VZCZCXRO3312
PP RUEHDT RUEHPB
DE RUEHHM #0461/01 1130814
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 230814Z APR 07
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2550
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI PRIORITY 1847
RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 2746

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000461 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM SOCI PREL PGOV KIRF PREF VM
SUBJECT: DISTORTIONS IN ABUSE CASE OF CENTRAL HIGHLANDS ETHNIC 
MINORITY INDIVIDUAL 
 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000461  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  A number of U.S. groups, including the 
Montagnard Foundation, published reports on the Internet 
claiming that an ethnic minority woman in the province of 
Dak Lak named H'Hlung Nie was badly beaten by police during 
interrogation, following the flight of a sister to 
Cambodia.  These reports also claimed that her husband was 
a political prisoner.  After interviewing H'Hlung Nie in 
private in her home on April 18, the allegations of 
physical abuse or her husband jailed for peaceful political 
activity do not appear credible.  However, Nie apparently 
was the victim of an attempted assault by a police officer 
which local authorities sought to cover up.  We have 
pressed senior provincial authorities to investigate the 
incident thoroughly and to ensure that the offending 
officer is accountable.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) During a visit to the Central Highlands province 
of Dak Lak, April 16 to 18, HCMC PolOff and RefCord 
traveled to the town of Buon Le Da, to meet with H'Hlung 
Nie and one of her sisters, to discuss allegations that Nie 
was beaten by police during interrogation in her home on 
January 22.   (Initially there was a heavy plainclothes 
police presence inside the home, but after some discussion 
we were able to shoo away the "cousins" and "uncles" 
without incident.)  A press release from the South 
Carolina-based Montagnard Foundation alleged that "(three) 
security police repeatedly beat Nie's arm very hard" and 
that "her arm was severely bruised and battered."  The 
security police are threatening her with more beatings." 
The same press release noted that Nie's husband Y-Phiar 
Adrong was a political prisoner who was arrested for 
participating in anti-GVN protests in 2001 and 2004 and has 
suffered torture in prison.  The press release notes that 
"his family fears that he will not live long." 
 
¶3. (SBU) Nie's depiction of the events surrounding that 
incident and the reason for her husband's imprisonment are 
at odds with information circulating on the Internet.  Nie 
told us that police began to interview her following the 
flight of another sister -- H'Blung -- to Cambodia in 
December 2006.  Nie first stated that H'Blung left because 
the government was "repressing Protestantism."   However, 
after we pointed out that the government had already 
registered the local Protestant congregation before 
H'Blung's flight, Nie acknowledged that H'Blung was seeking 
to join her husband Y Liem Ksor, who was resettled in the 
U.S. after fleeing to Cambodia in 2001/2002. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Nie told us that her sister H'Blung had made a 
previous attempt to flee to Cambodia in October 2005 but 
was caught.  During this incident, Nie's husband was 
implicated as an alien smuggler and sentenced to five years 
in prison for attempting to assist H'Blung and possibly 
others to flee to Cambodia.  Nie told us that her husband 
participated in anti-GVN protests in 2001, but not in 2004. 
He was interviewed by police many times after the 2001 
protest, but was never detained.  Nie neither expressed 
concern for her husband's health in prison nor claimed that 
he had been tortured. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Prior to the January 22 incident, Nie had been 
interviewed "two or three times" by police about the flight 
of her sister.  During these interviews, police did not 
beat or threaten to beat her.  One of the policemen that 
interrogated Nie was an officer named "Viet."  In those 
sessions, Viet was accompanied by other officers and 
"behaved normally."  Nie said that she had met Viet earlier 
when she was seeking police permission to deliver supplies 
to her imprisoned husband. 
 
¶6. (SBU) On January 22, when Nie returned to her home -- 
she lives alone -- Viet was lying on her bed waiting.  When 
she entered, he told her to sit down next to him and held 
her hands.  He asked why she wasn't being "more 
cooperative" in the police investigation of her sister's 
flight to Cambodia.  He then reportedly sat up and drew Nie 
to him and bit her twice, first on the back and then on her 
upper right arm.  The bites did not break the skin, but 
left bruises, Nie said.  Nie yelled, and a cousin came in, 
at which point the policeman rose, slipped a VND 50,000 
(USD 3) note on the bed and left the house. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) After the incident, Nie filed a complaint with 
the local authorities.  A few days later, another police 
team came to Nie's house.  A policewoman heading the team 
apologized and offered her VND 200,000 (USD 12) as 
compensation.  Nie said she refused to accept the money. 
Since the January 22 incident, police have come to her 
house once more to question her about her sister.  Viet has 
never returned. 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000461  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶8. (SBU) Nie and her sister said they had no knowledge that 
her story was on the Internet.  Nie did not ask for any USG 
assistance except to help get her husband out of prison, 
because life was difficult without him. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Nie appeared to be relatively well off compared to 
other ethnic minority individuals we have met.  There was 
an expensive new motorbike belonging to a brother in the 
house; Nie said that she owned a second motorbike.  Her 
house was in good repair and she wore gold jewelry. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Comment:  The Montagnard Foundation portrayal of 
the January 22 incident as well as the depiction of Nie's 
husband as a political dissident does not track with the 
facts of our interview with Nie.  It appears that Nie was a 
victim of a rogue cop who made improper sexual advances. 
Local officials appeared to be aware of the nature of the 
incident but it is unclear if any action was taken. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Comment Continued:  In our follow up discussions 
with the district- and provincial Chairmen, we stressed 
that police abuse of power is not a unique problem to the 
Central Highlands or to Vietnam.  However, it was incumbent 
upon government to punish violators when such abuses come 
to light.  We urged the provincial leaders to investigate 
the incident thoroughly and take appropriate action. 
 
¶12. (SBU) From what we can glean, it appears that Nie's 
sister H'Blung and her three children were abandoned by her 
husband after his resettlement in the United States.  Nie 
told us that she was not aware of any contact between 
H'Blung and her husband, with the exception of one or two 
phone calls in 2004.  There is no VISAS-93, family 
reunification petition for H'Blung on record.  End Comment. 
WINNICK