-Caveat Lector-
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Friday, June 29, 2001
Heritage raised 'several
million' in Hong Kong
Report claims conservative think-tank's
Asian office targeted pro-China tycoons
By Paul Sperry
© 2001 WorldNetDaily.com
WASHINGTON – The conservative Heritage Foundation, once a strong anti-communist
voice, has raised "several million dollars" in Hong Kong, with most of the money
coming from pro-Beijing tycoons, according to a report in the South China Morning
Post.
The think tank's fund-raising was coordinated through a shadowy Hong Kong shop first
uncovered by WorldNetDaily in January. Heritage says it's closing the office, which
has been run by a personal aide to the foundation's president, Edwin Feulner.
Feulner opened the office in 1996, the same year he brought aboard Elaine Chao as an
Asian scholar. Chao, now Labor Department secretary, has close family ties to
Chinese President Jiang Zemin through her father.
Heritage "has targeted tycoons in Hong Kong and around the region, and money raised is
said to come mostly from a number of pro-China figures and property developers," said
the Morning Post's June 25 story.
The Hong Kong office's director, Kenneth Sheffer, admitted in written replies to
questions from the Hong Kong-based Morning Post that his office raised "several
million dollars" for the foundation, although he refused to
disclose the source of the money.
The article, which cites WorldNetDaily, went on to say that the revelation that money
is being funneled from Hong Kong to Washington is "likely to cause concern among
Heritage Foundation supporters."
"I think traditional conservatives in the U.S. would be interested to know how much
money would be perceived as pro-China money," the paper quoted Mark Simon, Apple
Daily's corporate-accounts director, who is active in co
nservative circles in Hong Kong, as saying.
WorldNetDaily, in its Jan. 24 story, quoted a Heritage fellow who said Chao was not
hired (at a starting salary of $200,000) to do research at the foundation, but to open
doors in China for Heritage's corporate donors.
He said she was no great scholar on Asia, but knew as much as she needed to know "to
strike the deals over there."
The fellow added that Chao herself "clearly had business interests in China, and has
taken a lot of trips to China" while at Heritage.
In 1997, Chao reportedly led a delegation of Heritage's major donors and trustees to
the Hong Kong reunification ceremony.
Sheffer, in his written replies to the Morning Post, denied that the office was
involved in opening doors for donors on the mainland.
Heritage spokeswoman Khristine Bershers says the Hong Kong office was set up primarily
for scholars as a "listening post" in the region. It also provided a venue, she says,
for press events like the release of the foundat
ion's annual Index of Economic Freedom, which has ranked Hong Kong at the top.
Since Chao came aboard, the think tank has tilted more favorably toward China.
For instance, a long-time defense scholar was pushed out after warning too loudly of
the growing People's Liberation Army threat. And a paper urging caution on permanently
normalizing trade with Beijing was rewritten afte
r a Heritage donor, who is a key player in the pro-China corporate lobby, complained
and threatened to withdraw his support. The donor, Hank Greenberg, also supports
Chao's husband, GOP Sen. Mitch McConnell.
Following the publication of WorldNetDaily's stories and subsequent media reports,
Feulner admitted to having "toned down our rhetoric [on Communist China] over the
years."
Feulner, who sources say is "obsessed" with fund-raising, has visited Hong Kong often
and reportedly has done much of the fund-raising out of that office.
In Hong Kong, Heritage has sided with chief executive C.H. Tung, hand-picked by a
committee appointed by Beijing, over democratic opposition leader Martin Lee, the
Morning Post says.
"Heritage Foundation has held banquets in honor of Mr. Tung," the paper said, "and
Mr. Feulner has held meetings with the chief executive in Hong Kong."
In its mission statement, Heritage says it supports "free enterprise, limited
government, individual freedom, traditional American values and a strong national
defense."
If you'd like to sound off on this issue, please take part in the WorldNetDaily
poll.
Previous stories:
Elaine Chao's ties to Chinese leader
Chao's pro-China coup at Heritage
Chao has biz ties to Lippo
Dissident Wu 'very surprised' by Chao pick
Heritage to close old Hong Kong shop
McConnell's belated dirty-money discovery
Paul Sperry is Washington bureau chief for WorldNetDaily.
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