Occupation hits IRC obstruction

— page 12

June 8,-1988
SOF

Vol. 58, No. 22
Power deal

ower deal | Trade Bill C-130 would
points to ‘ : a 4
new solout “Strangle Parliament,

: ~ | warns coalition group

. —— Bill C-130, the legislation tabled in Parli-
2 | ament to implement the Canada-U.S. trade
. deal is “an abuse of democracy that will
is strangle Parliament in the future,” the Coa-
lition Against “Free” Trade warned last
“s week.
| But despite the threat posed by the new
al. bill, the media has paid scant attention to it
ne | and, in this province, has ignored both the
| government’s bill and the opposition to it,
0, coalition representative Jean Swanson told ©
the Tribune.
De ) An anaiysis of Bill C-130 prepared by the
| Pro-Canada Network at the time of it lobby
in Ottawa May 30 states: “The most alarm-
c~ | ing feature of the implementing bill now
ar | before Parliament is that cabinet, not Parli-
g ament, will implement widespread changes
in to existing Canadian social, economic and
ts cultural policy.”
a | Equally alarming, it notes, is that under
| the legislation, the federal government
= | would be given the authority to block pro-
S: vincial government initiatives if they were
| me : E offensive to the U.S.
| Capaen: 4 - AND | ° : ee The analysis was prepared by a team of
| Sawin: fare ee - : as leading economists and political scientists,
: sae including Mel Watkins, John Calvert,
mn Gerald Pelletier, Marjorie Cohen, Duncan
yy Cameron and Abe Rotstein.
E | Editorial, page 4
| Labour in Action, page 7
Much of the legislation is unprecedented
it | =| inits scope but of particular note is Article 8
3 =! of the bill which declares that all other fed-
i- 82) eral legislation which is inconsistent withthe
aa 4 free trade agreement “‘is inoperative and of
It o| no force and effect.”
ko z “In simple terms,” the Network’s analy-
w} sis states, “the free trade agreement will
a become paramount to all present and future
24 =! Canadian federal law.”
h | Rail shopcraft worker Jim Carbin (foreground) was joined by members of the International Longshoremen and Ware- What as particularly significant about
cx housemen’s Union, the United Fishermen and other unions Monday as they stepped up picketing at CP Rail’s Mayfair Article 8 is that the U.S. does not intend to
v intermodal yard in Coquitlam ina bid for greater solidarity in their continuing strike against CP Rail’s concessions demands. give the same status to the free trade agree-
Although they are not affected by Bill C-85, the strikebreaking legislation which forced Association of Rail Unions ment on that side of the border. The Senate
members back to work last summer, owner-operator truckers employed by Highland Trucking have been crossing Finance Committee recommended that |
1 shopcraft workers’ picket lines at the intermodal yard, prolonging the increasingly bitter strike. The shopcraft workers U.S, implementing legislation not override |
began rotating strikes March 10 and then launched full-scale strike action in April. US PeGPrO IEW _ i
i The difference is fundamental,” the H
: Network states. “U.S. law will prevail even )
i if it denies the principles of the agreement. : |
: Canadian law will not.” . |
i Liberal MP Lloyd Axworthy warned P|
a during a meeting with the Network in i
: | Ottawa May 30 that the bill “usurps the {
: i power of Parliament” and added that free- ft
a dom. of information laws, employment q |
: equity and human rights legislation could Fi
I be superseded by the free trade agreement if i
4 the bill were passed.
.- According to the Network’s analysis, i
- provincial government policies could also |
s be overruled if they were inconsistent with ;
Ee: the trade agreement. |
| a see MEDIA page 12 i