Who Is Helping The

The scene was a dinner party in Fort Worth, attended by two dozen well-off conservatives. John Singlaub, a retired U.S. Army major general, had just ended a brief speech pleading for support for the Nicaraguan contras, specifically money for combat boots. One of the guests, a local businessman, stepped forward and wrote a check for $25,000; a few days later the same donor agreed to provide a loan for $50,000 more. The contribution paid for the , purchase of hundreds of pairs of boots -- and Singlaub was elated. Said he: "That's a real patriot."

Ever since Congress cut off contra funding in May 1984, conservative groups in the U.S. have been soliciting money and supplies for the rebels' fight against the Sandinista regime. The main figure in that effort is Singlaub, 63, who was dismissed as Chief of Staff of U.S. forces in South Korea in 1977 after a dispute with President Carter. Adolfo Calero, commander of the Nicaraguan Democratic Force (F.D.N.), the largest contra group, claims that Singlaub's network of U.S. and foreign supporters has raised the lion's share of cash and supplies valued at "close to $10 million." Substantial assistance, says Calero, is coming from "at least a dozen or more foreign countries."

From his mountaintop home in Tabernash, Colo., Singlaub directs the World Anti-Communist League. Founded in 1966, WACL has been tainted by ties to ultrarightists, neo-Nazis and Latin American death squads, though Singlaub claims that objectionable members have been purged. Last September President Reagan sent a greeting to WACL's annual convention in San Diego.

Since the U.S. forbids the solicitation within its borders of money for arms to be sent overseas, fund raising by Singlaub and others in the U.S. focuses on nonlethal aid, essentially boots, uniforms, food and medical supplies. Contributions in cash and kind range up to $500,000 a month, according to Singlaub. If a donor insists on giving money for weapons purchases, Singlaub tells them to send the funds to a certain overseas bank account, believed to be in Panama. Letters of credit are then issued against it, enabling recipients to buy arms abroad.

Singlaub also draws on WACL affiliates in 36 countries, particularly those in Taiwan and South Korea. The Taiwan chapter, which is close to the ruling Kuomintang, has raised at least $100,000 so far, mostly from private sources. This is a delicate effort, since Nicaragua is one of the few countries in the world that retains diplomatic relations with Taipei. Contributions also come from Central American nations, Paraguay and Saudi Arabia.

Singlaub stays in touch with other U.S. groups involved in aiding those opposing and fleeing from the Sandinistas. They include the Christian Broadcasting Network, which provides humanitarian aid to Nicaraguan refugees in Honduras. Singlaub also gave advice and assistance to the fund-raising campaign launched by the Washington Times, which is owned by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. That effort is headed by William Simon, Secretary of the Treasury in the Ford Administration.

Robert K. Brown, publisher of Soldier of Fortune, a magazine about weapons and mercenaries, says organizations associated with the publication are collecting medical supplies, uniforms and the like but insists they do not deal in arms. The magazine has, however, recruited specialists to teach the contras about weaponry and maintenance. One of its teams has been advising the rebels on how to counter Soviet-built Mi-24 Hind helicopter gunships that the Sandinistas are expected to deploy soon.

The U.S. group most visibly involved in combat training is the Alabama-based Civilian Military Assistance, headed by Tom Posey, an ex-Marine, who claims to get his funds from private citizens. F.D.N. officers say that Posey's men are instructing contra units in the use of recently acquired surface-to-air missiles. Posey denies it. Says he: "Where did they dream that one up?"

Singlaub, for his part, insists that he is not working for the CIA. But Reagan Administration officials know about and tacitly approve of the former general's activities. As Singlaub told TIME Correspondent Ross H. Munro: "I try to communicate, sometimes by telephone: 'This is what I am about to do. If you object to it, send me a signal.' " So far, he says, none has come.