LETTERS FROM SAIGON'S JAILS TO THE ICCS By JIM LEECH Documentation continues to accumulate on the imprison- ment and torture of thousands of political prisoners in South Vietnam. Letters smuggled out of pri- son and addressed to the Inter- national Commission of Control and Supervision, appeal for jus- tice, but have so far failed to get results. Canadians are entitled to ask what instructions Ottawa has given the Canadian ICCS team on this matter. Reports that Michel Gauvin, Canada’s spokes- man in Vietnam, had voiced wil- lingness to investigate Thieu’s political prisoner jails were con- tradicted by External Affairs Minister Mitchell Sharp, who told a delegation from the Inter- national Committee to Free South Vietnam Political Prison- ers that no such instructions had been given to Gauvin. The urgency of ‘situation wherein these thousands are held, tortured, or released into death traps, would appear to. deserve more than the Canadian government’s leisurely attitude. Or must Canadians conclude that Canadian policy is once Sgt line rT ae more hobbled by this country’s alliance with the USA and its puppet, Gen. Thieu? Three Documents Three documents have recent- ly come to light which cry out - for intervention by peoples and governments who consider Thieu’s debasement of morality and justice to be impermissible! A letter from 8,000 prisoners of infamous Con Son, where 15,000 are held, was received by the ICCS. It expressed a “most urgent appeal concerning bleak realities which happened and are happening here.” The letter charges that con- cerning the Peace Agreement and Protocols, “. . . we notice that the Saigon and U.S. gov- ernments not only are not imple- menting seriously what they have signed by also are treating us more brutally than before . . . have arrested, terrorized and brutally beaten us when we talk- ed about peace.” The letter relates that “nearly 200 male and female political prisoners were transferred to the security section and brutally tortured, chained day and night; many of them were wounded, three of them, Ho Van Hoanh,. SO ag EE SS ENS SIT I ITS Locomotive engineers book-in sick as protest TORONTO — A large number of locomotive engineers booked in sick last week as an unofficial protest against the slow pace of their negotiations with the rail- way companies. The three unions involved, the United Transportation Union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and En- gineers are at the conciliation level and an officer has been ap- pointed by the federal: govern- ment... The action taken by the en- gineers was another in a long line of actions by railway bar- gaining units, including the non- operating unions and the shop- crafts. In the past few weeks reports have. been coming in from all over the country that the workers are frustrated with the stalling by the government and the companies. So far the frustration has expressed itself in booking in sick and in general slowdowns. Let Public Know But the organizers of the June - 20 demonstration in front of To- ronto’s Union Station are plan- ning to take the demand and ac- tions to another level. The Toronto Area Railway Council, with workers representing all of the major bargaining units, are planning the demonstration as a show of force and as a means of letting the public know of the kind of. negotiations that have taken place to date. Interest is growing in the de- monstration .and there are re- ports that similar demonstra- tions are planned for the same day in other railway centres. Last week, when the locomo- tive drivers booked in sick, several runs had to be cancelled and panicky CN officials report- ed that the talk of further book- ing-in was so strong that the railway companies are now try- ing to. prepare for widespread absenteeism. As one engineer told the Tribune, “It’s almost funny, the companies are pre- paring to do something in the case of another mass book-in but they refuse to deal with the real problem. They just won’t negotiate.” PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 1973—-PAGE 6 j w y! i Nguyen Van Thuan and Nguyen Van Bon, seriously.” Attempt to Confess The Saigon regime, the letter accuses, spreads distorted pro-, paganda about the contents of the peace agreement to confuse, terrorize and pressure the pri- soners. “More savagely, they let their, underlings — common law cri- minals nominated as ‘specialists’ or ‘men in charge of keeping order’ — go about in different camps to provoke us and thus create opportunity to repress us and kill us.” The letter tells of orders ‘“‘to close hermetically all prison cells and to feed us rotten dry fish and smelly saltlings .. . in camp eight they ordered to spill around two barrel of human excrement as ‘Tet (New Year) gifts’.” The prisoners’ letter tell how the sadists in charge forced “many old, ill and female pri- soners (about 300) into planes for unknown destinations. Be- fore entering the planes they were forced to sigh their ac- ceptance of being put at liber- ty.” Those who asked for wit- nesses from the ICCS were threatened with tear gas. The letter ends with a plea to the ICCS to “come to us in time ...to stop the bloody hand of the Saigon and U.S. government:.. .” Students Ask ICCS High school and _ university students imprisoned in South Vietnam have also called for aid from the ICCS. The main prisons holding students are Plans for the world peace mee! MOSCOW (APN) — the bu- reau of the Soviet Committee for the World Congress of Peace Forces met here May 30 to dis- cuss the results of work done and of new problems. The Committee, set up last March to pool efforts of Soviet public organizations for the con- vening of the World Congress, is engaged in the preparation and explanation of the main aims and tasks ofthis forum to be held in the Soviet capital in Oc- tober, at the initiative of the World Peace Council. Academician Yevgeny Fyodo- rov, vice-chairman of the Soviet Committee for the World Con- gress of Peace Forces, described the preparations for the Con- gress. He said that the peace program of the 24th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union approved in April, opened up favorable opportuni: ties for the convocation and holding of such a_ perspective congress. Climate for Peace In fact, today the political climate throughout the world, and in particular in Europe is improving, and the international situation is developing in favor of peace. This is heightened by the visit of Leonid Brezhnev to zo Ba > oY as ———— Chi Hoa, Poulor Condor, Tan Hiep, Thu Duc and Dalat. A letter, to which is append- ed a list of 144 names, with their specialty (sciences, medi- cine, literature, etc.) and date of arrest, informs the ICCS “of the present state of our impri- sonment’” and seeks “‘to express to you our hope of immediate liberation. as a result of the treaty signed in Paris on 27th January, 1973, and thanks to your effective intervention with the Saigon authorities.” Stressing that their struggle is for peace and independence, the students. declare themselves “not politicians but young pat- riots. Until now we have not participated in the National Liberation Front ...nor any political party whatsoever. Ne- vertheless, we were arrested . and imprisoned a long time ago (from one to five years) for po- litical reasons.” Churchman’s Appeal A further letter addressed to the ICCS is from Father Chan Tin, who met with Canadians from the Committee to Free the Prisoners when they visited Vietnam recently. In his letter, Father Tin states that with regard to Art- icle 8(c) of the Paris agree- ments, “the return of Vietnam- ese civilian personnel captured and detained in South Viétnam,” the Saigon regime “not only re- fuses to release political prison- ers but is also arresting more . . . and is treating more brut- ally political prisoners presently detained.” Field Military Tribunals re- ferred to by Father Tin, can be the Federal Republic of, Ger- many and his forthcoming visit to the United States. That is why the idea of convening. the World Congress of Peace Forces is winning wider and wider sup- port. Political.and public figures of different countries welcome the idea of convening the World Congress and state their readi- ness to work for its success. At present, preparation for the Congress is in full swing in many countries. Preparatory committees are being set up, and conferences and seminars on problems to be discussed at the congress are being held. The geographical range of partici- pants can be judged by the fact that national preparatory com- mittees have been set up and are operating in Britain, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, India, in Arab and African states, in Latin American coun- tries, Canada, and in many others, International Meetings Some international confer- ences being held in connection with World Congress prepara- tions include: the meeting of political and public figures and scientists on problems of Euro- pean security in Reykjavik, the Central American congress in -tions, the Soviet Peace vetivel staged inside prisons to mel? out “sentences to many prisol ers already detained for a 10M time without... any sé 7 ence; in a few hours, the fak tribunal is capable of givins sentences to hundreds of re tainees by just recording sentences in fake files, dist garding any basic judiciary cedure.” a To Retain Power ss |. Prof. Georges Le Bel of or : bec, describes these illegal oe unals in his report prea after a recent fact-finding to Saigon. Father Tin deals with ™ dirt, the dark, the shackliné the starvation, the torture er jails of Mr. Nixon’s Presi®= Thieu. ms ; The purpose of it all s& obvious; it is to try to & the the retention of power DY. aly Thieu cut-throats, by effectlY smothering all opposition. t0 serious investigation has rex come up against the comp ities of the various mil et police, secret police and wel types of jurisdictions in © of jails. But as long as government such as Canada’s, are prem’ of to play the hypocritical gam the keeping primly away frail smell of tortured human Cal the outrage will go on. The ™, adian government, in facts 6 a mandate. to do oe It about it — and still rele is time the people of ‘pein said how they feel about 7 of turned into accomplice® yess Saigon’s sadists by ¢0? ret like Michell Sharp and his - sont! defense of peace, soverciet in and unity of Latin AmeP’ jis Panama, and the meeting ° armament is Basle. . tions Sovie public organiz@ “ef of the All-Union Central COUN wor | Trade Unions, the Sovi® nit men’s Committee, the ©” spe tee on European Security, ig Committee of Youth Of8 nit tee, and others have cle. joined the preparatory a col” The second world-wité gal sultative sag — tof major stage in the i0 Rare As sported at the sera of the Soviet committee f th the consultative meeting Fore World Congress of Peace 09 jf is to be held on July Moscow. ee Weed Growth ait The seed production Togs i ity of several common ndical! rather impressive an ese the magniture of lo wh may result when weeds | fl checked in commercl?, wil crops. A single plant - 10% mustard can produe wil ; 10,000 to 20,000 seeds oyt buckwheat can produ’ b 30,000 seeds per ple 70,00 quarters can produce aes gle He | seeds per plant and a ae 2a root pigweed can Pr 100,000 seeds.