VZCZCXRO0777
RR RUEHDT RUEHPB
DE RUEHHM #0657/01 3100707
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
R 060707Z NOV 09
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6128
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI 4026
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 6371
RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000657 
 
NOFORN 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/MLS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  11/6/2019 
TAGS: PREL CMGT ASEC VM
SUBJECT: EXPANDED HCMC CONSULAR DISTRICT WORKING WELL, BUT MPS 
FOLLOWING ITS OWN AGENDA 
 
REF: (A) HCMC 610 (B) HCMC 615 (C) HCMC 620 (D) 2008 HCMC 810 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000657  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Kenneth J. Fairfax, Consul General, U.S. 
Consulate General Ho Chi Minh City, Department of State. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (c), (d) 
¶1. (S/NF) SUMMARY: Since the beginning of September, when the 
GVN expanded the number of provinces that they recognize as 
belonging to the HCMC consular district from one (HCMC only) to 
22, travel within the newly expanded consular district has 
generally been straight forward with only a few small 
misunderstandings that have been resolved quickly.  Several 
provinces have formally welcomed their inclusion in the consular 
district.  Travel to provinces outside the GVN-recognized 22 but 
still in the Consulate's US-defined consular district has 
proceeded fairly well with no trips denied over the past few 
months.  The only negative consequence of the expansion appears 
to be a significant increase in Ministry of Public Security 
(MPS) harassment of HCMC's Vietnamese staff.  In the past month 
alone, MPS agents have contacted LES staff more times than in 
all of 2008 and virtually all the inquiries focused on 
determining the travel plans of American officers.  Now that 
Consulate Officers no long have to file detailed travel plans 
five days in advance for travel outside HCMC, the MPS appears to 
be using other measures to secure the same information.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
GENERALLY SMOOTH SAILING 
 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) During the first two months of operating within their 
newly-expanded consular district consisting of 22 provinces 
(rather than just one, as in the past), Consulate officers have 
encountered very few problems.  The few problems that have 
occurred appear to have resulted from local officials/police who 
had not yet been informed of the change in procedures.  When an 
officer was stopped by a local (commune level) official while on 
a trip to celebrate the opening of a school built by an American 
donor in rural Long An province, for example, several rounds of 
phone calls to HCMC and Long An officials succeeded in getting 
the travel back on track in time for the officer to make it to 
the event.  Long An provincial officials later apologized for 
the inconvenience, explaining that news of the expanded consular 
district had not yet gotten out to all commune-level officials. 
We believe that this was a genuine misunderstanding and expect 
incidents of this type of be a short-term phenomenon only.  In 
conversations with ConGenOffs, officials from many provinces 
have since commented that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has 
briefed their provinces on the change in procedure. Several 
provinces have expressed their pleasure at being included in the 
newly expanded HCMC Consular District. 
 
 
 
OUTSIDE TRAVEL ALSO WORKING 
 
--------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Travel outside the 22 provinces in the GVN-recognized 
consular district but within the limits recognized by the USG 
also appears to be back on track.  While ConGenOffs must still 
request permission to travel five days in advance (in accordance 
with travel restrictions in place since 2001), permission has 
been routinely forthcoming.  A trip to the Central Highlands 
that explicitly included "sensitive" issues like refugee 
monitoring and calls on dissident religious leaders was 
approved, though subsequently rained out by Typhoon Ketsana. 
Even an emergency (1-day notice) request for an officer to 
travel to Lam Dong province to assess the situation of the Lang 
Mai Buddhists forcibly expelled from Bat Nha pagoda, a 
politically sensitive case which gained international attention, 
was approved in record time.  This marks a considerable 
improvement from the situation which prevailed for much of the 
period from January 2008 through August 2009 when the MFA 
frequently denied Consulate travel requests as part of the MFA's 
strategy for gaining permission to open ConGen Houston. 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) Overall, conditions for travel outside the 22 
GVN-approved provinces in HCMC's consular district are now 
comparable to the conditions that prevailed prior to January 
2008, when the MFA began denying many Consulate travel requests 
to make a point about their desire to open ConGen Houston.  As 
was the case in 2007 and 2008, trips are now being routinely 
approved.  When travel actually takes place, ConGenOffs are 
either officially accompanied by provincial ERO officials or 
unofficially followed by several plain clothes MPS officers on 
motorbikes.  In the most sensitive areas such as the Central 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000657  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
Highlands, officers have had both official watchers and a swarm 
of motorbikes that precede and follow them. 
 
 
 
MPS STILL WANTS TO KNOW 
 
----------------------- 
 
¶5. (S/NF) The only negative consequence of the expansion of the 
GVN-recognized consular district has been a sharp increase in 
MPS harassment of the Consulate's local staff.  Now that the MPS 
no longer receives detailed itineraries for all Consulate travel 
five days in advance via the HCMC External Relations Office 
(ERO), they appear to have embarked on a concerted campaign to 
obtain the information directly from the Consulate's local 
staff.  Over the last month alone, Ho Chi Minh City Locally 
Engaged Staff (LES) have fully reported seven separate incidents 
of inappropriate contacts by the MPS and RSO has determined 
several additional LES contacts that have gone unreported, 
bringing the total number of contacts to approximately 12. 
These 12 reports in one month are substantially more than for 
the entire 2008 calendar year.  Nearly all of these MPS contacts 
have focused on LES involved in some aspect of planning or 
arranging travel for officers, including motorpool drivers, the 
travel assistant in GSO and other staff members who assist 
officers with trips.  The types of questions reported by LES 
staff make it clear MPS is attempting to develop a system for 
having full prior knowledge of movements by Consulate officers 
traveling outside of HCMC.    For the first time in collective 
memory, MPS are even contacting LES at the office during work 
hours rather than only at night and on weekends. 
 
 
 
COMMENT 
 
------- 
 
¶6. (S/NF) The expansion of HCMC's consular district to 22 
provinces represents a major improvement on multiple levels: 
staff spend less time filing detailed travel requests and 
itineraries; travel can be undertaken without long lead times; 
travel within the 22 cannot be denied; there is no reason for 
Consulate staff to announce every private meeting to the GVN; 
and the leaders of several provinces are choosing to interpret 
the expansion of the GVN-recognized consular district as a green 
light for stepping up cooperation with the Consulate.  Informal 
feedback from provincial leaders indicates that MFA in Hanoi and 
ERO in HCMC are attempting to ensure that the agreement reached 
on the new consular district is implemented smoothly. 
Unfortunately, MPS operates independently of MFA and ERO and has 
clearly decided to continue its long-standing policy of keeping 
very close tabs on every movement by Consulate officers.  While 
harassment of LES in HCMC is a well established phenomenon (all 
reftels), the increased frequency as well as the broader range 
of staff being contacted is an unfortunate side effect of the 
consular district expansion.  Post is working to maintain a 
relaxed, open-door policy with locally employed staff to 
encourage continued maximum compliance with established contact 
reporting policies. 
 
 
 
¶7. (U) This cable was coordinated with Embassy Hanoi. 
FAIRFAX