Friday, July 16, 1982

40°

et 18

Drop wage

Curbs, says

B.C. Fed

The B.C. Federation of Labor
Stated July 8 that it would be pre-
Pared to meet ‘‘on an ongoing basis
With the provincial government” to

Scuss the economy — but “‘the
80Vvernment must wipe the slate
clean by doing away with their dis-
Ciminatory public sector wage

| Control program.

_ The premier has admitted that

his Policy will do nothing to im-

Prove the situation,” Federation
President Jim Kinnaird said in a
Statement. “If it will do nothing
then it should be scrapped.”’
€ federation statement fol-
lowed the executive’s discussion of
4meeting July 7 with premier Ben-
hett, Employers’ Gouncil president
Hamilton and federation offi-
fers Kinnaird, Jack Munro and
Orman Richards.
Kinnaird had indicated in an in-
€tview prior to the meeting with
ett that the federation might
be Prepared to consider controls if
they were applied universally, in-
Cluding prices as well as wages. But
the statement clarified the B.C. Fed
POsition.
“The provincial government
Cannot expect labor to cooperate
th them when they have singled
Out a large section of the member-
Ship as the scapegoats for bad eco-
Nomic planning,’ Kinnaird said.
The time has come for the gov-
‘tment to stop looking for scape-
80ats and start looking for cooper-
ation and consultation to solve our
Problems. Continued attacks on la-
Or will only lead to confronta-
tion.”
He warned that if the premier in-
tended to use the meeting to intro-
“ce tougher legislation — claim-

Mg that he had consulted with la-
bor On the economy — then the
€deration would act.

In that event, the federation’s
Public sector committee and the ex-
€cutive board would be called to-
8ether to map out further strategy,
he said.

Next Trib Aug. 6

With this issue, the Tribune will
halt publication for two weeks to
allow for staff vacations. The next
ag will appear Aug. 6. The of-
Ies will be open, however.

Vol. 44, No. 29

| Saving an industry:
| Special supplement

‘Block any Canadian role
in invasion,’ PLO urges

ABDULLAH ABDULLAH...

The Canadian representative
for the Palestine Liberation Or-
ganization charged July 12 that
some Canadians with Israeli citi-
zenship are being called up into
the Israeli reserves — in violation
of Canadian law — and demand-
ed federal government action to
halt any further call-up.

Abdullah Abdullah told a
press conference in Vancouver
that he had just received informa-
tion that several Canadians who
also hold Israeli citizenship and
had earlier been in the Israeli ar-
my, were being called up.

He said that press reports in
this country had already indicated
that two Canadians have been
wounded in combat in the inva-
sion of Lebanon including one
man from Vancouver.

The PLO representative also
charged that Canada “‘is being
used to raise money to finance the
war in Lebanon,’’ emphasizing
that Israel is issuing bonds for sale
here. :

More than anything, Canadi-
ans should be aware of what is go-

ing on in Lebanon in the face of
the Israeli assault, he said.

“‘The invasion of Lebanon is a
replica of what the Germans did
during the Second World War,”’
he told reporters. ‘There is indis-
criminate and deliberate bom-
bardment of hospitals.

“There are beatings — often to
death — of Palestinian prisoners
in concentration camps.

‘There is the use of prohibited
weaponry, including cluster and
phosphorous bombs which can
only be intended for civilian tar-
gets since they have no effect on
soldiers in their bunkers.

“The Israeli army,’’ he said,
‘4s trying to wipe out the Pales-
tinians as a people.”

Abdullah had come to Van-
couver in an effort to break
through the formidable propa-
ganda barrier which has prevent-
ed most Canadians from seeing
anything beyond Israel’s presen-
tation of the conflict — which in-
sists that the war is ‘‘a defence
against terrorism.”’ Tragically,
however, there were few reporters
present.

with Canada Palestine Association president Hanna Kawas.

TRIBUNE PHOTO— SEAN GRIFFIN

But despite the misinforma-
tion, he said, there is a growing
opposition to the war even among
Zionist leaders. He cited the case
of three leading Zionist intellect-
uals, among them former prime
minister Mendes-France of
France, who have criticized Israel
for its invasion. And the Peace
Now demonstrations in Israel,
which have demanded a with-
drawal of troops from Lebanon,
ne now grown to. 100,000 peo-
ple.

-

Even more significant, he said,
were reports July 10 that 300 Is-
raeli soldiers are to be court mar-
tialled for their refusal to return to
Lebanon for combat duty. And
86 others have petitioned Begin to
be exempted from duty. Both ac-
tions are unprecedented.

He calléd on Canadians to
press the federal government to
buttress prime minister
Trudeau’s initial criticism of the
invasion with a demand for Is-
rael’s withdrawal and the imposi-
tion of formal economic and po-
litical sanctions against Israel.

It has been only amonth since
the Peace Arch disarmament
rally — Project II — but already
End the Arms Race has Project
III well underway — and Pro-
ject IV is on the drawing board.

Beyond that, there is the cam-
paign around the municipal
referenda on disarmament
which could..make this
November’s municipal elections
the most significant in many
years.

Suddenly, the peace issue has
gathered a force of its own. The
term ‘‘peace movement’’, once
familiar only to peace activists,
now comes easily even to skep-
tical commentators — and that
movement is gathering momen-
tum.

In fact, for Carmela Allevato
and. Frank “Kennedy, .the .co-
chairs of the End the Arms Race
coalition, and the presidents
respectively of the B.C. Peace
Council and the Vancouver and
District Labor Council, the
work has just begun.

On Aug. 6, the anniversary of
the 1945 atomic bombing of
Hiroshima, the committee will
officially launch its ‘““Refuse the
Cruise”? campaign, aimed at
compelling the federal govern-
ment to cancel the agreement to
test the cruise missiles at Cold
Lake, Alberta.

Various commemorative ac-
tivities are also planned,
organized jointly with the Coali-
tion for World Disarmament,
which has marked the anniver-
sary of the Hiroshima bombing
for several years.

Concurrent with tne Refuse
the Cruise campaign launching,
rallies will also be held in other
parts of the province, sponsored
by various organizations and
coalitions.

Demonstrators will march in
Victoria on Aug. 6 while

\.__ See APR. 24 page 7 y

Vigil to mark
Hiroshima Day

End the Arms Race and the
Coalition for World Disarma-
ment will officially commemor-
ate Hiroshima Day with a
candlelight vigil in Vancouver’s
Vanier Park (the Planetarium)
Aug. 6, beginning at 8 p.m.
Plans are also being made for a
plaque unveiling as well as a
press conference to launch the
Refuse the Cruise campaign but
details were not complete at
press-time. —