Further Denial On Monk

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31223, 22 November 1966, Page 9

Further Denial On Monk

“Because Mr Lake persists in his claim that the visit of the Vietnamese monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, was ’timed to coincide with the General Election in New Zealand and Australia,’ it is necessary to make a further categorical denial that this was so,” said the Rev. Dr. M. A. McDowell, chairman of the Christchurch Joint Council on Vietnam, in a statement.

“As the first person in Christchurch to be informed of his coming to New Zealand I can say that, from the outset, the New Zealand election did not enter into it,” said Dr. McDowell. “Our interest in the proposal of the International Committee of Conscience on Vietnam was in the fact that here was the opportunity to hear a Vietnamese tell the story from the angle of the people of Vietnam. We believe he did it. If Mr Lake, who I understand did not hear the monk, has evidence that he was brought to New Zealand for election purposes, we challenge him to produce it,” said Dr. McDowell. “As for Mr Lake’s persistence also in referring to Thich Nhat' Hanh as an imposter, we ask him how was it that this discovery was only made during his visit to New

Zealand a few days before the election? If he was thought to be an imposter by the Ky Government, why didn’t they let this be known in the United States above all places and in Europe also while he was there speaking on the war? “As for Thich Nhat Hanh not knowing what has been going on since he left Vietnam, we would remind Mr Lake that there is such a thing as postal services with South Vietnam. The monk does not claim to be an elected representative of the people; but, as director of the School of Social Studies at Van Hanh University in Saigon, which brings him into close touch with the villages of South Vietnam, he has gained a sympathetic understanding of the mind of the people,” he said.

“Thich Nhat Hanh’s message which was neither proAmerican nor pro-communist, but which rather supports a middle of the road position, was welcomed by many in New Zealand. He believes that the United States policy of trying to suppress communism by military action is ineffective.

“It is really driving people from the non-Communist group into the ranks of the Communists. Whereas, if America were to cease her bombing and withdraw, first to coastal positions, and allow the people of Vietnam to settle this issue by themselves —which is what our Govern-

ment claims it stands for—he believes a Vietnamese Government could be formed representative of various sections of the community which could lead Vietnam to peace and order and free the American and allied troops to leave, which they have always declared themselves ready to do at such a time. “Those who have studied the authentic credentials of this man, copies of which we hold, and who heard him speak are convinced that this man is no tool of the subtleties of communism, but a genuine lover of his fatherland and a worker for peace,” said Dr. McDowell.