_ An on-the-spot report
by TIM BUCK.

found Rumania

a count

BUCHAREST

ATTENDING the Second Con-

gress of the Workers Party
of Rumania was a rich experi-
ence — not only because of the
tremendous political lessons it.
Provided, but because it enabled
me to learn a little about People’s
Romania and the achievements
of her people since they estab-
lished their People’s Democratic

Republic on December 30, eight
years ago.

The lessons are the more inter-
esting and valuable because they
‘Provide a striking example of
Some big advances the people
of Canada could have made dur-
Ing the same eight years — but
for Prime Minister St. Laurent’s
anti-Canadian policy of “in-
tegration.”

The sum total of these exam-
Ples forces one to decide that
the subordination of Canadian
€conomy to the United. States
Must be stopped. Putting an
€nd to it is almost a life and
death question for the future
of Canada.

Our country, of course, was
technically much more advan-
ced that Rumania before the
War, Industries in Canada oper-
ated at a higher technical level,
Were expanding faster and there
Was a steady expansion of basic
Industries, That was the case

Ore the war and the difference
Was such that there was scarcely
§round for direct comparison.

It is not true today, however.

_ During the very eight years
in which St. Laurent’s pro-U.S.
Bolicy has slowed down develop-
Ment of industries in-Canada to
Produce the means of produc-
tion, the Rumanian people have
transformed ‘the character of
their national economy by build-
ing industries to produce the
Means of production.

They are developing their
€cisive basic industries very
Quickly — overtaking the Cana-
dian economy. If we continue
to allow the sell-out of our
Country to the U.S., Romanian

ryt

Tim Buck, national leader of
the Labor-Progressive party,
addressing the second congress
of the Rumanian Workers party.

industry will be ahead of in-
dustrial development in Can-
ada within 10 years.

Consider one example of the
contrast: Canada and Rumania
each have valuable petroleum
resources. But in Canada the
machinery and equipment for
‘grilling wells, pumping the oil
and refining it, all comes from
the U.S. (all too often its oper-
ators come with it.)

In Rumania they are now pro-
ducing all that machinery and
equipment themselves, includ-
ing the most complex and, also,
seamless steel pipe.

It is an amazing example of
_what the working people can
do. Eight years ago no such
industries existed. Today they
are making everything from
drilling rigs to modern crack-
ing plants — even more, they are
exporting some of that mach-
inery to other countries.

Of course, the Rumanian peo-
ple could not have accomplish-
ed this remarkable feat without
assistance and, here again, the
contrast between their experi-
ence and ours is a challenge to
«The Yankee monopolists tell
us they must: bring machinery,

eborn

equipment and’ technical staffs
from the U.S. because ‘Cana-
dians don’t have the know-
how.” When they develop an
enterprise in Canada, be it a
mine, a paper mill, an auto-
mobile plant or a monopoly in
dustry, their first aim is to
keep it in the role of an appen-
dage to U.S. industry.

Take the Johns-Manville As-
bestos Company, or as it is now
called, the American Asbestos
Corporation in Canada. It takes
75 percent. of the capitalist
world’s supply of asbestos out
of Canada as raw material for
its manufacturing plants in the
U.S. To prevent the establish-
ment of a Canadian asbestos in-
dustry, it buys up all asbestos
deposits which looks promising
and leaves them undeveloped.

The asbestos industry illus-
trates the manner in which
virtually every dollar of U.S.
investment in Canada is used
to obstruct and, if possible pre-
vent the independent all-round
development of Canadian econ-
omy. U.S. capital in Canada
does not seek all-round develop-
ment for the achievement of
Canada’s independence; on the
contrary it strives to maintain
Canada’s+:dependence. That is
the capitalist way. \

The opposite to that is the
socialist way.

Rumania’s experience, com-
pared with the experience of
People’s China, appears relative-
ly small. But contrasted with
U.S. exploitation and subordin-
ation of Canada, it is striking.

The Soviet Union gave Roma-
nia machinery to get oil pro-
duction started again after the
war. In 1949 when production
was well underway, it supplied
Rumania with the machines and
equipment to produce everything
needed for the operation and
continued development of the
oil industry.

At that time it might have
been said that Rumanian work-
ers didn’t have the “know-how”.
But in contrast to U.S. use of

the statement to prevent Cana-_
dian development, the Soviet
industries invited the Rumanian
trade unions of the metal and
chemical industries to send
workers to the USSR to learn the
“know-how.” They overcame
the lack of training and experi-
ence instead of exploiting it.

The example of the oil indus-
try is paralleled by similar Sure enough, the nameplate
examples throughout Rumanian showed it was built in Bucharest.
economy. *

In this land where there was
no chemical industry to speak of,
the people are now producing
a great variety of products.
Among the products scheduled
for 1956 are varieties of nylon
and orlon.

suits. He was cutting 30 thick-
nesses of fabric for heavy spring
suits.

His machine appeared to be
efficient and convenient; eer-
tainly its controls were exem-
plary. I asked if it was a Soviet-
made machine. -

“No,” answered the supervisor,
‘it’s a Rumanian machine.”

For the benefit of those who
do not easily distinguish between
early examples of radical pro-
gress which illustrate the direc-
tion, and the ultimate consum-
mation of the progress, I must

point out that what I have
* written above does not mean that
all the problems of production
have been solved.

There are still shortages. A
number of things common in
a highly developed ‘consumer

I visited a clothing factory
the like of which does not exist
in Canada. In respect to work-
ing conditions such a factory is
not to be found in any capitalist
country. It is remarkable that
in this land where there was not
one modern clothing factory
eight years ago, they now have
such factories.

It is named in honor of
George Gheorghiu Dej, general
secretary of the Rumanian
Workers party; it employs 8,000
people, including designers. Its
products already have won
awards in international trade
fairs and in both regional and
national competitions in Ru-
mania.

I mentioned the fact that the
apologists for capitalism claim
that socialism destroys individ-
uality and reduces all clothing
to standardized designs that will
be almost uniforms. The manager
and the head designer laughed
—almost uproarously.

“Yes,” answered the manager,
“we've heard those fairy tales.
We won’t answer you now, we’ll
wait until you’ve seen some-
thing of our plant and our
method of developing style. Then
you should question us and be
as critical as possible.”

After I had been through part
of the plant we visited the show-
room. There was a great variety
of styles in every type of cloth-
ing. The only noticeable differ-
ence with a similar Canadian
showroom was the lack of “for-
mal” clothes.

Except for so-called evening

duced.

Many jobs are still being per-
formed by hand which will be
performed~ by _ electrically--
powered machines when the
consumer goods industries are
developed.

None of these things is sur-
, prising. On the contrary, it is
inevitable in the circumstances.

The near miracle that has
been accomplished is illustrated
by the fact that in some parts
of the country many of the
peasants were using wooden
ploughs less than 10 years ago.
Today Rumania is still in many
respects a land where the old
and new are interwoven.

Until 10 years ago agriculture
in Rumania was about the most
backward in Europe. It takes
time to modernize it.

Relatively few miles from big
modern industrial regions one

of oxen and generally working
with little change from the way
their fathers worked for the
landlord when Rumania was
occupied by the Turks.

The people are determined to
modernize their agriculture as
well as their industry, to raise
the standard of living in the
villages as well as in the cities—
and they are making rapid head-
way.

‘One delegate, a peasant woman
gowns .and extreme styles, from a village of 550 people,
women’s wear was as varied both pointed out in her speech on
in design and color as can be * the problems of collectivizing
seen in any big department store agriculture:

in Canada, and generally speak- “We peasants now are farm-
ing the designs were as smart ing better than ever before in
— which was true also of men’s the history of our country. Be-
wear. cause of that we are able to

When. we returned to the dress better, to take part in the
director’s office they explained public affairs of the village, to:
how they seek to replace the electrify our village, to lead a
spur of capitalist competition civilized life.”
in the design of clothing by local, There are some features of
regional and national fashion the old Rumania, however, that
shows every year in which the people don’t want to replace
2very visitor is urged to complete but only to improve. They are
in a great game df saying some- proud of their rich national cul-
thing about the models exhibited. ture — particularly rich because,
Substantial cash prizes are given along with the Rumanian nation,
for comments which contain there lives in this relatively
justified criticism or practical small land communities of
proposals, minorities of 15 other national-

I spent a few minutes watch- ities and a substantial Jewish
ing a cutter on men’s ready made community.

You can’t buy friends

HE Wall Street Journal.
wants to know why, de-
spite lavish dollar “aid,” the
U.S. is “increasingly lacking
in friends” abroad.

Its correspondent in Ath-
ens reports: “Precise figures
are hard to come by, but you
can figure that by this sum-
mer better than $1.8 billion
of postwar economic injec-
tions will have been made
here. That works out to
around $214 for every Greek
man, woman and child.

“Uncle Sam’s economic mis-
sionaries say no other land

on this continent has receiy-
ed as great assistance per
capita. And this doesn’t count
hundreds of millions in mili-
tary grants. on :

“But as for winning friends
and influencing people,” the
correspondent judges, “this
huge investment must be rat-
ed’ a dubious success. Today
the sentiment of the popu--
lace toward the U.S. govern-
ment ranges from mild ex-
asperation to violent opposi-
tion. Since Greece is the
southern anchor of America’s
military alliances, this fact is
important.”

goods industry ‘are not yet pro-

may see peasants driving teams”

FEBRUARY 10, 1956 — PACIFIC TRIBUNE — PAGE 9