Democratic Contributor

* I must express my profound disappointment over “DNC Donors Contacted Commerce Appointee” (Nov. 15). As the article refers to me, I must take exception to a number of errors.

First, let me say that I am an American citizen, born in Korea. I am proud of my heritage, as are untold thousands of immigrants who have made this country what it is today.

* My father’s correct name is Ryu Chan U, not Yu Chan-Ho. My father in not deceased, rather he is alive and well. My father is not a “copper mogul”--he is the founder of a major metals manufacturer which is a publicly traded company--the Poongsan Corp. This corporation has an American subsidiary, PMX, which employs 550 Americans and is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

* I do not shun publicity. I was appointed by a former U.S. trade representative to the Investment and Services Trade Advisory Committee, not the Insurance and Services Trade Advisory Committee as reported.

* Pan Metal Corp., a California corporation, is not a subsidiary of the Poongsan Group. It is a corporation owned by me, since its inception in the early 1980s.

* The Poongsan Group does not have a monopoly on bullet manufacturing in South Korea . . . and does not export “bullets, cartridges and grenade launchers all over the world, including to the United States.”

In addition, the article implies that John Huang was solely responsible for soliciting contributions from me for the Democratic National Committee. It is a fact that I had worked for and contributed to Democratic candidates and causes long before I met Huang. I am knowledgeable about the workings of democracy.

MI AHN

Vernon