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LEGALITY DOUBTED

Colorado legislators
want Viet war probed

The Colorado House of Rep-
resentatives last week called on
Congress to probe the legality
of President Johnson’s war in
Vietnam. This is the first time
that a legislative body has
brought the question out into
the open, with an outright de-
mand tHat Congress act. This
move undoubtedly reflects wide-
spread doubts and should spark
other pressures on Cangress to
act on the Jegality of the United
States invasion of Vietnam.

The action of the Colorado
House of Representatives high-
lighted two weeks of heightened
action by opponents of the war.
Among these were: :

e@ Senator Fullbright’s alter-
Native policy which included a
stop of bombing of North Viet-
nam, Washington’s recognition
. of the National Liberation Front
of South Vietnam and _negoti-
ations with the NLF for a peace-
ful settlement.

@ Collection of 6,000 signa-
tures of professors in more than
200 colleges and _ universities
demanding that Johnson halt
the bombing of North Vietnam.

® The demand by the Rev. Dr.
Reinhold Niebuhr that the John-

son administration end its im-
perialist war in Vietnam. This
came after four years of silence
by Niebuhr, who has been iden-
tified with the anti-Communist
liberals around Freedom House,
which supports the president’s
policy.

All these were a direct an-
answer to Johnson’s opposition
stifling State of the Union mes-
sage which proclaimed there
would be no end until the Viet-
namese surrender. Undoubtedly
American public opinion has
stimulated renewed and ever-
mounting protests and demands
for an immediate halt.

The significance of the action
of the Colorado House of Rep-
resentatives is underscored by
the fact that it was voted by
an overwhelming majority
which included both Repubi-
cans and Democrats. The resolu-
tion on the legality of the war
was ‘introduced by Floyd Has-
kell, the Republican assistant
majority leader, and Hubert
Safran, the Demorcatic minor-
ity leader.

Haskell attacked Johnson’s
claim that a 1964 Congressional
resolution had empowered him

to escalate the war. The presi-
dent pushed through the reso-
lution after an incident in the
Gulf of Tonkin which many.
believe was cooked up by the
Pentagon. :

It was emphasized that only
Congress has the power to de-
clare war and Johnson was
assailed for pre-empting that
power. -

Safran, the Democratic min-
ority leader, stressed that “by
our acting on our own we might
bolster a discussion in Con-
gress.”

Senator Fullbright also. called
for a referendum in South and
North Vietnam on reunification
and neutralization of Southeast
Asia. He warned that the war
in Vietnam was a threat against
world peace and that it disrupt-
ed all efforts to build bridges
between the U.S. and the social-
ist countries.

Of the greatest importance in
connection with the collection
of the 6,000 signatures was the
fact that its sponsors told the
national Democratic Party they
would discontinue. support for
the party if it continued to sup-
port Johnson’s Vietnam policy.

CANADIAN COMMUNISTS

Protest discrimination
at world union parley

The Central Executive Com-
mittee of the Communist Party
of Canada issued the following
statement last week:

“It has come to our attention
that the Israeli delegation’s in-
vitation to the world conference
of agricultural workers, an affili-
ate of the World Federation
of Trade Unions, held in Berlin
November 8-12, 1966 was can-
celled—the reason given being
that delegations from the Arab
countries made their participa-
tion in the conference condition-
al on the non-participation of
any Israeli representative.

“In these days when it is most
urgent to surive for the unity of
all anti-imperialist and demo-
cratic forces, of the Communist
and workers’ parties of the
world as well as of the trade
unions, it is more than disturb-
ing that a contrary course is
being pursued in some quarters.

“We understand the complex-
ity of the problem, the roots of
which lies in the refusal of the
Israeli government to make pos-
sible the return of the Palestini-
an Arabs to Israel or their full
compensation if they do not
choose to return. However we

-cannot agree that the solution

of this problem lies in the de-
struction of the State of Israel
which is implicit in the positions
taken in some Arab quarters, or
in. mixing up the working class
and progressive forces of Israel
with the ruling class which al-
lows itself to become an ac-
complice of imperialist aims.
Differences between states
should not stand in the way of
correct relationships between
parties and working class move-
ments.
If a basic change is to take
place in Israel both in its inter-
nal policies and relationship to
the Arab peoples, it will depend
in the first place on the pro-
gressive forces of Israel, includ-
ing the trade union movement.
“To pursue a policy of isolat-

these progressive forces
from the world’s progressive
and revolutionary currents, is
to do harm to the just cause of
the Arab peoples. This is not
only a shortsighted but a dan-
gerous policy which gives no
sound perspective to the ad-
vance of the Arab liberation
movement nor the cause of
peace, democracy and socialism.

“We do not believe that ex-
pediency can replace or substi-
tute for a principled position
based on the objective all Com-
munists and progressive trade
unions. fight for — “workers of
the world unite” trade unions
which have always made this
the basis of their work, should
not allow themselves or any of
its affiliates to be deflected from
that objective.”

ing

PEACE OFFENSIVE

around the work:

fed
Pree ae
ee

AN END to the British governments refusal to recogilt :
German Democratic Republic is sought by Mr. David ensorg B
MP): “There is no doubt that the peace of Europe and inde
peace of the world depends to a very great extent on recoe a.
of the G.D.R. as an independent sovereign State.” 4

* * *

AN IMPRESSIVE array of professors and lecturers 4! ON
universities and research institutes has appealed to the Be
ment to end its support for American policy in Vietnam. a vit
peal, backed by 1,470 signatures, including 32 members “sD
Royal Society, Britain’s leading intellectual body, appeals Orn
advertisement covering five columns in a recent Londo? hey
The signatories include four Nobel prize winners as well ® divi
well-known figures in the academic world... An explosil® har
tered windows around the Italian Communist Party head an €
in Rome on the eve of the State visit of Soviet President fst
ny. The next day, neo-fascist youths attempted to stage 4 a d
stration when the president’s motorcade passed on its way Jur
the airport, but were broken up by bystanders and police. list

* * * ; e

JENS FEDDERSEN, editor-in-chief of the West Germat ol}
paper Neue Rhein Zeitung, on his return from South vietn® ind
clared that “the Ky government has no support among the ng
ple’ and “there are no bonds connecting the people My
Saigon leaders.” He estimates 15 million people support mm he
tional Liberation Front. —&B

oh a * Mit

FLANKED by two Mounties and a pair of nubile “exp he
hostesses, Mr. Herbert Bowden, the Secretary of State OF a
monwealth Affairs, opened a “Canada 67” exhibition at 4 (eh
in London yesterday. The exhibition is designed to introdUyon
ada’s centennial celebrations and give a foretaste of the 0
Fair opening in Montreal in April .. . A quarter of the ae
books are now being printed in the Soviet Union, press com fi
chairman Nikolai Mikhailov said here recently . . . In the 97S
can battle around the House UnAmerican Activities commitlé

ele
ies)
troversy, a statement has been issued by 124 nuns and Pe
Boston area calling for a “full and open debate in the ope
about the continued existence of HUAC.” 4
: * * * 4

HORSES will plod Moscow streets again. The city auth \
and the Ministry of Agriculture intend to set up several ©
near the Moscow race-course and other tourist attraction jj 3
Russan troikas and various horse-drawn carriages, aS sf
saddle horses may be rented. It is intended to close several |
to motor traffic... Australia has begun registering abou
aliens living here for service in the armed forces, despité igi
by European governments. Of the 4,000 young men involv
400 will be selected by ballot for service with the Australiat
which has 5.000 men fighting in Vietnam.

February 10, 1967—PACIFIC TRIBUNE