CANADA By TOM MORRIS “How do we explain to our children?’ asks a full-age ad, Sept. 28, in the Toronto Globe & Mail. “Why is the (Deschenes) Commission of Inquiry on War Criminals focussing on political enemies of the Soviet bloc?’’, the ad says. It’s the latest salvo by the Ukrainian Canadian Committee, buttressed by right-wing commit- tees of Lithuanians, Latvians, Es- tonians and Slovenians who have gathered under an umbrella called the “Civil Liberties Commis- sion’” to pressure Mr. Justice Jules Deschenes into not consid- ering Soviet evidence of war crimes committed in the USSR. The right-wing counter-attack has taken a unique form. Posing as the representatives of ‘‘all Canadians of Eastern European descent’’ who are ‘‘being defiled by Soviet allegations (sic) of war crimes in Eastern Europe’’, the Ukrainian Canadian Committee and its allies charge that seeking Out such war criminals who today Teside in Canada maligns all Canadians of East European ori- gin. Based on this wild charge, they” have argued that Justice De- Schenes should not include Soviet evidence as part of: his commis- sion’s work. ‘‘How do we explain to our children?’’ they ask. There are at least three main points at issue in the current de- bate — allegations that war crim- inals are residing in Canada; the reliability of Soviet evidence and, the purpose of the right-wing Campaign to prevent a full inves- tigation by the Deschenes Com- mission. War Criminals in Canada In February, 1985 a 122-page document, “Bringing Nazi War Criminals in Canada to Justice,” Issued by the League of Human Rights of the B’nai B'rith in Canada, urged Ottawa to act be- fore all chances for justice dis- appear. It charged that since 1946, with one exception, Canada has never taken action against nazi War criminals living here. The B'nai B'rith report bolstered similar charges by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre that as Many as 3,000 nazis live in Cana- da. As well, the USSR has long €n urging Canada to act in this regard and has provided lists of Persons wanted for crimes and denjanded their extradition, or that\they be brought to justice in anada. All this data, the mounting media attention on the entire issue _ Of nazi war criminals at large, lists, of individuals and the renewed at- tention in 1985, 40th anniversary Of the ending of World War Two, Combined to result in the setting Up by Ottawa of the Deschenes OMmission to look into the Matter, Soviet Evidence The right-wing charges that Oviet evidence is false, that it Would be manufactured to embar- Fass the USSR’s opponents. The _ Ted smear is dragged out. One MP Charged that Justice Deschenes Was “too busy to hear MPs, but ke t too busy to go to Russia to talk eS KGB ...”’ The same tack is dave by Peter Worthington who pase entire column on the 3 es in the Financial Post. He S Soviet war crimes evidence of ‘‘the KGB line’. But there’s an inescapable fact in all this: the war crimes did take place on Soviet territory and the territory of European nations under nazi occupation. The re- cords, the witnesses and the mass graves are there. Individuals who committed these war crimes committed them in Europe, not in Canada or Brazil, or Australia. These people, however, do live today in Canada, Brazil, the USA, in West Germany and elsewhere in the “free world’’. Evidence provided investi- gating teams by the USSR (or Po- land, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Romania, for that matter) is based on these states’ experience with nazi occupiers and collaborators. No amount of twisting will change this fact. Moreover, American teams from the U.S. Justice Depart- ment’s war crimes unit, the Office of Special Investigations, have regularly collected evidence throughout the Soviet Union. There they have met full coopera- tion, examined documents and interviewed witnesses freely. No U.S. court has found cause to question OSI evidence gathered in the USSR. The Deschenes Commission can do no less. It also has within its mandate the obligation to examine all the evidence avail- able. To exclude on-the-spot material because of right-wing pressure would be, as the Globe & Mail comments editorially, “‘to turn a blind eye to certain sources of evidence’. What the commission gathers in the USSR will, of course, be subject to the scrutiny of Cana- dian legal a;uthorities. What, then, does the right wing fear? Right Wing Cover Helmut Rauca has the distinc- tion of being the only war criminal extradited by Canadian au- thorities. In 1983 he was sent to stand trial in West Germany for the murder of 11,584 Lithuanians during World War Two. Rauca had lived here since the 1950s, and died before he could face trial. Harold Puntulis also died re- cently in Canada. He was a mass murderer in Latvia, platoon commander of the fascist ‘Aizsargi’’ group. Extradition demands by the USSR to Ottawa for Puntulis went unheeded. Dmitri Kupiak ran for the Pro- gressive Conservative Party for parliament in 1972. He committed crimes in the Ukraine as a member of the security service of the Ukrainian Nationalist Organ- ization attached to the SS. De- spite Soviet extradition requests as far back as 1964, Kupiak still lives in Toronto. ; Three of many — estimates range from several. hundred to 5,000 — former nazis who were’ offered refuge in Canada since World War Two. This is what the Deschenes Commission is mandated to uncover. The Ukrainian Canadian Committee’s charge that search- ing out such criminals maligns all Canadians of Ukrainian origin Is a cover-up. They would prefer the ter dropped. ay Sula © acuieis of the SS Division ‘‘Galizien”’ who live here and have the audacity not only to hire a lawyer to present their complaints before the Des- chenes Commission, but also hold regular reunions of ‘“‘old comrades’’. These people do not speak for all Ukrainian Canadians. In a strong editorial in the Sep- tember issue of the Ukrainian Canadian magazine, the Associa- tion of United Ukrainian Cana- dians takes direct aim at this right-wing claim: “It is clear that the question is only of those persons who com- mitted crimes in the service of the nazis and not of all Ukrainians,” War crimes: why ignore the evidence? from among other peoples may be considered scum, but Ukrainian war criminals, just because. they are Ukrainians, are to be de- fended and justified even though they belonged to a criminal organ- ization and committed terrible crimes! ‘*This is the height of absurdity. War criminals are war criminals whatever their birth; they should be exposed and suitably punish- eds ss The editorial points out that 40,000 soldiers of Ukrainian an- cestry volunteered in the Cana- dian armed forces to fight fas- ‘‘Do we have the right to re- main silent and with our silence to hide the crimes of the colla- borators merely because they are Ukrainians?”’ it asks. ‘“‘Do we have the right to defend and pro- tect those who are cursed for their atrocities by our victimized kins- men? << “On the contrary, it is the unmasking of the criminals and the revelation of their crimes which is the true defence of the honor of the Ukrainian Canadian community,’ the editorial con- cludes. it says. ‘‘It would seem that Ger-_ cism, many of whom died at the__ “‘How do we explain to our man nazis and their collaborators hands of the nazis. children?’’ — the truth will do. CCW wants Decade kept alive TORONTO — The United Na- tions Decade for Women is draw- ing to a close but the Canadian Women’s movement is deter- mined that their issues not fade from the national agenda. Marking the end of the Decade, the Congress of Canadian Women is celebrating its 35th anniversary with a convention, Oct. 4-6. The convention will address the main objectives of the Decade — equal- ity, development and peace and hear from Narobi delegates plus several national and international guests. The CCW is an affiliate of the Women’s International Demo- cratic Federation representing 137 women’s organizations in 117 countries. It has been involved in the struggle for equal pay for work of equal value; universal child care; abortion rights; and the protection and extension of social services but centres its ac- tivities around the fight for peace which it views as key. ‘‘The Mulroney government was given a strong mandate to create jobs, protect universality and work for disarmament’, says CCW president Virginia Thom- son. ‘Instead, Canadians have witnessed massivecutsandlayoffs in the public sector and crown corporations, the slashing of fed- eral programs for the unemployed and the attempt to dismantle uni- versal social programs.. At the same time, military spending has doubled. The Mulroney govern- ment’s policies strike at women and their families first and hard- est: For information call 654-3835. Six arrested for praying TORONTO — On Monday, October 7th, 10 a.m. in Old City Hall, Courtroom 125, six members of the group “Witness for Justice and Peace’’ will be on trial for their actions of May 29 when they were arrested on a criminal charge of mischief for praying inside the U.S. consulate. The six went to the Consulate that day to express their disagreement towards the U.S. sanc- tions and increased aggression on Nicaragua. That day the six had asked U.S. consulate officials on three occasions either to speak with the Consul General, Mr. Blevans, or to be shown to a place where they could pray. But Consulate officials denied the six both a chance to speak with Mr. Blevans and a place to pray. And so these six Christians quietly entered the building and sat to pray in the front hallway. — Their prayers were interrupted by an early closing of the building and their arrest. Initial charges of trespassing were later dropped in favor of the criminal charge of mischief. The RCMP © and the new Canadian Secret Security Service were both in- volved, with the Metro Police, in laying these charges. UUUUEEEEUOUREEEUUGGEEEUOUEEEEUOOUEEEEEUOEEREUONOEEEDOUTEEREOOOEGREEOREEEEOOOEEEEEOUGECEEEEOOOEEEREROCEEEEO OEE EDERD - Electricians aid Nicaragua Ten electricians and helpers from Ontario and Bs Quebec have returned from a one-month stay in’ Nicaragua and more plan to go there next Feb- ruary. The Electric Brigade wired 11 buildings at a large dam and electric power station project in the mountains of Jinotega, not far from the Honduran border. : All transport, lodgings and food were paid by the brigade members. As well, they left their tools with their Nicaraguan workmates and contributed eight cases of materials for electrical work. ‘*We anticipate to work in Nicaragua a full Nica- raguan day,”’ an earlier organizing letter said. ““We expect to carry out our work in an industrious, efficient manner. We wish to reaffirm our solidarity with the Nicaraguan people in their self-defence and for peace. We are a committed and disciplined group, fully prepared to accept direction of Nica- raguan advisers.” ‘*And this is what we did,” said brigade member Roy Peltz. ‘None of us could claim to be high-class statis- ticians, parliamentarians, intellectuals or famous personalities. We went there to work in our trade as electricians and helpers... we also de- monstrated our solidarity by going to work in that contra-infested war zone ... ‘‘The friendliness between us and the Nicara- guans was a sight to behold,”’ Peltz continued. *‘In conditions of daily, constant heavy rains, soaking dampness, very plain food, slushing mud, there were more smiles than we ordinarily experience at home. ““One weekend we were completely cut off by the contras. For several days all water was cut off; we could not go into the nearby village to buy supplies. The food at our camp was down to rice and beans, no coffee. The Nicaraguan and Cana- Electrician Roy Peltz wiring barracks. dian workers took it all in stride — but we did the job we came to do: wire the buildings. *‘We are happy to have done our job,”* Peltz said. ‘‘The second brigade will leave Canada in February and eight volunteers have already asked to go. Some members of the last brigade will return with them.” Peltz spoke about the going-away party: *‘Plenty of beer and cokes; hand-shaking, smiles, em- braces; Spanish and English conversation ... A Nicaraguan civil engineer happily drank with us a few bottles of beer. He became serious and emo- tional and embraced us. In a voice full of deep feeling he said, ‘All we want is to be left alone. We want peace. We need peacé to build our country.” ““We expressed agreement and, as he placed his arms around my neckinahugInoticedadeepgash _ on his right arm. ‘A que’, I asked. ‘Contra’, he _ answered simply.” rae PACIFIC TRIBUNE, OCTOBER 9, 1985 e 5