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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (July 10, 1973)
President Idi Amin detains, then frees Peace Corps workers THE BEAT Featured Band All A LA MODE W Pearl, E Swept Release appearing Mondays KAMPALA. Uganda (UPI) — President Idi Amin was at the Entebbe airport Saturday morning when a chartered East African Airlines VClO carrying 114 American Peace Corps volunteers took off after a refueling stop. “Who is on that plane?’’ Amin screamed, according to an ac count related Sunday by an airport official who said he was standing almost directly next to the president at the time. When he was told that it carried members of the Peace Corps, Amin shouted again: “Bring them all back.” The order from the president, who was wearing his air force uniform open at the neck, was relayed to the airport control tower. A crewman aboard the airliner said later that the control tower radio operator said simply: “Return at once.” “They did not give us any reason.” he said. “Then they told us we would be chased by two Ugandan air force jets if we did not return.” And as that warning was relayed, he said, two jet fighters began making wide circles over the airport. The crewman, as with most other persons involved in the incident, asked not to be iden tified. But other witnesses, most of them airport officials, in dicated that Amin’s reaction was spontaneous in ordering the plane to return. “Why he didn’t even know who was on the plane at first.” said one Ugandan who had been at the airport at the time Amin shouted his order. When the plane returned to the airport, the 114 Americans and the crewmembers were kept under armed guard aboard the BERGMANS Uvta-ffJpWjL at 180M.C. hand? l for % f I benefit for Canterbury Thb wnk tfeara’s SMietkag fw everym at fcr the children, a fantasy in the style of the Chinese Theater ... Wednesday aid Thirsty, 11:00 a.a., Uider-the-Teit Wednesday aid Thirsty, 8:30 p.«., Main Stage Friday and Saturday, 8:30 p.m., Under-the-Tent i. Cell MMItl lor Nitormetion. plane for 90 minutes, then transferred to the airport’s shabby terminal building and detained there overnight and Sunday morning. Thirty hours after being or dered back to the airport, the plane’s crewmen were released and flew the charter jet to Nairobi. Kenya. The Americans were put into buses and, with troops accompanying them in jeeps, were driven to the nearby Lake Victoria Hotel and quar tered there under guard. “Well, that’s half the battle won,” said one of the volunteers, a red-haired youth who asked that his name not be used. “We will get a bath now. The only thing left is to get out of here.” If the action was obviously unpopular with the Americans, it also made some Ugandans unhappy. “Most of the airport staff came up to us and said they were sorry about the incident,” said one of the Americans. The group of volunteers was about two-thirds men, most of whom had several days growth of beard, and one-third girls, whose hair and clothes were disheveled. At midday Sunday, prior to being moved to the hotel, the Americans were allowed back on board the plane to recover pillows, soap and other toilet articles. While in the airport building, the Americans entertained themselves by singing along with a guitar, reciting Shakespeare, reading, and, as one girl said, “writing letters home so we will have a permanent reminder of this episode.” Many slumbered through the muggy day cm hot airport plastic seats. Others guzzled the local beer and soft drinks. “You wouldn’t know there’s anything wrong at the moment,” said one of the volunteers, who had been appointed as a spokesman for the group at the hotel. Like the others, he declined to identify himself. “The first thing most people did when they arrived at the hotel was take a bath and a nap,” he said. “Now they are enjoying a dinner of mushroom soup, talipia fish, roast chicken and potatoes and some sort of incredible British pudding. “Most everybody seems to have a bottle of wine, too. But we are pretty tired and I suspect it will be an early night for everyone.” Monday Amin released the 114 Americans he had detained under armed guard for 2*^ days in the bizarre incident which marked a new low point in Uganda’s relations with the United States. Ugandan airport officials said the young American men and women were flown to Kinshasa, capital of the neighboring African country of Zaire, aboard an East African Airways plane. The youths called their un scheduled stay “an interesting experience” although some complained that the swimming pool at the Lake Victoria Hotel had no water. The unpredictable Ugandan president, who was rebuked by the U.S. State Department last week for referring to the Watergate scandal in a July 4th message to President Nixon, had detained the Peace Corpsmen at the airport and later at the hotel to make sure, he said, that they were not “mercenaries” in the pay of Uganda’s enemies. In Washington, the State Department said it was asking Uganda for a full explanation of the incident and added it “will be considering the implications this situation has for us.” Amin offered no explanation for his move until Sunday, when he said the volunteers might be mercenary troops. He demanded confirmation that they were with the Peace Corps in cables to chiefs of state of Zaire, their original destination, and other neighboring African nations. President Joseph Mobutu of Zaire responded with a cable Monday morning, assuring Amin the Americans were bound for his country to work and train at Peace Corps facilities there. Uganda radio broadcast a speech by Amin later Monday thanking Mobutu “for his message which cleared up the situation.” The radio also said Zaire’s foreign minister, Nguzu Karl, would fly to Kampala for talks with Amin. Two days prior to the incident with the Peace Corps volunteers, Amin had sent Nixon a cable in which he told the U.S. chief executive to stop interfering in affairs of other nations and wished him a “speedy recovery from the Watergate affair.” The White House responded Friday with a note to Amin protesting the nature of his message. The volunteers took the incident philosophically, but they were happy to be free to continue with their work. “I just feel relief,” said W’illiam J. Verret, 22, of Welsh, La . by telephone from the hotel shortly before the group’s departure. “I wasn’t really sure what was going to happen while we were here,” he said. “I’d just like to get to Zaire and begin my training.” Credit Union offers alternative to banks; loans available to low-income applicants By SHAHRYAR AHMAD Of the Emerald The OUR Credit Union is a very different kind of a financial establishment. The name itself is an acronym that has changed somewhat in its meaning over the years. ‘“OUR was originally coined from Oregon Urban and Rural.” says Gary Bond, the credit union’s vice-president. “But now the word stands for ‘our’ — in the sense of yours and mine. ” In the world of banks and other financial in stitutions, the OUR Credit Union is unlike the rest in philosophy. While the others strive for profit through service and competition, OUR stands alone. “The OUR Credit Union exists to serve the people. We don’t strive to run on a competitive basis. We try to provide credit services for the low income segment of society who the banks and other credit agencies won’t even touch,” OUR President John Pennington said in a recent interview. He said the aim of the credit union is to provide small loans to low-income groups. People in the lower income brackets — including students — often have a need for a small loan to tide them over certain emergencies, but banks and other credit agencies refuse to deal with them since they are considered ‘high risk’ customers, Pennington ex plained. ‘‘The credit union operates on a principle of shared wealth,” says treasurer Ruth Straton. Credit unions operate most strongly with large memberships of small investors, rather than a few large investors, she said in an interview. If, for example, there are 100 members with a ten dollar investment each, the credit union can provide credit services to those 100 people. If, on the other hand, there are only 10 investors with a 100 dollar in vestment each, the credit union can provide their services to only 10 people, she explained. There are no paid personnel at OUR. Currently even the clerical help is volunteer. But Pennington hopes to rectify the situation in the future when business picks up. But he said he never envisions a time when the board of directors will be paid. Volunteerism is the basis for OUR management, Pennington stressed. The credit union has recently moved from 610 Willamette Street to 2142 Main Street in Springfield. The phone number is 747-5102. A feature of OUR Credit Union that distinguishes it from the other credit unions is that its membership is open to virtually anyone living in Lane County, regardless of their incrane or place of work. Pennington explained that most credit unions confine their memberships to people who work in a certain firm. A person must be 18 years old and invest five dollars to join the credit union. A member is entitled to borrow, vote and run for the board of directors. Bond compared the OUR Credit Union to White Bird by saying, “What White Bird is to medicine, OUR is to money.” He said OUR not only lends and saves money for its members but it also offers financial and job counseling. “We have students come in to borrow 50 dollars to cover their apart ment deposit. We also have people come in to borrow some money to pay off some other small bill. We hardly have luxury item loans.”
