Parliament dodges key issues-Kashtan _ @ Continued from page 5 independence of our country and to weaken the strength of the American domination of our economy. These are measures that should be taken by parlia- ment. Turning to the upcoming Central Committee meeting Mr. Kashtan noted that, “Our Cent- ral Committee meeting this com- ing weekend will be focusing attention on inflation and how the working class can protect itself from this inflation while taking action against its causes, ‘We intend to look at what steps should be taken:to protect the interests of the people with res- pect to family allowances, pen- sions, mother’s allowances and the needs of children, consider- ing the inflationary waves and how to protect people’s purchas- ing power. “We will also concentrate on the questions of peace and war because it is apparent that U.S. imperialism and its puppets in ~ Southeast Asia are trying to up- set the ceasefire agreements and make Cambodia another powder- keg. “The wage struggle will also be looked at, because wages are an important part of working class struggle against inflation. And we will give attention to a federal election which now ap- pears to be less likely this sum- mer or fall. The likelihood ap- pears that the election will take place’ next spring, unless the Liberal government makes an error. What is now needed is a move by the organized working class to make parliament work for the interests of the -people and prevent measures that are favorable to monopoly. We will give an estimate of these devel- opments and how our party will prepare for the elections, where we plan to run 50 or more con- didates.” é . The final point Mr. Kashtan spoke to was Watergate. “While not part of our discussion in the Central Committee, Watergate is nonetheless at the center of attention of the Canadian peo- ple. It brings out the growing crisis of confidence and credibil- ity that typifies the Nixon ad- ministration. These develop- ments express the corruption of capitalist politics — not only of the Nixon administration — and while some politicians in Can- ada try to create the impression that these things only happen in the U.S., capitalism in Canada is no different. The same kind of corruption exists here. One of the forms. of this corruption is the extent of the sell-out of Canada to U.S. interests, which eventually the Canadian people will unmask. In this sense, Watergate is part of Canadian politics.” Mayors meet in Toronto A conference of mayors from 19 municipalities took place in Toronto this week. The confer- ence, which was called by Mayor Crombie of Toronto, was the first such Canada wide meet- ing of mayors to try to deal with the problems faced by big cities in the 1970’s. Several of the mayors criticized the Brit- ish North America Act for de- nying the cities autonomy. They Frost's death unlamented here Ontario’s newsmedia draped its editorials this week in honor of Leslie Frost, Tory Premier of this province from 1949 to 1961. One looked in vain in the columns of print dedicated to Mr. Frost’s balance sheet for some indication that. he was Premier when the basic re- sources of this province were turned over to U.S. imperialism. Mr. Frost, among his other Tory accomplishments, was the “sell- out” Premier of Ontario. While he was “belovedly”’ re- ferred to as Mr. Ontario and the Silver Fox, by his compatriots, by the working class of this pro- vince he was regarded as a hard nosed Tory who carried through the will and. wishes of Bay Street with great skill and cun- ning. : While the Tory hierarchy as- sembled in Lindsay on Monday of this week to honor one of their own, the Canadian Tri- bune dipped its flag to the 240 unsung Italian _ construction. workers who have been killed on construction .sites in. Metro Toronto over the. past twenty years.—{C.T.) : all expressed ‘the need for a. larger share of the national re- venues,. especially from income tax. Mayor Crambie said that the mayors are leading care- taker governments shackled to regressive revenue sources mak- ing the cities “powerless to im- prove the existing level of ser- vices.” Before the conference, Wil- liam Kashtan, General Secre- tary. of the Communist Party of Canada made the following statement: “The mayor’s conference that, is taking place in Toronto this week could be of considerable importance in focusing atten- tion on the readjustment of | finances that is needed.” Mr. Kashtan said. “The municipali- ties should not*have to bear the main burden of educational costs. We must change the situa- tion where the cities are the - creatures of the provincial gov- ernment. “We need a newly created charter. A charter which would clearly spell out the authority of the cities so that city admi- nistrations can cope with the rapidly expanding urban popu- laions. ‘There needs to be a new fiscal relationship between the cities and the provincial and federal -governments. And this must be made on a basis that recognizes the role which the municipalities must play. The responsibility must be defined for the municipalities so that - the cities become places where people can live and not just roadways for cars and trucks. “Tf this municipal - confer- ence,” Kashtan’ said, “has this in mind, it can play a useful role. And. when. we: have’ more Communists. .in municipal coun- cils, this policy will be: fought: . ‘for more aggressively. PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MAY 11, 1973—PAGE 10 OAT EN 1AM TAQSS 3K GUNIAD WASP lobbies M.P.'s, hits price board @ Continued from page 5 spective. Today’s prices are bas- ed on monooly marketing con- ditions whereby prices are man- ipulated by large corporations and based on whatever the con- sumer can be made to pay. “Private enterprise thrives under conditions of virtually no price competition. Competition, instead of: being between corpo- rations themselves, is now be- tween consumer and corpora- tions. “The small farmer is being squeezed out of the marketplace by having to buy supplies from and sell his produce to monopo- ly-controlled corporations, and the working. people are being confronted with the threat of a wage and price freeze. A wage freeze, at a time when the cost of living is soaring upwards so quickly that no working person’s wages can possibly keep up, is an insult to the Canadian peo- ple. We are not to blame for high prices! “The Prices Review Board needs power both to formulate and to implement its recommen- dations for the benefit of the Canadian consumer... ’ “The Board must have access to witnesses’ information, books and records and must have the power to require justification of pricing policies and the rolling back of excessive pricing in all vital economic areas — food, rents, the cost of land and hous- ing, prescription drugs, etc. “The composition of the Board is of the utmost importance to effective action. Since the Board is to represent the people, the people must be represented’ on the Board with representatives chosen from all facets of Cana- dian society — trade unions, consumer organizations, senior citizens, tenants and ratepayers, farmers organizations and anti- poverty groups. “Assessment of rising prices must be achieved with public representation. The accessibility of the Board to the Canadian people, regardless of location, must also be given careful con- sideration.” Women Against Soaring Prices also promised to continue its campaign against high prices until effective results are achiev- A national appeal has been launched to raise financial and moral support for 6,000 Cree and Inuit of Northern Quebec battling to stop the $10-bililion James Bay Power Project. The decision to organize the _ appeal came at a three-day un- . precedented Winnipeg meeting in April of the Canadian Asso- ciation in Support of the Native Peoples. The meeting was the. first stage of a C.A.S.N:P. drive to bolster its ranks to 50,000 con- cerned Canadians visibly back- ing the just aims and desires of the 550,000 Native people of Canada. ; Culminating the meeting. was an all-day public forum: devoted ~to the: James: Bay Project: ‘and Manitoba’s~ South ‘Indien Lake Power Development scheme. By MARK SYDNEY TORONTO—Over 350 people packed the First Unitarian Con- gregation here on the evening of May 6 for an eloquent and moving Tribute to Paul Robeson on the occasion of the great Black ‘American’s 75th birthday. Presented by .the Friends of Paul Robeson Committee, it was, as spoken by Jean Daniels, pre- sident of the Committee, “a little something that will let Paul know how much he is ap- preciated, how much all of us appreciate how he used his tal- ents for the people, the working people, the Black people, those fighting for liberation, those fighting for peace...” If in these lines we cannot let Paul Robeson’s beautiful, power- ful voice sing out, we can let him speak. No man was more eloquent, more proud of the heritage from which he came, or of the people that he was part of, than Paul Robeson. His whole life can be express- ed in these words: “The artist must elect to fight for freedom or for slavery. I have made my choice. I had no alternative.” In a- narrative slide show, punctuated by the songs that he, and many of us love so well, we saw Paul Robeson’s credo trans- lated into life. How he stooa high above the forces of oppres- sion that sought to demean him, to make him lesser than the .. great man he was. Let: Paul speak about his first journey -to the Soviet Union -in 1934: “I hesitated to come... But now I feel like a human being for the first time since I grew up... For the first time in my life I walked with my head high, in full view as a human being.” It was in Germany, 1934, that he first encountered fascism, in the country that had honored him just three short years -be- fore. And, having suffered through provocations and taunt- ing insults, Paul Robeson swore, “1 will fight fascism wherever I see it.” It was not just against fasc- ism that Paul Robeson- fought, but against its vestiges that touch his country — racism and oppression. He spoke up for Black people, for_working peo- ple, and because of this, was the first public figure to be singled out by the House Un-American Activities Committee. Paul Robeson also turned his voice to Africa, where a dying colonialism kept his brothers in chains. In 1947, he refused to go on a concert tour of Scandi- navia, because the newspaper Election gains for Scottish CP Scottish Communists gained four seats on local councils in last weeks elections. This represents a two hun- dred percent increase for the Communists who held only two seats last year and have now increased their total to six. Three of the seats were won in Lochgelly Fife and the other in Cowdenbeath. Right wing Labour leaders were so upset and astounded by the results they called for a re- count, which confirmed the Communist election. : More than 100,000 ‘amateur musicians, ‘singers: and™dancers’ . took ‘part in a recent folk incident: “m! od, been’started by the police” selves.” pied ae