This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 000299 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS; PACOM FOR FPA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2016 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL PREF BM SK
SUBJECT: MANDALAY: NON-BUDDHISTS NEED NOT APPLY 
 
REF: A. RANGOON 287 
     ¶B. RANGOON 248 
 
Classified By: Poloff Dean Tidwell for Reasons 1.4 (b, d) 
 
¶1. (C) SUMMARY: As part of our Mandalay Outreach Week (ref 
A), we met with Christian leaders in Mandalay on March 1 to 
discuss religious issues in central Burma.  They described 
the tight restrictions local authorities place on religious 
meetings and church construction, as well as general GOB 
discrimination against Christians and overt promotion of 
Buddhism.  Regime authorities recently arrested three pastors 
for building churches.  Two others are now in prison for 
offering overnight shelter to North Koreans seeking asylum. 
The attitude of the regional military commander governs all 
religious matters, as well as the everyday lives of Mandalay 
citizens.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (C) During an Embassy Outreach Week in Mandalay (ref A), 
local Christian leaders met with Emboffs at YMCA headquarters 
on March 1.  The group included mostly ethnic pastors of 
several churches and Christian laypersons.  They are members 
of a local chapter of the national Myanmar Council of 
Churches and meet regularly to promote peace and 
understanding in the community.  Another interfaith group in 
Mandalay includes Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, and Muslims. 
 
¶3. (C) During recent Buddhist-Muslim communal riots south of 
Mandalay (ref B), the religious leaders heard that an entire 
Muslim village fled to the monastery of a friendly monk to 
request protection from the riots.  However, they added, the 
government's news blackout made it difficult to obtain 
precise information on what happened.  They claimed that one 
chronic irritant to Buddhist sensitivities is the Muslim 
community's ritual sacrifice of large numbers of animals on 
Islamic holidays. 
 
A REGIME STRAITJACKET 
 
¶4. (C) Local authorities who report to the regional military 
commander closely control all meetings by Christians in 
Mandalay.  To hold a general meeting congregations must 
acquire advance permission and provide authorities with 
minute program details, including the name of their pianist 
and what songs they will play.  Authorities recently banned a 
birthday party at a local hotel, claiming that because a 
Christian was the honoree it was a religious event and 
belonged in a church.  Christian leaders told us that because 
Mandalay authorities consider their city to be a historic 
bastion of Buddhist culture, they emphasize Buddhism and 
repress other religions in the region. 
 
¶5. (C) Burma has complex land right laws and the government 
exploits them to restrict Christians from building new 
churches or even boundary walls.  For example, authorities 
recently arrested three pastors near Mandalay for building 
new churches and charged them with violating land laws, 
rather than religious regulations.  A Chin businessman told 
us that authorities in Chin State had also jailed three of 
his relatives for building new churches.  Authorities also 
arrested local pastor Htoo Htoo of Grace Church in Mandalay 
and another pastor's driver for providing overnight shelter 
to North Koreans who entered Burma illegally.  The 
authorities charged them for "failure to report foreigners 
staying overnight" and sentenced each to two years 
imprisonment. 
 
¶6. (C) The leaders noted that Christians in cities usually 
face an easier time than those in rural areas, and churches 
that register with the government face fewer restrictions. 
The regime is particularly concerned about people in rural 
areas converting to Christianity.  To counter this, the 
government actively supports Buddhist missionaries, who 
distribute food and other incentives to gain converts, 
although the Christian leaders admitted that Christians 
engage in similar strategies. 
¶7. (C) Both the local government and the military openly 
discriminate against Christians.  Although there is no 
written policy, the Defense Services Academy in nearby 
Pyin-Oo-Lwin does not accept non-Buddhist applicants.  The 
Burmese Army pressures Christian soldiers to become Buddhists 
or resign, and non-Buddhists have no hope of promotion to 
officer rank.  A military commander told a Buddhist military 
officer that his Christian wife would have to convert to 
Buddhism or he would have to resign.  The Christian leaders 
also reported that a high school student recently reached the 
division finals of an intramural competition, but when 
authorities learned his name was Alexander, they assumed he 
was Christian and disqualified him from participating further. 
 
THE PHARAOH IS UNPOPULAR 
 
¶8. (C) The pastors also complained that the new Central 
Region Commander, Major General Khin Zaw, has issued several 
unpopular orders and lacks popular respect.  In one case, he 
imposed a curfew and ordered all businesses to close by 11:00 
p.m.  Since Mandalay is hot and there frequently is no 
electricity, the local population likes to go out at night 
when the temperature drops for late dinners and chats in tea 
stalls.  The pastors also complained that the electricity 
supply to Mandalay has grown worse recently, claiming the GOB 
is diverting power from Mandalay to the new capital of 
Pyinmana.  Mandalay now receives reliable electricity only 
one day out of three on average. 
 
¶9. (C) COMMENT: The quality of life in each Burmese division 
or state tends to reflect the personality of its all-powerful 
regional military commander.  None of Mandalay's Christian 
leaders felt the current commander was open-minded.  The 
GOB's active promotion of Buddhism further disadvantages 
those of other faiths, but Christians and Muslims in Mandalay 
Division continue to fight for a better future life.  The 
recent riots between Buddhist and Muslims in southern 
Mandalay Division show that religious and ethnic conflicts 
continue to smolder and could ignite at any time.  END 
COMMENT. 
STOLTZ