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Commissioner Peter H. Chang –
Responding to a plea for humanitarian relief funds by General Paul A. Rader, Commissioner Peter H. Chang has pledged $80,000 from the West to purchase grain, mainly rice, for the starving thousands in North Korea. An additional $20,000 will be supplied by International Headquarters, for a total of $100,000.
Chang, a native of South Korea, stated “It is so disheartening to learn of the dire physical condition of the people of North Korea these days. Especially because of the children who are suffering, too, due to lack of food and proper nourishment.
“How very much we want to reach out to these people, God’s children, by participating through International Headquarters with our contribution and assistance. We pray that the door will very soon be opened, allowing us the opportunity and privilege of reaching out to these folk so that we may carry not only essential food, but the message of the bread of life to these poor starving souls.”
Each bag of rice will bear the shield of The Salvation Army. It is hoped arrangements may be made for Salvationists to deliver rice personally.
According to recent news reports, as many as eight million people are in danger of dying from malnutrition and disease. “Everyone is systematically starving together,” stated Ohio Democrat Rep. Tony Hall, who recently toured North Korea. With two years of floods devastating about a third of the North’s arable land, and years of poor agricultural planning depleting its resources, that nation is descending into a severe famine, says Hall. The North Korean government has disclosed that 134 children have already died of malnutrition.
The Salvation Army has had a presence in Korea since 1908, when it began work in Seoul. General and Mrs. Paul A. Rader, who served for 22 years in South Korea, both read and write the Korean language fluently.