BURMA -- ENGAGING INDONESIA ON DONOR CONFERENCE

UNCLAS JAKARTA 001001 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV EAID ID BM SUBJECT: BURMA -- ENGAGING INDONESIA ON DONOR CONFERENCE REF: STATE 53985 ¶1. (SBU) This message is Sensitive but Unclassified -- Please handle accordingly. ¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Pol/C reviewed with the GOI points related to the May 25 UN/ASEAN Burma Donor Conference. GOI contacts took the points on board. Meanwhile, a National Democratic Institute (NDI)-sponsored photographic exhibit focused on Burma kicked off in Jakarta. NDI is also sponsoring the visit of several Burmese monks, who are telling the story of the regime's brutality. Mission worked closely with the organizers of the program, which concludes May 23. END SUMMARY. DEPLOYING USG POINTS ¶3. (SBU) Pol/C delivered reftel demarche to Ade Sukendar, Deputy Director for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DEPLU). Though recently there have been tentative steps in the right direction, Pol/C underscored the need for the upcoming UN-ASEAN donor conference to focus on ensuring greater access for humanitarian aid. We believe that it is premature to transition from recovery to reconstruction when over three-quarters of those severely affected by the cyclone have yet to receive any aid. We welcome ASEAN's initiative to set up a mechanism to coordinate assistance to Burma and express our hope that this mechanism will facilitate increased access to disaster areas. Sukendar took the USG points on board. ¶4. (SBU) To give the points the widest dissemination possible, we also provided them to Djoko Susilo, an Indonesian legislator active on Burma issues; to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank which has often advised the GOI on Burma; and to the Indonesian National Disaster Management Coordinating Body (BAKORNAS). NDI PRESSES BURMA ISSUES ¶5. (SBU) Also on the Burma front, the National Democratic Institute and a coalition of Indonesian NGOs today launched a photographic exhibit on Burma and the Jakarta visit of several Burmese monks. The monks will meet a range of Indonesian leaders and will open the photo exhibit, which highlights the situation in Burma. Mission worked closely with the organizers of the program, which concludes May 23. We will report more fully on the photo exhibit and the monks' visit septel. HEFFERN