‘ . { 7 4 { { FRENCH SOCIALIST DENOUNCES CHINA AS THREAT TO WORLD PEACE PARIS — A leading French Socialist has denounced Peking’s anti- Soviet hysteria as a danger to peace. Claude Estier, national secretary of the Socialist Party of France, said he favors U.S.-China diplomatic recognition, but said, ‘‘We cannot follow the new Chinese leaders, just as previous ones, in their anti-Soviet obsession.”’ Estier charged that China is seeking a so-called unification of West- ern Europe as a military machine against Moscow. ‘‘Establishment ofa motley front against the Soviet Union would be a serious threat to universal peace,”’ he said. If France supported these designs to the slightest extent, it would be deplorable, he concluded. DIFFERENCES SHOW UP AT LATIN AMERICAN BISHOPS’ MEET PUEBLA, Mexico — Differences in approach to the role of the Catholic church on social conditions and injustice in Latin America surfaced at the close of the Conference of Latin American Bishops here as three members walked out during a speech attacking progressive theology. An official statement issued for the first time admitted ‘*dif- ferences of mentality and opinion”’ and denounced repressive military regimes and violations of human rights. The conference followed the Pape’s Mexican tour where the question of the church’s attitude to- ward massive inequality were brought into the open. Half the world’s 700 million Catholics live in Latin America. DAYAN’S COMMENTS ON PLO STIR CONTROVERSY IN KNESSET JERUSALEM — Israeli Foreign Minister Moishe Dayan’s com- ments last week that the Palestine Liberation Organization “‘is not a state, but we cannot deny their position or their value’’ in the Middle East, brought a quick response from Israeli premier Begin who stres- sed there is no policy change by his government. The incident raised questions about a possible difference in ap- proach by Israel toward the PLO and the Palestinian question in government circles by a regime that has consistently refused to recog- nize the existence of a Palestinian problem or include the PLO in any negotiations. The Dayan comment may be significant as he is to repre- sent Israel in talks with Egypt which resume Feb. 21. U.S. ARMS BUDGET TERMED ‘PERVERSE’ DURING IYC WASHINGTON — Women’s Strike for Peace meeting here last week called Carter's inflated arms budget ‘‘perverse’’ in the face of cutbacks in social services especially affecting children in this Interna- tional Year of the Child 1979. Representative Pat Schroeder (D-Colo) summed up this thought when she told the press: **f look at America in the Year of the Child and wonder ... Last year we had over a million, runaways. In my state alone in 1978 we had a 70 percent increase in child abuse . .. We have had schools in our society in America, one of the richest on earth, that had to shut down because children needed shots they hadn’t received — and our government's response is to build more nuclear weapons to make these children more ‘secure’ ... and cut.down on children’s and social programs. | think that’s real madness!*" U.S. AGREES TO SELL MORE ARMS TO SUDAN AND YEMEN DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia — The U.S. has agreed to a request by Saudi Arabia to strengthen pro-Western regimes and boost its presence in the Gulf area by increasing arms sales to Yemen and Sudan. ~ Yemen will receive $300-million in arms including F-5 fighters, mod- em tanks and troop carriers. Sudan will receive $60-million in jet fighters — both tabs to be picked up by Saudi Arabia. The deal was made during a recent visit’ by U.S. Defence Secretary Brown where he gave the Saudis assurances the U.S. intends to “strengthen friendly Middle East states against outside aggression’’. as 2h ae pet mesa ee DACCA — A Communist Party aie “s Siniticiaah during the aca elections in which the CPB took part. PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FEBRUARY 23, 1979—Page 6 Terrorism — a weapon used to discredit revolutionary struggle Terrorist shootings can be heard now and again in various countries. What puzzles one is that those criminals are so hard to catch; one suggestion is that there is a well-hatched international plot in operation. Who Are They? It is clear from press reports that such acts of terror are some- times committed by Maoists and sometimes by anarchist ter- rorists. There have also been some Trotskyites at work here and there. Most often they are called ‘left’ extremists. Adding the ad- jective ‘‘left’’ enables them to be distinguished from a rightist vari- ety of extremism, neo-fascism. In real practice, however, sucha line of distinction is very hard to draw. To be “‘leftist’’ does not mean to be left. Taking people hostage and wreaking inhuman violence “on them, hijacking airliners with passengers doomed to suffer through no fault of their own, overturning motorcars “‘just for the fun of it’’, acts of vandalism and rampant hooliganism and savage reprisals against the ‘*turncoats’’ within their own ranks, all this looks very. much like common .crime which can have nothing in common with a genuinely left, sevelbuonary. lib- eration movement. Disguised as Red a The attempts of the extreme leftist groups to camouflage their provocative antics by red color are sacriligious. The terrorists who kidnapped Aldo Moro call themselves ‘‘Red Brigades’. It was not-by accident either that the name of the *‘ ‘Red Army’ fac- tion’’ was adopted by the Baader-Meinhof anarchist group which has also engaged in similar kidnappings, bank robberies and bomb-planting in shops. Maoists and Trotskyites in a number of capitalist countries have called their newspapers ‘“‘Red Banner’’. “Left’’ extremists most often parade behind red flags in break- ing up demonstrations of working people or staging ‘‘counter- demonstrations’. Naturally, this does puzzle some people sometimes. But this is exactly what the “leftists”: need. ‘Left’ Extremism Aids Reaction ‘“‘Left’’ extremists behave in various ways but always in a pro- vocative and truculent manner. However, reaction, whichis wont to suppress the slightest opposi- tion to it, not only puts up with these antics, but even openly en- courages them. Why? The real concern of reaction nowadays is to contain the grow- ing urge of the large mass of the working people in the capitalist countries for democratizing social and political life and for funda- mental social change. By trading on the ‘‘horrors of revolutionary terrorism’? and detailing leftist outrages (the bourgeois press gives them far more space thant does to any major action by Communists), bourgeois. prop- aganda intimidates the public with a ‘danger from the left’ and seeks to get across the idea that any profound social change will make things ‘‘still worse’’ and ‘‘still more horrible.” During the seventies reaction has more than once played up its argument about the dangers of ‘‘left’’ extremism in order to jus- tify anti-democratic actions. The Pinochet clique has been claiming since the very first days of their seizure of power that that was the only way to ‘‘rescue”’ Chile. Ter- rorist acts in Federal Germany have been used to justify an_of- fensive against democratic rights. In Portugal and Spain the ac- tivities of the ‘‘leftists’’ have been invoked as an excuse for reaction to hold up the incipient process of democratizing these countries. Another reason why reaction needs the sensational ballyhoo over the actions of the “‘leftists’” is to divert the attention of the — public away from many crimes committed by imperialism. Right-wingers have been amaz- ingly concerted in launching their propaganda campaign about the need for a ‘‘tougher political line’” and calling for ‘‘an end to liberalism’* and a ban on Com- munist parties. The crime which the ‘‘left’’ ex- tremists have committed and are still committing against revolu- tion consists in trying to discredit the very idea of revolutionary struggle. This is also the purpose of the entire ideology of the pre-_ sent “‘left’’ extremists, -whether anarchists, Trotskyites or mem- bers of Maoist groups. At their international congress in August 1971, the anarchists de- clared capitalism to be a ‘lesser evil’? than socialism. They have been echoed by Maoist groups as- serting that the Soviet Union is — ‘“‘more dangerous than the im- perialist states of the old type" ‘ The Trotskyites have long been urging the overthrow of the socialist system of government ‘‘Left”’ extremists always-and everywhere replace the struggle” against imperialist reaction & 4 opposition to Communist Parties and to their policy guidelines cal-_ ling for an alliance of all left forces and for profound economic and political change: ‘‘Left’’ extremism is acting, | besides, as an enemy of the basic — interests of all peace forces. By its | irresponsible and provocative | calls for action to oppose peaceful co-existence and international de- tente, ‘‘léeft’’ extremism is aiding | the reactionary forces harboring plans to reduce international de- tente to nothing. Combatting it, just as any other variety of anti- communism and anti-socialism, is a matter of common concern to the international communist movement and all democratic and progressive forces. - : M. Basmanov, a Candidate of Science (History) in the USSR- wrote this article for the Soviets news agency APN. Mackenzie- taeda a vetera ns plan reunio The Mackenzie-Papineau ‘Bat- talion, which wrote a glorious chapter in Canadian — and Spanish — history, will be making another trip to Spain, this time in conditions of peace. In 1937 the Mac-Paps helped to defend Spanish democracy and the elected government, against the fascist onslaught of Franco, Hi- tler and Mussolini. The veterans of _ the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion of Canada are planning a reunion in a collective return to Spain in ' 1979. The reunion is, being or- ganized **at the request of some of our members,” explains Ross Russell, one of the Spanish vets. The proposed minimum stay of two weeks includes four days in Madrid with visits, during eight hours of the day, to interest areas in and near the capital, travelling by air-conditioned bus. Approx- imately one-day visits will be made to Albacete. (with a three- hour stop at Chinchon), Murcia, Valencia, Teruel, Belchite (witha stop at Quinto), Gandesa, Bar- celona, Guadalajara, with return to Madrid on the 13th day. For members of the Mac-Paps and their families who are in- terested, the office of the general secretary gives this information: Hotel accommodation will be at least 3-star, with 90% of the ac- commodation double and 10% single. Meals (except lunch), and air-conditioned buses will be pro- vided. ‘*We cannot give you the exact cost,’ -states the initial informa- tion sheet, ‘‘due to the fluctuation of the Canadian dollar, but the figure given to us in October 1978 was a total price of $899 per per- son for two in a room. A single room costs an additional $87.” VIS! & Di comes a (This is the price for departure from Toronto. Some group fare arrangements across Canada can be made.) . Those who wish to may extend : their visits to up to five weeks, but 4 the return trip must be Madrid —_ Canada. During the visit, the group ex- pects to meet with veteran organizations of the Republican People’s Army of Spain, and ev- ery effort is being made for a brief visit with Dolores Ibarruri (La Passionaria). A questionnaire on which to fill. in number in your party, length of stay, suggestions for itinerary, and other information, may be had from: Veterans: of the Inter- national Brigades, Mackenzie- Papineau Battalion of Canada, Office of the General Secretary, — Box 835, Station Q, Toronto, M4T 2N7. x,