VZCZCXRO9523
OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHWL #0774 2981906
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 251906Z OCT 07
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4826
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS PRIORITY
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 5005
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 0148
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PRIORITY 0300
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL PRIORITY 0272
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 0669
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0102

UNCLAS WELLINGTON 000774 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/ANP, EAP/MLS AARON COPE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL KDEM NZ BM
SUBJECT: BURMA DEMARCHES DELIVERED TO GNZ 
 
REF: A. A) STATE 148540 
 
     ¶B. B) STATE 148528 
     ¶C. C) STATE 146862 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Pol/Econ Counselor passed the information and 
suggestions outlined in reftel demarches to Bernadette 
Cavanagh, who recently began work as the Head of the 
Southeast Asia Unit at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and 
Trade (MFAT).  Cavanagh thanked the Embassy for the update on 
the latest USG actions and the websites provided in reftel C; 
she also appreciated the proposals outlined in reftels A and 
B, as the GNZ is still in the process of preparing a paper 
for Ministers on next steps in addressing the violence and 
continued persecution of pro-democracy activists in Burma. 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  Cavanagh proposed meeting next week following the 
submission of the MFAT paper, so that she could provide a 
fuller brief on New Zealand's thinking.  We note that there 
has been some reaction in the press to the GNZ reaction to 
date, with criticism from the Green Party and others over the 
lack of strong GNZ action other than tough words and press 
statements.  One press article from October 5 noted that the 
Government's NZD 13.1 billion New Zealand Superannuation Fund 
has acknowledged that some of the companies (France's Total 
SA, China Petroleum and Chemical/Sinopec, and Malaysia's 
Petronas) it invests in have operations in Burma; another 
Chinese company is also reportedly receiving investment funds 
from the Fund.  A Fund spokeswoman has said that if sanctions 
were applied, the Fund would review its investments. 
However, MFAT has told us that New Zealand domestic law makes 
application of sanctions difficult in the absence of a UN 
sanctions resolution. 
 
 
McCormick