EDITORIAL
Socred ‘human rights’

Ts Bennett government's new “human rights” legis-
lation will serve one useful purpose: the more its
alleged “rights” are studied. the better the wrongs of its
parentage will become obvious.

As it now stands the bill covers all those much-touted
“rights” we hear so much about: race, religion, color, na-
tionality, ancestry, place of origin. etc.. etc. All these
“rights” are now presumed to be invoilable and sacred in
the sovereign domain of Bennett's ‘beautiful’’ British Co-
lumbia.

Last week in the legislature NDP Tom Berger pointed
up a few important gaps in this “human rights’ bill which
the big monopoly free-enterprisers could drive their Cad-
illacs through any day of the week.

Berger proposed an amendment by adding another
“right”: that of the right of political belief or affiliation,
thereby safeguarding the citizen against discrimination be-
cause of his or her political beliefs. The NDP-MLA con-
tended that as the bill now stands. workers could be fired
from their jobs. or denied jobs (as is well known they now
are) simply because of their political ideology or affilia-
tion.

That brought the Socred “rights” designers to their feet
in loud and indignant protest that such a thing could never
happen: their “‘democratic’ administration, meantime
conveniently forgetting an earlier Socred diktat which pro-
hibits and penalizes a trade unionist in B.C. from making a
union contribution to the political party of its choice — unless
of course it happens to be the Socred party.

The NDP leader could have added a great many other
discriminations against the common exercise of “human
rights’’ aside from that of political beliefs. Of landlords
who discriminate against people in need of a place to live;
Canadian Indian people. Negroes. Chinese, etc. turned
away because of race or color. Of Native Indian people
stripped of their tribal and treaty rights to hunt. fish. or eke
out a starvation existence. because it has been so ruled by
the “due process of law.”’ Of racial discrimination to “pro-
tect” property values.

The fact that this Socred caricature of human rights
excludes its own provincial civil service employees. Crown
agencies employees. etc.. is sufficient to underscore its
farcial provisions.

Socred Attorney-General Les Peterson “explained” to
the House why domestic servants were excluded from this
Socred ‘human rights” tent.

There is a very close relationship.” quoth the A-G “‘be-
tween domestic servants and their employers.” thereby as-
suming that Bridget’s “‘human rights” are so well taken care
of by the Madam of the house. that no further safeguards
are required.

It may be taken for granted however that a Socred
hierarchy which has spent well on to a million dollars of the
taxpayers’ money during the past vear (Bill 33) in an attempt
to clamp a compulsory arbitration ball-and-chain upon or-
ganized labor in B.C. is not likely to star in the role of a
human rights defender.

That much at least the Bennett caricature of “human
rights’ confirms. For the rest. it could well be christened
‘a bill for the limitation of human rights.”

Tenants rally demands —
action by City Council

By WILLIAM TURNER

The urgent need for adoption
of a Tenants Bill of Rights was
affirmed in pledges of support by
four Vancouver aldermen
speaking to a tenants rally at
City Hall steps last Saturday.

Assurances that they will seek
the implementation of such a bill
to become law when it is up for
debate in council was promised
by the four members present:
Aldermen Hardwick. Phillips.
Rankin and Wilson. A_ fifth
member, Alderman Hugh Bird.
although unable to be in
attendance. had advised
secretary Bruce Yorke of the
Vancouver Tenants Council,
sponsors of the rally. that he too
supported such a bill without any
reservations,

A small but representative
crowd displayed signs that
earlier had been carried in a
parade from Eleventh and Oak
Street to City Hall. Reading,
“Fair Rents Not Exorbitant’’,
Abolish Security Deposit’’.Fair
Laws — Fair Leases — Fair
Rents”. “Enact Charter of
Tenants Rights’. and similar
worded signs were indicative of
tenants grievances.

In introducing the aldermen
to the meeting Bruce Yorke
stated that they had been invited
to speak by the Tenants Council
to make their views known
publicly. The first speaker
Alderman Halford Wilson said.
“The housing shortage was
recognized by Federal
legislation during the Second
World War. With the end of the
war it was turned over by
Ottawa to provincial
jurisdiction. Now they have
turned it over to Vancouver who

have the power to act on this
problem.”

He ‘said the so-called Tenants
Act is not meaningful and is
certainly out of date. Ontario as
well as other cities in Canada
have taken steps to update
tenants rights. ‘‘When the
matter comes up in council I will
give the tenants case fair
consideration. I will certainly
not hold back in working with my
colleagues to bring about
changes and built in safeguards
for tenants.”’ he concluded,

Alderman Art Phillips.
supporting the tenants. proposed
the setting up of a Review Board
of an advisory nature to mediate
rents and other grievances
without resort to the courts. The
obligations and responsibility of
the landlord to the tenant needs
to be more clearly spelt out. he
said.

TIM BUCK, national chairman of
the Communist Party, will speak
at a giant May Rally in
Vancouver's Pender Auditorium
on Sunday, May 4 at 8 p.m.

Alderman Walter Hardwick
felt that it was the people of
Vancouver who have to change
the problem. Agreeing with the
tenants cause he further saw the
need for the city to expand its
housing needs.

Alderman Harry Rankin. who
has led the fight in council for
the tenants, pointed out that the
cities of Ottawa and Winnipeg
have moved on tenants rights,
“Vancouver is unique in that it
has the powers from the
provincial government to imple-
ment the provisions outlined in
the Emergency Housing Act of
the war Vears.”

“The time for decision is here
now. This is not a time for
talking, With the proposals
you've heard from the other
aldermen let's get on with the
job. In one or two months if
pressure is maintained we can
make the changes and get a
Rental Review Board.’ he
concluded,

Secretary Bruce Yorke
proposed the following
resolution that was adopted
unanimously. This meeting of
citizens hereby requests that

1. The Standing Committee on
General Purposes of the
Vancouver City Council schedule
a public meeting within a
month's time to which the
Vancouver Tenants Council
would be invited for a detailed
discussion of its’ 18-point Charter
of Tenants Rights.

2. That the Standing
Committee bring down a report
recommending the enactment
of a Charter of Tenants Rights
by Vancouver City Council to
have full legal effect by July 1.
1969.

WHAT FREEWAY ROUTES?

‘PACIFIC TRIBUNE—'APRIL 3, 1969--Page 2

‘West Coast edition, Canadian Tribune
: UGE MME CO eas

Editor—TOM McEWEN Associate Editor—MAURICE RUSH
Published weekly at Ford Bldg., Mezzanine No. 3, 193 E. Hastings St.,
Vancouver 4, B.C. Phone 685-5288.

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Pacilic Iribune

City’s future will be decided

By ALD. HARRY RANKIN

Last week City Council heard
engineering consultants report
on the Swan. Wooster-CAP
survey concerning a new
Burrard Inlet crossing and six
different choices of freeways
leading to it through the down-
town area. We were asked to
make a decision by May 15 on
which route we preferred.

One of the problems is how to
make connections between the
Inlet crossing and Georgia
Viaduct. Granville Bridge and
Burrard Bridge.

The designs submitted this
year were an improvement over

former ones. due largely. I
believe. to the strong public
reaction to previous Council

attempts to impose a freeway
system on Vancouver that most
of our citizens regarded as

completely unsatisfactory. In
this year’s designs. ugly
overhead cement and_ steel

freeways are at least replaced
by tunnels.

One design calls for the Inlet
crossing to lead into a water-
front freeway bypass with traffic
distribution to Howe. Hornby
and Burrard Streets. as well as
through a tunnel and cut starting
at the north end of Carrall Street
and leading south to Georgia
Viaduct.

Another design calls for the
above plus a second tunnel
bypass starting at the water-
front and going south parallel to
Bute and Thurlow Streets. with
exits to Burrard and Granville
bridges. and continuing along the
north shore of False Creek to
Georgia Viaduct.

Council's final decision. when
it is made. will decide the
pattern of development for
downtown Vancouver for the
next 50 vears. A decision of this
importance shouldn't be made
lightly. hurriedly or without
consulting the people of
Vancouver themselves.

In making. a choice. the
following factors should. I
believe. be uppermost in our
minds:

@ Provision for a rapid transit
system that will emphasize the
movement of people rather than
cars.

e No overhead freeways
through the downtown area.
Tunnels will do the job just as
well.

@ Public access to the
waterfront via a street level
driveway so that Vancouver
citizens may see and enjoy their
harbor.

e Preservation (and
restoration) of historic sites
such as the Old Maple Site and

old buildings at the north end of
Carrall St.

e The Burrard Inlet crossing
(a tunnel is preferable) should in
no way despoil any part of
Stanley Park.

Project 200. in which the CPR
has the biggest slice. will be very
much affected by the choice of
routes. But I don’t think our final
choice should be based on what
the CPR wants to enhance its
real estate values at public
expense.

In my opinion two steps are
essential before Council can
make any meaningful decision
on a choice of freeway routes.

The first is that the Swan
Wooster-CPA survey should be
made available to all interested
public organizations.

The second is that Council
should arrange public hearings
(after citizens have had a chance
to study the survey) where all
‘interested may present thelr
views about the direction of
Vancouver's downtown develop
ment.

I urge all organizations and
individuals concerned about
Vancouver's future to insist on
their right to a copy of the
survey, to study it carefully. and
then present their
Council.

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