LIBERALS TORUSH US. A-ARMS DE AL -May Day Edition- Pacific ‘ab ‘FRIDAY, APRIL 26, 1963 VOL 23, NO. 17 VANCOUVER BC. 10¢ PENDER AUD. WEDNESDAY May Day rally fo hear Herridge, Cox, Stevens The workers of the Lower Mainland will celebrate May Day this year with a gigantic rally on Wednesday evening, May 1. The rally will be held at the Pender Auditorium, 337 W. Pender St., beginning at 8 o’clock, and will be ad- dressed by H. W. (Bert) Her- ridge, (veteran NDP MP for Kootenay West), Cedric Cox, (NDP MLA for Burnaby) and Homer Stevens, Secretary- Treasurer of the Fishermen’s Union. Jerry LeBourdais, presi- dent of Local 9-601, Oil, Che- mical and Atomic Workers union, will act as chairman for the rally. LeBourdais has also been elected secretary of the May Day Committee, Which is headed by Charlie Wilson, president of the Mar- ime Workers (Boilermakers) Union. Theme of the rally will be the historic significance of May Day, which originated in the struggle of U.S. labor for the eight hour day, in the pre- Sent struggle for the shorter Work gay and week to combat rising unemployment. Linked with this is the con- tinuing fight against U.S. do-_ mination, as expressed in the battle to reject nuclear weap- ons, and in the campaigns against giveaways of Colum- COR 2535 See BERT HERRIDGE bia River power resources and North Pacific halibut and herring fisheries. A collection will be taken to help defray expenses for the evening. After these expenses have been met, the remainder of the funds will be forward- ed to the families of the three workers who were killed while on strike at Kapuska- sing, Ont. Within twenty-four hours after assuming office the minority Liberal gov- ernment announced it would immediately take steps toward concluding a pact with the U.S. for nuclear warheads for Canada’s Bomarcs, and thus surrender to U.S. pressure to join the nuclear club. The announcement made by the new Defence Minister Paul Hellyer, said the agree- ment to acquire nuclear weap- ons could be handled simply by an exchange of notes be- tween the two governments and that there would be no need for a vote in the Com- mons. This. astounding decision, which came soon after the first cabinet meeting of the new government, shows the contempt which the Liberals have for public opin- ion, which strongly opposed nuclear weapons on April 8. The Liberal decision would avoid a debate in parliament by the people’s. elected rep- resentatives. Parliament. will not even be asked to rubber stamp an agreement on the ceniral controversial issue in the national election debate. The Communist Party Na- tional Executive in a state- ment Tuesday said: “For the Liberals, opposed as they were by three-fifths of the Canadian people, with- out even a majority in the House of Commons, to now negotiate a back door agree- ment with Washington on nu- clear. arms, would be a flag- rant affront to the supremacy ‘of Parliament. “Tt will recall to millions of Canadians the arrogance of C. D. Howe in the pipeline debate of 1956 which marked the beginning of the end for last Liberal government. “The Communist Party ap- peals to the labor movement, to all democratic and peace loving Canadians to demand that any proposed agreement on nuclear arms be placed be- fore parliament. ‘Every MP should hear the views of his constituents on this matter before he leaves for Ottawa. This is a demand that should be supported by all who believe in the institu- tion of parliament irrespec- tive of their views on nuclear weapons. “Nor should time be lost in speculation on how parlia- ment might divide on this is- sue. It is our conviction that if the labor and farm move- ments of this country and all forces of peace rally now in a mighty campaign against’ nuclear arms, it will still be possible to prevent their im- position upon our country,” concludes the statement. PART IN NATO A-FORCE WOULD THREATEN Canada will be ensnared in an offensive nuclear strike-force if she agrees to participate in the NATO multi-national nuclear force to be proposed at the mili- tary alliance’s foreign ministers’ meeting in Ottawa next May 22- 24. Participation in the proposed force is not now a question of Canada’s acceptance of ‘‘defen- sive’? nuclear weapons to fulfill alleged nuclear ‘‘commitments’’ to NATO. Despite befogging reports to the contrary, what is being planned is a new armory to carry the cold war a step further, through the exension and enlargement of NATO’s nuclear armament, with- out necessarily any reference to any NATO government once it has accepted nuclear arms. Its projection bears out warn- ings by Canada’s peace forces : CANADA'S that once Canada accepts, nuclear arms in any form it will be pres- sured to become more and more a nuclear power. The new force will, as the Toronto Globe and Mail points out editorially, ‘‘have both of- fensive and defensive capabilities. The United States is to contribute Polaris submarines and Britain her V-bombers, both being stra- tegic forces able to strike at the Soviet Union. “West Germany and other countries will provide short-range tactical weapons able to fire nu- clear warheads supplied by the United States.” CANADA’S ROLE Canada would be one of the “other countries,” with the fright- ening prospect of being allied with a nuclear armed, revenge- seeking West Germany. If Canada joins such a nuclear ECURITY force it is expected that the RCAF CF-104 air division with its eight squadrons will be a part of such a multilateral force armed with nuclear bombs. This plane, which is shown be- low, is basically not a defensive weapon, but is designed as part of the ‘“‘deterent’”’ to play a “strike” or offensive role. As stated below, this plane, armed with nuclear weapons, to- gether with the Honest John rock- ets, would put Canada in the po- sition of possessing vast destruct- ive offensive power to destroy 144 European cities. The acquisition of nuclear bombs for Canada’s CF-104’s would mark Canada as a country with vast nuclear power poised to strike against the socialisit states of Eastern Europe. It is significant that in his See NATO, pg. 12 ill become part of a NATO multi- which destroyed Hiroshima. The RCAF Squadron, if armed with nuclear weapons, This is Canada’s supersonic CF-104 Starfighter which w . 3 national nuclear Ane in Europe if the U.S. has its way at the upcoming NATO meet ing in Ottawa. It can carry a nuclear bomb five times more powerful than the one would be able to destroy 144 cities at one blow. On Jan. 12, 1963 Liberal Leader Pearson urged these planes be armed with nuclear weapons. tT | Re]