The following remarks were made at the 16th American Leadership Conference, an organization that brings together lawmakers and government officials in support of the Constitution and traditional religious values. Dr. Pak compares his own struggles with Congressman Donald Fraser during his hearings on Korean-American relations with those of Oliver North in the Iran-Contra hearings. He also cites Reverend Moon's attitude in his tax fraud trial as an example of sacrificial adherence to an ideal that characterized the U.S. Founding Fathers in their struggle for liberty. These remarks by Dr. Pak were made in San Diego, California, on May 29, 1989.

It is a great honor for me to show this film ["Truth Is My Sword"] to such distinguished and patriotic Americans from all 50 states in the United States. There is no greater honor for me than to share this film and experience with you. I have watched this film so many times. It has been translated into Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, and German and been shown virtually all over the world-not because it promotes Bo Hi Pak or the Unification Church, but because, as Ambassador Sanchez explained so well, there is a lot of truth to the story. It is a true story.

Every time I see the film, the truth I am speaking about makes me cry. Truth has a lot of power. It was not me in the film. I was simply chosen at that time as an instrument of the Almighty, and I have no confidence that I could do the same today if the opportunity presented itself. That was the spirit and power of God, and it brought a miracle. By the intensity of the film, you can well imagine the ordeal I went through during the entire year of 1978 and the preceding two years, since they investigated me for two years prior to the congressional hearings.

Congressman Fraser was absolutely determined to send me to jail. He boasted about it. He said, "I am going to send this man to jail for at least 5 to 10 years." But what happened? As you saw in the film, I was thinking that it was David against Goliath. I felt ready even to be a martyr, if that was God's will.

Every day, upon leaving my home for the Congress, I said to my wife, "I may not come home today, I may go somewhere else, to a nice government-run hotel. But don't worry about me because they will feed me. You just have to pray for me."

By the way, without my wife's support I would not have survived the ordeal of those three years. But the miracle was that the man who was supposed to end up in jail became a free man, and the man who, it was thought, could not lose his senatorial race is no longer in Washington, D.C. The man who was supposed to end up in jail ended up traveling all over the world promoting the spirit of God and the spirit of reason. That, to me, is a miracle.

Only two colonels went through this ordeal. I thought I would be the only one, but last year we saw the heroic battle of Lt. Col. Oliver North. You all know how he thrilled the country for six days by telling the truth to the American people. He automatically became an American hero. I met this hero more than once and we talked about it. I told him, "Oliver North, I thought this sort of thing would only happen to a Korean colonel. How could it also happen to you?" He laughed. He was a lieutenant colonel at the time. I was a retired lieutenant colonel, the only real difference being that he was a United States soldier and I was a Korean soldier. He was a Marine and I was in the Korean infantry. I told him, "Ollie, you are good enough to be in the Korean infantry!" Of course I have great respect for the U.S. Marines.

I am deeply saddened by what the U.S. government tried to do to Oliver North, spending tens of millions of dollars to send a hero to jail. But that was precisely what happened. In the Korea investigation, Congressman Fraser was working on me. Yet, for some reason, God spared me, and ever since I have been dedicating my life to Him more and more.

Until my last day I will be thinking that this life is not mine. I am somehow, for some reason, living a life borrowed from God, and I want to manifest that reality. The American Leadership Conference is one of those manifestations.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have two distinct reasons for showing you this film tonight. Please understand that we are not here to promote either the Unification Church or my spiritual leader, the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. The American Leadership Conference and CAUSA International have no such intention. If that was our ulterior motive, we would not have prospered as far as this 16th American Leadership Conference. Besides showing that the spirit of God is with us, I have one other reason for showing you the film. I want to spend just one evening talking to you about myself, my church, and my leader. For many of you this will be the first time you hear it and you will get it straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak, since all the information you usually hear about us comes from the media.

Yesterday someone said to Sen. Jesse Helms, who was in the receiving line, "I have read so much about you in the media." Sen. Helms immediately replied, "Well, don't trust any of that stuff." Despite it all, the truth prevails, and that is why, no matter what the media say, we are winning, we are prospering. I want to testify about this to you for your own benefit and protection. You need to know certain facts so you can stand up for the truth.

We have already had over 2,000 state legislators attend this conference. There are over 100 state legislators in attendance here tonight. You are important people, important Americans, and I want you to be protected. We protect your honor by telling you the truth. We want you to know that there are no other motives for this conference, no strings attached. You did not come to this conference to be tricked by anyone.

Recently Sen. Carl T. Curbs, the famous senator who served for so many years, came to our conference and fell in love with it. He spoke to us about it once, saying, "A reporter called me a few weeks ago and wanted to know if 1 was involved with the American Leadership Conference, and if so, why. My reply was a brief one. I said, `I make no apology for opposing communism, and I make no apology for supporting traditional American values.' " That was the way he answered. Sen. Cumin knew the truth and had no fear of standing up to loaded questions.

Sometimes it hits the newspapers. For example, the Chicago Tribune created the headline, "Official Linked to Moonies." Just for coming to this conference they tried to link him to the Unification Church.

I want to read how some of the attendees responded to the Tribune article. One person mentioned in the article was Ret. U.S. Maj. Gen. Ted Sorensen of Illinois. Let me read to you from the article: "He [Sorensen] was not worried about being connected to the Unification Church. `It doesn't shake me up at all as to where the money comes from,' said Sorensen, who said he had been to conferences in Korea and France. `My feeling is that when a fire truck pulls up beside a burning building, I am not going to ask for LD."'

Others who have participated on the Invitational Committee said they would not disassociate from it because of the link to the Unification Church. "It doesn't bother me," [State Representative] Ross said. [She won another term as state legislator with a two-thirds majority in a landslide victory despite this kind of publicity.] "I take people on what they are doing. I have not heard at the American Constitutional Committee or American Leadership Conference anything that I would disagree with." Ross said she attended a CAUSA-sponsored conference in Washington in the spring of 1986.

The conference stressed going back to the roots of the Constitution. "I wish that we could take the conference and put it in every high school in America," she said. Reverend Bevel, a minister of the South Shore Community Church, said he was unconcerned by charges that the committee was tied to the Unification Church "because everything in the universe is linked to everything else."

When you know the truth, you can make your own judgments. I am not here to ask for any favors. Not at all. I am just laying down the naked truth one time during this conference.

Reverend Moon came to America in 1971. I would like you to know something about Reverend Moon. Like me his life was saved by American troops during the Korean War. He was in North Korea, where he had been sentenced for five years to the worst concentration prison camp of Hung Nam. That insidious prison was known as a place where prisoners would not last more than six months. However, because of the power of God, Reverend Moon survived there for two years and eight months. There was no way he could have survived for five years. It was slowly killing him. Religious leaders were deliberately sent to suffer and die at Hung Nam.

Several months after the Korean War broke out, General Douglas MacArthur launched the famous Inchon landing. The attack cut through the peninsula and moved to the north. MacArthur's troops reached Hung Nam on October 14, opened the jail gates, and freed the prisoners. One prisoner freed was Reverend Moon.

Knowing that the U.S. forces had landed, the communists were systematically executing all of the prisoners. The previous day the prisoners in the cell next to Reverend Moon were executed. It was to be Reverend Moon's turn the following day, but that night liberation came. It was that close. Just like me Reverend Moon owes his life to America. He loves America. He sees America as a providential nation. He believes that unless America is strong in its spiritual roots and traditions, the free world has no hope. That is why he came to America-not to become a citizen of the United States, get a nice house, earn good money, or live a luxurious life. Reverend Moon is a Korean. He came here to serve America, and I assure you that when his mission in America is completed, he will return to Korea.

At first America welcomed Reverend Moon as a breath of fresh air. He traveled all over the country, receiving over 850 citations and honorary citizenships. He was awarded one by Governor Jimmy Carter in Georgia and another by Governor Ronald Reagan in California.

The bad press started during Watergate. At that divisive time in American history, Reverend Moon did something totally incomprehensible in the eyes of many Americans, particularly in the eyes of the media: He stepped forward in support of President Nixon and called upon Christians in all 50 states to do their Christian duty and forgive him. He called upon Americans to "forgive, love, and unite" to save the presidency. That was his appeal, and he did it because he believed it to be the genuine, non-political, Christian thing to do. Reverend Moon also foresaw the terrible consequences of failing to support the president. If the presidency became engulfed in a major domestic political scandal, the Vietnam War going on at that time would end in a colossal tragedy. Reverend Moon predicted that if President Nixon stepped down and the Watergate scandal enveloped the government, we would suffer millions of lives lost in Southeast Asia. Reverend Moon was not taken seriously, but that is exactly what happened.

The Cambodian delegation is here tonight. Right after the communization of their country, many of these very important God-loving people came to America; another 1 to 3 million of their countrymen were executed in a bloody genocide. I know that those who are here still suffer because of it and want one day to go home to their country.

During Watergate the U.S. press, the establishment press, especially The Washington Post, The New York Times, Time, and Newsweek, became very negative toward us. Reverend Moon and his work and teachings were ridiculed in the press. To make a long story short, irresponsible news stories systematically undermined Reverend Moon and his genuine, patriotic, God-centered effort. They severely damaged the Unification movement by creating a totally false image of it. Public pressure on the government intensified, until the government indicted Reverend Moon on dubious charges of tax evasion.

You should know that when the indictment came down, Reverend Moon and his wife were in Korea. His legal counsel called Korea and recommended that he not come back to America. "You are not an American citizen," they said. "There is no extradition treaty. You do not have to come back to face this kind of mistreatment. Forget it. Stay there." That was their recommendation.

But Reverend Moon said, "Would that mean that I have to abandon my mission in America? No way." Right afterward he and Mrs. Moon packed their bags and got on the next plane to New York, heading for the U.S. District Court in Foley Square for arraignment. Reverend Moon spoke only one sentence during the entire trial. He said, "Your honor, I am not guilty!" Well, Reverend Moon went to jail regardless. But, you know, the truth prevailed. A Senate congressional subcommittee headed by Sen. Orrin G. Hatch conducted an independent investigation of Reverend Moon's case on the ground of religious freedom. As the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Sen. Hatch had the power to get the truth out of the Justice Department, and he issued a report. In that report he stated:

I do feel strongly, after carefully and objectively reviewing this case from both sides, that injustice rather than justice has been served .... I don't believe that you or I or anyone else, no matter how innocent, could realistically prevail against the combined forces of our justice Department and Judicial Branch in a case such as Reverend Moon's ....

Consider, please, the following: The three justice Department attorneys who initially undertook an independent review of a possible criminal action against Reverend Moon unanimously agreed, independently of each other, that there was no case. According to the justice Department's review, Reverend Moon's tax liability, even if the government's case could be proven, was a mere $7,300 for the 3-year period. I have been advised that the justice Department's own guidelines state that criminal tax cases will not be brought if the alleged tax deficiency is less than $2,500 per year.

Can you imagine! This conference cost many times that $7,300. Reverend Moon has unselfishly funded The Washington Times, which you read yesterday, and single-handedly invested over $300 million in that newspaper-not from American sources but from global sources. He did it for the sake of America. Why, then, would he try to dodge $7,300 in taxes? It just does not make sense.

Despite the recommendations of the three justice Department attorneys not to prosecute, and no evidence of any kind established that even a single cent in dispute was given to Reverend Moon personally and not to his church, the justice Department was nevertheless persuaded to seek an indictment by a zealous assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York, who built a case entirely out of supposition and innuendo.

The government knew it could win only with the support of popular prejudice, which was very much against Reverend Moon. Due to this fact Reverend Moon asked for a bench trial, that is, he asked to have his case decided by a judge without a jury. The media had painted such a distorted image of Reverend Moon that his attorneys felt he could be convicted by a jury simply on the basis of what the media had written, rather than for any criminal wrongdoing. Normally the government welcomes such a move because it saves a lot of money and allows the government to make a simple evaluation of the case. But the prosecutors refused, insisting that Reverend Moon be tried by a jury.

The government won the case, and Reverend Moon was sentenced to 18 months. Reverend Moon's attorney wanted to negotiate with the Justice Department so that, on the condition that Reverend Moon went back to Korea and never came back to United States, the government would waive his serving the sentence in prison. Reverend Moon refused. He said, "God's will be done. I am not going to abandon my mission in America. There must some providential reason why I have to go to jail." He went to jail voluntarily. Because of good behavior, he served a term of 13 months.

How Reverend Moon conducted himself in jail is a great story in itself. Initially Reverend Moon was very poorly received. Yet in only three months the inmates of Danbury prison became his ardent supporters, not because they were preached to, but because Reverend Moon won them over by his deeds.

While he was in Danbury one young man even approached him and asked, "Reverend Moon, could I ask a favor of you? I was brought up without a father. I want to have someone as my father and I have not found anyone to fill that role. Reverend Moon, would you mind if I called you `father'?"

Reverend Moon replied, "Young man, I would be honored to be called `father' by a young man like you."

Reverend Graham, the pastor of Danbury prison, asked Reverend Moon if he wanted to use the chapel for Unification Church services on Sunday mornings or Sunday afternoons. He said, "Go ahead and use it. I'll give you two hours." Reverend Moon thanked him and said, "Give me three o'clock." Reverend Graham said, "Three o'clock. Fine. Three p.m., a perfect time." Reverend Moon said, "No, sir, 3:00 a.m." Reverend Graham was completely surprised. "Three a.m.?" he said. "What in the world are you going to do at 3 o'clock in the morning?" Reverend Moon said, "That is my prayer hour. Normally at that hour the hotline is open to God!"

In prison Reverend Moon was known as a man of prayer. He prayed in his bunk; he knelt in prayer on the floor; he prayed constantly. He commanded tremendous respect from the inmates. Initially they laughed at him, but after several months they all became defenders of Reverend Moon. For example, during that time Hustler magazine ran a bad story about Reverend Moon, and the inmates got together to protest to the editor-inchief. One of them wrote:

Dear Hustler Magazine, I am both an avid reader of Hustler and an inmate at Danbury prison. I was rather amused however by the article on my fellow inmate, Reverend Moon. It seems to me, and also to a lot of my fellow inmates, that if the article was meant to portray Reverend Moon in a bad light, it missed the mark by miles... Lastly, let me say this. I work side by side with Reverend Moon in the kitchen and have seen him do all that has been asked of him, smiling and without complaint. I wish I could say the same of all the other inmates here, including washing the toilets and mopping floors. He never put on any airs and is just one of the guys. I have my visit on the same day as Reverend Moon and see him to be a devoted husband and a loving father. Maybe this country would not be in the sad shape it is in today if we had more men like Reverend Moon around.

Incredible! That testimony is almost like a clean bill of health coming from hell. That is the real judgment of these Americans. They felt in their bones what kind of man Reverend Moon is. He was washing toilets, mopping kitchen floors-a 65-year-old man. Can you imagine doing that with these young people? Yet he did it smiling, with absolute sincerity. He once said in a sermon: "When I was mopping the floor I was thinking, `God is asking me to clean up America.' I was feeding the inmates and thinking, `Thank God that He gave me this opportunity to feed His children."' That is the way he spent his 13 months in jail.

Reverend Moon's case became a symbol of the danger to religious freedom during that time. People of all denominations came to support him and, in doing so, they came to know him better as well.

One day a famous American minister went to visit Reverend Moon in prison. I was there to translate. When he saw this very humbly dressed, very simple old Korean gentleman, he just broke down in tears. He said, "Reverend Moon, forgive my country. Americans on the whole are not that bad. Forgive them. Forgive my country."

Reverend Moon said, "I have nothing to forgive you for, nothing to forgive America for. I came to this prison to learn to love America more. I never regretted it."

All kinds of religious organizations came to support Reverend Moon. They filed amicus curae briefs with the Supreme Court, friend of the court briefs, asking the Supreme Court to examine Reverend Moon's appeal of the tax case. These included the American Association of Christian Churches, Religious Freedom Institute, American Coalition of Unregistered Churches, Coalition of Catholic Laymen, Catholic League of Religious and Civil Rights, Center for Judicial Studies, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Coalition for Religious Freedom, Institute for the Study of American Religion, Christian Voice, National Council of Churches of Christ (U.S.), Presbyterian Church (U.S.), Baptist Church (U.S.), the Episcopal Church, National Association of Evangelicals, Christian Legal Society, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, National Council of Black Mayors, National Bar Association, the State of Hawaii, the State of Oregon, the State of Rhode Island, Senator Orrin G. Hatch, the Freeman Institute. All of them filed friend of the court briefs in the names of their organizations with the Supreme Court on behalf of Reverend Moon.

These individuals and groups represent over 160 million Americans. Perhaps this was God's will and a way to break down the barriers of denominations, to unite God-loving Americans in a common cause so that we would be able to gather together at conferences like this one and others around the country.

Can you imagine that afterwards 7,000 American clergy from 120 denominations visited Korea to study Reverend Moon's philosophy and his theology of Unificationism? How much did his prison term break down those barriers?

Reverend Moon and, in his tradition, men like me have committed our lives for the sake of winning freedom for our fellow man. When we have that kind of commitment, why not commit mufti-millions of dollars for the sake of preserving America? It is worth giving our lives and investing fortunes for such a cause.

This is not just Reverend Moon's tradition, this is America's tradition. I said something about that yesterday. When the American founding fathers rebelled against Great Britain, they said, "We solemnly pledge our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." Without that kind of commitment, U.S. independence would not have been won. Reverend Moon is a modern-day prophet living this tradition, not just preaching about it. Men like me, trained by him, are following that same tradition. Men like Dr. Thomas Ward and William Lay-you can see that they are bright young Americans dedicated to the cause of freedom.

The Soviet Union, through Pravda and Izvestia, has said in headlines: "Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the Champion of Anti-Sovietism." The message is getting across; we must be doing something right. Reverend Moon received a prison sentence from America. He said, "The American government gave me a jail term, but the Soviet Union gave me a medal of honor."

I hope tonight I have explained clearly about our founder. The Bible says in Luke Chapter 6: "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bring forth good fruit. For each tree is known by its own fruit."

You may not have met Reverend Moon, but I am his fruit. The young people working on the staff of this conference are his fruit. Furthermore, let me state that we have no ambition to monopolize the American Leadership Conference. We would like to have many American organizations join together to promote America, the American spirit, and America's founding fathers. Yes, we want to do it together. If someone would like to take over this mission, we would gladly give it up because we have so many other things to do.

Let me close by quoting a few words from one of Reverend Moon's speeches. He said: "I can see a great change coming to America, not by fire, not by bullets, but by God's truth kindling a revolution in men's hearts. The answer lies there, in the quiet revolution from selfishness to unselfishness."

That says it all. Our teaching basically advocates a revolution of man from selfishness to unselfishness, and the American Leadership Conference is but one expression of the many hundreds we engage in while practicing the revolution of man.

I thank you for listening and for giving me time before this conference.

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