the overwhelming need for WFP relief with the regime's claim that Burma has a food surplus, a point which he said "begs the question of why we are even here." Restrictions on Travel -------------- ¶3. (SBU) One of the largest problems that the WFP faced in the past year is tighter travel restrictions. Because it can takes days or weeks for organizations to receive GOB permission to travel, even under the umbrella of the WFP's MOU with the regime that permits travel to project areas, food often does not arrive in the neediest areas promptly. Chris Kaye said that while the Southwest regional commander granted the WFP blanket permission to travel in Northern Rakhine State, making travel easier this year than last, problems remain. One partner organization said that since the September crackdown, inspections of his food trucks have gone from taking one day to complete to taking two or three days. Other organizations said that they must use the WFP umbrella to access areas to carry out more complete aid packages, beyond food distribution. Recent government closure of roads leading to restricted areas of Kachin State will further hinder their planned expansion of operations in the region (reftel). Exit Strategies -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Chris Kaye and Deputy Country Director Hakan Tongul also noted the difficulty they have had in devising exit strategies. WFP's goal in each project area is to create ways for people to maintain livelihoods without having to rely on continuing food donations by the WFP. However, due to GOB travel restrictions, other organizations that might help them build capacity cannot come into the project areas. As a result, the WFP has fallen into the trap of providing long-term food welfare. Dialogue With the Government -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Hakan Tongul said that food security is increasingly constrained because of the government's top-down policies. The WFP and other UN organizations are unable to start and maintain meaningful dialogue with regime decision-makers, especially over recent months. As a result, they cannot RANGOON 00001155 002.2 OF 002 resolve ongoing problems, and conducting their projects in restricted areas of the country is becoming more difficult. Chris Kaye said that all UN organizations need to work together on rebuilding trust with the government, which has eroded significantly. ¶6. (SBU) Comment. Throughout the meeting, Chris Kaye and Hakam Tongul expressed UN organizations' frustration over increasingly unproductive relations with the GOB. The Than Shwe regime continues to claim that Burma produces more food than it needs, but it also refuses to allow the WFP and other assistance organizations access to areas where people face starvation. The malnutrition and threat of starvation in those areas are real. By blocking efforts to reach them with vital assistance, Than Shwe demonstrates again that the survival of his despotic control matters more to him that the survival of the people of Burma. End Comment. STOLTZ