EMBASSY SEOUL, KOREAN NGOS SHOW SOLIDARITY WITH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 001021 SIPDIS PLEASE PASS TO DRL/SEA, EAP/MLS FOR AARON COPE E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/02/2018 TAGS: KS PGOV PHUM BM PREL SUBJECT: EMBASSY SEOUL, KOREAN NGOS SHOW SOLIDARITY WITH BURMESE DISSIDENTS IN EXILE REF: STATE 44903 Classified By: Amb. Alexander Vershbow. Reasons 1.4(b/d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: The Ambassador on May 19 hosted a lunch meeting with Burmese exiles residing in South Korea and the South Korean NGOs supporting the exiles. In brief remarks before the South Korean press present at the event, the Ambassador conveyed the U.S.'s deep concern over the growing humanitarian crisis in Burma in the wake of Cyclone Nargis and noted the consensus between the U.S. and South Korea on the need for the Burmese military regime to allow access to desperately needed international aid. The Ambassador also highlighted South Korean and American solidarity with Burmese democracy activists. The South Korean activists noted that even China and North Korea were willing to accept international aid during their own recent humanitarian crises. END SUMMARY. -------------- ROK, U.S. Solidarity with Burma -------------- ¶2. (C) Per reftel instructions to engage with dissidents from un-free nations who are living in exile in South Korea, the Ambassador invited the leaders of the Burmese exile community and their South Korean supporters to a luncheon. Members of the local branch of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and Burma Action Korea thanked the Ambassador for his expression of support for the Burmese people in the wake of Cyclone Nargis. It was a "very great encouragement" to see Koreans and Americans standing by to assist the Burmese and sharing one mind with the Burmese on democratization, said local NLD branch chairman Aung Myint Swe. -------------- Burma Compared to North Korea, China -------------- ¶3. (C) Citizen's Solidarity Secretary-General Oh Chang-ik stated that it was unacceptable even to North Korea and China to refuse international humanitarian aid in the face of overwhelming need, pointing to the recent earthquake in Sichuan Province and the U.S. provision of 500,000 tons of food aid to North Korea as examples. This mistake was especially severe considering the lack of infrastructure within Burma to distribute aid, Oh said. Oh mentioned that South Korean NGOs planned to hold a protest in front of the Burmese Embassy in the coming week on this issue. The Ambassador agreed and noted that even North Korea had �A;recently agreed to provide international aid workers sufficient access to monitor the distribution of 500,000 tons of U.S. food aid. ¶4. (C) SG Oh said that Koreans donated sizeable contributions for relief efforts overseas, but that South Korean civil society in support of international human rights and democracy issues in places such as Burma and Tibet remained in its infancy. Most South Koreans believed that they should help North Koreans rather than sending aid to non-Koreans abroad. Another South Korean activist said that South Korean Christian groups remained very active abroad on such issues, but that their motives were considered suspect. -------------- Future Plans for Burmese Exiles -------------- ¶5. (C) Thu Ra, President for Burma Action Korea, said that Burmese exiles worldwide planned to return to Burma by August 8 for the twentieth anniversary of the 1988 uprising, suggesting that they would cross into Burma unofficially by land. The Ambassador noted that was the date for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympics in China. Thu said that the Burmese exile community maintained good contacts with activists along the Burma-Thai border. Even in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, communications coming from within Burma were interrupted for only one week. Thu mentioned that videos and photos were once again making their way out of Burma via the international press, including CNN and BBC. -------------- Status of Burmese Exiles in ROK -------------- ¶6. (C) Just as several Korean democracy activists in the 1970s and 1980s had studied in the U.S., Burmese activists were now studying in Korea, said SG Oh. Thu Ra had studied English at a Korean Anglican Church institution in Seoul, Oh said. Most Burmese came as temporary workers, but had remained in country to raise awareness of the Burma issue as local activists. However, their status in Korea as political refugees had not been generally accepted by the ROK. Of the 200 Burmese who had applied for political asylum in South Korea, only 20 had been accepted so far, said Thu Ra, who also noted that South Korea's granting of refugee status was far below the international norm for developed democracies. ¶7. (C) The Ambassador noted that this policy could change under the Lee Myung-bak administration, considering Lee's focus on international human rights. At a minimum, the normalization of status for Burmese in South Korea could dovetail with this initiative. The South Koreans at the table, however, suggested that Lee's focus on South Korea's economy would likely be the determining factor, and that Lee would put South Korean business interests in Burma ahead of human rights. -------------- UN Action on Burma -------------- ¶8. (C) One South Korean activist noted that China needed to protect the Burmese junta in order to ensure its access to the Indian Ocean; otherwise, it had no other outlet. The Ambassador replied that it was shortsighted for the Chinese to prop up the Burmese junta, and that China's refusal to pressure the Burmese junta into allowing in international aid could only backfire. When Burma finally became a full-fledged democracy, the Burmese people would not look favorably upon the Chinese, the Ambassador said. The Burmese exiles agreed, saying that the Burmese people would "never forgive the Chinese" if China vetoed a resolution in the U.N. Security Council authorizing humanitarian intervention in Burma for Cyclone Nargis relief efforts. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) The Burma luncheon was a public diplomacy opportunity to reach out not only to the Burmese exiles in South Korea, but also to progressive South Korean NGOs who have had reservations about contact with the U.S. Embassy. The luncheon, a rare opportunity to find common ground with South Korean groups opposed to the U.S. positions on beef imports, base returns, the Iraq War, and other contentious issues, was held at the request of the South Korean groups in order to provide encouragement to the Burmese exiles. Press coverage of the event focused on the fact that the U.S. still referred to Burma as "Burma" instead of "Myanmar." END COMMENT. VERSHBOW