Paying veterans’ confusion

Press, 1 June 1985, Page 6

Paying veterans’ confusion

PA '; Wellington Confusion over procedures for paying compensation awarded to Vietnam veterans has surfaced. In Washington, a United States Federal Court Judge, Jack Weinstein, said New Zealand had until September 1 to supply him with a “satisfactory plan” for distribution of the |US4OO,OOO allocated to Vietnam veterans who claim they or their families were affected by Agent Orange. If this was not forthcoming, said Judge Weinstein in a written opinion, the New Zealand claims would be handled under the plan for American claimants. He noted that the Australian Government had taken an active role in resolving differences among interested parties there and that Australia had proposed a preliminary trust plan for administering the $U53,600,000 set aside for that country. “The New Zealand Government appears to be willing to oversee the establishment of a trust in which the various New Zealand veterans groups would participate, taking a role similar to that of the Australian Government regarding an Australian trust fund,” Judge Weinstein wrote. “As yet, however, the Court has not received a confirmation from the New

Zealand Government of its willingness to oversee the formulation and submission of a trust proposal as well as the implementation of such a plan once approved by the Court” Judge Weinstein said it would be desirable for the chairman of the New Zealand trust to be appointed by the Minister in Charge of War Pensions, Mr O’Flynn, or some other Government official, and for the Government to confirm that the plan had the support of veterans groups. The specific terms of the trust he said, would depend on New Zealand law.

In Wellington, however, the Government indicated that it believed it had fulfilled requirements for setting up a trust Doubt about whether the New Zealand Government had satisfied the Court’s need for administering the fund in New Zealand surfaced in an Interview on Radio New Zealand with an American lawyer, Mr Ken Feinburg, who has been appointed by the Court to see now the veterans’ share of the fund could be protected. Mr Feinburg was quoted as saying there had been no response from the New Zea-

land Government on the role of being: the ultimate responsible party for the channelling of money. At a post-caucus press conference later, however, the Prime Minister, Mr Lange, said Mr Feinburg was “not telling the truth.” Mr Lange said Mr Feinburg met officials of the New Zealand Embassy on March 13 and advised them of three possibilities: To let events run their course; to establish some sort of trust fund; “and there was another possibility which we considered to be irrelevant” Mr Lange said the Government decid