VZCZCXYZ0002
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHMN #0249 1261935
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 051935Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8166
INFO RUCNMER/MERCOSUR COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS MONTEVIDEO 000249 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT ALSO FOR DRL/SEA AND WHA/BSC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL UY
SUBJECT: REPORT ON OUTREACH TO DEMOCRACY ACTIVISTS AND 
DISSIDENTS (URUGUAY) 
 
REF: A. STATE 44903 
     ¶B. 2007 STATE 108924 
 
¶1. (U) Per reftels, please find below a summary of Embassy's 
outreach and activities over the last year on the President's 
Freedom Agenda. 
 
Context 
------- 
¶2. (U) Uruguay is a free and democratic country. A 2007 
survey by "the Economist" magazine rated Uruguay as the only 
country in South America to enjoy "full democracy." 
Similarly, the Bertelsman Foundation recently placed Uruguay 
and Chile at the top of its list of 125 countries in 
democratic transition.  Uruguay does not host significant 
refugee, dissident or exile communities from un-free 
countries. Its non-governmental organizations (NGOs) 
generally do not focus on the plight of un-free countries, 
despite our attempts to engage them on this issue. 
 
¶3. (U) Instead, Uruguay's NGOs, activists and its Government 
are intently focused on past human rights issues as they 
relate to Uruguay's 1973-85 period of military dictatorship 
when security forces committed serious human rights 
violations in their campaign against violent insurgents and 
their sympathizers.  Some Uruguayans blame the U.S. for 
indirectly supporting the region's military governments 
during the Cold War.  The complex history of the dictatorship 
created heroes and villains for both the left and right. Some 
of the persons involved -- including former Tupamaro 
guerrillas --  are still active in politics today.  The real 
and imagined lessons from the dictatorship period continue to 
haunt modern politics, including the Uruguayans' perception 
of the U.S., especially where the Global War on Terrorism, 
Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo are concerned.  In some 
quarters support fo the Cuban regime is very strong.  This 
situation presents some challenges in our discussions on 
human rights and democracy; for this reason the Embassy has 
opted for an indirect method of pursuing the President's 
Freedom Agenda. 
 
Advancing the Freedom Agenda 
---------------------------- 
¶4. (SBU) Though led by a left-leaning government, Uruguay 
shares many of our values and is a conspicuous island of 
democratic stability and good governance in this turbulent 
region.  President Bush's 2007 visit to Uruguay sent a 
powerful signal to the region that the U.S. favors good 
relations with sensible, pragmatic governments that respect 
democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, regardless of 
their political label.  Taking a cue from the President, we 
have publicly and privately promoted Uruguay's solid 
democracy in order to contrast it against the fallacies and 
failed economic recipes of the regimes in countries such as 
Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba, and Nicaragua.  The Ambassador has 
highlighted Uruguayan democracy and rule of law in several 
op-eds published in major dailies during the past year.  In 
addition, he regularly issues statements stressing the 
likemindedness of Uruguay and the U.S. to these democratic 
values, implicitly contrasting Uruguay with unfree regimes in 
the hemisphere. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Meanwhile, we have continued to deliver to the GOU 
many official demarches related to human rights and freedom. 
We have backed Uruguay's robust international peacekeeping 
operations (PKO) in countries that are challenged by freedom 
issues, such as DROC and Haiti, by providing training and 
equipment in support Uruguay's continued role.  We 
successfully arranged the travel to the U.S. of a Cuban 
paramedic who sought asylum in Uruguay. 
Baxter