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ULBRICHT TELLS PARTY CONGRESS:

will unite Germany

ASHTAN, general secretary of the Communist

Sociale ee was a fraternal delegte to the 7th Congress of

AY Porty in the German Democratic Republic held

Berlin. On his return he was interviewed by the

gh 'S impressions of the congress for our readers.
© text of that interview:

nomic development, industrial
production has grown four-fold
in the past 15 years, agricultural
production has increased almost
three times, and the national in-
come has more than trebled. So
if one wants to talk about the
“German economic miracle” one
shouldn’t look at West Ger-
many but the place where the
real miracle is taking place, the
GDR. This miracle was made
possible by the efforts of GDR’s
people and the support of the
socialist states and in the first
place, the Soviet Union.

Arising from this changing
economic situation, the con-
gress set the task of going over
to the five-day week by Septem-
ber, raising the minimum wage
by 40 percent and the minimum
vacation to 15 days, increasing
the old age pensions by 20 per-
cent and increasing family al-
lowances, These illustrate some
of the changing conditions
socialist construction has
brought about.

What proportion of the GDR’s
industry is now socialized?

Most of the agriculture is co-
operative. There are still some
small privately-owned business
interests but the main means of
production are public.

As you know, there is a multi-
party government in the GDR.
Greetings were received at the
congress from the other par-
ties. Outstanding scientists, in
their contribution to the discus-
sion, made clear their complete
support of the Socialist Unity
Party and its aims, including
those who may have had doubts
about the GDR previously. This
illustrates the changed attitude
to the GDR among intellectuals,
professionals and other groups.

For Canadians the completion
of socialist construction is of
vital significance because the
stronger the GDR, the greater
the assurance of European se-
curity and therefore the main-
tenance of world peace. The
fact is that for the first time in
German history there is now a
German state existing—a work-
ers’ and farmers’ state — which
conducts a policy of peace and
respect of frontiers and has no
territorial ambitions against
other people. This is in sharp
contrast to the policy of the
West German government.
There the “economic miracle”
has not only led to growing un-

employment but to revanchism,
militarism and neonazism, with
all the dangers to European
security and world peace.

Did the Congress discuss the
question of the unity of Ger-
many?

Walter Ulbricht, the general
secretary of the SUP, dealt with
this question in his opening re-
port to the congress. He em-
phasized that German imperial-
ism divided Germany and that it
will be the working class of
West Germany and the GDR
that will unite Germany.

In this simple phrase he ex-
pressed the basic approach to
the problem of the unification
of Germany which is a long-
term process and will only be
speeded up as the situation in
West Germany changes and
when the government of West
Germany accepts the existing
frontiers of Europe and estab-
lishes relations with the GDR
on the basis of full equality.

The congress emphasized that
a united Germany was only pos-
sible if it is an anti-imperialist
and democratic Germany. There
can be no other basis for unity
today. I would say that this is
in accord with the needs of
European and Canadian secur-
ity and world peace. Our coun-
try was twice involved in war
against German imperialism and
we must do everything possible
to prevent West German re-
vanchism from starting a third
world war. ;

While the congress advanced
the question of a united Ger-
many in the way indicated by
the Socialist Unity Party, at the
same time it declared the wil-
lingness of the GDR govern-
ment to meet with its counter-
part in West Germany to nego-
tiate questions of mutual con-
cern such as trade, transporta-
tion and, above all, the creation
in the heart of Europe of a non-
nuclear zone.

The congress took note of the
manouverings of Chancellor
Kurt Kiesinger and Foreign
Minister Willi Brandt of the
coalition government of West
Germany when they addressed
themselves to the Socialist
Unity Party. The estimation
was that they were part of the
effort to isolate the GDR, based
on the unrealistic view that the
government of West Germany
was the sole representative of
the German people. This man-
oeuvre failed and the greetings

delivered on behalf of the par--

ties from the socialist states
made clear their support to the
GDR.

Leonid Brezhnev, secretary of
the Communist Party of the
Soviet Union, in his greetings
said that his country would un-

o-

BUENOS AIRES

| Working class of West and East

View toward the presidium of the congress held in Berlin’s:
Werner Seelenbinder Hall, as delegates listen to the Walter -Ul-

bricht’s report.

alterably uphold the interests of
the GDR and support it in every
way.

This has also been  under-
written in the treaties signed
between Poland and the GDR
and Czechoslovakia and the
GDR, aimed at strengthening
security in central Europe and
undermining any adventuristic
action by West Germany.

There was considerable atten-
tion given to the question of
European -security and the need
to bring about a detente on
that continent based on the re-
cognition of existing frontiers,
recognition of the GDR and the
non - proliferation of nuclear
weapons.

Was the war in Vietnam dis-
cussed?

As a matter of fact, it per-
meated the whole work of the
congress, both in the report, in
the contributions to the discus-
sion by the fraternal delegates
and in the resolution which was
unanimously adopted following
the greetings of the represen-
tatives of the Democratic Re-
public of North Vietnam and
the National Liberation Front.
The resolution declared . full
support to the four- and five-
point programs of the DVR and
the NLF and the continued
material assistance that the
GDR will give to the people of
Vietnam in their heroic resis-
tance to U.S. imperialist aggres-
sion. :

What struck me was the high
degree of solidarity evident at
the congress, expressed in the
fact that there were 67 parties

May 12,

represented from all the con-
tinents of the world. This was
an answer to the effort of West
German imperialism to isolate
the GDR that is being isolated
by West German imperialist
policy which is increasingly be-
ing opposed and _ repudiated
throughout the world.

Are there other impressions
you would like to give us?

First, I found the report on
the state of the party delivered
by Erich Honecker very _ inter-
esting. Their membership is now
1,700,000, that is, one in 10 in
the population. This is an indic-
ation of the growing support the
citizens give to the Socialist
Unity Party.

Secondly, for Canadians the
question presents itself as to
whether we can any longer al-
low our government to continue
to pretend the GDR does not
exist. Is it not time for our gov-
ernment to publicly declare its
recognition of the existing
frontiers of Europe, its recogni-
tion of the GDR and undertake
trade and cultural relations with
it? This would help to strength-
en Furopean security and there-
fore Canadian security. Here, as
in other matters, Canada needs
to free itself of U.S. cold war
attitudes and adopt an indepen-
dent position in accord with our
democratic national interests.

I left the GDR with a strong
impression that it was going
places and that our country, and
above all the labor and demo-
eratic movements, can no longer
ignore this vital development in
the heart of Europe.

1967—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 9