VZCZCXRO3399
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHNH RUEHPB
DE RUEHHM #1014/01 2500830
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 070830Z SEP 06
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1417
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI PRIORITY 0995
RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEHRN/USMISSION UN ROME PRIORITY 0001
RUEHIN/AIT TAIPEI PRIORITY 0022
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA PRIORITY
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC//USDP/ISA/AP//PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/CJCS WASHINGTON DC//J2/J3/J5//
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC//DHO-3//
RHMFIUU/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI//J00/J2/J3/J5//
RHEFAFM/DIRAFMIC FT DETRICK MD//MA-1A//
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 1486

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HO CHI MINH CITY 001014 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO KFLU AMED PREL PREF KJUS EAGR SOCI VM
SUBJECT: STAFFDEL BLANK IN THE MEKONG DELTA: AVIAN INFLUENZA, LOCAL 
MUSLIM COMMUNITY, AND TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS 
 
REF: HCMC 810; B) HCMC 437; C) HCMC 82 
 
HO CHI MIN 00001014  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: During a visit to the Mekong Delta province of 
An Giang August 25 and 26, Senate Foreign Relations Committee 
(SFRC) Staffer Jonah Blank reviewed government efforts to 
control Avian Influenza, visited a women's shelter and examined 
the status of the ethnic Cham Muslim community.  AI controls 
were in place down to the village level, although local 
implementation may not be quite as robust as officials 
indicated.  None of the women in the shelter were trafficked 
internationally, and none of the officials we spoke with 
indicated that international trafficking was a concern, despite 
strong evidence that the Mekong Delta is a key source point for 
regional TIP.  While their praise of the GVN seemed somewhat 
forced, ethnic Cham leaders did not complain of religious 
freedom restrictions and appeared to enjoy greater economic 
prosperity than their ethnic Vietnamese neighbors.  End Summary. 
 
Avian Influenza in An Giang 
--------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) SFRC Policy Advisor Jonah Blank visited a poultry farm 
with Bureau of Animal Health officials to review efforts to 
combat Avian Influenza.  The farm, located in a border district 
in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang, consisted largely of 
ducks (about 300) with a smaller number of chickens.  The farm 
owner noted he usually maintains a flock of 2,000, but most had 
already been sold.  He said that he changed farming practices in 
compliance with new government regulations.  He noted that his 
poultry no longer roam freely and coQtructed an eating space 
for the poultry with a slate floor over a body of water, to 
better manage the waste.  However, the effluent appeared to flow 
into a river channel. 
 
¶3. (U) Director of the Bureau of Animal Health Viet said that 
all farmers are required to register their poultry.  Domestic 
households owning poultry are managed by "self-regulating 
groups" formed by local authorities.  These groups are akin to 
community watch groups, and are charged with ensuring that local 
poultry stocks are reported to local authorities so that they 
may be vaccinated and monitored.  According to Viet, all farmers 
have been trained to look for symptoms of AI among poultry, 
including loss of appetite, ragged appearance, change in facial 
color, fever.  He noted that farmers are required to report any 
ill poultry, regardless of symptom.  He asserted that all 
farmers have been educated about AI through radio broadcasts and 
leaflets.  In addition to informing them about the poultry 
registration requirement and the ban against free-range poultry, 
farmers have been educated about human symptoms of AI and 
preventative measures for handling poultry. 
 
¶4. (U) Once farmers register their poultry, vaccinations are 
scheduled.  Vaccinations are administered by bureau officials 
and the farmers themselves in two cycles spaced five months 
apart.  In each cycle two injections are given one month apart. 
Viet noted that farms are also frequently sprayed with 
disinfectants.  Neither the farm owner nor the animal husbandry 
officials mentioned post-vaccination testing, which per Ref A is 
supposed to occur one and four months after vaccination. 
 
¶5. (U) The Animal Health Official stated that if any sick 
poultry is reported, it is tested for the H5N1 virus, but is not 
immediately slaughtered.  Rather, it is isolated while awaiting 
test results.  If H5N1 is found, the entire flock is 
slaughtered.  Farmers are compensated about $1.30 per head of 
poultry, whether duck or chicken; roughly one-third its market 
value. 
 
¶6. (SBU) According to Viet, to date, An Giang has not had any 
confirmed cases of the H5N1 virus.  Cases of human transmission 
apparently have been through the ingestion of sick poultry 
and/or "blood cakes," a Vietnamese delicacy made from the blood 
of chickens.  He stated that there have been no reported cases 
of transmission through direct physical contact with poultry in 
the province.  Blank expressed surprise, as the commonly 
reported transmission mode is direct contact with infected 
poultry; Viet did not reply.  Blank praised government officials 
for their efforts in preventing the spread of AI.  He noted, 
however, that government compensation for slaughtered poultry 
 
HO CHI MIN 00001014  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
was too low to ensure that farmers reported sick poultry.  Viet 
stated that he hoped more financial assistance from the U.S. 
would be forthcoming to assist them in their efforts. 
 
The Cham Population of An Giang 
------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (U) The Staffdel visited an ethnic Cham Sunni Muslim village 
in An Giang's Tan Chau district near the Cambodian border.  Clan 
Leader Cado and Chief Musha of the Muslim Representative Board 
of An Giang were present, but Chief Musha did most of the 
talking.  Musha said that there are 12,500 Muslims in An Giang 
province in roughly 2,000 households.  The community has a total 
of 12 mosques and 14 smaller worshipping places.  The Cham 
community has largely abandoned its traditional occupation of 
fishing for more lucrative ventures such as small business, 
trading and agriculture.  The Cham Muslim community now is fully 
literate.  All Muslim children are enrolled in local schools so 
they are fluent in both Vietnamese and in the Cham language. 
Some Cham students have received scholarships to study abroad in 
countries such as in Malaysia and Indonesia.  (Note:  Clan 
Leader Cado told us that he has six children living in the U.S., 
Malaysia and Australia.  End Note.) 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Muslim leaders painted a glowing picture of 
government support for the Cham Muslim community.  For example, 
the GVN provided housing aid; a tour of the village revealed a 
row of new and modern homes built with government assistance. 
Chief Musha stated that the government also provided financial 
assistance for the Cham to print their own religious texts.  He 
said the government trusts the Muslim community because they are 
"not interested in political issues."  The village elder is 
ethnic Cham.  Candidates for this position are proposed by the 
local (Party and Government) authorities and the Cham people 
then vote for the candidates. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Chief Musha reported that the government has allowed 
them to practice Islam freely.  He noted that the Koran has been 
translated into Vietnamese and the community is working to 
translate it into Cham.  The village leaders noted that they 
have no family ties and little interaction with ethnic Cham in 
Cambodia; very few Vietnamese Cham have visited Cambodia 
"because they don't speak Khmer." 
 
¶10. (SBU) The Muslim leaders stated that they have no official 
relations with Muslims in other countries.  However, about 40 
persons in the 200-household village the Staffdel was visiting 
have gone on the Hajj pilgrimage; half were funded by the Saudi 
Royal family.  (Note: This assertion is in contrast with a visit 
to the province by the Consul General in December 2005. 
Visiting the border post, the CG witnessed a small group of 
Muslim "tourists" cross from Vietnam into Cambodia.  Border 
officials stated that a small number of Malay religious visitors 
came to An Giang each month.  Cham leaders told the CG that they 
had ties with Malay Moslems whose culture and traditions are 
close to the Cham.  See Ref C for additional information on 
Vietnam's Muslim Community.  End Note.) 
 
The Women's Victims Center in Can Tho 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶11. (U) The StaffDel also visited a trafficking victims center 
in Can Tho run by the provincial Women's Union.  Women's Union 
Vice-Chairwoman Thuy said the center -- which opened in 2005 -- 
currently cares for twenty-three residents, twelve of whom 
recently had returned home.  The center has the capacity to 
house thirty residents.  The center focuses on providing the 
victims two months of vocational training in sewing.  The 
Women's Union representative asserted that this training is 
enough to secure a job in a factory.  Five residents have been 
trained to be hair dressers.  Classes in handicraft, baking and 
cooking are also offered.  This free training also is offered to 
other girls at high risk for being trafficked. 
 
¶12. (SBU) The age of residents ranges from 14 to 23; the average 
age is roughly 16.  According to Ms. Thuy, the residents are 
either victims of sexual abuse or were prostitutes.  None were 
trafficked internationally.  The victims of sexual abuse were 
 
HO CHI MIN 00001014  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
taken out of their communities and brought to the center because 
the molester was someone in their home or community and/or they 
could not stay in the community because they were stigmatized by 
the abuse.  Thuy stated that the center coordinates with the 
provincial unit of the "anti-social evils police," which refers 
victims to the center.  Referrals can also come from local 
authorities.  Women's Union caseworkers also visit public parks 
to approach at-risk girls, but these women usually do not accept 
assistance.  Among center residents who were prostitutes, most 
came from poor families, but some were middle-class.  None of 
the residents fell into the sex trade because of a drug habit. 
She noted incidents of "pimps" coming to the center to reclaim a 
sex worker in which police intervention was sought. 
 
¶13. (SBU) Comment: None of the victims in the Women's Union 
shelter were victims of trafficking to Cambodia.  And, neither 
Women's Union nor other officials raised the issue of 
cross-border trafficking with us.  This is surprising given the 
number of Vietnamese women working the sex trade in Cambodia, 
the anecdotal accounts from NGOs operating in the area on 
cross-border trafficking, and the TIP ring bust in HCMC 
involving Mekong Delta women (ref A). 
 
¶14. (SBU) Comment Continued: Avian Influenza controls at the 
poultry farm appeared adequate and were not put in place just 
for our benefit.  However, AI controls in the village appeared 
more lax.  There were numerous free-range ducks and chickens 
wandering around the village and the village "AI guard post" was 
hastily manned for our arrival.  The Cham rosy depiction of GVN 
support and non-interference was almost certainly said for the 
benefit of the GVN officials sitting immediately outside the 
meeting venue.  Other contacts tell us that the GVN monitors the 
Muslim community in the Delta and in HCMC very closely.  That 
said, the Cham village appeared to be much more prosperous than 
the ethnic Vietnamese community where the poultry farm is 
located.  End Comment. 
 
¶15. (U) Mr. Blank did not clear this message. 
WINNICK