News-Info-Alerts

Re: NLF Update Line

From: POW-MIA InterNetwork

Date: August 22, 2003

"Update Line
POW/MIAs - VIETNAM WAR: According to the Department of Defense, there are now 1,883 Americans missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, 1,432 in Vietnam, 387 in Laos, 56 in Cambodia and 8 in the territorial waters of the PRC. Over 90% of all Americans missing from the Vietnam War were lost in Vietnam or in areas of Laos and Cambodia under Hanoi's wartime control.

According to the Defense POW/MIA Office (DPMO), these numbers reflect a shift in location on some cases recently assessed to be in Laos, vs Vietnam, plus one formalized ID. Lower numbers, released earlier, were also accurate in terms of identifications made; however, the operations people - CILHI and JTF-FA - got ahead of Washington-based policy and reduced numbers prior to notice to and acceptance by the affected families. There is now a policy in place to ensure that all announcements, therefore reductions in numbers, are made by the Defense POW/MIA Office, thus also ensuring that all involved agencies and organizations have identical numbers and names of Americans still missing, as well as returned and accounted for. Hopefully, the new policy will succeed since it had become virtually impossible to obtain an accurate list of America's POW/MIAs from the Vietnam War.

LAO VICE FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH US OFFICIALS AND LEAGUE: On August 3rd, the Vice Foreign Minister of Laos led a delegation to Hawaii to for meetings with senior military officials at the U.S. Pacific Command. JTF-FA Commander BG Steve Redmann led POW/MIA technical consultations with Lao counterparts August 4-5th, before the Lao delegation arrived in Washington, DC, on August 7th. On August 8th, the Vice Foreign Minister met with the League's Executive Director and Policy Adviser Richard Childress before attending a League-hosted, interagency luncheon that included senior State and Defense Department and Defense Intelligence Agency officials. The primary focus was on continuing improvements in the bilateral and unilateral POW/MIA accounting process and to reinforce the need for greater participation by DIA's Stony Beach team. The Vice Minister met with senior State Department officials on august 11th, and tomorrow spent most of the day August 12th at the Defense POW/MIA Office, hosted by DASD Jerry Jennings. Their productive visit concluded with a Lao Embassy-hosted dinner that evening. Also, thirty-day joint field operations in Laos resume on August 28th with three joint recovery teams working to account for discrepancy cases in northern Laos.

MERGER OF CILHI/JTF-FA: CILHI and JTF-FA, both critical to the accounting effort, are slated to merge operations on October 1st into the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, or JPAC. As with all such reorganizations, there have been problems, but final approval by DoD and PACOM Commander ADM Thomas Fargo will help ensure the plan's viability, including independence and integrity of the CILHI identification process. Set to assume command of JPAC, replacing Brig Gen Steve Redmann, USAF, is BG(P) W. Montague Winfield, USA, recently nominated for his second star.

POW/MIA RECOGNITION DAY: It is expected that September 19th will be proclaimed by President Bush as National POW/MIA Recognition Day this year. He will again ask all Americans to honor those who returned and those still missing and unaccounted for from all our nation's past wars and conflicts, as well as their families. This year's poster and statistical data are available from the Defense POW/MIA website at www.dtic.mil/dpmo/ and from the League office.

POW/MIA decals for car windows are $20 per 100, and POW/MIA lapel pins are $3 each or 2/$5, by sending a check to the League office. For added information on any subject, please log onto the League's web site, www.pow-miafamilies.org, or call the national office at 703-465-7432.

The National League of Families of
American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia
1005 North Glebe Road
Suite 170
Arlington, Virginia 22201
(TEL) 703-465-7432"