HELSINKI-A CHARTER

FOR EUROPEAN PEACE

Tenants group blasts
Tory rent control plan

TORONTO—The Rent Review
and Security of Tenure Proposal
announced by Ontario’s Housing

inister, Donald Irvine, has
been called a “pre-election gim-
‘Mick to fool tenants,” by the
Federation of Metro Tenants As-
Sociations. The FMTA represents
tenants throughout Metropolitan

Oronto. :

“If the government intended to
Teverse its anti rent-control po-
Sition and treat the current rent
Crisis as a priority, then they
Would do something about it,”
the FMTA said in a press release
July 31. Bee
«the Federation charged that
Housing Minister Donald Ir-
vine’s ‘promise’ for a powerless
Tent review board sometime in
the future shows that they (the
Ontario Government: Tories) are
Content to continue to do noth-
me for tenants.

‘Irvine’s plan to shame what
€ sees as a ‘very small number’
Ol gouging landlords will do
Nothing for the majority of ten-
&nts who are paying more rent
than they can afford,” the release
Says.

“The housing ministry’s pro-
ams. have failed to ease the
Current housing shortage which
Makes necessary a strong rent-
Control program as an emergency
Measure. To be ‘effective, rerit
Control must begin by rolling
ack rents and peg all increases
above. that to proven higher

By FILS DELISLE

h BERLIN—Public opinion here

Jas reacted favorably and with

Interest to the establishment of
°rmal diplomatic realtions be-
Ween Canada and the German
€mocratic Republic.

The agreement on mutual rec-
°8nition, announced at Helsinki
a the leaders of the Canadian
aly GDR delegations at the Eu-
een security conference, is
€n by all interested parties as
peep that will work out to the
neerial advantage of both coun-
ses It is. also seen as an integ-
,. Part of the. detente process
-tamatized by the history-mak-

8 Helsinki conference:
reeatlier in the year this cor-
5 Pondent noted here that the

.;8teements formulated by the

Uropean countries, the USA and
perce at Geneva, in. prepara-
io for the final Helsinki ses-
ag already provided an an-

ab €r for all issues still outstand-
BRoctween Canada and the
oe When Erich Honecker, first
ary of the Socialist Unity
Brae and Prime Minister Pierre
€au signed the overall doc
ment at Helsinki formal d'pio-

costs to the landlord.”

The promised reforms in the
Landlord and Tenant Act to
bring security of tenure for ten-
ants are what the FMTA and
other tenant groups have advo-
cated “since the Act was amend-
ed four years ago,” the Federa-
tion says, but it notes that “the
minister has ‘promised’ reforms

’ now that the legislature can no

longer act during this session. In
any case, no security of tenure
can be effective without rent
control, as landlords can. still
evict tenants by raising their
rents beyond what, they can pay.

“Growing pressure by tenants
has forced the minister to move
about as far as he can from his
‘no rent control’- position and
still do nothing. This proves that
pressure can be effective but
now must be stepped up,” the
Federation states.

“Irvine’s pre-election gimmick
to fool tenants into believing
that this government is working
for them will not succeed in
Metro where most voters are ten-
ants. The FMTA, it notes, “is
planning to work all across
Metro in the upcoming (provin-
cial) election campaign to en-
courage tenants to work for can-
didates who support tenants’ in-
terests.”

More information is available
from FMTA at 364-1486 or Nor-
man Brudy at 363-8113 (work)
or 447-0472.

ERICH HONECKER

matic relations between Ottawa
and socialist Berlin became al-
most automatic. Failure to estab-
lish such formal diplomatic rela-
tions would have been an obvi-
cus violation, of the Helsinki
agreement. ‘
Since all the necessary docu-
ments governing mutual recog-
noition had long been drafted
and even signed; the Canadian

By S$. BEGLOV and M. SAGATELYAN
APN Special Correspondents

At 15.00 hours GMT, August 1, 1975,

a folder in a green binding made from
Finnish leather by Swiss printers was
put down on the horseshoe-shaped table
at which sat leaders of 35 states partici-
pating in the all-Europe forum in Hel-
sinki. An hour later this book contain-
ing the text of the conference’s final act
had the signatures of all delegation

heads.

So the 20th Century, which threaten-

ed to turn our old continent into ashes,
witnessed today, in
the birth of the first European Charter
of peace. It is not precluded that histori-
ans of the future will precisely thus call
the final act of the Conference on Se-
curity and Cooperation in Europe sign-
ed in the Finnish capital. _ ;
Ironically, August 1 was entered in
the annals of history as a day of des-
pair. It was on that day in 1914 that the

its 75th year,

first World War began in Europe,

Portugal’s Prime Minister Gen. Vacos Goncalves address-
es the’closing session of the congress of Portuguese trade
unions in Lisbon last week. In his speech, he spoke of the
need to win more allies to the struggle for socialism. Several
days before, Socialist leader Soares had kept up his attacks
on unity and demanded Goncalves’ resignation.

announce the exchange of am-
bassadors to make the new rela-
tionship between them a fact of
international diplomatic life.
Some of the immediate and
long term results of the new
development can already be fore-
seen. Firstly, the move brings
Canada into step with the other
countries of the capitalist world

‘which recognized the GDR long

ago. Secondly, plugging the hole
in international diplomatic life
represented by the freezing of
non-recognition for so long is a
positive contribution to east-
west relations in general. Third-
ly, Canada will now be in a bet-
ter position to compete for the
trade with the GDR which Brit-
ain, France, Italy, the Federal
Republic of Germany and_a host
of other capitalist countries have
energetically and profitably pur-

- sued. Only two weeks: ago, Wil-.

liam Kashtan, general secretary
of the Communist Party of Can-
ada, during a visit to the GDR
made the point that trade with
the GDR means business and
jobs for Canadians.

_ Fourthly, contacts on various
levels between the two peoples

Canada agree on

and GDR leaders needed only to

PIERRE TRUDEAU

will be made easier when GDR
diplomats are operating at Ot-
tawa and Canadian diplomats in
socialist Berlin. Diplomatic rela-
tions will facilitate the solution
of personal and humane prob-
lems raised by one side or the
other. This question has played
a role in the negotiations leading
to. mutual recognition because
there are citizens in each coun-

spreading to the whole planet with un-

precedented speed. A quarter of
a century -later a world war
again flared up in Europe.

But on August 1, 1975, the
heads of 33 European states, and
also of the USA and Canada, un-
dertook a serious and responsible
step towards excluding war from
the political arsenals of the con-
tinent’s countries.

Here are the key provisions of
‘the final act — a sort of 10 com-
| mandments of peaceful co-exist-
| ence and cooperation: |

@ sovereign equality, respect’

for rights inherent in sovereign-
ty;

e renunciation of the use or
threat of force;

© inviolability of frontiers;

territorial integrity of states:

@ peaceful settlement of dis-

putes;

e non-interference in internal
' affairs;

e respect for human rights and
basic freedoms, including free-
dom of religious convictions;

e equality and right of peo-
plés to decide their destiny;

® cooperation among states;

Continued on page 6

try with relatives in the other.
It is also clear that trade rela-
tions between the two countries
are made more complicated
when they have to be transacted
across the dividing wall of non-
recognition.

Along these lines officials of
the Leipzig Trade Fair have ad-
vised me that there will be Cana-
dian representation at the inter-
nationally famous autumn fair
in September. The Leipzig: Fair,
held twice annually, is the
world’s biggest meeting place
for trade and. business between
the capitalist and socialist coun-
tries. Its importance is indicated
by the presence at all fairs of
high diplomatic, political and
business representatives from the
leading countries in East and
West.

There is lots of business to
be had by. Canadian interests if
they: finally recognize the oppor-
tunities awaiting them, not only
in trade with the GDR. but in
broad participation at the Leip-
zig Fair. The establishment of
formal diplomatic relations be-
tween Canada and the GDR
should make the utilization of
these opportunities easier.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—AUGUST 8, 1975—Page 3