EDITORIAL The pall of Star Wars The Tribune’s Moscow correspondent reports on a press conference by Soviet Foreign Minister Shevard- nadze last week in which he described his dealings with the Americans in Vienna as “like attending a political theatre of the absurd.” Shevardnadze’s frustration was apparent. Not only was an historic opportunity torpedoed by Reagan and his handlers in Reykjavik, but now, She- vardnadze told the press, the U.S. is putting out a revised version of what took place at the mini-summit. As correspondent Fred Weir reports, “not only has the spirit of Reykjavik gone sour, there are not even any plans for further high level meetings. . .” At the press conference Shevardnadze explained that the USSR arrived both in Iceland and Vienna with specific proposals, with new thinking and bold initiatives — only to be met with stony determination by Washington to press on with Star Wars and, with it, an accelerated arms race. The USSR’s frustration, and that of millions afound the world, is that the U.S. refuses to face reality, to accept that a nuclear war is unthinkable and unwinnable. We watch as Reagan instructs America’s formidable military and scientific might to search for a way, Via the Star Wars Trojan Horse, to prevail over the socialist world militarily. Star Wars is why Reykjavik failed and Vienna turned into a “political theatre of the absurd.” It’s why the U.S. keeps testing nuclear wepaons when the USSR stopped 14 months ago. It’s why arms reduc- tion isn’t taking place. The choice is clear: it’s Star Wars or arms control. Millions of Canadians have found this out and want Reagan to stop Star Wars. It’s time the Tory government at Ottawa was forced to reflect this major- ity sentiment in the country. Tories’ sham sanctions Last summer Prime Minister Brian Mulroney gained a lot of international mileage by portraying himself as a champion of strong sanctions against South Africa’s apartheid regime. We recall how he played the foil to Britain’s Margaret Thatcher at the London Commonwealth conference, how he strutted his stuff before the cameras, espousing all the right words, giving all the right gestures. A year earlier, Canada had announced a package of economic sanctions which critics labelled cosmetic — but, many reasoned, it was at least something. Perhaps, they said, it’s a first step toward what was really required: full, comprehensive sanctions to help . bring down the genocidal regime in Pretoria. _Now we see how cute this Tory government really is. - Thirteen months after bringing in its so-called “sanctions,” Statistics Canada figures reveal Cana- dian imports from South Africa have risen by almost 50 per cent! The dollar figures are: $358 million in imports since July, 1985 compared to $239.9 million in the 13 months before the “sanctions” package came down. Then last week Canadians witnessed the travesty of South Africa’s ambassador Babb cuddling up to an eager B.C. Premier Vander Zalm who immediately signalled his real political stripe by announcing B.€. will increase trade with Pretoria. Then, as if to prove bad news comes in threes, Canada cast her UN vote against a motion for total, mandatory sanctions against South Africa. Fortu- nately, the motion passed overwhelmingly, but Otta- wa’s real intentions were highly visible. Clearly, Tory policy is to implement a form of damage control in face of rising public opinion that apartheid is rotten and immoral. And while the Tories don’t care about morality, they do care about votes. So we see the charade, the smoke-and-mirrors. We see Mulroney strutting in London and Clark sputter- ing in Ottawa while Canadian trade with apartheid doubles in one year. This government resembles the emperor without clothes. 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 125 Phone (604) 251-1186 Subscription Rate: Canada — $16 one year; $10 six months Foreign — $25 one year; Second class mail registration number 1560 'e stated lat week in our story on the federal government contract given Gainers Inc. that the federal department of Supply and Services which was responsi- _ ble for awarding the contract did not return the phone calls the Tribune placed to the department. Well, we did get a return call — after the paper had gone to press. People and Issues ea RT RT A A Re International Trade Minister Pat Carney free trade — was compelled to ask; in relation to Yeutter’s comment: “If that the official U.S. position, there is little rea son on Canada’s part to continue ™ negotiations.” Indeed. That’s what we’ve been Say¥ all along and we'll say it again. Cana” should withdraw from the talks — 997. In fact, you can’t even call them trade &) at all. What is going on is a game = An official in the Richmond regional office, stating that he had been instructed to divert all inquiries elsewhere, promised we would be contacted by noon on press day. The call came in just before noon the following day. And frankly, the anwers we got from George Suffidy, the director of the Pacific region for Supply and Services Canada, were entirely predictable. Suffidy contended that the principal issue was that any company can request to be listed as a supplier to the federal govern- ment. If it meets certain standards, it will be listed and can then bid on government contracts. He insisted that whether a com- pany is on strike or locked out makes no difference. “We wouldn’t deny a strikebound company the opportunity to bid ona con- tract,” he said. The fact that awarding a government contract to such a company might inflame a labor dispute and demon- strate a clear bias in favor of the employer was apparently not of concern to him or his department. Gainers had done business with the fed- eral government before the strike and the company was again asked to bid on a contract to supply meat to Canadian For- ces Base Esquimalt, he said. “Since they gave us the most favored prices, the com- pany was given a contract,” he said. No doubt they were favored prices — according to Dave Cherrille, president of _ the B.C. industrial council of the United Food and Commercial Workers, Gainers is virtually “giving its meat away,” often at 20 per cent of competitors’s prices, in an effort to keep the scab-run plant running. And what better market for Tory Peter Pocklington’s scab products than a Tory government contract? According to Suffidy, the contract is for one month with a value of roughly $60,000. But if federal government entanglement in a labor dispute isn’t an issue for the government, what about the quality of the products? After all, Gainers had to recall thousands of hams shipped to Atlantic Canada because several were found to be tainted. Former strikebreakers who worked at the plant have also testified that bad meat slated for disposal was often put back on assembly lines for processing and shipping. That past record apparently isn’t of concern to Supply and Services, either. “All companies have to meet certain standards of performance,” Suffidy told us in his best bureaucratic monotone. “In this case, the meat would have to meet certain specifications and if the company did not perform, it would not get the con- tract. Performance and price are the only issues according to our current policy.” We're sure that history will excuse us, not to mention thousands of trade unio- nists, if, like Gainers meats, we find that a bit hard to swallow. a O* by one, the dire predictions we and other opponents of free trade have made about the current bilateral talks are being repeated by U‘S. officials themselves. According to Premier Vander Zalm, and a host of other free traders, the main reason for pursuing an agreement is to secure “relief from contingency protection measures” — in other words, U.S. mea- sures such as those imposed against shakes and shingles and Canadian lumber exports. But that hope is utterly forlorn — and even US. officials are saying so. U.S. Trade Representative Clayton Yeutter told a trade seminar in Ottawa this month he could see no change in U.S. countervail or anti-dumping law (the basic measures now used extensively against Canada) and expressed doubt that there would be need to lessen the impact of their trade legisla- tion. U.S. Ambassador in Canada Tom Niles said the same thing in an interview with Canadian Press published Nov. 8. He said it was “unrealistic ... (that) we won’t have any more countervailing duty cases.” Then, just last week, in a chillingly frank interview, chief U.S. negotiator Peter Murphy made it clear that a free trade pact will only come at a price of concessions from Canada. “It is going to take some very meaningful concessions on the part of Canada,” he told Canadian Press Nov. 14. Just what he had in mind that Canada should sacrifice he didn’t spell out — but we can imagine: Canadian water resour- ces, regional economic development pro- grams, unemployment insurance, medi- care.<. © Even the Ottawa columnist for the Financial Post — itself an advocate of bilateral strip poker — and the playing with a stacked deck. ae be | ra! Te who attended the politica Pith Nov. 9 for the election efforts © mmittee of Progressive Electors ee the Civic Independents were treated something unusual for the vancnae area — and they responded with ee whelming enthusiasm and approve’. when the Total Experience Gospel took to the stage. fe A _ Actually, it Tot In addition to presenting, — aeuretl isters of Music and The For those who missed the recommend tuning in. 4 PACIFIC TRIBUNE, NOVEMBER 19, 1986