BURMA: YOUNG ACTIVISTS ADVOCATE NEW APPROACHES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000248

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO
PACOM FOR FPA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/02/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM
SUBJECT: BURMA: YOUNG ACTIVISTS ADVOCATE NEW APPROACHES

REF: 07 RANGOON 1055

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Classified By: P/E Chief Leslie Hayden for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d)


1. (C) Summary: Young pro-democracy activists advocate new,
more creative approaches to bringing political change inside
Burma. The current pro-democracy movement has been weakened
severely by the arrests and crackdown after the September
protests. It lacks leadership, strategic planning, and
unity. Direct aid to political activists is limited in reach
and scope because of the intense scrutiny they are under by
Special Branch Police. Some activists want the U.S. to
expand its assistance to include grass-roots civil society
initiatives that promote education, capacity building, and
community building throughout Burma, to better strengthen the
foundations for a future democratic political system. End
summary.


2. (C) Young pro-democracy activists, members of NLD Youth,
88 Generation Students, and ethnic political activists,
advocated for an expanded, more creative approach for U.S.
assistance for promoting democracy in Burma, during a recent
meeting. The activists are students in the Embassy's
distance learning program with Indiana University that allows
former political prisoners, and those shut out of Burma's
education system for their political activities, to earn a
U.S. associates degree. The students offered us their
opinions of the pro-democracy movement and how best to effect
democratic change in Burma.


3. (C) The activists noted that since the September
crackdown and the recent arrests of key leaders in the
pro-democracy movement, the movement lacks leadership,
strategic planning, and unity. While most political
activists were aware of the exile border groups and their
activities, the reach of these exile groups inside Burma was
limited, and many associated with the exile groups were
regarded as opportunists by the political activists inside.
Information from the border groups has not been widely
circulated or discussed inside the country, they claimed.
The one exception, they noted, was the reach of the
Burmese-language broadcasters such as DVB, BBC, and RFA,
whose programs were widely listened to throughout Burma as
the best source for daily news. Asked about the penetration
of exile websites such as Irrawaddy and DVB, the students
told us these outlets only reached a small portion of Burma's
population, who were politically astute and had access to
internet cafes in the large cities.


4. (C) While direct financial assistance to political
activists inside Burma was needed and appreciated, the
students remarked that those receiving the money often had
the least space to operate, as they were well-known to
authorities and closely watched by Special Branch police.
The regime's close scrutiny limited the outreach and
effectiveness of these activists and the organizations
associated with them. The U.S. had been giving support to
political activists inside and outside Burma for a long time,
with little result, the students concluded. It was time to
try other, more creative approaches that took advantage of
the limited space available inside the country, the activists
recommended.


5. (C) Most important, they advocated, was support for
grass-roots civil society initiatives that promoted
education, capacity building, and community building, which
could be expanded gradually throughout Burma. Some of the
activists explained how they were working to promote civic
responsibility within their own villages and communities by
participating in or teaching English classes, which enabled
them to initiate discussions on democratic principles and
responsible civic participation. The students articulately
argued that any democratic political structure in Burma would
collapse without a strong foundation. Strengthening this
foundation through civic education and capacity building
would be necessary for successful democratic change.


6. (C) Comment: We welcome the new ideas and creative

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approaches younger activists offer to promote democratic
change inside the country. We regret the zero-sum mentality
exhibited by the recipients of our generous assistance the
past twenty years. The small grants program the Embassy
initiated two years ago to build civil society has revealed
considerable space for us to help build the civil society
healthy democracies require (reftel). As a bonus, such
programs have also expanded our reach into Burma to better
monitor political developments on the ground. We have also
seen other Burmese organizations, INGOs, and UN agencies help
build civil society by empowering local people to take more
control over their futures. The Burmese People get little
but harassment from regime officials as it is. These civil
society capacity building projects further diminish the power
of the regime.


7. (C) Additionally, We believe having an assistance
delivery network in place is crucial for successful
democratic change in Burma. The demonstrations of 1988
lasted a period of several months (March - September),across
the country. The pro-democracy opposition's inability to
organize themselves and deliver basic services to the country
in 1988 provided the military justification to take back
control. We very much want to see democratic leaders
succeed, but the Burmese regime has done their best to keep
them divided. We need now to encourage them to unify to
organize so that they can deliver services effectively to the
people.


8. (C) By developing a humanitarian and civil society
assistance network inside Burma, we can increase the changes
of success of a political transition to democracy. A
democratic government will have a short window to deliver
quick, desperately needed assistance to Burma's 55 million
people. At the same time, they will have to contend with
distrustful ethnic minorities looking for reasons to pull
away and a military more than willing to step in again.


9. (C) We have seen a generational change within the
pro-democracy movement inside Burma since 2005. The younger
activists are bringing new ideas to the table and are more
willing to experiment with different approaches to Burma's
political impasse. We should be equally flexible and
creative in trying new approaches to resolve Burma's
frustrating political stalemate. End comment.







VILLAROSA