CO-OP GROUP GOT C.I.A. CONDUIT AID

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP73-00475R000201620001-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 19, 2013
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: May 16, 1967
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

'01/-k1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release g 50-Yr 2013/12/19 : CIA-RDP73-00475R000201620001-6
MAY 1 6 1967
CO-OP GROUP GOT.
CIA, CONDUIT AID
,But Aide Says Its Program
Abroad Was Unfettered
By NEIL SHEEHAN(
specoo to The New York Time,
WASHINGTON, May 15 ?
Foundations Identified as chan-
nels for funds of the Central
Intelligence Agency have fi-
nanced the development of Co.
operatives in a number of coun-
tries.
An examination of tax rec-
ords showed that from the be-
ginning of 1963 through 1965
surh foundations contributed
5526,500 to the Fund for Inter-
; national/Cooperative Develop-
. ment.
The fund is technically an
:independent organization, but it
has functioned' as a subsidiary
of the Cooperative League of
the U.S.A. to help ? finante the
:Ch;zue's overseas activities.? .
The fund's executives are also
officers of the cooperative
league, the largest American
; cooperative federation. The
?league has 24 state regional and
national agricultural, insurance
and consumer cooperatives ? as
affiliates. ?
yttanley Dreyer, president '01
the league ,and secretary-treas-
urer of the fund, said in a tele-
phone interview from the
league's headquarters in Chi-
cago that he had previously as-
sumed the foundations were ob-
taining their funds from private
sources.
? He said, however, that be was
not concerned by recent disclos-
ures that the foundations were
acting as conduits for the in-
telligence agency..
"We'd be willing. to take
money from the devil himself
If no strings 'were attached,".
Mr. Dreyer said,
He said that the overseas pro-
grams- had been designed and
administered independently by
the fund and the cooperative
league and that the' foundations
had never attempted to ex:rt,
any, pressure or to ir.'...rfere? in
any way.
Identified EIS COOrlitit
The foundations involved are.
the Broad-High Foundation nf
Columbus, ? Ohio, the Chesapeake',
Foundation' of Baltimore, the
Granary Fund of ? Boston,' the'
Hoblitzelle Foundation. of Dal-
las and the Nfidia.nd-Internal
tiona,1 Foundation of Iiiiiiana.po-;
lis.
All were identified recently I
as conduits for ? C.I.A. funds toi
the American Newspaper Guild,t
the 'Retail Clerkse.:International:
Association,. the?::IInterpationa.,
Federation of PetrelCum Worlt-i
ers and a number of other
American organizations with in-
ternational acitvities.
"I don't think II've com-
promised my principles, and I
don't think the, cooperative
league has," Mr. Dreyer slad.
"We're going to continue to
accept money from any source
whatsoever as long as there are
no strings attached."
Mr. Dreyer declined ?to con-
firm or deny that the fund was
still receiving contributions
from these foundations.
He 'said, however, that
slightly less than three-quarters
of the. fund's? current annual
budget of approximately $300,-
GOO was -obtained from founda-
tic..ns. The rest is provided
through contributions from in-
dividuals and cooperatives af-
filleted with the league. 1
Be said he did not know
exactly when the fund had first
begun receiving contributions
from the foundations but he be-
lieved the relationship had been
established by Murray D. Lin-
coln, who. died last November.
Mr. Lincoln, a former insur-
ance 'executive and a pioneer
in cooperative work in this
country, was. presidept of the
cooperative league for a number
of years. ' ? . ? ? ? ? . ?
Mr.'; Lincoln and Jerry. Voor-
his,..,a former Democratic mem-
ber. of the: .'.House
Hmise : of' , Repre-
sentatives from California, pres-
ident of the league until he re
tired in January, established the
fund in 1955.
Mr. Voorhis was a prominent
liberal and a controversial fig-
ure in the House for 10 years
until his defeat II Richard M.
Nixon. in the Republican land-
slide of 1916. He is now yaca-
tioning and could not be reached
for comment on the relationship
betWeen the foundations and th
efund.
- The funds were mainly used,
Mr. Dreyer said, to further de-
velopment of cooperatives in
Asia. and Latin America and to
conduct surveys on the feasibil-
ity of aiding cooperatives, in
Africa.
One of the largest programs
undertaken by the fund and the
cooperative league Is a pilot
agricultural project in India in
conjunction with the India
Cooperative Union. About ;480,-
000 was spent on this from
1963 through 1965 with funds
provided both by the founda-
tions concerned and by other
sources.
Mr. Dreyer said the project
aimed at establishing seed, fer-
tilizer and agricultural credit
cooperatives for farmers. The
cooperative league ankthe fund
provide technical help through
American: advisers as well as
money for purchases of seed and
fertilizers. ,
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/12/19: CIA-RDP73-00475R00020167non1-R