Editorial The railway in Canada If ever there was a country whose destiny is intrinsically linked with the railway, Canada is that country. As school children we were all taught with pride about that “ribbon of steel” which unified our land from Atlantic to Pacific. Immigrants, many of whom perished under dreadful conditions to build it, had a somewhat less idealistic view. And hundreds of thousands of Canadians who depend _ on rail for travel, services and jobs, have yet another, more practical, view. All this is today placed in jeopardy by a cynical Tory government ona so-called cost-cutting binge. - Tory threats to axe VIA rail are real, and genuinely threatening. Not only does the threat represent potential immediate loss of services and jobs — it has, as many are warning, still more devastating far-reaching implications. VIA, formed in 1977, is subsidized, as are all rail services in western industrialized nations. Passenger rail, especially in the far-flung regions of Canada, must be subsidized as essential to the well-being and survival of countless communities. Our $600-million annual subsidy compares with $1.67 billion in Britain, $2 billion in Spain and $5.2 billion in Italy, for example. The surprising thing isn’t that VIA costs money, it’s that it doesn’t cost more. When (under the Liberals) the deal was struck to jettison the less cost-effective passenger service and let CN and CP retain the money- making freight operation, the die was cast. VIA has no tracks or stations. It rents track from CN at $350 million - annually. It’s even billed for snow clearance! It operates antiquated equipment. It’s even become a depository for defeated Tory candidates, one of whom, Lawrence Hannigan, was appointed VIA chairman and pockets an estimated $160,000 annually. And, on April 3 in Atlantic Canada VIA discontinued its telephone sale offices for ticket reservations. Clearly, VIA is under attack from within and without as the Tories and Tory-appointed executives conspire to sink the operation. Rather than derailing VIA, passenger rail service should be seen as _ essential. It should be modernized and upgraded. It should be fully funded to better serve Canadians. But Tory ministers, who waste millions flying themselves, their families and friends about in government jets, don’t take the train. They don’t wait at ticket counters. They don’t live in isolated communities. They wouldn’t - understand these facts of life. ['VE UNEMPLOYED SHOW YoU HOW TAX DOLLARS ARE USED TO RETRAIN THE WE CAN Now OFFER FREE SWIMMING VAS- 7-97 Me EDITOR Sean Griffin ASSISTANT EDITOR Dan Keeton BUSINESS & CIRCULATION MANAGER Mike Proniuk GRAPHICS Angela Kenyon Published weekly at 2681 East Hastings Street Vancouver, B.C., V5K 1Z5 Phone: (604) 251-1186 Fax: (604) 251-4232 Subscription rate: Canada: @ $20 one year @ $35 two years ® Foreign $32 one year Second class mail registration number 1560 M ore than 50 years ago, he fought in Spain for the Republican cause, although Delta resident Arne Knudsen was not a member of Canada’s Mackenzie Papineau Battalion. Instead, the Danish born veteran fought as a member of a German battalion, and time and distance have kept him from re-uniting with his old comrades. But on April 26, Arne will get apprenended by the police and forced into the chance to recall the fight against fas- cism with other Danes when he travels to Copenhagen to honour their contribution — a contribution given in lives. Once there, he’ll be laying a wreath on behalf of the Mac Paps at a cenotaph erected two years ago by the Danish government and Denmark’s citizens to pay tribute to some 560 volunteers, of which less than half returned home. Ironically, Arne already had landed immigrant status in Canada when he escaped service in the Danish armed forces and volunteered for duty in the Spanish civil war. How he found himself in that situation is a remarkable story worthy of a book, but a few details will have to suffice here. Arne had come to Canada as a young man looking for a better life. And he did find work in road-building and on the railroads, but like others of the period, he got caught up in the Great Depression and spent his share of time riding the rods with the other unemployed. As a means of escaping the jobless situation he signed on a Danish vessel out of Vancouver, switch- ing to another ship in Malaysia which took © him home to Denmark in 1935. Upon arrival, however, Arne was ‘military service, for which by Danish law ‘he was long overdue. He was conscripted into the Navy where he underwent marine-style training and served for a time on the Royal Yacht. Not wishing to do further service in a country with a government growing increasingly accommodating to Hitler’s Nazis, Arne, having become aware that the first anti-fascist battle would be fought in Spain, volunteered for duty through the local Communist Party headquarters. Through the party he received a false passport — his own was possessed by the Danish government — and shipped out to Spain with eight of his countrymen. There the volunteers underwent train- ing under trade union auspices, where Arne’s experiences with cannon made him a natural as an anti-tank gunner, a posi- tion he held for most of his service in Spain. He also became a member of the German Edgard Andre Battalion, part of the 11th International Brigade. Arne was among the first to engage Franco’s fascist forces at the front in Madrid. When Arne left Spain, he returned to Canada. Other Danes who went back home suffered incarceration at the hands ’ of the Danish government. One of these, People and Issues ST ERNE who had served with the 15th Brigade and had been briefly with the Mac Paps, escaped the concentration camp four days before the German Army occupied Den- mark and became a leader of the under- ground who targeted Danish Nazis during the occupation. His skills landed him a commission in the post-war Danish army, and retired major Emst Jensen — now president of the Danish Spanish Volun- teers Organization — will host Arne dur- ing his visit. eS h ake pp tee stressing fun this time. That means less speeches and more enter- tainment, according to organizers of the Mey Day Parade in Vancouver on April 0, This year is special in another way, since _ it marks the 100th anniversary of the Van- couver and District Labour Council. The parade, as in previous years, begins at Clark Park (corner of Commercial Drive and 14th Avenue) at 12 noon. The march will move down Commercial to a rally at Grandview Park (corner of Willi- ams Street): Noted Toronto topical singer Arlene Mantle is on the bill. e’ve received notice that the Canadian Farmworkers Union is seeking financial and moral support for its campaign to bring its members under the protection of provincial health and safety regulations. In a circular to trade unions and other potentially supportive organizations, CFU president Sarwan Boal notes that farm- workers lack basic protection such as min- imum wages, overtime laws, child care and health and safety protection. The letter notes the irony that pesticide handling regulations do not cover agriculture, and points out that ‘consumers who eat the produce grown in uncontrolled fields are also at risk.” An accompanying leaflet lists the sorry record of B.C.’s Socred government in rejecting demands for such coverage since the union was formed in the late Seventies. The most shameful development was when the government caved in to the agri- cultural lobby and scotched Workers Compensation Board plans to include farmworkers under WCB health and safety regulations in 1983. Since then, deaths by pesticides have continued and various reports continue to recommend WCB coverage for farmworkers. The union urges friends and supporters to write or call the premier and MLAs to support farmworker protection, and asks for financial support. The leaflet includes a sample resolution calling for WCB protec- tion, to be sent to the legislature, Victoria, V8V 1X4. The CFU can be reached at 1-4725 Kingsway, Burnaby, VSH 2C3, phone 430-6055... 4 « Pacific Tribune, April 17, 1989