Global Relief Foundation Reacts To Freeze Order

BRIDGEVIEW, Illinois (Dec. 14, 2001) - In response to government action freezing its assets, the Global Relief Foundation (GRF) made the following statement:

"A compound tragedy has occurred today. We just commemorated the three-month anniversary of the first one. The second was inflicted this afternoon when the assets of Global Relief Foundation were frozen by our government. By halting medicine, food and other humanitarian aid, we risk the slow starvation and gruesome death in parts of the Muslim world that rely on such badly needed aid. In return for a false sense of security, our government has inflicted a great tragedy on countless innocent victims.

"For weak, suffering and innocent victims, the timing of this action could not have been worse. This is the month of Ramadan, when Muslim-Americans are most generous in opening up their pocketbooks to help those in need. With only two days remaining, while maximum resources were making their way through GRF, the assets were frozen and the group's world-wide humanitarian operations were immediately halted. While GRF fully expects to be vindicated, with its assets one day released, this action to halt the flow of charitable aid from the most generous nation in the world will forever cast a blemish on America's reputation to give to the world's needy.

"As President Bush prepares to host Muslim children in the White House to celebrate the holy day of Eid-ul-Fitr, we ask him to explain why Muslim-Americans cannot send aid to Afghan, Palestinian and other children in Muslim regions through Muslim charities. Why must religiously obligated charity destined to help the freezing, starving children of Afghanistan languish in a U.S. bank on this holy day and beyond?

"Representatives and supporters of Global Relief Foundation (GRF), a non-profit humanitarian organization founded in 1992, strongly deny any links to terrorism. We are in the business of helping innocent civilians and take every precaution to ensure our aid does not go to support or subsidize any nefarious activity. Just as we would call the police if our collection box or computer equipment were being stolen, we would certainly alert the authorities if we had reason to believe the intended humanitarian purpose of our aid were being subverted to harm innocent lives.

"GRF understands and appreciates both the seriousness and urgency of identifying potential threats to the United States and of locating terrorist operatives and those who sponsor them. At the same time, GRF also emphasizes the equal seriousness and urgency of conducting such investigations with precision and care. GRF intends to fully cooperate with the investigation and seeks a dialogue with federal authorities in order to determine standards of conduct and suspicious activity reporting. We owe a religious and legal obligation to ensure that this money goes to intended victims of disaster, famine, war and terrorism.

"Our national security interests are best guarded through the good will generated from acts of kindness. It is no coincidence that American Muslims are perceived by Muslims throughout the world as their benefactors-in-chief. By importing this generosity, the U.S. will foster genuine admiration, a form of public diplomacy that cannot be bought with a billion-dollar PR campaign or photo opportunities with Muslim-Americans. By shutting the flow of this aid to the Muslim world, we risk losing the one aspect that could make us rise above any other developed nation: acts of giving."

CONTACT: Global Relief Foundation, Bridgeview, Illinois, USA, Roger Simmons, 240/603-7183; SOURCE: Global Relief Foundation submitted at Business Wire