WORLD NEWS

BONN PASESS GDR TREATY

‘BONN — The West German Bundestag (parliament) passed
West Germany’s good neighbor treaty with the German Demo-
cratic Republic and also a law approving United Nations entry
for both German states, in actions seen as greatly clearing the
way toward East-West detente in Europe. The May 11 votes in
the Bundestag were also major setbacks for the ultra-reactionary
forces.in the opposition Christian Democratic Union (JCDU) party
led by Bavarian party boss Franz-Josef Strauss.

The vote on the GDR-West Germany treaty, in which Bonn for
the first time recognized the GDR as a sovereign state, was 268-217.
After this defeat of the Strauss forces, their ranks thinned con-
siderably. The vote on the West German law to approve UN mem-
bership applications for both German states was 356-121. West
German reactionary and neo-fascist elements had gone all out to
try to get the treaty defeated. The Strauss forces had forced the
resignation of CDU chairman Rainer Barzel over this issue; the
interim CDU chairman until a party election is held is Kurt-Georg
Kiesinger, until 1969 West German Chancellor (and Nazi party
member, 1933-1945) .

20 PEOPLE FACE DEATH IN SPAIN

MADRID — At least 20 people, including several young women,
face death by firing squad when they go before a Franco
regime military tribunal charged with terrorist acts, Franco police
sources said here. They are ‘among 150 people detained in central
Madrid after a May Day demonstration in which a policeman was
stabbed to death.

No date for the trial has been set and the exact number of
accused is not known, but military courts are empowered to order
execution by firing squad if they are found guilty of terrorism. The
killing sparked off extreme right wing demonstrations throughout
Spain demanding even more repression by the Franco police who
have shot to death four workers in the last 12 months.

AMMUNITION CARRIERS HELD IN CHILE

SANTIAGO — Four opponents of Chile’s Popular Unity govern-
ment have been arrested carrying 7,200 rounds of Argentine-made
machine-gun ammunition, it has been annouced. The men — from
the right wing National Party and Radical Democracy group —
were seized by police in the town of Curacautin, 330 miles south
of the Chilean capital, according to a government statement.
Tuesday night. :

The foreign ministry confirmed that Roberto Thieme, the leader
of the neo-fascist Fatherland and Freedom Party believed to have
died in an air crash two months ago, had been arrested across the
border in western Argentina. Chile’s progressive newspapers
splashed the story across their front pages and the evening paper
Ultima Hora declared ‘Fatherland and Freedom and foreign mili-
tarists are preparing an invasion against Chile.” —

LIBERATION MOVEMENTS ACTIVE IN ZIMBABWE

SALISBURY — Four members of the Rhodesian security forces,
three whites and one African, have been killed by guerillas on the
north-east border with Mozambique, the Smith regime announced
here April 24. In the same engagement three guerillas were killed
and an undisclosed number captured, it claimed. Five other security
force men were seriously injured during the operations and several
others slightly injured. :

i= : ;

Among the most popular athletes in the 20th Olympic Games in
Munich were two members of the USSR team, Vassili Alexeyev, a
Russian weight-lifter,, and Olga Korbut, a Byelorussian gymnast.
Alexeyev won a Gold Medal in the super-heavyweight class, whereas
Olga captured three Gold Medals, one for a team victory, and the
other two for winning performances on the beam and in the floor
exercises.

The Soviet Government awarded the Order of Lenin to Vassili
Alexeyev and the Order of the Badge of Honour to Olga Korbut.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MAY 18, 1973—-PAGE 6

‘Primary task—to impede civil war’

By JOHN DINGES

SANTIAGO, Chile (LNS) —As
May Day began, Chile was em-
broiled in a wave of violent
events, which seemed to be lead-
ing up to yet another right-wing
offensive aimed at toppling the
Popular Unity (UP) government
of Salvador Allende.

Only two months ago, con-
gressional elections resulted in a
show of popular support for the
UP government. Compared with
the vote in the 1970 election
which brought Allende to power,
the March’ elections showed a
25% increase in support for the
government.

The recent violence culminat-
ed with a full day of rioting in
downtown Santiago on April 26.
Opposition - affiliated secondary
school students and helmeted
bands of paid right-wing “shock
groups” were protesting propos-
ed changes in educational policy
which would emphasize produc-
tion skill over abstract know-
ledge. ;

Pro-Allende Rally

The next evening a 23-year-old
construction worker was shot
and killed as he and a group of
fellow workers marched past the

headquarters of the opposition:

Christian Democrat party on
their way to a pro-government
rally. Witnesses said the shots,
which wounded two other work-
ers came from the balcony of
the party headquarters. The
right-wing press version claims
that the death resulted from
shots fired by the. worker group
as they were attacking the party
headquarters.

The workers’ march was a
response to a call by Chile’s
national. labor federation, the
CUT, for “immediate mobiliza-
tion” of workers and people to
support the government against
the violence of the right. CUT
president Jorge Godoy said the
organization would mobilize
10,000 workers a day to take to
the streets and to guard their
factories against sabotage.

Violence Condemned

The worker mobilization was
intended as‘a show of force to
make it clear — in the words
of the Movement of United Po-

MOSCOW — Voices are now
more frequently raised in the
USA in favor of revising its
policy towards Cuba. Analysing
this process in the newspaper
Izvestia, Soviet journalist Karen
Khachaturov sees its reasons in
the fact that the alignment of

forces in the present world has
changed since the triumph of
the Cuban revolution. This
change was due to the weaken-
ing of the position of imperial-
ism and strengthening of the po-
sition of the world socialist sys-
tem, of which Cuba is a com-
ponent and inalienable part.
Support of Cuba by the social-
ist countries doomed Washing-
ton’s anti-Cuban actions; the
failure of the U.S. economic and
political blockade of Cuba is
now a historical fact.

One can also cite the irrever-
sibility of the processes of so-
cialist construction in Cuba, and
the readiness of the Cuban peo-
ple to protect the results of their
revolutionary transformations.

Colors have changed on the

Chile's president Allende

pular Action leader Oscar Garre-
ton — “who owns the streets.”

The mobilization and alert
was still in effect on May Day
(May 1) when tens of thous-
ands of UP supporters and work-
ers massed in Santiago’s Consti-
tution Plaza to celebrate Inter-
national Workers’ Day. They
heard Allende condemn the viol-
ence of the previous week. ‘The
primary task must be to impede
civil war and thé fascist threat,”
Allende told the workers.

Call on People

Opposition plans to develop a
national strike movement around
the issue the government-pro-
posed school system reform may
have been frustrated by the
quick CUT mobilization and by
Allende’s warning after learning
of the worker’s death:

“In the face of counter-revolu-
tion and the fascist threat, we
will utilize every resource avail-
able to the government. But if it
is still too much for the forces
of order, I will need no prompt-
ing to call the people to take to
the streets to defend their gov-
ernment.” ;

The warning was given addi-
tional force by a declaration
published the same day by the
head of the Army (and former
minister of interior) . General
Carlos Prats: “The various for-
ces of the country have to under-
stand that October cannot be

political palette of Latin Ameri-
ca. Prior to the victory of the
Cuban revolution, the continent
had been ruled mostly by reac-
tionary oligarchic regimes—un-
disguised military-police dicta-
torships. Brutality at home was
combined with servile devotion
to U.S. imperialism. The same
submissiveness reigned in the
OAS. From these regimes of
Latin - American “ultras,” the
cohort of anti-Cuban “crusad-
ers” was formed, which, using
the OAS flag, undertook joint
aggressive actions against Cuba.

Fhe correlation of forces in
Latin America has substantially
changed. Vivid proofs of the
changes which have taken place
in Latin America are the pro-
found social-economic transfor-

mations in Chile, the patriotic |

activity of the military govern-
ment of Peru, and the legitim-
ate demands of Panama, Vene-
zuela, Ecuador and a number of
other countries to end their eco-
nomic dependence on the United
States.

The liberation struggle of the
peoples of the continent are

repeated. In those moments
Chile was on the verge of civil
war. I do not believe there will
be a new October.”
Massive Campaiggn ;

For over a month the Oppost
tion press has been mounting 4.
massive propaganda campaign
against three government poli-
cies: the school reform propos:
al; a law which would raisé
workers’ salaries to keep UP
with inflation while financing
the raises out of the pockets of
higher-income taxpayers; and #
decree to regularize the leg@
status of 41 industries take?
over (most during the October
disturbances) by government
intervention or requisition.

Besides the propaganda cam:
paign, other plans were being
hatched. A document found
the possession of members 2
Partria y Libertad (Fatherlan
and Liberty), an ultra-right
group, revealed a complicate
and minutely detailed plan (nam
ed Operation SACO) to organize
factory owners and middle am
high-income farmers to houtl
leftist workers and keep produc.
tion from reaching the gover,
ment controlled industries 2”
distribution outlets.

. Rightist Bombs

Soon after this disclosure, a
other Patria y Libertad activity
was brought to light by t ©
magazine Chile HOY: the trail
ing for military action of 4
Chileans in a secret camp
neighboring Bolivia. vil

The week of violence — AP
20-26 — included other events
besides the student disturbances
and the worker’s death. Right
ists, using plastic explosive®.
blew up a monument to gue
la hero “Che” Guevara.

in

‘neighborhood Socialist Party of-

fice in Santiago was firebomber
The offices of the leftist dailié
Ultima Hora and'Puro Chile wet’
the targets of rock-throwing
mobs. Nationalist Party |

treme right-wing) and Patria Y)
Libertad youths barricaded

‘main thoroughfare in Santiago’

Providencia district and set ;
to a trolley bus. The toll for 0
week was one death, over 500
persons injured and almost
arrests in Santiago alone.

growing every day, as is the i
of the progressive forces, se 4
all the Communist aud Wor
arties in this struggle. .
Z Nowadays, having rejectet
the OAS anti-Cuban “collec
sanctions,” nearly one-tht ica
the countries of Latin Amer
maintain normal relations 5 it
the freedom island, The OA :
self has changed; it has ee f
to be merely an instrume?
the U.S. State Department
its policy in Latin Americ and
With the growing mon pe
political isolation of U.S. ie
rialism on the continent, on’s
bankruptcy of Washingt me
anti-Cuban course has sel
quite evident. It was pret ag
this relization that prom ogu
Edward Kennedy to say © ficys
ently enough that the Peube
whose aim was to isolate jation
might well lead to the 1S0'"" 16
of the United States. Toes de-
interests of the U.S. peoPe nad
mand an end to ie we 7
licy. This realistic :
aoa also meet the interes here
peace in the western hemi?
and elsewhere in the wor