Narcotics research, rehabilitation, and treatment. Hearings, Ninety ...

357Mr. Ingersoll. Yes ; I am familiar with that name.Mr. Waldie. He theoretically has 1,000 to 2,000 men in a feudal armythat guard and assist him in transporting the opium.Mr. Ingersoll. I recognize the name as being the head of an insurgencygroup of Burma. Whether or not the claim that was madein the article is true about his involvement in opium is not proven oneway or the other at this time. It is reported that he is now in prison.Mr. Waldie. Then, did you come across information concerningGeneralissimo Chiang Kai-shek's 93d Division, Kuomintang troopswhich were left over after the evacuation of the mainland in Burma ?Mr. Ingersoll. The KMT and their successors who are still activein those areas are the groups that I refer to as the Chinese irregulars.Yes ; it is true that they are involved in some of the insurgency actionand that they carry on an exchange of opium and arms trade.Mr. Waldie. And are they also in the employ of the Central IntelligenceAgency for counterinsurgency operations in China ?Mr. Ingersoll. No ; that is not a true statement as far as I know.Mr. Waldie. Are they presently supported by Chiang Kai-shek?Does he still maintain contact with them and do they still hold allegianceto him and does he still support them financially ?Mr. Ingersoll. I am not certain what their allegiance is, Mr.W^aldie, but I am told that he is not supporting them financially.Mr. Waldie. Did you come across any indication of participation inthe traffic of opium in the fertile triangle by Air America ?Mr. Ingersoll. I think that in the past. Air America planes haveloeen used unwittingly to transport or to haul opium just as TWA andmany others have been used to conceal heroin smuggling into theUnited States, but I can say that it has not been the policy of themanagement of that airline or the other airlines to provide transportationfor the illicit distribution of opium.Mr. Waldie. Well, I would assume it would not be their policy.Were you able to visit Long Cheng in Laos ?Mr. Ingersoll. No, sir ; I did not.Mr. Waldie. Are you familiar with the allegations as to the rolethat Long Chen plays in the opium traffic in the fertile triangle ? Well,let me tell you what those allegations are. Long Cheng was establishedby the Central Intelligence Agency as the base for support of GeneralVang Pao and Meo tribesmen. It is alleged that Long Clieng isthe base to which all the Meo production of opium is brought fordistribution throughout the rest of the world or wherever it is thendistributed. Did you hear such allegations during your recent trip inLaos?Mr. Ingersoll. No, sir ; I did not.Mr. Waldie. Did you hear any allegations that Long Cheng wasused in any way as a distribution point for opium ?Mr. Ingersoll. No, sir ; I did not.Mr. Waldte. The United Nations Commission on Drugs and Narcoticsestimates that since 1966, 80 percent of the world's 1,200 tonsof illicit opium has come from Southeast Asia. This directly contradictsofficial U.S. claims that 80 percent comes from Turkey. Whichclaim, in your view, is the correct one ?Mr. Ingersoll. I think the finding of the LTnited Nations is correctas far as world production is concerned. We have said that the ma-