Contact:
ALC: Victor Hwang  (415) 391-1655
CAA: Ted Wang (415) 274-6760, ext. 306
JACL: John Tateishi (415) 921-5225
OCA: Daphne Kwok (202) 223-5500

Asian Pacific American Civil Rights Groups Call for
Independent Commission to Investigate Case
Washington, DC—Six Asian Pacific American civil rights
organizations are calling on the President to establish an independent, bi-partisan
commission to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the handling of the Wen Ho
Lee case by all offices involved.
Citing concerns centering around the impact this case has had on
public trust in government agencies, the Asian Law Caucus (ALC), Chinese for
Affirmative Action (CAA), the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), the
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), the National
Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), and the Organization of
Chinese Americans (OCA) asserted that government credibility can only be
restored with a thorough inquiry into the specific circumstances and systemic
failures in this case by an independent, bi-partisan commission.
“There seem to have been a number of flaws in this investigation,”
noted OCA Executive Director Daphne Kwok.  “The backlash within the Asian
Pacific American community can already be seen with the attrition in
national research facilities of talented APA scientists who may feel they are
being unfairly scrutinized because of their ethnicity.”
Ted Wang, Policy Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action said,
“Rather than pointing fingers at one another, President Clinton and Congress
should take immediate steps to restore public confidence in the federal
government’s ability to conduct fair and competent investigations.”
Commented JACL National Executive Director John Tateishi, “We are
very concerned that any inquiries into the handling of this case may be
tainted by partisan politics.  We ask that the President remove this issue from
the political realm by establishing an independent body to conduct an
investigation of how it was handled by the Departments of Energy and Justice and the FBI.”
“Given Judge Parker’s preliminary ruling of a taint of racially
selective prosecution, we feel that it is imperative that the government prove
to the American public that it has not compromised our civil rights by
employing racial profiling practices,” added Victor Hwang, ALC Managing Attorney.
The letters from these organizations to the President and Senators
Hatch, Grassley and Shelby called for an independent commission with access
to classified documents and other information to examine how Dr. Lee’s
case has been handled and to make policy recommendations to ensure that
future counterintelligence investigations will be conducted in a competent
and nondiscriminatory manner.
Specifically, the letters call for a commission that would (1)
investigate allegations that law enforcement officials use racial profiles in conducting investigations;
(2) recommend safeguards to ensure that the mistakes made in Lee’s
case will not be repeated; (3) recommend policies to restore a climate of
trust in the national laboratories, particularly with respect to the government’s
treatment of Asian Pacific American scientists and employees; (4) conduct
public hearings to elicit the input of scientists, civil rights groups, and
others who are affected by government policy; and (5) issue a public report
containing its findings and recommendations.