The Words of the Burton Family

In Remembrance of Gen. Alexander Haig, Jr. (1924-2010)

Douglas Burton, Michael Mickler, and the Summit Council for World Peace
March 3, 2010

The nation recently mourned General Alexander Haig, Jr., a decorated combat veteran, and a former Secretary of State and Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. Haig died on February 20 in Baltimore, Maryland and was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery on March 2nd. Unificationists worldwide also mourned a proven friend of the Founder of the Unification Church, Rev. Sun Myung Moon, and a friend of Unification-related organizations such as the Summit Council for World Peace. Rev. In Jin Moon, President and CEO of the Unification Church of America and Rev. Sun Myung Moon's daughter, attended the funeral on March 2nd in Washington, D.C.

Alexander Haig was a four-star United States Army general who served as the first Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan, as White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, and as Deputy National Security Advisor under Henry Kissinger. He also served as Supreme Allied Commander Europe commanding all NATO forces. He also was President of United Technologies Corporation and a founding Board member of America Online. Haig had graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1947 and served in both the Korean and Vietnam wars; he was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star with oak leaf cluster, and the Purple Heart.

Haig became a presidential candidate in 1987, joining a Republican field that included George H.W. Bush, the sitting vice president. A few years later, he put his prestige on the line by speaking at the occasion of the inauguration of the Federation for World Peace held at the Little Angels Performing Arts Center, August 28, 1991, in Seoul. General Haig remembered that during the trying days of the Watergate crisis in 1973, Rev. Moon had put his own prestige and credibility of his organization on the line by authorizing a series of demonstrations nationwide under the theme, "Forgive, Love and Unite." When friends of Richard Nixon were few, Rev. Moon was a friend. Haig alluded to this when he gave a Special Address at the inaugural ceremony of the Federation for World Peace in August 1991. Before his prepared remarks, he offered the following comment:

"[T]his occasion gives me an opportunity to pay a belated debt of gratitude to the Reverend Moon, who at a time of great difficulty in my country, when confusion and animosity dominated the scene in the early 70's, was a tremendous force for rule of law, for due process, and for brotherhood in my own country, and I am very, very grateful to you, Reverend Moon, for those contributions and for the continuing struggle that you have personally conducted in the interest of world peace and international brotherhood."

In 1996 Gen. Haig, a devout Roman Catholic, introduced the Founder at a gala event at the Washington Hilton Hotel to honor the first Washington Times Foundation Service Awards. Gen. Haig's name and attendance at such events encouraged lawmakers and opinion leaders around the world to make their way to the Founder's forums.

Opening Doors to the Opinion Leaders

As Sir James Mancham, former president of the Seychelles explained, "In January, 2001, I unexpectedly received an invitation to participate in a Convocation of World Leaders that was to take place at the United Nations. At that time, many of my collaborators thought that I should not participate in this gathering because it was an initiative of Dr. Sun Myung Moon, who was regarded then as a leader of a controversial religious sect. For a while, I thought I would refuse the invitation, but when I realized that such outstanding world personalities as Alexander Haig, former U.S. Secretary of State, and the Rt. Hon. Edward Heath, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, were to attend, I made up my mind to accept it in order to see and hear things for myself." Mancham was so impressed at the meeting he later became Chairman of the Universal Peace Federation's Global Council.

At the World Culture and Sports Festival in Korea of 1999, Gen. Haig had a prominent role. At the opening banquet on February 4, 1999 at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul, General Haig introduced Reverend Moon, describing how their lives first intersected during the Korean War. (In 1950, Haig was the aide to General Ned Almond, who commanded UN forces liberating northeastern Korea, which freed Rev. Moon from nearly three years in a North Korean prison camp in Hungnam; two months later, in Hungnam, Haig helped oversee the evacuation of UN forces and Korean civilian refugees fleeing Communist Chinese troops). Haig again praised Rev. Moon for his conciliatory approach during the Watergate crisis, and applauded his role in the downfall of communism. When asked at a well-attended press briefing if he was a Unification Church member, Haig replied, "No, but who couldn't support the values espoused here at this conference? It would be like being against motherhood."

Gen. Haig was a longtime friend of a fellow Cold Warrior, Dr. Bo Hi Pak, one of Rev. Moon's most trusted disciples. He wrote the introduction to the 1999 edition of Dr. Pak's memoir, Truth is My Sword. In it, he observed, "Since much of my own life has been dedicated to the containment and, where appropriate, the rollback of Soviet imperialism, I strongly endorse the work Dr. Pak has done to develop and operate organizations designed to promote values inimical to the tenets of Marxist Leninism." President Barack Obama called Haig "a great American" who "exemplified our finest warrior-diplomat tradition" according to a statement issued by the White House. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that Haig had earned "honor on the battlefield, the confidence of presidents and prime ministers and the thanks of a grateful nation," in an e-mailed statement People around the world deeply appreciated General Haig for the strength of his convictions and principles, and millions have benefited from his work and commitments which were not only for America but the world at large. Haig was a devout Catholic and his devotion to country, democracy, the rule of law, and family derived from his religious upbringing and life-long practice. His life and legacy were a gift of God to America and this troubled world. 

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