SEOUL BUREAU

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00803R000300130011-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 18, 2007
• Sequence Number: 11
• Publication Date: July 26, 1998
• Content Type: LETTER

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:: v k. ^'Q n X li. 'rim ( A
VAW
FOREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SERVICE
UNITED STATES FORCES, JAPAN
OKINAWA BUREAU
APO SAN FRANCISCO 96239
21 April 1976
Acting Chief, Operations Group
Dear
25X1
Subject: Seoul Bureau
Ref: 10 March Iette25X1
tol
19 April message to
Here are the details promised in my message of 19 April:
Bureau'Floor'Plan: Attached is a copy of
and my proposed floor plan for the bureau. The chancery
building has no permanent interior walls and therefore we
will be able to reconfigure the space allotted to us in any
way we wish. Our design provides for three separate monitor-
ing rooms, one with three positions and the other two with two
each. Actually another position could easily be fit into each
of these rooms. There is also a cruising room and a television
room, the latter with considerably more space than will be re-
quired for monitoring television. We provided for a wireroom
with acoustical tiling and carpeting, for an editorial room, a
shop, an engineer's office, an admin area and a chief's office.
This design could easily be altered and we will not have to
give our final word to the GSO until well after
arrival.
25X1
Communications: told us ould 25X1
have no objection to our using one channel of the cir- 25X1
cuit when it becomes operational, although he added the embassy
had been asking about that channel and also he had heard it
might be earmarked for US He was in the process of
installing an antenna for -Pekin- and expected the circuit to 25X1
be activated in a month or so.
As instructed in your message of 6 April, I raised for
discussion with Maurine Crane the possibility of our taking
over the running of the embassy's unclassified wireroom. She
thought that a "pregnant idea," although Ben Jackson, the
embassy Communications and Records Officer, was less enthu-
siastic, mainly, he said, because he was not certain we could
provide the kind of service the embassy required. I assured
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`..~ *?I E TIAL
him we could and Maurine Crane seemed to have no doubts about
that. She said she would want to think the idea over further
and to check with the Department. I pointed out that the final
FBIS decision would be made by Headquarters.
The embassy wireroom uses a Mode V Autodin circuit which
goes by military cable and microwave to the ASC at Taegu, Korea.
The only altroute is the commo circuit. The wireroom has a
T/O of four locals, one of whom is in training, and handles
some 6,000 words per day outgoing and 50,000 words per day
incoming; about 20 to 30 percent of the latter is FBIS material.
The wireroom operates from 0700 to 2100 Monday through Friday
and during the day only on Saturday. There are three ASR's
in the wireroom and a Mode V terminal; military technicians
maintain the latter, while the ASR's are serviced by Station
technicians.
If we do take over this operation, we will have to
assume the wireroom's present duties of distributing incoming
messages to all the components of the embassy. This would
not be a terribly difficult task, but it is one FBIS is
not generally accustomed to performing. On the plus side,
taking over the unclassified wireroom would mean we would
take over the f ur teletypists now on board who know the
system, and we would also presumably take over the embassy's
autodin circuit. We would then have to acquire an altroute
and Jack and I recommend we obtain a dedicated circuit for
.1 ? ..-I I
to ~ ofor r primary circuit and use autodin asAour~ 6v
We also discussed our taking over the embassy wireroom
with the commo man and he said he would have no problems
with such a development and would report that to his
headquarters.
Housings As I reported in my message, the housing is
excellent. Having spent almost two years on Okinawa and
observed the administrative and other work involved in
managing a housing area, I was delighted to hear that the
GSO will be running the whole show in Seoul.
Wage Scale: A copy of the Seoul Embassy local compensa-
tion plan Fs-attached., along with my recommendation that
25X1
25X1
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'm" CNIK" FWWNTIAL `~`
we place our employees on that plan. I discussed this at
length with Vincent Farley, the Embassy Personnel Officer,
and, as is noted in my attached memo, he and I agree on the
assignment of grades to our employees. The FSL-P-l on the
local compensation plan is a supergrade for political analysts
and probably would not apply to us, although we could eventu-
ally ask for one such position if we decide we need one. Mr.
Farley thought we would have no difficulty finding Korean
monitors to work at the grades specified. We would hire
them at FSL-4 or FSL-5, with FSL-3's as journeyman monitors
and FSL-2's as unit chiefs.
I recommend we hire a local secretary rather than an
administrative assistant. This would be an FSL-5 position
and the secretary would be a receptionist, answer the phone,
file and type unclassified correspondence. I am not convinced
we need a driver, but would prefer not to give up the position
now. It might be possible to have the technician work evenings
and drive the other swingshift workers home in the bureau bus
before curfew, keeping the bus at his house overnight.
and I can discuss this in June and come up with a more die
plan then.
TCN's: I discussed the benefits to be provided to TCN's
with Maurine Crane, including the two-year salary retention
policy for those transferred, and she concurred in them as
spelled out in letter. She expressed serious
misgivings about bringing in the two Mandarin monitors from
Tokyo Bureau, both of whom are naturalized Japanese citizens
and both of whom make only slightly less than $17,000 per year.
I didn't tell her their present salaries but she was familiar
with Tokyo wages and assumed they would be large in comparison
to those paid in Korea. In addition to salaries three to four
times as large as those the Korean monitors would be receiving,
the Mandarin monitors would be provided a housing allowance,
an education allowance, and a paid trip to Tokyo every two
years. Added to all this, Maurine hastened to point out, is
the fact that the Koreans are not particularly fond of
Japanese. I suggest we reconsider the transfer of the two
Mandarin monitors from Tokyo Bureau to Seoul and perhaps
offer them employment on Okinawa. The embassy personnel
officer thought there might well be Chinese monitors available
in Seoul or Inchon and he is trying to come up with some
candidates for us. If there are none, I could recruit in
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NNW W
Taiwan, offering the same wages as the Korean monitors receive
plus housing, education allowance and home leave. I think
I might be able to lure some Chinese from Taiwan to Seoul with
such compensation; and if there are no Koreans who can do the
job, the Koreans would have little basis to object to these
few extra privileges for the Chinese. We also still have the
option of transferrin from Okinawa to Seoul. He 25X1
is very interested in going, has a Korean wife, and his salary
is now slightly over $10,000. would also be my first 25X1
choice as a TDY trainer of Chinese monitors and to test
applicants.
In the meantime, I int
there are any Chinese monit
end to try
o
to find out whether
le in Korea when I go
to Seoul in June. So far,
has come up with one
25X1
former empl
Maurine Cra
will of cou
I am s
oyee whom I will test. AS I reported in my message,
ne did not say no to the TCN's from Tokyo and we
rse hire them if you decide we should.
till planning to go to Seoul iniid-June with
to recruit Korean monitors and would recommend
25X1
come as planned to oversee the physical installation
25X1
of the bureau and to keep in touch at FSK. Jack and I visited
FSK one afternoon and renewed our contact with Captain
who is the man responsible for our project.
25X1
said he foresaw no problems with setting up our remote
at FSK and no reason why our antennas should not be in
by the end of the year at the latest.
Please let me know if I have not answered any of t
unit
place
he
questions i
n
letter sufficiently. Jack and
I
25X1
established a number of-contacts at the embassy and we
should be able to get additional answers from them quickly.
Finally, as I mentioned in my message, Jack and I found
the people at the embassy extremely cooperative and came away
convinced that the operating atmosphere for a bureau in Seoul
will be excellent. might want to express FBIS' 25X1
appreciation for the assistance provided by the embassy,
especially by Maurine Crane, GSO Byron Manfull, Budget and Fiscal
Officer Wayne Wong, and Personnel Officer Vincent Farley.
Sincerely,
Deputy Chief, Okinawa Bureau
cc: Chief, Tokyo Bureau
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%# U A I U L II I I A L %ftw
Attachment 1. Proposed bureau floor plan; present floor
layout; building description.
65
Attachment 2. Memo to Q Proposed pay schedule for 25X1
Seoul Bureau employees; copy of embassy local 4-$
compensation plan.
Attachment 3. Floor plan of seventh floor showing location G~3, S
of wireroom and TCU; sketch of present wireroom;
description of wireroom.
Attachment 4. Estmates for space reconfiguration and office S j Ft PS
furniture. r~ -
Attachment 5. Floor plan of fifth floor showing location of
microwave room; description of possible cable
run.
Attachment 6. Reception report and grounding system.
Attachment 7. Estimate of materials to be FBIS furnished;
copy of Nepcoduct wiring system.
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CC ,,c-5
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