Cablegate: Mfa's Rangoon Branch Office Still Open for Visas

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 RANGOON 001324

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR CA/VO, CA/OCS/ACS/EAP, EAP/BCLTV

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12598: N/A
TAGS: CVIS CASC KFRD PREL PGOV BM
SUBJECT: MFA'S RANGOON BRANCH OFFICE STILL OPEN FOR VISAS

REF: A) Rangoon 1295 and previous
B) Rangoon 84

1. (SBU) Summary: On November 22, conoff met with MFA's Consular
Division Director to discuss anticipated changes in visa
processing due to the ongoing GOB move to a new administrative
capital in Pyinmana, particularly as it affects USG official
travelers. The MFA official advised that visa processing would
slow down significantly as government workers cope with the
sudden relocation and also shared information about how the GOB
processes official visa requests, how the move to Pyinmana was
affecting the MFA, and how the GOB handles visas for Amcit
tourists. End summary.

2. (SBU) On November 18, post was informed by Ministry of Foreign
Affairs (MFA) Consular Division staff that they were closing down
for business immediately, in preparation for their move to the
new GOB administrative capital of Pyinmana (ref A). On November
22, conoff followed up with the Consular Division Director, who
assured us that visa processing in Rangoon is going on, although
he admitted that things will "slow down" for an uncertain period
because the Ministry is very short-staffed. With its Deputy
Director and most other staff members now transferred to
Pyinmana, it appears that the Consular Division is trying to put
on a brave face and keep things moving as best it can.

3. (SBU) During the conversation, the Director revealed some of
the MFA internal process for approving official visa requests.
Obtaining Burmese visas for USG TDY staff from surrounding posts,
and even tourist visas for USG diplomatic passport holders, is
usually a long and very unpredictable process. Some Burmese
embassies overseas issue visas quickly; others stall until the
travel date arrives and the travel must be canceled. Over a year
ago, post agreed with MFA to back-channel visa requests from USG
officials in neighboring countries with a diplomatic note to
expedite visa issuance. This has, in fact, added another layer
of bureaucracy and has not always produced the desired result of
greater expediency. The Director stated that all applications
from diplomatic and official passport holders must now be
personally approved by either the Deputy Minister or the
Minister, and sometimes - depending on the nature of the visit -
by the regime's Foreign Affairs Policy Committee, which meets
once a week on Tuesdays. Following this process, the case is
transmitted to the Burmese embassy concerned, which might then
add an extra amount of time before it gets around to issuing the
visa (in one recent case, the Burmese Embassy in Dhaka neglected
to forward a US diplomat's visa application to Rangoon for over
two weeks; when we investigated we were told that the Dhaka
embassy's "fax machine was broken").

4. (SBU) Conoff also took the opportunity to inquire about the
issuance of tourist visas for Amcits with regular passports. The
Director stated that "we do not discriminate" by country, and
that there has been no change in procedures for tourist visas.
Burmese embassies are allowed to be independent in their issuance
of tourist visas, and most Burmese embassies issue them the same
day as the application is lodged. Conoff also asked about the
GOB's "e-visa." (Note: the e-visa was an innovation introduced
under former Prime Minister General Khin Nyunt, which allowed
tourists to apply for their visas on-line and receive an
electronic approval that could then be used to board Burma-bound
airlines and receive visas upon arrival. The e-visa was
discontinued in early 2005, probably as part of an overall purge
of Khin Nyunt-led initiatives when he was ousted from the
government and arrested. End note.) The MFA official stated
that this program has not yet been reinstated. However, travel
agencies are allowed to process visas electronically for tour
groups, through the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism. According to
post records, the vast majority of visiting Amcits travel to
Burma on organized tours.

5. (SBU) When asked about future plans, the MFA official
confirmed that almost everyone in MFA would eventually move to
Pyinmana, including the ministers. When asked about his own
move, the Consular Division Director said that, for health
reasons, he would stay in Rangoon and would then retire. (The
note-taker at the meetings told conoff later that she would be
moving to Pyinmana next month and, as a single parent, regretted
having to leave her daughter behind). The Director suggested
that the MFA Protocol Division would likely remain in Rangoon, as
it will have to continue to interact with foreign embassies. He
stated that Protocol would start to handle assignment visas and
stay permits. Asked about a timeline for the Consular Division's
move, he would only say that "diplomatic missions will be
notified." When asked about the fate of the vacant ministerial
buildings, the Director opined that they would probably go "to
enterprises." He did not specify whether this meant private or
commercial enterprises.

6. (SBU) Conoff also asked about the Passport Office and whether
it would move to Pyinmana, as this has a direct impact on the
embassy's visa workload. MFA official told us that there was a
Passport Board meeting last week, and it determined that the
Passport Office would remain in Rangoon for the time being. Post
has observed a sharp spike in Burmese passport issuances since
passport requirements were relaxed in early 2005 (ref B), which
most directly affects our IV workload. A check of passport
numbers (Burmese passport numbers are sequential) issued over the
past five years indicates an approximate average of passport
issuances per month as follows:

2000 - 3200 per month
2001 - 2700 per month
2002 - 6400 per month
2003 - 8800 per month
2004 - 4600 per month (Note: this drop is likely due to the
introduction of "e-passports," or machine-readable passports,
issued to businessmen as well as seaman, which are the majority
of our NIV applicants. These e-passports are not included in
this tally, and have also been discontinued in the wake of Khin
Nyunt's ouster. End note)
2005 - 13,100 per month

7. (SBU) Comment: MFA staff are used to following orders, like
everyone else in Burma, but they are now in the uncomfortable
position of having to explain the move to Pyinmana both to
themselves and to foreign missions. It appears that the Consular
Division Director is giving us the proper prepared responses, but
his body language and his note-taker's aside told a different
story. It remains unclear how efficiently requests for official
visas will be processed once most of the MFA moves to Pyinmana,
but we believe official travelers could face increasing delays
and difficulties in obtaining their visas. We recommend that any
USG officials planning to come to Burma, whether for work or
tourism, plan far ahead and try to be as flexible as possible.
End comment.
VILLAROSA

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