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Subject: U.S. companies get helping hand from tax-exempt group for Burma trip  

U.S. companies get helping hand from tax-exempt group for Burma trip 

By JIM DRINKARD
Associated Press Writer
   WASHINGTON (AP) _ A tax-exempt group that pays for congressional
trips to Asia is underwritten by U.S. companies with high-stakes
interests in the region, according to interviews and documents.
   In its most recent trip, the Asia Pacific Exchange Foundation
sent four House Republicans to Burma in December as guests of the
country's military rulers. On the agenda: a tour of the remote
mountains where U.S. oil company Unocal and its French partner
Total are building a dlrs 1.2 billion natural gas pipeline.
   The project, Burma's largest foreign investment deal, could be
in jeopardy because of possible U.S. sanctions against the
southeast Asian country. Rep. Dennis Hastert, who went with an aide
to visit the site, said it was helpful to see it firsthand.
   The delegation, which made other stops in Hong Kong, China and
Singapore, also included House Majority Whip Tom DeLay of Texas,
New York Rep. Bill Paxon and Ohio Rep. Deborah Pryce.
   The president of the tax-exempt foundation, Richard G. Quick,
declines to say where its money comes from. But Unocal acknowledged
it is among the foundation's sponsors.
   By donating to Quick's foundation, Unocal could claim a tax
deduction for underwriting a congressional fact-finding trip to its
pipeline, in effect using a taxpayer subsidy to lobby against U.S.
government policy.
   Congressional aides who went on other trips the foundation
sponsored last year said they included meetings with Chinese
automakers and a tour of an aircraft plant that is a joint venture
between China and Boeing. Ford Motor Co. and Boeing both are
sponsors of the foundation.
   In an interview, Quick denied that his group, which has the tax
status of a charity, is a lobbying arm for its corporate donors.
   Itineraries for trips are set to meet the interests of the
lawmakers and their aides, he said. ``If that coincides with the
interests of one of the contributors, so be it,'' he said.
   Frances Hill, a University of Miami law professor who
specializes in tax-exempt groups, said it appeared that the
foundation was used to ``put some distance'' between lawmakers and
the corporate sponsors of a lobbying trip.
   ``What this reveals is that there are a lot of ways to lobby,''
she said.
   The Clinton administration is considering whether to cut off
investments in Burma, where generals canceled the democratically
elected government in 1990 and put its leader, Nobel Peace Prize
winner Aung San Suu Kyi, under house arrest. A law Congress passed
last year permits sanctions if repression worsens.
   Unocal spokesman Barry Lane declined to say how much the company
has paid to Quick's foundation. The donations make business sense
because ``part of their charter is to improve relations, and we're
very heavily involved in Asia,'' Lane said.
   Unocal has put much of its energy into expanding business ties
in Burma, and would be the most affected by any ban on U.S.
investment. The pipeline would move natural gas from offshore wells
across a mountain range to Thailand.
   In addition, the company announced three weeks ago it had signed
a deal with Burma's rulers to greatly expand its offshore gas
development, paying them several million dollars as a signing
bonus.
   The State Department and human rights groups say Burma's
military rulers are guilty of widespread repression and human
rights violations, including use of forced labor to build the
pipeline. The oil companies deny the charge.
   At the sites he was shown, Hastert said, he saw no evidence of
human rights abuses. Instead, there were well-paid villagers
operating heavy equipment.
   ``It was a good insight for me,'' he said.
   Founded in 1987, Quick's foundation has become known on Capitol
Hill for its Asia trips. It raised dlrs 576,000, the bulk from
corporate sponsors, in 1995, the most recent year for which figures
are available.
   Last year, the group sent at least 30 lawmakers and aides on
trips to China, Japan, Hong Kong and other Asian destinations, at a
cost of dlrs 162,000, making it one of the most active sponsors of
private congressional travel.
   Quick is a former congressional aide, a businessman, and a
brigadier general in the Army Reserve who carefully guards his
privacy. His phone number is unlisted, and his group's name is
missing from the building directory where he rents office space.
   The Burma trip was front-page news in the state-controlled
newspaper. A photo showed the delegation meeting with top generals.
The government sponsored a dinner for the group, which included the
spouses of DeLay and Pryce along with two aides, and they stayed at
a government-owned hotel.
   The State Department was given no advance notice of the trip,
which came at a tense time of student unrest. The department had
issued a travel warning on Dec. 9 because of the potential for
street violence.
   The group made no effort to meet with opposition leaders, Quick
said, because the lawmakers expressed no interest. Another
lawmaker, Rep. John Porter, was denied a visa when he sought a
visit at about the same time to explore human rights issues.
   Once there, the group did invite a U.S. Embassy official to go
along on its pipeline and drug interdiction forays, Quick said.
   
140728 Mar GMT