BURMESE GOVERNMENT DEPORTS TWO AMERICAN JOURNALISM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000266

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/11/2018
TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL CVIS CASC BM KPAO
SUBJECT: BURMESE GOVERNMENT DEPORTS TWO AMERICAN JOURNALISM
TRAINERS

REF: A. RANGOON 260

B. RANGOON 264

RANGOON 00000266 001.2 OF 002


Classified By: APAO Drake Weisert; section 1.4 (b) and (d).

Summary
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1. (C) Burmese Police and Immigration officials ordered two
Embassy-sponsored journalism trainers to depart the country
on Thursday, May 7. Officially, authorities accused the two
of violating the terms of their tourist visas but provided no
details concerning the alleged illegal activities. Contacts
within the police Special Branch (SB) told us that the two
had visited anti-regime comedians The Moustache Brothers and
interviewed monks in Mandalay, but the trainers deny the
claims. One possible explanation is that the government
decided to deport the trainers due to sensitivities about the
presence of U.S. journalists in country following the arrest
of an Amcit who reportedly swam to Aung San Suu Kyi's house
(Ref B). Before the trainers departed, they signed a privacy
act waiver for family and friends but did not authorize
discussion of their case with the press; see para 7 for
proposed press guidance. End summary.

Forced to Leave the Country
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2. (C) On the evening of Wednesday, May 6, officers from SB
and Immigration met Amcits Karen Coates and Jerry Redfern
(who are married to each other) in the lobby of their hotel
in Mandalay as they returned from dinner. Coates and Redfern
had just completed their final day of training on feature
writing and photography in Mandalay, after finishing two
weeks of similar workshops in Rangoon. The officials told an
Embassy locally employed (LE) staff member, who was also at
the hotel, that Nay Pyi Taw had sent orders for Coates and
Redfern to travel to Rangoon that evening on the next train.
The officials provided no explanation for the decision and
did not question the Amcits or search their belongings. Two
immigration officers accompanied the journalists on the
overnight train ride to Rangoon.


3. (C) Embassy APAO met the two at the Rangoon train
station the following afternoon, where several SB and
Immigration officials were also waiting. APAO had a chance
to speak with Coates and Redfern for about 10 minutes before
the officers drove the pair to the airport, then to a
downtown Immigration office, then back to the airport (the
officers couldn't seem to decide what to do with Coates and
Redfern - at one point they were arguing amongst themselves
over who would have to deal with them). Finally, the
officials put Coates and Redfern on an evening flight to
Bangkok.

Privacy Act Waiver
--------------


4. (SBU) An Embassy Consular officer met with Coates and
Redfern while at the downtown Immigration office. The two
signed Privacy Act Waivers allowing us to contact family and
friends, but not the media.

Few Details Concerning Grounds for Expulsion
--------------


5. (C) According to Coates and Redfern, they did nothing
out of the ordinary during their time in Mandalay. Apart
from conducting three days of training, they did not visit
any tourist sites nor meet with outside individuals other
than an owner of a pickled tea leaf distributorship, who they
met to discuss Burmese cuisine (Coates is a food writer for
Gourmet magazine). The pair say GOB officials never provided
any reason for their deportation, beyond a comment by one
Immigration official that they had had not stated their
actual professions, i.e. journalists, on their visa
applications (Note: Embassy-sponsored trainers typically
enter the country on tourist visas, and this has never been a
problem in the past.) Beyond that, SB and Immigration
officials, who were courteous to Coates, Redfern, and Embassy

RANGOON 00000266 002.2 OF 002


staff throughout, said they were just following orders.


6. (C) Post has since followed up with SB to seek an
explanation. SB contacts accused the Amcits of meeting famed
comedians and government critics The Moustache Brothers,
interviewing monks, and photographing monasteries in
Mandalay. When we asked Coates and Redfern, they denied
doing any of those things. An SB official told our LE staff
member that they had no concerns about the journalism
training itself, which covered feature writing and
photography.

Proposed Press Guidance
--------------


7. (C) On May 11 Post received calls from several exile
media organizations, including Democratic Voice of Burma and
Mizzima, plus VOA and RFA, about this incident. Post
proposes the following guidance for the Department in
responding to media inquiries:

-- We can confirm that two American citizens were deported
from Burma on Thursday, May 7. The U.S. Embassy in Rangoon
met with the individuals prior to their departure.

-- Due to Privacy Act considerations, we cannot provide any
further details about this matter.

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


8. (C) During the past year, the Embassy has brought in
several trainers to work with local reporters and editors.
In many cases - including this one - where the subject matter
is innocuous and where word would reach the government anyway
(e.g., independent journals often seek the Press Scrutiny
Board's okay to participate),we have alerted the authorities
in advance to avoid suspicion and misunderstanding. Indeed,
Coates and Redfern had been here once before, in January of
this year, to conduct workshops. The real reason for their
deportation this time is unclear, but might be tied to the
arrest on May 6 of an Amcit who reportedly swam to Aung San
Suu Kyi's house. It is possible the government did not want
foreign journalists following the story. Another theory is
that the authorities did not approve of a planned visit by
the pair to a pickled tea leaf market in Mandalay. The
market, which Coates and Redfern had planned to visit on May
7 at the invitation of the tea leaf distributor, has ties to
the Mandalay Trade Union, which is overseen by the
government. We will probably never know the whole story; but
we intend to continue to bring in trainers to work with local
journalists, since that remains an important element of the
Mission's efforts here in Burma.
DINGER