PREMIER G. MALENKOV eee DR. EDITH SUMMERSKILL On the national labor front By BILL KASHTAN . With the possibility of a sharp Wage struggle developing within : hext month or so, labor solid- ‘rity has become absolutely essen- Hal to the successful outcome of the current wage movement. One has only to see the way the Otor Transport Operators, . in Complicity with big business gen- frally, are preparing for a possible Tail strike vote. The Motor Transport Operators re working for a ‘repeat perform- ®Nce of 1950 when they tried to Teak the back of the rail strike. nfortunately, the Teamsters noo leadership went along with €m. In any case no public state- Ment appeared backing the rail Workers. Labor solidarity was Town overboard in the desire to Set on the “gravy train,” by trans- Porting freight. __ It would be a shameful situation pare the Teamsters Union leader- ~4p to adopt a similar anti-work- Class position now. It would t only harm the cause of the rail Workers: it would place the team- €rs in an untenable position and Weaken their own fight. * * * I don’t know what the thinking f the railway brotherhood negoti- poe committee is but sound prategy demands that they seek € cooperation and agreement of © Teamsters Union and its mem- host. Such agreement could ave an electrifying and salutary €ffect on the overall wage move- oe 25,000 demand ‘No fare increase’ a Pacific Tribune press time hea Public Utilities Commission d- not brought down its findings °n the B.C. Electric application or a fare increase. outs: Effie Jones, president of ivie Reform Association, said this Week that more than 25,000 names ad been collected by “No Fare tj rease” canvassers. The peti rue are being forwarded to the . “Citizens should write to, the ‘UC expressing their opposition any fare hike,” said Mrs. Jones. Labor unity can lick wage-freeze plot _ who were it to take fitably discuss necessary to ; ing and wage-cutting business. ment and make it easier for the rail workers to win their demands. That is one aspect of the situa- tion which ought to be given con- sideration. Another is the need for all-in labor solidarity in support of the i . The Trades and Labor pene a statement of Congress did issue 2. eee at an earlier stage of negotiations. It’s time now for every union in the TLC, CCL and Cath- packing the rail- statements by country and by olic Syndicates men to the hilt. One for all and all for one, the age-old expression of labor solid- i ds to be given new mean- ae eee the more so since the majority of workers in basic 1n- dustry are in the same boat. All of them face the united front of big business. They can crack that united front if they are united. It will be more difficult to do so if they try to “go it alone.” * * * The recently held meeting be- tween delegates of the big three of auto — Ford, General Motors and Chrysler, with the inclusion of Massey Harris and Stelco work- ers — was an important step for- ward. It clearly emphasized the fact that there is strong rank-and- file pressure for.united action and that the basis for such united action exists. Unfortunately the decisions arrived at did not go as far as the situation demands _al- though there was agreement to hold another meeting at the end of the month. 4/me that the organiz- oe 5 meeting ough to lift and work for the in- 1 unions now in negoti- disagreement on other uld be allowed to stand in the way of cooperation ‘now to win wage increases and raise pur- chasing power. And those leaders oppose such cooperation should be sharply: condemned by the rank and file. Such an all-inclusive conference, place, could pro- the best strategy peat the wage-freez- policy of big It se ers of such their sights clusion of al ations. No matters sho The times demand it. Everything points to stormy weather ahead. But labor’s strength lies in unity. in London’ toast of eaders in Moscow By SAM RUSSELL MOSCOW Number one talking point in this city is the striking improvement in Anglo- Soviet relations which has been taking place here. Before the British Labor delegation set off from Moscow in a silver Soviet airliner for China last week they were enter- tained to a farewell banquet They drahk a final toast with their Russian interpreters: next meeting — in London.” At meetings with the delegation, the Soviet leaders have appealed for closer ties between Britain and the Soviet Union. Dr. Edith Summerskill’s com- ment tonight was: “I feel we have made contacts and established un- derstandings which frankly, even when the delegation set out from London, I.thought would be ex- tremely difficult to achieve.” Morgan Phillips, secretary of the Labor party, said people -every- where had similar- problems. “We have similar interests and needs. We want a decent home, we want security, we want peace. We want a chance of enjoying to the full our cultural heritage. “That is not merely a British demand, it is a people’s demand.” The people everywhere “all be- long to one great happy familys At least, as one family, let us try to make it happy,” he said. Phillips said the delegation had been delighted by the friendliness, cooperation and hospitality they had met. “We are proceeding with the next stage of our journey with op- timism and faith that the mission of which we are a part will make some contribution, no matter how small, to achieving the ideals for which our own movement in Great Britain stands—and similar move- ments in the Soviet Union and many parts of the West.” The tone for the improvement in relations-was set by the cordial ex- changes that took place between the Soviet leaders, the Chinese Foreign Minister Chou En-lai, and the British Ambassador, at the party given for Chou when he pass- ed through Moscow on his way from the Geneva Conference to Peking. at their hotel. “To friendship and our The two meetings between Soviet leaders and the Labor party dele- gation which took place with the British Ambassador there as well, have immeasurably improved the atmosphere. Peaceful co-existence between Britain and the Soviet Union was the main theme of all the toasts proposed by the Soviet guests. A very serious note was struck by V. M. Molotov when he rose to make his toast. He said that there was a great need for China’s admission to the United Nations, and expressed a hope for closer relations between Britain and China. A new war, he added, would bring only calamitous suffering to Britain, France and the Soviet Union. \ Aneurin Bevan had a long ses- sion with Premier Malenkov, ex- plaining his views on world affairs generally; Attlee had a long talk with Mikoyan; while the Soviet trade union leader N. Shvernik had a long talk with Sam Watson, the miners’ leader, and others. Dr; Edith Summerskill also spoke to Malenkov for quite a while during which I understand they compared notes on the role of women in the Soviet Union and I think Dr. Summerskill would agree that she and Malenkov found themselves in complete agreement on this score. ‘ As she left Moscow Dr. Sum- merskill, who is next year’s chair- man of the Labor party, said she would do her best to foster friend- ly relations between Britain, the Soviet Union and China. Delegates split up for a series of visits on their final day in Mos- cow. ; Dr. Summerskill visited a mater- nity hospital, where she saw patients given “anaesthetic by sug- gestion,” a hospital for incurables . and a polio clinic. Harry Earnshaw and Wilfrid Burke saw a private flat at their own request. The lady of the house seemed “rather shocked” at what was obviously an unexpected visit, Earnshaw said. The three- roomed flat housed a family of four. The visitors broke their two-day journey to Peking with an over- night halt at the town of Irkutsk, in Siberia. They also stopped briefly at Ulan Bator, capital of Mongolia. © ‘Western diplomats here are agreeed that the four meetings with the British Ambassador has had with Malenkov and _ Soviet leaders in the past four weeks have brought about a great im- provement in relations which is pregnant with possibilities. The question these diplomats are all asking: “How long will it be before these meetings are follow- ed up by a top-level meeting be- tween Soviet leaders and Sir Win- ston Churchill?” Only a few disgruntled voices ate to be heard here among the Western residents, diplomats and others, at this improvement in at- mosphere, and they are the voices of the Americans. They are, in fact, hopping mad at these developments. The U.S. Ambassador, Charles Bohlen, has studiously arranged to be on holi- day. His Charge d’Affaires pointedly refused an invitation to the party for Chou En-lai and he was not invited to the farewell party at the British Embassy. U.S. fears Labor party delegation’s China tour Times New York cult moment. that they hate China. Every day provides fresh proofs } of American” aggression against China. Chiang Kai-shek’s air force engaged in harassing raids against the Chinese mainland was jrein- forced by squadrons of American- built Sabre jet fighters, on the very weekend that the Labor party delegation landed in Peking. China is making no attacks on United States territory ‘anywhere. America, through the instrumen- tality of its puppet Chiang Kai- shek, is making constant attacks on People’s China. * f ‘ Then it proceeds to act the in- jured innocent. It goes into a huff because the rest of the world does not share its insensate hatred of the country it is injuring. . No one would claim that the Labor party delegation is likely to be converted to Communism — more’s the pity. It may even say some sharply critical things about what it sees in China. Its crime in American eyes will ‘be that it is not likely to find any By J. R. CAMPBELL i LONDON The visit of the: Labor party delegation: to China cuts across the U.S. war plans against that country. Hence the hysteria of the American press. declares that the visit will disturb Anglo-American relations at a diffi- Those who would be on good terms with America must evidently show The usually sober CLEMENT ATTLEE reasons for wanting to go to war with China. It is not likely to be converted to the idea that the United Nations should be reduced to being a tool PACIFIC TRIBUNE — AUGUST 20, 1954 — PAGE 7 of the U.S. state department, and should be forbidden to admit to membership states whom U.S. Big Business does not like: The Labor delegation will see a nation which in the past has made a great contribution to civilisation emerging from an era of imperial- ist oppression and beginning a new independent life. It will see that feudalism has been ended: and that the peasants are on the way to a full civilised life. g It will see the beginnings of a powerful industrialisation drive, in which the great new industries are owned by the People’s Demo- cratic state. It will see a tremendous devel- opment of the educational opport- unities being given to the mass of the people. Those very facts will prove io the delegation that China needs and wants a long period of peace and a big development of peace- ful trade.