895.00/5–348: Telegram
The Political Adviser in Korea (Jacobs) to the Secretary of State
311. Following is text of statement which is being issued today by General Hodge:
“I am sure that many of the Korean people have heard confusing stories about the so-called ‘north-south conference’ at Pyongyang. Except for the glowing Kremlin-directed Communist stories given out by the Pyongyang radio, or turned out by the local Communist propaganda cells and press in South Korea, most of what you have heard is rumor. It is possible that some of you may be confused.
“I believe it would be worthwhile to analyze this conference, particularly as to what actual representation South Korea has had at the conference and as to what the conference is all about, as judged by their own official radio announcements, and what we here know about the subject.
“Of course, North Korea is represented in the conference only by those political organizations sponsored and fully approved by the Soviet Command, so that we can be sure of their allegiance and obedience to Soviet dictation. Otherwise, they could not exist as parties in North Korea. It should be noted that the great Korean patriot, Cho Man Sik, has been conspicuous by his absence from this conference. South Korea, with two-thirds of the nation’s population, including some millions of Korean refugees who have fled from the ‘heaven’ of North Korea, is represented by all the Communist Democratic Front parties of South Korea, who have been directing and operating terroristic violence, slaughter, arson and sabotage in South Korea, plus a few small heavily Communist infiltrated fellow-traveler parties who follow truly the Communist Party line in slogan and policy. The only notable exceptions to this grouping are two well known Koreans Kim Koo and Doctor Kimm Kiusic, whose followers in South Korea that have not now deserted them are mourning the fact that their leaders have fallen into the Communist trap set to catch patriotic but unwary non-Communists. The baiting of this trap follows the same familiar eastern European pattern used in the taking over of Poland, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Albania, Rumania and Czechoslovakia by the Communists, as well as in some other small nations who have completely lost their free democracy under Soviet pressure and direction.
[Page 1189]“The South Koreans who were invited by and were acceptable to the Soviet sponsored ‘north-south conference’ are specifically those who ‘oppose the elections in South Korea’. Of course, we all know that the Communists and their fellow travelers oppose the elections. We have not heard much of anything else in their ‘party line’ propaganda since last November, and this has greatly increased since the United Nations Commission arrived in Korea in January, the Communists oppose elections because their Soviet masters have ordered them to do so. They do not want any form of secret ballot election outside the absolute Communist pattern and control, because they know it will show up the numerical weakness of those Koreans who want to sell their nation into the slavery of a Communist satellite state. The reasons for opposition to election by the few other self-elected ‘representatives of South Korea’ have not been so clear to the people, but there is strong suspicion that they fear that their following, as expressed by the voters, will be extremely disappointing, and wish to save face by not participating.
“The very significant fact is, that in spite of all the propaganda and violence against elections on the part of the Communists and their stooges, plus the misguided efforts of those who boycott and oppose the elections, over 90 percent of all eligible Korean voters in South Korea have registered to vote. This shows their desire to select their own representatives by secret ballot to form a Korean Government. In the face of the facts and positive evidence in the case, how can anyone say that those self-appointed ‘South Korean leaders’ attending the Pyongyang conference in any way represent the good people of South Korea? Even if they represent every man and woman who refused to register they still ‘represent’ less than 10 percent of the South Korean people. Even this calculation of less than 10 percent disregards the many potential voters who could not register because they were ill, who were terrorized by Communist hooligans, who were away from home or who failed to register for some other reason other than actually opposing the elections. When we consider all these facts, we may well conclude that the so-called ‘north-south conference’ in Pyongyang should much more appropriately be called the ‘all Korean Communist conference’. It certainly is not a conference where South Korea is represented in any appropriate manner that could be recognized by free and democratic nations. The official radio accounts of the sessions of the conference have been very illuminating: The principal themes of all speeches made in the sessions have been attacks on the United States, attacks on the United Nations Temporary Commission on Korea and attacks on the election set for 10 May. There is much eloquent double-talk about the election separating Korea permanently [Page 1190] into two sections. All such talk is amusing in its falseness. Koreans are all aware that the United Nations resolution called for elections throughout all of Korea: These elections to be followed by the elected Korean representatives establishing a Korean National Government, in turn followed by withdrawal of occupying troops. Koreans who know the facts, are aware that the United States has always tried and is still trying in every way possible to unite Korea into one whole nation under its own sovereign democratic government, according to the will of the people. They are aware that all member nations of the United Nations except the Soviet block of six voted to do just that by means of a free election as soon as possible throughout all Korea, to be followed by withdrawal of all occupying troops. All Koreans know that every effort to unite and free the Korean nation from occupation and place it under its own freely elected government has been consistently blocked by Soviet Russia by one device or other, accompanied by floods and floods of confusing and false propaganda, much of which is self contradictory.
“The record of the United States and United Nations on this matter is clear for all Koreans who watched the proceedings of the US–USSR Joint Commission, and who have seen Soviet Russia sabotage the efforts of the United Nations to treat national Korea as a national unit in order to have all Koreans, regardless of political beliefs have a say in forming their Government. The record is also clear that the Soviets, with their Korean stooges who want to sell Korea into Communistic slavery, have spared no effort to lay the blame on the United States. In this effort they have even gone into the propaganda song and dance that the United States wants Korea as a colony and a place for American military bases, which are the most fantastic lies of all.
“Of course, the motive behind all this bombastic propaganda is to try to prevent any Koreans from expressing themselves in democratic elections with secret balloting. All of the eloquent double-talk of the stooge delegates at the Pyongyang conference about the elections permanently splitting Korea is also fantastic. All of us know full well that the only thing that will permanently split Korea is continued Soviet refusal to see it united under any terms that will let Koreans (other than those few who want to sell their country into the Soviet fold) have a full say in their own Korean Government. Even the stooges who howl the loudest against the elections, move in a circle during the same speech to where they advocate nation-wide elections as the only means to Korean independence. This is exactly what the United Nations resolution provided and what was boycotted by the Soviet Command and its stooges in North Korea. The elections they fear are elections under observation of impartial international observers [Page 1191] as opposed to elections rigged in the Communist style so as to be sure to elect good Communist Party men.
“Most of the foregoing is really background. Events in the last few days really bring out the real purpose of this conference. This is what the so-called ‘north-south conference’ has been built up as a smoke screen behind which the ‘people’s committee’ Communist Korean Constitution has been approved and behind which the ‘Korean People’s Republic[’s] Government of all Korea will no doubt soon be announced, with the propaganda statement that it has the approval of all the people of Korea, both in north and south, represented by those who attended this conference. The ‘conference’ was the device used in an attempt to trick Koreans and the world’s people into the belief that all Korea was represented there and that all these representatives have approved the new ‘government’ and its ‘constitution’. How many of you who read or listen approve discarding the well-known centuries old flag of the Korean nation for one having as its most prominent feature the Red Star of the Soviet Republics I How many of you approve a ‘constitution’ copied from that of the ‘satellite’ states of eastern Europe and approved by a handful of appointed stooges who take all their orders from their foreign masters? All of you who registered are privileged to give your answer to these questions by going determinedly to the polls on Monday, 10 May, and casting a secret ballot for a Korean representative of your own selection, who can represent you in formation of a Korean Government and in a real north and south conference to unite the two halves of Korea. This solution gives a national future. Abject surrender to Communist dictation promises only national death to Korea.”