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Page 4, The Herald, Thursday, September 27, 1979

TERRACE/KITIMAT

daily herald

General Office - 635-4357
Circutatlon - 635-6157

Published by
Storling Publishers

GEN. MANAGER . Knox Coupland
EDITOR. Greg Middieton

CIRCULATION. TERRACE - 635-6357
KITIMAT OFFICE - 632-2747
Published every weekday af 1212 Kalum Sireet,
Terrace, B.C. A member of Varlfled Circulation.
Authorized as second class mall. Registration number
1201, Postage pald in cash, return postage guaranteed,

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EDITORIAL

The Children’s Broadcast institute, a
non-profit organization dedicated tc
encouraging more and_ better
programming for children, has been
promoting September as Parents

lewing Month.

Television stations across the country
have been carrying a public service
announcement designed to encourage
parents to watch TV with their children.

Have you taken the time to even
calculate the number of hours your
children spend in front of the television
screen?

For too many parents the electronic
entertainment medium is an easy way
out. It is an inexpensive baby sitter.

Too few parents take into con-
sideration the values their children are
absorbing from the programs they
watch on television.

Spending the time with your children
to see what interests them and makes
them laugh.

Look at the amount of tire they are
learning from that machine as opposed
tothe amount of time you spend with
them. Consider what they are fearning
from what they watch.

OTTAWA

alle hn lade elders ATS SSI sake anata aah

VIEWPOINT

BY JIM FULTON

The past six months have been destructive ones for
the publicly-owned oil company; Petrocanada. The

Conservative government seems to he split on the

issue; however, this in itself is hampering the ef-
fec tiveness of the company.

The continued health of PetroCan is vital to our
energy future for the following essential reasons:

To act as a counterweight and pursue specifically
Canadian interests in an industry which is 90 percent
foreign controlled;

To undertake needed hign-rish projects which
private firms are unwilling or unalbe to accomplish:

To negotiate and carry out state to state energy
agreements to ensure that industrial and
technological benefits of such agreements accrue to
Canada; and,

To provide a public “window” on a very complex
industry to ensure that public policy is formulated
with a clear understanding of how the industry
qperates, and how policy changes will affect the in-

All of these vital functions would be lost if PetraCan
was "privatized’’, “broken up”, ‘‘sold”, or “given out
as shares”. Energy costs affect our cost of living in
very direct ways; from the gas costs and home
beating costs to the amount we pay for lettuce, bread
and milk. Our entire system of economics hinges on
the value placed on a barrel of petroleum. By keeping
down the cost of gas and cil in Canada, we fight in-
lation and stay competitive on: the world export
market,

Iam pinning my hopes on the Canadian people
speaking out against his sellout of an irreplaceabie
resource. Many Canadians who normally don’t
subscribe with much enthusiasm to public ownership
are, in this instance, appalled at the thought of the
economic continentalism on which we are embarked.
It is not too late for the public to protest this further
encroachment by the petroleum octopus and to urge
the federai Cabinet to support Petro-Canada.

If we do that we may winone small battle in the
long war against economic assimilation, If we do
nothing then we, and our children after us, will be
called upon to pay the high price of our apathy and

rta,

uM
7

‘Them new licence fees dort bother me,| airit had a licence for 10 years’

SOME OE My ST
Pf yHAe ReAND
1 iy

PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN

Soldier said your friend

By PETER MOSLEY

JOHANNESBURG
(Reuter) — ‘The Sovth
African soldier is your
friend. ... Terrorism stops
here.” So reads a poster
pinned to a hut in a timber
forest in the far northeast
corner of South Africa,

Pictures show a white
soldier helping a black
farmer and a white army
medic examining a black
woman's baby.

It is all part of a major
“hearts and minds’ drive by
South African defence forces
towin at least the respect if
not the friendship of blacks,
especially in sensitive
border areas.

Parallel with this attempt
to build a psychological
bulwark against the in-
creasing threat of guerrilla
infiltration is a military
buildup the scale of which
would surprise most South
Africans,

Strict forbid
newspapers from

laws
here

reporting on military ac-
tivity without prior
clearance by the defence
ministry -- which is seldom
given.

But the buildup in northera
Transvaal province,
especially near the Zim-
babwe Rhodesia border, can
be witnessed by any
traveller,

Military camps, dot the
area, many with landing
strips. Military trucks and
armed vehicles rumble
along dirt roads. Stretches of
some otherwise insignificant
raads have been widened
and paved, niaking them
suitable as airstrips.

Conspicuous just south of
the border is a swath of land
which has been cleared and
then planted with sisal,
which produces a white fibre
used for rope, a5 a sort of
living fence. Fifteen metres
wide, it snakes over hills and
valleys, through farm fields
and villages, following the

line of the Limpopo River
border.
Residents say it is in-

’ tended as a defence againsg

guerrilla infiltration and that
when the sisal is fully grown
it could even stop tanks.

But. if the military is
reticent about its border
precautions, it is epenly
proud of its “hearts and
minds” program.

It began in South West
Afriga (Namibia), where
thousands of South African
troops are tied down by a
low-key guerrilla war being
waged in the north by
Angolae-based SWAPO
(South West African Peoples
Organization) forces.

SWAPO's main support is
among the QOvambos, the
majority tribe, whose
homeland lies just south of
the, Angola border,

In its effort to win support
and cooperation from the
Ovambos, the army provides
education and health ser-

vices for the local
population. Troops even
organize sport for the local,
children. :

When the civil war in
Angola forced thousands of
refugees to flee southward
across the border, the South
African army organized
camps for them and ensured
food and medical care.

Now that policy, in the
form of the army’s “Civic
Action Program,’ has
spread. National servicemen
Ceonscripts) with special
skills are doubling as
teachers, doctors and
agricullural advisers, many
of them on loan to the
governments of the black
homelands.

The army recently said it
would consider any request
to provide qualified white
teachers to schools in
Johannesburg's Soweto.
black: township, where.
classrooms aré badly over-
crowded through a shortage
of black teachers.

TODAY IN HISTORY

Sept. 27, £979 where hardships made

ta ramave

Gen. William Howe of En-
glar.d occupied Philadelphia
202 years ago today — in 1777
+ Instead of advancing
northward to Gen.
Burgoyne’s army, AS aA
result, the northern British
column had to surrender at
Saratoga. Deprived of
Philadelphia, the rebel
American army had to
winter at Valley Farge,

easier a bid
Washington from cornmand.
Five months later, France
promised aid and the starved
rebelarmy began its drive to
victory and independence.

wig — John Adams was
appointed by the U.S. to
make a treaty with Britain.

riz) — Mount Afarat was
first climbed by Dr. John
Jacob von Parrot.

== ODEN oe
LEARRING eR RR tae
INSTITUTE

WOULD

ti

(elecasts,

7a

OULD YOU LIKE
TO KNOW MORE?

The Open Learning Enstitute is the B.C. sponsor of a
special series of weekly
programs will be broadcast on™cable TY ‘over the PBS
Network every Sunday evening at $ PM starting Septem-
ber 30th. A Corrections, Viewer 's Guide, especially pre-
pared to expand upon the issues probed in the TV series
and the associated newspaperarticles, is available from
the institute. To order, retarm

4

Continuing Education
Qypen Learning Institute
Box 94,000
Richmond, B.C,
VoY 2A2

Each of the TY

the coupon below to:—

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(ft = .
Plouse send me... .... Siewers gulde(s) at $3.45 each Cneludes
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LETTERS TO.
THE EDITOR

The Honourable Bill Bennett
Premier

Parliament Buildings
Victoria, B.C.

Dear Sir:

Smithers Community
Services Association is most
distressed and protests the
impending closing of the
Hazelton Children's Home
due to a budgetary cut. _

It appears there is some
question as to (1) the “need”
for such a home in Northern
B.C.; (2) that it does not
meet MHRA guidelines; and

(3) that the per diem cost Is
* too hi

SCSA’s response to these
allegations is as follows:
(1) Need - was perceived
twelve years ago, so the
home was opened and has
been used extensively since,
The policy of 6,C.’s
government to have private
societies operate local
facilities is, we understand,
to assure assessment and to
provide for local needs.
Victoria’s, nay Terrace’s
view of a need and
Hazelton's, are not
necessarily gaing to be the
same,
(2) Guidelines: again, why
are MHR guidelines the
“right” ones? If there is a
jurisdictional dispute bet-
ween MHR and the Ministry
of Health, why not have each
af them contribute $45,000 ta
the operation of the Hazelton
Children’s Home -- after all,

Dear Sir:

I read with interest the
Editor's Journal BY Greg
Middleton of September
14th, 10979 which was an
extremely poor report on the
history of the Hotsprings.
From the editor of a leftist
paper, I didn't expect to get
any credit for getting the
Hotsprings into the hands of
the Government so that
those now in Government
have the opportunity to
carry out an exciting
development.

I regret I haven't seen
anything constructive
froposed since my plan for
development was submitted
in May, which unfortunately
waa down—played by the~
local press. This was indeed :
unfortunate ag regardless of
party affillations, I think, my
flan was an exciting one for
development of the area.

For your information, I'd
like to as briefly as possible
outline the history of the
Government's aquisition of
the Hotsprings.

While owned by Skoglund,

.. it was a real going concern

where we had to reserve two
months in advance to get in
during Easter and other
choice dates, Many came
from Alaska, Prince Rupert
and as far east as Prince
George. All travelling
salesmen and civil servants
tried to arrange their travels
to, if p.ossible, stay. over
while doing business in the
area.

In 1987 the Power Cor-
poration bought it and laid
out some impressive plans
including eki hill, riding
trails, marina, golf course,
etc. When shown the plans, I
was excited by the prospect,
unfortunately, instead of
ming ahead, it started going
down hill) The Hotsprings
was sold twice a fter that, the
last being to the Calgary
firm.

1 came to Terrace in 1973
end immediately saw the
need for a rea] change to
make the resart the hub of
the tourist industry in the

Northwest, as well as, im-

proving it for the enjoyment
of the local residents, In
May, 1974 I wrote to, and
discussed this with, Hob
Strachan then minister of
highways and tran-
sportation, and suggested
the NDP take the project
over to develop it for public
twa in the Northwest. This
was turned down

After belng elected at the
end of 1975, 1 wrote to the
Hon. Grace McCarthy
recommending the
Government buy out the
Hotsprings, which was also
turned down. In early 1976, I
wrote to the Premier — this
was turned down. In early
1976,

After being elected at the
end of 1975, I wrote to the
Hon, Grace McCarthy

“per

it comes out of the tax-
poyer’s pocket in the long

ru. et

(3) Per diem cost too high:

If statistics {s the only
eqxiterion wsed in funding,
every facility in the.province
falls short The Hazelton
Children’s Home not only
cares for a specific
population of children but
has, through their in-
volvement with these ~
children, taught parenting
skills and proper nutrition to
many local girls, whose
families have benefitted
from this training,

Statistics cannot be gather _
edion what didn’ t happen, on
the number of children who
would have spent their lives
in T.B. sanitariums, those
who wold have been
chronically ill with the at-
tendant expenses, the
children who have not been
abused -- oh, the list is en-
dess. All these intangible
benefits havecome out of the
diem”.

Surely in ‘this, the In-
ternational Year of the
Child, our goverment can
see the folly of looking at
band-aid types of social
programmes instead of
actively supporting the work
done at places like the
Hazelton Children’s Home
where prevention is high
priority.

Nancy DeVries,
Chairman, SCSA

recommending the
Government buy out the
Hotsprings, which was also
turned down, In early 1976, I
wrote to the Premier — this
was turned over to the Hon.
Don . Phillips. I also
presented a brief to Cabinet
on September 23rd, 1976
recommending again that
the Government buy the
Hotaprings and develope it -
under the British Columbia
Development Corporation.
It was for sale at that time
for $1.25 million — this was
again turned down,

In 1976, 1977 and 1978 I
miggested to BCDC they
develope it in co—operation
with Terrace, Kitimat,
Prince’ Rupert and the
regional districts. They
looked at it and again the
Troposal was turned down.
Paul .. Monaghan, mayor .of
Kitimat in 1976, had done a
study on the development of
the Hotsp rings which was of
great assistance to me. In
1977 and again in 1978, I met
with Mr. Adams of Calgary
to negotiate a price,

During this five—year
period, neither the political
Right nor Left gave me any
support (the same was true
diring the gas enquiry I
started during the 60's). It
wasn't until I went into the
Cabinet in December 1978
that I was able to convince
the owners to make (and the
Government to accept) the
@nerous donation of 308
acres to the le of the
Province, and I trust no
Government canever legally

In every submission I
made it clear that in order to
have a viable operation to
yroperly serve the 100,000
people in the area repair
(even before the flood) was
completely out of the
question, and complete
rebuilding was the only
answer, Iknow thatl am
right as I have looked at it
many times — including
taking the Hon. Grace
MeCarthy to see it in 1976.

. My estimate is that it will
cost over 5 million dollars to
develop which will be money
well spent as tied in with a
ferry to Kitimat this will
greatly enlarge the tourist
attraction in the Northwest.

When concepts such as this
start very few people, or
parties, are willing to sup-

rt them. Now that it has

en accepted by nearly
every one, all the latecomers
want to get on the band-
wagon — which ] am pleased
to see after five years spent
in attempting to get
Government and loc al
support. No federal mem-
bers were af any assistance,
except for Jona Campagnolo
who took an interest and
sasured me of substantial
federal money if I could get
it in the hands of the
Government. Yours truly,
Cyril M. Shelford

LETTERS

The . .:d -welvomes its readers comments,
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will be printed. We do, however, retain the right -
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