Serial 564 • SITREP 24

[Editor’s notes: This document appears as Serial 564 in the FBI RYMUR release and as State Department cable 301680 in the State Department release.

[The text for this document was released in 2014 by the now-defunct Wikileaks website at https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/1978STATE301680_d.html. This URL may be available through the Wayback Machine.]

CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 01
STATE 301680
ORIGIN ARA-15
INFO OCT-01 ISO-00 SS-15 EUR-12 DODE-00 SCS-06 CIAE-00 PA-01 CA-01 INR-10 INRE-00 SY-05 SYE-00 USSS-00 H-01 AID-05 SSO-00 NSCE-00 CCO-00 OC-06 NSAE-00 ICAE-00 L-03 /081 R
DRAFTED BY ARA:SEGIBSON:ZW
APPROVED BY ARA:SEGIBSON
S/S-O:TREYNDERS
——————123623 290515Z /11

O 290406Z NOV 78
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO AMEMBASSY GEORGETOWN IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY PANAMA IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY CARACAS IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY PORT OF SPAIN IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY LONDON IMMEDIATE
AMEMBASSY PARAMARIBO IMMEDIATE
FBI WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0045
JUSTICE IMMEDIATE
USCINCSO QUARRY HTS CZ IMMEDIATE
CINCMAC SCOTT AFB IL IMMEDIATE
USREDCOM/RCJ2, MACDILL AFB FL IMMEDIATE
UNCINCARRED FT MCPHERSON GA IMMEDIATE
CDR 18TH AIRBORNE CORPS FT BRAGG NC IMMEDIATE
USCINCEUR VAIHINGEN GE ATTN J-2 IMMEDIATE
C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 301680

E.O. 11652:GDS
TAGS: CASC, GY
SUBJECT: SITUATION REPORT NO. 24

1. The U.S. military presence in Guyana now consists of two extended-range Huey helicopters, seven UH-1 crewmen, and one Lt. Col. Southcom liaison officer (who will leave within 48 hours). The eight-man Air Force security guard unit has departed for the United States.

2. Seven elderly members of the People’s Temple have reservations to the United States Wednesday on a Pan Am flight to New York. They will be accompanied by a U.S. consular officer who was temporarily assigned to Guyana during the crisis. HEW, FBI and the Secret Service have been notified and are planning for the arrival. The three People’s Temple members who are still hospitalized seem to be recovering. It is still unknown when they will be released and well enough to travel. The AID doctor has examined them, and they have been visited several times by a consular officer. The military is ready to evacuate them by special military aircraft when needed. The embassy still has no definite word on the release of the other survivors.

3. Department today received a mailgram from Bishop Leroy Chinn who claims to be general overseer of the People’s Temple movement. He blames the death of Congressman Ryan and “those people in Guyana” on racism of the U.S., not reverend Jones. He warns that if the U.S. does not stop the racism here, “these things” will take place within the U.S. He stated that he has notified his attorneys to file suit against the USG [U.S. Government] to keep the gold, checks and all money belonging to the People’s Temple from “going back into the U.S. treasury.” We have passed the mailgram to L and Department of Justice.

4. The GOG [Government of Guyana] has finally agreed to allow the legatt to photograph fingerprint cards under the supervision of the immigration authorities. The undeveloped film will be sent back to the United States with the consular officer returning tomorrow night. A Guyanese medical official [Leslie Mootoo] has agreed to provide death certificates on the basis of confirmed identifications from Dover. SCS has sent the first list of 33 names to the embassy.

5. Radio Barbados has interviewed Tim Carter, one of the survivors, and is reporting that, three days before Congressman Ryan was killed, Carter told Jones that he would be killed by anti-People’s Temple groups. Radio Barbados speculates that the information convinced Jones to put an end to the People’s Temple movement in Guyana.

Vance [Cyrus Vance, Secretary of State]

CONFIDENTIAL