LETTER TO WINSTON LORD January 28, 1996 Mr. Winston Lord Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Department of State Washington, D.C. Dear Mr. Lord, You may remember me when I met you at the Embassy in Beijing on the way back from a trip to Pyongyang in 1990. I am a former Newsweek Tokyo bureau chief and established an NGO in Cambodia four years ago to help in various projects there including the publication of The Cambodia Daily, a non profit newspaper. Recently I have turned my attention to providing relief for the North Korean flood victims and launched a Home Page on the Internet for this purpose. The access number is: http://shrine.cyber.ad.jp/mrosin/flood I went to North Korea in November to distribute clothes, blankets shoes and powdered milk directly to flood victims in the rural areas. Documentation and photos of this trip appear on the home page. I had opened bank accounts in Washington (Crestar Bank) and in Tokyo to receive contributions from the public but discovered just prior to my departure for Pyongyang, when I wanted to withdraw the funds from the bank that the bank informed me they had been ordered by the Treasury Department to block the account. I had received no formal notice. These funds would have purchased powdered milk for infants, many of whom are suffering from malnutrition. I have written three letters to a Mr. Newcomb at Treasury requesting permission to send humanitarian relief to North Korea and to unblock this account, including two registered letters, but there has been no response. I visited the State Department to try to discuss this with the officials in the Korean section but was unable to arrange an appointment with the director of the Section and a lower level official listened patiently but was noncommittal. There appeared to be no sympathy for the flood victims nor my efforts to retrieve my own deposit in the bank and whatever contributions may have been deposited. I cannot comprehend such an attitude on the part of my government that has a long humanitarian tradition. People like me should be encouraged not regarded as law breakers. I understand that the United States is beginning to realize the serious situation in North Korea. I am returning to North Korea again in late February when I will personally distribute rice to the villages again with funds collected over the Internet and from generous donors in Japan and also from Seoul National University students and faculty, and from church groups there. I would like to request your cooperation in helping obtain the permission from the United States government to use the funds from this account and other donations to help feed the victims, particularly children, in these areas. A number of potential American donors are withholding contributions until I receive such permission. My deadline for ordering rice from abroad is February 10. Your cooperation in helping me attain the necessary permissions and unblocking the account is greatly appreciated. You may fax me at: +81-3-3486-6789. Best regards, Bernard Krisher

[ Back to Letters ] [ Send Email ] [ Return to Homepage ]