VZCZCXRO1928
PP RUEHDT RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD
DE RUEHHM #0156/01 0510136
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P R 200136Z FEB 08
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3701
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI 2485
RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/DEPT OF INTERIOR WASHINGTON DC
RUEAEPA/HQ EPA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 3921

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000156 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/MLS AND OES/ETC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON SENV SOCI EAGR VM
SUBJECT: VIETNAM'S CAGED BEARS: HCMC'S SMALL STEPS AT PROTECTION 
AREN'T UP TO THE CHALLENGE 
 
REF: 2007 HANOI 1763 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000156  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary:  Ho Chi Minh City is home to a number of 
wild-game restaurants now coming under greater scrutiny because 
they push the line between exotic and illegal.  After a 
concerned Amcit recently reported seven bears caged outside one 
such restaurant, the Consulate followed up.  While we learned 
that HCMC's Forest Protection Department is working with the NGO 
"Wildlife at Risk" to monitor and protect the captive bears, we 
also found that the City lacks the resources (and some argue the 
will) to eradicate illicit bear farms (where bears are 'tapped' 
for their bile).  Given its own limitations, the City has 
authorized certain NGOs to register and monitor the health of 
illegally held bears, which reportedly are to be released to 
more humane facilities as sites are developed.  Against the 
backdrop of widespread lack of appreciation of, or commitment 
to, the protection of wildlife in Vietnam, the City's nascent 
efforts at saving the bears face an uphill struggle.  End 
Summary. 
 
Caged Bears Draw Attention 
-------------------------- 
¶2.  (SBU) An American in HCMC, distressed at the sight of seven 
bears kept in small, squalid cages outside the An Binh Quoc Minh 
venison restaurant, notified the Consulate.  ConGenOff contacted 
the HCMC Department of Forest Protection (FPD), which directed 
us to their NGO partner, the HCMC-based NGO Wildlife at Risk 
(WAR) started by prominent Dragon Capital investment fund 
founder Dominic Scriven.  Country Director Nguyen Vu Khoi told 
us WAR was well aware of the An Binh restaurant bears. 
 
¶3.  (U) Khoi explained that HCMC FPD's registers all illegally 
held bears and collaborates with WAR to catalogue and tag (with 
micro chips) approximately 500 bears in HCMC.  The bears in 
question had been tagged in order to monitor their well-being 
until the time when they can be placed in wildlife sanctuaries. 
WAR is working to expand their Cu Chi wildlife sanctuary, some 
40 km from downtown HCMC, which is already filled to capacity. 
The national FPD considers this monitoring program so successful 
that it is working with the World Society for Protection of 
Animals, a United Kingdom NGO, in extending it to other 
provinces. 
 
 
The Gap Between Legislation and Implementation 
--------------------------------------------- - 
¶4.  (SBU) Bear bile extracted from their gall bladders and paws 
remains highly prized in Vietnam as an aphrodisiac and health 
tonic.  Vietnam outlawed the commercial trade in bear products 
in March 2005, but has not provided the resources necessary to 
rehabilitate and relocate the animals caught up in the system. 
Although Vietnam's strong wildlife laws criminalize virtually 
every aspect of the caged bears' predicament -- capture, sale, 
transport, exploitation -- insufficient resources, public 
ambivalence and a lack of political will limit enforcement 
(reftel). 
 
¶5. (SBU) According to the NGO Animals Asia Foundation, three to 
four thousand animals are caged throughout Vietnam, often in 
wretched conditions.  Unable to eliminate the problem outright, 
the GVN is limited to monitoring animals at existing sites (like 
An Binh restaurant) in order to concentrate their efforts on 
preventing additional bears from entering the system. 
 
Monitoring Helps, but Abuses Remain 
----------------------------------- 
¶6.  (SBU) While regular monitoring decreases the degree of 
exploitation of captive bears, Mr. Khoi concedes that scarce 
resources and unequal enforcement limit the program's 
effectiveness.  Insufficient government oversight creates 
opportunities for corruption, and some keepers of bears use 
personal relationships to evade censure.  For example, Khoi is 
reluctant to antagonize the owners of An Binh restaurant because 
they are war veterans with political clout.  WAR does include 
the restaurant on a blacklist of establishments that contribute 
to the illegal wildlife trade that the NGO maintains on the 
Internet at http: //www.wildlifeatrisk.org. 
 
Comment 
-------- 
¶7.  (SBU) Increased international attention is raising the 
profile of wildlife issues in Vietnam, and the private sector is 
funding NGOs help to fight abuses.  The FPD's willingness to 
cooperate with and even delegate part of its mandate to foreign 
 
HO CHI MIN 00000156  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
wildlife NGOs is a pragmatic, albeit far from adequate attempt 
to fulfill Vietnam's international commitments to protect 
biodiversity with limited resources.  While Vietnam's openness 
to international cooperation is a step in the right direction, 
we see little evidence of a genuine indigenous commitment to 
protect wildlife.  Without such a commitment, the future for 
Vietnam's bears remains grim.  We will continue to monitor the 
effectiveness of this novel public-private approach, press 
Vietnam to better protect wildlife and encourage GVN officials 
to engage with their counterparts on this issue at the 
appropriate multilateral fora.  End comment. 
 
¶8.  (U) This cable was coordinated with Embassy Hanoi. 
FAIRFAX