The Bobby Fischer Saga

"All I want to do, ever, is to play chess."  Playing the game of chess has been Robert James Fischer's, Bobby Fischer's, all consuming thirst in life.  Now the game, has consumed him, courtesy of the U.S. Treasury Department and the State Department.  Bobby Fischer world chess champion has been declared a fugitive from U.S. justice, he is a wanted man, caught as he was preparing to leave Japan. Japanese immigration authorities are holding Fischer, in order to deport him to the United States on an outstanding warrant for his arrest that dates back to December 1992.

Fischer’s arrest is tied to his violation of a Treasury Department directive which prohibited him from participating in a chess match against the defending world chess champion Boris Spassky, whom he ultimately defeated to reclaim his title. The Treasury department prohibition was issued as a result of an Executive order signed by President George H. W. Bush in 1992. Fischer is appealing to the Japanese Justice Minister to set him free and is also requesting political asylum. Fischer has also made a request, in a rambling four page letter directed to the U.S. Embassy, to renounce his U.S. citizenship. The U.S. Embassy has ignored Fischer’s request. He has spent the last twelve years moving from country to country, his stays dictated by each country’s visa requirements for non-residents. Fischer’s travels took him through Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, the Philippines, Germany, Switzerland and Hungary.

Witnesses to the confrontation at the airport, between Fischer and Japanese immigration authorities, claim Fischer was assaulted by at least fifteen agents, in a forceful seizure that left Fischer with physical bruises to his arms and face.

Fischer has produced letters and records that support his claims that he has been defrauded by American companies and U.S. citizens, leading to the loss of Fischer’s property and valuables in storage in the United States. He further claims that he has been the target of persecution by U.S. authorities over a period of many years.

Indeed, FBI records obtained by THE INQUIRER, through the Freedom of Information Act, partly supports Fischer’s allegations. Fischer and his mother were continually followed and harassed since the 1950’s, by the FBI, when Fischer first achieved prominence as a chess prodigy. His mother, who at one time lived in the Soviet Union, was suspected by U.S. authorities, of being a communist sympathizer, but never obtained any tangible proof.

If deported to the United States, Fischer faces a 10 year prison sentence, in addition to other possible charges, for playing a chess game in 1992. Chess players in Japan have united to aid Fischer and are making requests to several countries, that political asylum be offered him.

V.S.

Last updated  August 13, 2004

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