Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07VIENTIANE442
2007-05-26 09:06:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Vientiane
Cable title:  

AMBASSADOR'S FAREWELL CALLS WITH SENIOR LAO

Tags:  EAID ETRD LA MOPS PGOV PHUM PREL SNAR 
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VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVN #0442/01 1460906
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 260906Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY VIENTIANE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1258
INFO RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 7320
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
C O N F I D E N T I A L VIENTIANE 000442 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS (BESTIC)
STATE FOR PRM
STATE FOR PM/WRA (HUTCHENS)
STATE FOR EB/TPP/BTA
STATE PASS USTR FOR BISBEE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2017
TAGS: EAID ETRD LA MOPS PGOV PHUM PREL SNAR
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S FAREWELL CALLS WITH SENIOR LAO
OFFICIALS: HMONG ISSUES, MATERIAL WAIVER CONCERNS FEATURE
PROMINENTLY

REF: A. VIENTIANE 416

B. 06 VIENTIANE 1117

C. VIENTIANE 257

D. VIENTIANE 390

E. VIENTIANE 92

F. 06 VIENTIANE 1234

G. VIENTIANE 12

H. VIENTIANE 121

I. VIENTIANE 110

J. VIENTIANE 288

K. VIENTIANE 205

L. BANGKOK 596

M. BANGKOK 816

Classified By: AMBASSADOR PATRICIA M. HASLACH: for reasons
1.4 (b) and(d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L VIENTIANE 000442

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS (BESTIC)
STATE FOR PRM
STATE FOR PM/WRA (HUTCHENS)
STATE FOR EB/TPP/BTA
STATE PASS USTR FOR BISBEE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/25/2017
TAGS: EAID ETRD LA MOPS PGOV PHUM PREL SNAR
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S FAREWELL CALLS WITH SENIOR LAO
OFFICIALS: HMONG ISSUES, MATERIAL WAIVER CONCERNS FEATURE
PROMINENTLY

REF: A. VIENTIANE 416

B. 06 VIENTIANE 1117

C. VIENTIANE 257

D. VIENTIANE 390

E. VIENTIANE 92

F. 06 VIENTIANE 1234

G. VIENTIANE 12

H. VIENTIANE 121

I. VIENTIANE 110

J. VIENTIANE 288

K. VIENTIANE 205

L. BANGKOK 596

M. BANGKOK 816

Classified By: AMBASSADOR PATRICIA M. HASLACH: for reasons
1.4 (b) and(d)


1. (C) Summary: The Ambassador's farewell calls with senior
Lao officials were marked by appreciation for her role in
moving the bilateral relationship forward on traditional
areas of cooperation (MIA accounting, opium eradication, and
unexploded ordnance removal) while breaking ground on new
areas including avian influenza preparations, trade, and
increased military-military contacts. Somewhat surprisingly,
discussions of Hmong issues, a very sensitive subject, were
not only possible but quite frank in meetings with Foreign
Ministry leaders. The most disturbing element of these calls
was the message enunciated most clearly by the Foreign
Minister that the Lao Government is very concerned about a
USG material support waiver for Hmong "terrorists." End
summary.


2. (SBU) The Ambassador paid farewell calls during May on a
range of senior Government of Laos (GOL) leaders including
President Choummaly Sayasone (May 8),Deputy Prime
Minister/Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisoulith (May 21),
National Assembly (NA) President Thongsing Thammavong (May
23),Vice Foreign Minister Phongsavath Boupha (May 10),and
Vice Foreign Minister Bounkeut Sangsomsack (May 11 -- ref A).
In addition, Vice Foreign Minister Hiem Phommachanh hosted a
farewell dinner for the Ambassador on May 24. The GOL

officials all expressed very warm appreciation for the
Ambassador's role in helping improve bilateral relations.


3. (C) During these calls, the Ambassador highlighted the
improvements in bilateral relations that had occurred during
her term which had seen the United States granting Normal
Trade Relations to Laos. She also congratulated the Lao
officials for the GOL's successful hosting of the ASEAN
Summit (2004) and ASEAN and ARF Ministerials (2005) as
historical events which brought credit to the GOL during the
past three years. The Ambassador noted that, when she
arrived, U.S.-Lao bilateral relations centered on three
issues associated with the Indochina War: MIA accounting,
counter-narcotics, and unexploded ordnance.


4. (C) As she leaves, the Ambassador told the officials she
is pleased new areas of cooperation have evolved including
preparing for an avian influenza pandemic, trade, and
expanded mil-mil relations. We are now also able to talk
about the Hmong situation, although the two sides have very
different views. Symbolizing the expanding relationship was
the first bilateral Comprehensive Dialogue we held with the
GOL last October (ref B). In this Dialogue, we covered the
full range of bilateral issues including human rights and
other sensitive topics. We look forward to continuing the
Dialogue process with a second session this autumn, possibly
in the United States.


5. (C) DPM/FM Thongloun told the Ambassador that Laos
evaluated the bilateral relationship as very important and
improving, building on the solid tradition of 52 years of
uninterrupted relations -- despite "domestic changes" in
Laos. The Lao people need to understand the programs we are
cooperating on. We cannot prevent them from thinking about
the past, but we need them to see the future, he opined.
Thongloun said he was pleased EAP DAS Eric John had come to
Laos to lead the U.S. team for the Comprehensive Dialogue.
He welcomed the news that DAS John would be the next U.S.
Ambassador to Thailand, calling him a "good old friend."
Thongloun agreed the Comprehensive Dialogues should continue.
The Ambassador and Thongloun concurred that exchanges of


visitors increase bilateral understanding and lead to a
stronger relationship.

MIA Accounting
--------------

6. (C) The Ambassador expressed appreciation for the GOL's
humanitarian cooperation in the search for MIA remains. She
noted that 22 sets of remains had been identified and
returned to families and loved ones in the United States
during her three years in Laos. This brings the total of
remains identified by the two sides since the bilateral
accounting process began to 215 of the original total of 572.
She expressed hope that continued bilateral cooperation
would produce positive results for the remaining 357 missing.



7. (C) President Choummaly pointed out the GOL was pursuing a
humanitarian policy in assisting the USG with MIA accounting
even though many Lao soldiers were lost during the war years,
and the GOL has not had sufficient time to find their remains
to return to their families. Still the GOL will continue to
do its utmost to cooperate with the United States on finding
remains of the U.S. missing to return to their loved ones.
DPM/FM Thongloun assured the Ambassador the GOL would
maintain the current level of cooperation with the United
States, noting more than half of the original MIA are still
to be accounted for. During her meeting with Vice Foreign
Minister Phongsavath, the Ambassador added her special
appreciation that he had joined her in attending all four
repatriation ceremonies held by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting
Command (JPAC) during these past three years. (Note: in Lao
newspaper coverage of the Ambassador's farewell calls,
bilateral cooperation on the MIA accounting issue was
highlighted as the major point of discussion.)

Counter-narcotics
--------------

8. (C) The Ambassador highlighted for the GOL leaders the
role the United States has played for almost 20 years in
assisting the GOL in eradicating opium. Since 1989, the
United States has provided more than $42 million to support
counter-narcotics programs. She expressed hope that this
cooperation would continue as the counter-narcotics effort
moves to deal with the growing threat of methamphetamines and
other amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS -- ref C).


9. (C) During her meeting with President Choummaly, the
Ambassador pointed out the significance of having Mr. Soubanh
also present since he is the head of the Lao National
Committee on Drug Control and Supervision. The Ambassador
remembered participating in last year's ceremony declaring
Laos opium free; she credited Laos with successfully reducing
opium cultivation from 42,000 hectares in 1989 to only 1700
at present. President Choummaly expressed particular
appreciation for the Ambassador's attendance at the
opium-free ceremony. The Ambassador noted that she and
Minister Soubanh would travel to Pakse Province to address
Lao students there on the dangers of ATS addiction. (Note:
they spoke to 1000 students in Pakse the following day.)

Unexploded Ordnance
--------------

10. (C) The Ambassador restated the commitment of the United
States to help the GOL deal with unexploded ordnance (UXO)
and pointed out the USG has provided UXO support since the
beginning of the removal process. She noted she had
personally seen the impact UXO can have on villages and its
victims. Our goal is to help strengthen the GOL's capacity
to remove remaining UXO. We are also working to help educate
the young people of Laos about the dangers of UXO. President
Choummaly expressed great concern about the UXO problem,
saying this directly hampered the GOL's efforts at national
development. Lao officials requested that the USG continue
its support for UXO removal: DPM/FM Thongloun expressed hope
the USG would continue at least its current level of support
while President Choummaly asked for help in making even
faster progress on resolving this problem.

Avian Influenza
--------------

11. (C) One important new area of bilateral cooperation is
helping the GOL to prepare for an avian influenza (AI)


pandemic. The Embassy welcomes the cooperation on this issue
received from the Ministry of Health as well as the Ministry
of Agriculture and Forestry. The Ambassador noted she had
been very impressed with the GOL's handling of the first two
human AI cases earlier this year and the very effective
culling of poultry that the GOL carried out in March. She
promised the USG stands ready to work with the GOL on
managing AI in the future. DPM/FM Thongloun thanked the
Ambassador for the AI support and confirmed the GOL is "fully
controlling" the current situation.

Trade
--------------

12. (C) President Choummaly told the Ambassador he was quite
satisfied with the support provided by the USG in the area of
trade, including Normal Trade Relations (NTR) and a new
Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) coming into effect in 2005,
saying this has allowed Laos to increasingly become a part of
the international economic system. Describing Laos as a
small country which suffered greatly during the long war
years, the President highlighted the GOL's current focus on
implementing its social and economic development plan with
targets set for 2010 and 2020. To achieve these targets,
Laos needs the support and cooperation of the international
community including the United States. The President asked
for help in disseminating information about Laos to the U.S.
business community and encouraging more Americans to invest
in Laos.


13. (C) Despite NTR and the BTA, the Ambassador expressed
some disappointment that significant U.S. investment has not
yet been attracted to Laos. One issue is the investment
climate in Laos. The Ambassador told the Lao leaders that
USG stands ready to work with the GOL to improve the
investment climate. She gave credit to the National Assembly
during her meeting with NA President Thongsing for focusing
on laws to promote investment and economic development
through the private sector including by addressing issues
such as corruption.


14. (C) DPM/FM Thongloun remarked that U.S. investment in
Laos is still relatively high. He assessed the low level of
bilateral trade as resulting from the facts that the two
countries are so far from each other and American consumers
are not familiar with Lao products. At present, Laos sells
more to Europe than the United States. Thongloun expressed
hope that Lao silk and garments can achieve market share in
the United States, citing the success of Cambodia's garment
industry in doing so. He expressed faith that NTR and Laos's
upcoming WTO accession would make this process easier. The
Ambassador confirmed the USG looked forward to working with
the GOL on the process of WTO membership for Laos. Thongloun
also pressed the Ambassador to help find a way to make Ex-Im
Bank coverage for Laos possible.


15. (C) The Ambassador noted that one major U.S. energy
company is interested in investing in Laos and had recently
bid on a major hydropower project on the Mekong River (ref
D). This company has the experience and expertise to be able
to commit to the high standards set by the Nam Theun II
hydropower project. Although it was unsuccessful on this
bid, we hope the company will be interested in future
projects here. DPM/FM Thongloun told her he remembered
working on the Nam Theun II project when he was in his
previous position as head of the Lao Committee for Planning
and Investment. He joked that the Nam Theun II four-year
approval process was like studying for a "second Ph.D." for
him. Thongloun affirmed that if a major and capable U.S.
company were interested, it would be able to compete
successfully for future opportunities in the hydropower
sector in Laos. The Ambassador pointed out that a major U.S.
company being successful in entering the Lao market would
help drive Ex-Im Bank consideration of opening coverage of
U.S. investments here.

Mil-Mil Relations
--------------

16. (C) The Ambassador expressed hope the two sides would be
at a point where expanding mil-mil relations outside of the
MIA accounting process would be possible (ref E). We have
been cooperating on educational exchanges including at the
Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, and a


GOL delegation will be going to the United States to look at
English language training opportunities for the future. We
are also hoping to coordinate planning between the two
militaries to prepare for emergencies such as a region-wide
disease pandemic. We hope increased mil-mil cooperation will
help improve the overall bilateral relationship. DPM/FM
Thongloun was positive about these steps, asked that we keep
the Foreign Ministry informed, and expressed appreciation in
particular for a recent donation of medical supplies by PACOM
to the Lao military. (Note: agreement has been reached to
donate these supplies to the Lao military, possibly in
conjunction with an upcoming training event or other type of
exchange.)

Legislative Relations
--------------

17. (C) When meeting with National Assembly (NA) President
Thongsing, the Ambassador focused on the opportunities for
increased contact between the NA and the U.S. Congress. She
highlighted the very successful visit of Representative Betty
McCollum to Vientiane in December 2006 (refs F, G) as a very
positive first step. Thongsing noted the NA's role in
supporting the Government's focus on ending poverty,
developing prosperity, and expanding education. According to
Thongsing, increased education will bring greater equality
which will in turn lead to more democracy and a better human
rights environment. Describing this as a step-by-step
process, Thongsing asked rhetorically how people who have
food while others are hungry or people with university
educations while others are uneducated could ever be equal in
society. Thus the NA has a special focus on building roads,
schools, and hospitals in rural areas to reduce existing gaps
within the society. The Ambassador particularly complimented
the NA's role in protecting the most vulnerable in society,
citing the recent Women and Children Trafficking Law and the
Protecting Children's Rights and Benefits Law as very
important (ref H). She offered U.S. technical assistance to
assist the NA in drafting legislation particularly in the
commercial or economic areas.

The Hmong
--------------

18. (C) Much of the Ambassador's call on DPM/FM Thongloun was
taken up in a very frank exchange on the Hmong problem --
which they agreed was a very emotional issue. The Ambassador
pointed to a range of misinformation circulating about the
situation of the Hmong in Laos. There is also misinformation
about USG policies, and some Hmong are being misled into
believing the can be resettled in the United States if they
cross into Thailand. The Ambassador noted the GOL and Thai
government are discussing this problem, including the issue
of 8000 Hmong, many from Laos, currently in a holding camp in
Thailand's Petchabun Province.


19. (C) The Ambassador told DPM/FM Thongloun that we welcome
all efforts to improve communication and increase information
about the Hmong situation. The recent two trips organized by
MFA to visit Hmong returnees were a helpful step (refs I, J).
Allowing greater access to the international community to
the Hmong helps to dispel false rumors about their situation.
The Ambassador also described the recent return to relatives
of the 21 Hmong girls (from the group of 26 children detained
by the GOL since December 2005) as helpful (refs J, K). She
expressed hope the remaining five boys can also be found.


20. (C) With DPM/FM Thongloun, the Ambassador stated very
clearly that the USG does not support any Hmong insurgency
movement against the sovereign Lao Government. Still there
are many Hmong-Americans who say many different things, a
reflection of the open society in the United States. She
told him that the best way to handle specific concerns of the
GOL about our policies is to discuss these directly, and she
said the Embassy staff would be happy to do so.


21. (C) Thongloun responded with concern about small groups
of Lao-Americans who attempt to create domestic turmoil
within Laos. All Lao ethnic groups are part of the same
national community. The people have given up using the
separating designations of "lowland Lao, upland Lao, and
mountain Lao." Many in Laos, however, wonder why there is so
much focus on the situation of the Hmong. These groups are
using this issue as a "tool" making the Lao people suspicious

of their motives. Thongloun asked that the USG "resolve"
this problem and recommended that the Ambassador and her
successor should take seriously the misunderstandings being
caused by these groups.


22. (C) Thongloun emphasized that the GOL and Thai government
have discussed how to resolve the Hmong problem and now
understand each other. According to Thongloun, there are too
many people entering Thailand and causing problems
(presumably people from Burma in addition to the Hmong). He
had personally talked to Thai Foreign Minister Nit
Pibunsongkhram many times. The two sides agree that they do
not want outsiders to interfere in their attempt to find a
solution.


23. (C) The very frank discussion of Hmong issues continued
at the dinner hosted for the Ambassador by Vice Foreign
Minister Hiem Phommachanh (former Lao Ambassador to the
United States and Thailand). The Ambassador and Emboffs
pushed Hiem, MFA Press Department Director-General Yong
Chanthalangsy,and other MFA leaders to understand that
repatriating from Thailand Lao Hmong who had been granted
UNHCR status, particularly the 155 in the Nong Khai
Immigration Detention Center (refs L, M) would be a mistake.
Repatriating economic migrants from Laos, after appropriate
screening is different from forcing back people who can
establish their qualification for international protection.
Yong argued, as we expected, that the repatriation of people
from Laos, Hmong or otherwise, who have illegally entered
Thailand is a bilateral matter for Thailand and Laos to work
out. (Note: no minds were changed in this discussion, but
the fact it could be held at all demonstrates a significantly
increased openness we have gained with these officials. We
believe Ambassador Hiem will be an increasingly important
interlocutor for the Embassy in the future.)

Waiver
--------------

24. (C) DPM/FM Thongloun very pointedly asked the Ambassador
about reports the United States is currently discussing
revisions to the Patriot Act. He expressed strong
reservations about the United States being willing to accept
people "who disturb this country" for resettlement -- if this
is what the Patriot Act revisions are designed to allow. The
Ambassador responded that the Department is working to try to
ensure that "waiver" language is appropriate to assist those
people, for example, whose applications for citizenship are
being held up. At the same time, the language should not
create new problems. However the proposals are still being
debated, and the language of the final agreement is still
unclear. Thongloun told the Ambassador that the "people of
Laos" are very concerned about this issue since they see
"these people" as terrorists. He assured her the GOL is
following the situation closely.

COMMENT
--------------

25. (C) The Ambassador's farewell calls were marked by an
unexpected level of warmth considering some of the
complexities of the past three years (18-month detention of
26 Hmong children, April 2006 massacre, etc.). Among these
calls, the meeting with DPM/FM Thongloun stands out for the
extended focus on the Hmong issue which occupied a
considerable part of their almost hour-long discussion.
Thongloun is clearly concerned with this issue: Australian
Ambassador Alistair Maclean is also departing Vientiane and
spent the majority of his farewell call with Thongloun
discussing the Hmong -- and particularly Australia's
commitment to resettle many of the Hmong being held in the
Nongkhai Immigration Detention Center. Thongloun's strong
focus on and reservations about any waiver being applied to
Hmong "terrorists" bodes at least temporary serious bilateral
impact when the material support waiver being considered by
the Congress is finally passed. The Ambassador chose to
request a relatively unusual farewell call on the National
Assembly President to demonstrate our belief that the NA is
beginning to play an increasingly important role in moving
the GOL toward a more transparent system in which the rule of
law will be a growing factor.

HASLACH