Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08GUANGZHOU366
2008-06-24 08:20:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Consulate Guangzhou
Cable title:  

Border Control - AI Prevention at the China-Vietnam Border

Tags:  TBIO EAGR PINR KFLU CH 
pdf how-to read a cable
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RR RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHGH RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD RUEHVC
DE RUEHGZ #0366/01 1760820
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 240820Z JUN 08
FM AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7342
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUCNARFC/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHDC
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC//USDP/ISA/AP//
RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHINGTON DC//J2/J3/J5//
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI//J00/J2/J3/J5//
RHEFAFM/DIRAFMIC FT DETRICK MD//MA-1A//
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 GUANGZHOU 000366 

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/CM, AIAG, OES/IHA, MED, CA/OCS/ACS/EAP
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR ANE AND GH
HHS FOR OGHA/STEIGER AND PASS TO NIH/FIC
CDC FOR COGH AND DIV-FLU
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR OSD/ISA/AP
USDA PASS TO APHIS, FAS (OSTA AND OCRA),FSIS
BANGKOK FOR RMO, CDC, USAID
BEIJING FOR HHS, CDC, RMO
PHNOM PENH FOR CDC INFLUENZA COORDINATOR
VIENTIANE FOR CDC INFLUENZA COORDINATOR

SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TBIO EAGR PINR KFLU CH
SUBJECT: Border Control - AI Prevention at the China-Vietnam Border

REF: A) Hanoi 0197, B) Hong Kong 1034, C) Hong Kong 1061, D)
Guangzhou 0160, E) Guangzhou 0351

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 GUANGZHOU 000366

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/CM, AIAG, OES/IHA, MED, CA/OCS/ACS/EAP
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR ANE AND GH
HHS FOR OGHA/STEIGER AND PASS TO NIH/FIC
CDC FOR COGH AND DIV-FLU
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR OSD/ISA/AP
USDA PASS TO APHIS, FAS (OSTA AND OCRA),FSIS
BANGKOK FOR RMO, CDC, USAID
BEIJING FOR HHS, CDC, RMO
PHNOM PENH FOR CDC INFLUENZA COORDINATOR
VIENTIANE FOR CDC INFLUENZA COORDINATOR

SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TBIO EAGR PINR KFLU CH
SUBJECT: Border Control - AI Prevention at the China-Vietnam Border

REF: A) Hanoi 0197, B) Hong Kong 1034, C) Hong Kong 1061, D)
Guangzhou 0160, E) Guangzhou 0351


1. (U) Summary: With a 1,020 kilometers border running between south
China's Guangxi province and north Vietnam, authorities on both
sides have a lot of issues to contend with, many of them health-
related. This especially includes cross-border avian influenza (AI)
prevention and control cooperation - ranging from public awareness
campaigns to data sharing. Cooperative efforts in Dongxing, a key
Chinese border town, are advancing, but it is a slow process
hindered by obstacles such as a porous border, a low degree of
public health awareness, and inconsistent inter-agency cooperation
within Dongxing city. Clearly, in the minds of the Chinese in
Dongxing, cross-border prevention efforts would be improved further
if Vietnam invested more in upgrading their system of data
collection and surveillance, increased general awareness among the
public about prevention methods, and strengthened other cross-border
capabilities. End Summary.

-------------- --------------
Poultry Smuggling Across the Guangxi-Quang Ninh Border
-------------- --------------


2. (SBU) People living in border provinces in south China and
Vietnam are particularly concerned about the threat of Avian
Influenza originating from illegally smuggled poultry. Border towns
like Guangxi's Dongxing are, as a result, strengthening their AI
preparedness. While opinions on the origin of the AI threat, and in
which direction poultry is being trafficked, may differ on each side
of the border, Dongxing authorities maintain that Guangxi is at
great risk due to the condition of poultry in neighboring Quang Ninh
province, Vietnam, which suffered AI outbreaks in March. Local
authorities claim that because the price of chicken in the
Vietnamese market is lower, live chickens are likely to be smuggled

into China for sale on the local black market.


3. (SBU) According to Zhang Shaoheng, Director of Dongxing's
Customs Bureau, an average of seventy poultry smuggling cases -
including live and frozen products - are reported each year. Chen
Libiao, Director of the Dongxing Entry-Exit Inspection and
Quarantine Bureau (CIQ) stated that since 2004, 213 smuggling cases
have been detected by Dongxing authorities. The majority of seizure
cases at official checkpoints involve frozen poultry products.
(Note: while AI transmission is relatively low in frozen poultry,
local authorities still seize these products if they are suspected
to have originated from an AI endemic area. End Note). It is likely
that the majority of live poultry shipments are transported across
unchecked entry points. This is a major monitoring challenge; the
volume of trafficked products is unknown. Chen told us the number
of new smuggling cases has remained at a relatively stable level in
recent years.


4. (SBU) Threat control measures extend beyond the border itself and
into the local community. When there is an AI outbreak in a
neighboring Vietnam province, all local Chinese poultry markets
along the Guangxi-Quang Ninh border are immediately shut down. In
addition, Dongxing currently prohibits its residents from trading or
purchasing illegal poultry, however, the effectiveness of this
policy, or the extent to which it is enforced is unknown. Being
able to purchase low cost poultry is a likely deterrent. According
to authorities, every fifth household is required to sign
accountability agreements to enforce this policy, and to encourage
individual monitoring and reporting of illicit activities. Zhang
claims that the Customs Bureau's most successful control efforts are
initiated by tips from the public.

--------------
Cross-Border Cooperation

GUANGZHOU 00000366 002 OF 003


--------------


5. (SBU) Since the Guangxi-Quang Ninh border lacks natural barriers,
is crisscrossed by secret smuggling routes, and has a lax monitoring
standard, it is difficult to reduce the volume of smuggled poultry.
For Dongxing authorities, the first line of defense is the border
checkpoint. On the Dongxing side, there are only seven primary
checkpoints and approximately twenty-five additional border trading
areas, clearly inadequate for effectively monitoring the estimated
three million annual border crossings with the limited resources and
a small staff of seventy available to local authorities. Current AI
prevention efforts include cross-border literature dissemination,
body temperature monitoring, sporadic poultry vaccinations,
emergency drills, and personnel training to increase detection
capabilities. In the long-term, Dongxing CIQ is planning to
implement a mandatory border immunization program, in which all
poultry located within 30-km of the border will be immunized,
covering poultry both raised in Dongxing and declared as entering
from Vietnam.

--------------
Local Preparedness From the Top Down
--------------


6. (SBU) In spite of these geographical and resource challenges,
Chen Libiao states that there have been modest improvements in
cross-border transmission prevention policies, across several levels
of government. Dongxing CIQ and their Vietnamese counterparts in
Mong Cai hold weekly meetings to exchange surveillance information
and emergency planning practices. Guangxi's CIQ and Vietnam's Quang
Ninh provinces also established a memorandum of understanding to
enhance joint prevention capabilities, including mutual AI case
notification. Chen stated that if Vietnam reports a case of H5N1,
Dongxing authorities are required to notify Guangxi's Provincial CIQ
within two hours; they will in turn notify Beijing's General
Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine
(AQSIQ) Headquarters within another two hours.


7. (U) At the provincial level, Guangxi CIQ Director General Hang
Tao has spearheaded an AI taskforce, including the creation of an
expert panel and an emergency disinfection team. At the local
level, Dongxing CIQ, the Customs Bureau, the Husbandry and
Veterinary Bureau, Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the
Agriculture Bureau have formed a joint prevention network through
which Dongxing authorities operate three AI action plans:
-- the HPAI Port Preparedness Plan,
-- the Major Animal Disease Prevention at Ports Plan, and
-- the General Emergency Response Plan.


8. (SBU) Dongxing's prevention methods also include the control of
potential public health emergencies. Director Wu of the Dongxing
Health Bureau told us that Guangxi has an established endemic
disease control reporting system, whereby if an outbreak of a
reportable disease were to occur, all relevant departments in
Dongxing would have access to the online reporting system, and would
establish 24-hour duty offices to maintain timely communication. If
a human AI case were to be detected, Dongxing health authorities
would be required to report the case and forward samples collected
to the provincial-level Center for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) in Guangxi within six hours.

--------------
Challenges
--------------


9. (SBU) According to Chen Libiao, cross-border prevention efforts
would be improved further if his Vietnamese counterparts invested
more in upgrading their system of data collection and surveillance,
increased general awareness among the public about prevention

GUANGZHOU 00000366 003 OF 003


methods, and strengthened cross-border information collection and
surveillance capabilities. In addition, Chen complained that
Dongxing faces several internal problems in which inter-agency
cooperation among the town's governmental departments is hindered by
a failure by some departments to carry out their assigned duties in
a timely manner.

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


10. (SBU) Despite Dongxing CIQ Director Chen's emphasis on increased
levels of cross-border governmental cooperation and local
prevention, progress is slow and unquantifiable. The lack of
capacity to control the borders, and a dearth of knowledge regarding
border activities, pose a continuous challenge to overall AI
prevention efforts.


11. (U) This cable was coordinated with Embassy Beijing.

GOLDBERG