COCA Mails Fake Draft Notices

Some 900 male undergraduates yesterday received false draft notices from members of the Committee on Central America (COCA), a 20-member student organization, group leaders and notice recipients said.

COCA members said the false orders of induction, for service in El Salvador, constituted an attempt to call attention to United States involvement in that country.

The fake orders, which include the forged signature of Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), were not a hit among students who received them. "I don't know if they're trying to play with people's minds, but I think this was very irresponsible," said Jeremy B. Dann '92, who received a notice.

In a statement on the fake notices, Kerry, who supports U.S. military aid to El Salvador, called COCA's distribution of the notices "an ill-conceived and very unfortunate hoax by people who do not understand my position on this issue."

"The facsimile draft notices were intended to raise consciousness and foster debate," according to a statement that COCA released yesterday.

"You are hereby ordered for induction to the Armed Forces of the United States, for service in El Salvador. You are to report at Cambridge Rindge & Latin High School on 11/18/89 at 8:00 AM," the COCA notice states.

Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III was not available for comment yesterday. A spokesperson in his office said that it was too soon to say whether any disciplinary or legal action would be taken against the group or any of its members.

The College's Handbook for Students states that printed matter that student organizations distribute must include the name of the group that is issuing it.

There is no visible indication on the notices that COCA distributed them. The word "facsimile" is the last word in the manila-colored notices.

"This was a total group effort, and the group takes full responsibility," said Jonathan E. Schrag '92, a COCA member. "But at a time of crisis in El Salvador, we felt this was the best way to make it perfectly clear that the situation affects all of us, especially males who may be drafted into military service," he said.

He said that COCA plans to rally today at Kerry's downtown office to protest the senator's refusal to support a bill that would make U.S. military aid to El Salvador contingent upon human rights investigations.