ICRC CUTS STAFF BUT STANDS FIRM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000072

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS; PACOM FOR FPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/18/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL EAID BM
SUBJECT: ICRC CUTS STAFF BUT STANDS FIRM

REF: A. 06 RANGOON 1794


B. 06 RANGOON 1743

C. 06 RANGOON 1622

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Classified By: Poloff Dean Tidwell for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: The International Committee of the Red Cross
(ICRC) in Burma has steadily reduced its staff in the wake of
regime requirements that forced ICRC to curtail most of its
activities. However, ICRC's prosthetics program continues to
operate at full strength. ICRC is committed to maintaining a
presence at all five of its field offices as it presses the
government to clarify what it will allow ICRC to do. END
SUMMARY.


2. (C) Deputy Head of Delegation, Thierry Ribaux, told us on
January 17 that ICRC has steadily reduced its staff after the
regime stopped ICRC from conducting private visits with
prisoners in late 2005. ICRC decided to further reduce staff
after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) told it to close its
five field offices in November 2006 (ref C). At a subsequent
meeting on December 8, the MHA "clarified" that it did not
mean that the offices actually had to close, but just cease
some of their activities (ref A). To ICRC's question about
which activities they could continue, the minister replied
vaguely, "as in the past." ICRC believes the international
outcry after the ICRC press statement of November 27 (ref B),
which announced that the regime had ordered it to close its
field offices, forced the later "clarification."


3. (C) Ribaux stressed that ICRC believes it is important to
keep at least one expatriate staff member head at each of its
five field offices. While their expatriate staff do not
enjoy diplomatic immunity, they are better able than local
Burmese staff to resist pressure from local authorities and
thus offer a degree of protection to ICRC's local staff.
ICRC will remove its permanently employed ICRC "delegates"
from each of its field offices, but will keep a
contract-hired expatriate translator to head each field
office. Ribaux said ICRC can always redeploy delegates back
to Burma from its programs in other countries, but its
expatriate translators are difficult to replace. If ICRC
ever gets permission to resume private visits to prisons, it
will need to rely on these valued expatriate staff.


4. (C) Contrary to recent media reports, Ribaux said ICRC's
prosthetics program at its flagship rehabilitation center
that operates in cooperation with the Myanmar Red Cross
Society in Hpa-an, Karen State, continues operating normally.
ICRC also continues to support three prosthetic centers
operated by the Ministry of Health and three others operated
by the Ministry of Defense. Ribaux did not specifically
mention plans to reduce local Burmese staff.

WHAT NEXT?


5. (C) ICRC has actively sought another appointment with the
Minister of Home Affairs. ICRC will try to get the MHA to
clarify whether "as in the past" means ICRC activities of a
few months ago or a few years ago. ICRC wants the MHA to
define which activities must cease and which it can continue.


6. (C) COMMENT: Although the ICRC continues to reduce its
staff in response to the GOB's restrictions on its
activities, its commitment to its Burma program remains
strong. ICRC will keep a skeleton crew at its five field
offices and its core staff at its Rangoon country
headquarters to be ready to resume operations quickly if
negotiations with the MHA succeed. However, in the wake of
the UNSCR veto, and with the bad press it received for
curtailing ICRC's field operations abating, the regime holds
the upper hand. The ICRC's announcement of staff cuts is
part of its strategy to keep international attention on this

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issue. END COMMENT.
VILLAROSA