VZCZCXRO1017
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #0576/01 0600150
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 010150Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3536
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 7527
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0581

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000576 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/01/2017 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL ASEAN BM ID
SUBJECT: AMB. REES RAISES RAPE IN BURMA WITH ASEAN SYG ONG 
 
REF: A. A) STATE 20000 
 
     ¶B. B) JAKARTA 429 
 
Classified By: POLITICAL OFFICER SANJAY RAMESH FOR REASONS 1.4 (b) and 
(d) 
 
 ¶1. (C) Summary: On Feb. 19, Special Representative for 
Social Issues, Amb. Grover Joseph Rees, conveyed the USG 
concern over Burma's use of rape as an instrument of policy 
to ASEAN Secretary-General (SYG) Ong Keng Yong.  Amb. Rees 
pushed for ASEAN support of a UN Human Rights Council (HRC) 
resolution on Burma, and asked ASEAN to press the Burmese 
junta to stop this intolerable practice.  Ong believed ASEAN 
could have some influence over Burma, and promised to try to 
get leaders to focus on the issue.  He continued, however, 
that ASEAN always acted by consensus, reducing its ability to 
be tough.  Courted by both China and India, Burma acts as if 
it could do without ASEAN.  Nevertheless, Ong suggested 
several useful approaches to influence the regime, including 
raising rape in the ASEAN Senior Officials' Meeting, and 
engaging the ASEAN Conference on Women and the ASEAN Social 
Welfare and Development Committee.  End Summary. 
 
Delivering the Message 
---------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) On February 19, Special Representative for Social 
Issues, Ambassador Grover Joseph Rees, told ASEAN SYG Ong 
that Burma and Sudan are the only two countries whose 
governments systematically use rape as an official instrument 
of violence exclusively against vulnerable minorities.  The 
Burmese junta used rape to oppress, demoralize, and control 
restive minorities.  Pointing out that a "gradual roadmap 
approach" and incremental measures such as strengthening the 
justice system or law enforcement were totally insufficient 
to stopping rape in Burma, Amb. Rees urged ASEAN to take 
action to push the Burmese junta to stop this gross violation 
of human rights.  He noted that though the recent UN Security 
Council (UNSC) resolution censoring Burma had failed to pass, 
it received nine of fifteen votes, and that all the UNSC 
members acknowledged the problems that existed within Burma. 
He said the USG would provide SYG Ong with several credible 
reports documenting widespread rape targeted at minorities 
such as the Karen, Shan, and Chin. 
 
ASEAN focused on "grand strategy" 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (C) Ong said that "no one in ASEAN condones institutional 
rape."  While Ong believed that ASEAN needed to act quickly 
on such reports, he regretted that with regard to Burma, 
ASEAN leaders tended to focus on "the strategic level, 
without ever getting into the details."  In the past Ong had 
tried, without much success, to get ASEAN leaders to focus on 
pressing human rights issues in Burma such as forced labor 
and HIV, but discussion "always remained stuck at the 
strategic level of the roadmap."  Ong also said that ASEAN's 
ability to decisively tackle controversial issues was limited 
by its institutional mandate to proceed by consensus.  Ong 
noted that while in theory the SYG did not have the ability 
to place items on the ASEAN agenda, he would do his best to 
get leaders "to focus on this issue by whispering in a few 
important ears." 
 
ASEAN "flabbergasted" by Burmese regime 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (C) Ong told Ambassador Rees that ASEAN was often 
"flabbergasted" by the Burmese regime's attitude that "they 
could easily do without ASEAN."  He attributed this to China 
and India's courtship of Burma without regard to human rights 
violations and lack of democracy.  As a result, Burma was 
really focused on its bilateral relationship with these two 
countries.  ASEAN was trying to get China and India to help 
promote change "at least in functional areas such as 
education or disease control because even in these areas the 
Burmese government does not engage with ASEAN."  Ong argued 
that the Chinese and Indian role in Burma and reluctance to 
push for change significantly reduced ASEAN's leverage over 
the regime. 
 
SYG suggests tactics to influence Burma 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (C) Ong believed that an HRC resolution would not hurt 
Burma because the junta "already believed the HRC was 
politicized and unfriendly."  Rather, he recommended that the 
USG engage other unspecified UN bodies to focus on rape in 
Burma.  Ong also suggested that the ASEAN senior official 
meeting, composed of foreign ministry directors-general, was 
a potentially useful forum in which to try and raise the 
 
JAKARTA 00000576  002 OF 002 
 
 
issue.  He advised the USG try to approach the ASEAN 
Conference on Women and ASEAN Social Welfare and Development 
Committee to consider rape in Burma because ASEAN dialogue 
partners - including Japan and South Korea, countries with 
influence over Burma - actively participated in these bodies. 
 Ong noted that a few years ago ASEAN had passed a 
declaration on violence against women and children, which 
could possibly be used as a basis to raise the rape issue in 
these bodies.  Despite his earlier assertion on the limits of 
ASEAN influence, Ong said "I still believe we can get 
somewhere if we in ASEAN focus on this issue." 
 
¶6. (C) In addition to working through international 
organizations like the UN or ASEAN, Ong also advised the USG 
to raise rape with Burma parliamentary caucus groups in Asia. 
 He noted that many Asian parliaments included such caucuses 
which were deeply concerned about the dismal state of human 
rights in Burma.  Another useful strategy, he suggested, 
involved collaborating with international and regional human 
rights NGOs to embarrass the Burmese junta.  He noted that 
the Burmese regime had taken some positive steps to address 
child labor due to pressure from the International Labor 
Organization (ILO) and civil society. 
 
¶7. (U) This message has been cleared by Ambassador Rees. 
 
HEFFERN