ALBERTA S LOUGHEED—
OILMEN'S BRIGHT HOPE

Premier Lougheed’s- new oil
pronouncements rest on a his-
tory of, first Social Credit and
then Tory, administering of
Alberta’s resources in the inter-
ests of giant U.S. oil monopo-
lies.

“There is a fuel crisis — but
not of supply,” points out Wil-
liam Tuomi, Alberta provincial
leader of the Communist Party
of Canada, in an in-depth art-
icle in the current issue of Com-
munist Viewpoint.

“Ts is a crisis,” he says, ‘“de-
liberately created by the Big
Five U.S.-centred | world-wide
corporations that dominate oil
resources and production in the
capitalist world. Because their
monopoly control of oil re-
sources is beginning to slip,
they hoist their crisis upon the
peoples of the United States
and Canada.”

The author points out that,
“Canadians are confronted by
one of two courses. Will Cana-
dian energy resourses, and in
the first place our crude oil and
natural gas, be pumped into
the U.S. for a quick buck for
the monopolies, or will these
resources be used as an ener-
gy base for the industrial expan-
sion of this country? Will the
ownership of Canadian energy
resources help assert the. econo-
mic and political, independence
of ‘Canada, or will they be
siphoned off?

“The stake in natural gas and
crude oil is a large one for Can-
ada,” the article explains. “One
estimate puts the potential sup-
ply of crude oil at 121 billion

Stu de at s get cold i

By ALLAN GUETTEL

OTTAWA — On Sept. 20 a
group of Chilean students arriv-
ed here to speak with the gov-

ernment, their statement read,
“who has welcomed us warmly
in the tradition of a truly demo-
cratic country, as was Chile.”

Accompanied by supporters, in-
cluding representatives from the
Latin American Working Group,
Canadian Peace Congress, Cana-
dians for a Democratic Chile,
University of Toronto and York
Us, and Canadians for a Demo-
cratic Spain, they brought sig-
natures of support from more
than 1,000 people from Toronto
campuses,

In Ottawa they found a cool
response to their concerns that
Canada: not recognize the junta,
offer asylum to Chilean refugees,
and push the United Nations to
form a committee to study vio-
lations in Chile of the UN Uni-
versal Declaration of Human
Rights.

An RCMP First

The group was greeted by an
RCMP order not to hand out
leaflets on Parliament Hill. The
Mounties invoked, it seems for
the first time, a little “known
section of the National Capital

Act which forbids selling materi-_

als and displaying placards (!)
and flags (!) on capital grounds
(it does not mention “‘leaflets’’).
Senator Eugene Forsey, better
known for constitutional knowl-
edge than progressive politics,
by chance passed by at this time
and was surprised and angered
that this section, previously un-
known to him, was invoked for

barrels and with the Athabasca
tar sands included, at 376 bil-
lion. Natural gas‘ potential is
placed at 735 trillion cubic feet
(a trillion is a million times a
million).” The article offers
other estimates of the supply in
terms of years.

Ninety-five percent of Cana-
da’s gas and oil come from the
Prairie provinces, with Alberta
supplying 80% of the whole of
Canada’s production. The writ-
er warns of the need for a na-
tional policy ‘to change the
basis on which development
takes place...” U.S. owners
of Canadian resources now dic-
tate a north-south flow. “Hydro
in B.C., oil and natural gas in
Alberta, potash in  Saskat-
chewan and hydro in Manitoba
are among examples of this.”

In his article, William Tuomi
calls provincial governments
“promoters” who “pave the
way for this kind of develop-
ment” serving the USA. “Cor-
porate pressures and their own
capitalist policies make them
willing instruments,” he says
“Western NDP provincial gov-
ernments have yet to show any
decisive action to prove that
they are breaking with the poli-
cies they inherited . . .”

The energy resources of the
Canadian west are in the hands
of corporations. “Gas and oil,”
the same article states, “is 80%
foreign-owned.

“Premier Lougheed, the only
Tory premier in the West,
flanked by three NDP provin-
cial governments, is the corpo-
rations’ logical choice for

1

this demonstration. ‘Everybody
else,” he argued with the Moun-
tie, “has passed out leaflets and
carried placards on _ the
grounds.”

Security photographers were
out in force and people were
photographed even as they met
with officials. Spokesmen for the
group feared that this was to in-
timidate the Chileans who are
in Canada on temporary student
visas.

Two Criteria

Conservative members who
met with the group expressed
some sympathy on the question
of asylum, but insisted it was

-right for Canada to recognize the

junta for, after all, Canada has
often shown independence in
dealing directly with unpopular
governments — Cuba and China
were the examples given.

David MacDonald, indicating
some disagreement in the Tory
caucus, said that in some cases
like this one, a government
should not be recognized.

Pierre Charpentier, Director
of External Affairs, Latin Ame-
rican Division, and a top aide
of Mitchell Sharp, explained
that there are two criteria for
recognition of a government:
that the government has effec-
tive control of the country, and
that it respect treaty obligations
with Canada. He said Canada
would recognize the junta and
it is contradictory to offer asy-
lum without recognition.

Canada has, he argued, no
offices in Latin America to deal
with refugees. Chileans who de-
sire admission to Canada would
have to apply, through normal

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1973—-PAGE 8

spokesman.” And his policies
bear examination.

Thirty of the largest corpora-
tions provide the government
with 95% of its royalty income,
and therefore must have con-
trolled 95% or more of the pro-
duction of oil.

“The government described
10 of these as ‘the larger opera-
tors in the province who are
associated with integrated in-
ternational companies’ — Stand-
ard Oil of New Jersey, Mobil
Oil, Texaco, Standard. of Cali-
fornia, etc., the ones known as
the ‘Seven Sisters’ in the Arab
world.”

Oil exports to USA were run-
ning at 214 million barrels a
year when Lougheed’s govern-
ment froze royalties at “16 2/3%
for the lifetime of all the pres-
ent leases; that for any new dis-
coveries of oil in the province,
the corporations were excused
from taxes and royalties for the
first five years; and that a re-
serve tax would be introduced.

Cheered Price Rise

“And while the government
couldn’t legislate it, it argued
strongly for an increase in the
price of crude. When Imperial
Oil announced an increase of
25 cents a barrel in the spring
of 1973, and led the whole in-
dustry to increase the price of
crude, the Alberta government
announced gleefully that the ‘in-
crease meant an additional $22
million in provincial revenues.
What they didn’t point out was
that the corporations got an
immediate increase of $110
million out of it, and consum-

channels at the Canadian em-
bassy in Santiago, then wait
three to six months.

He told the ‘delegation that
the situation in Chile “was not
critical,” and anyway, Canadian
embassies do not “have the tra-
dition” of giving asylum.

No Practical Steps

L. L. Lantos, a-Canadian, who
is the correspondent here for the
United Nations High Commis-
sion for Refugees, told the dele-
gation that Canada has opened
its doors three times before. In
1956 all immigration rules were
suspended for one month for
Hungarians. In 1968, seven Cana-
dian immigration offices were set
up on the Czechoslovak border.
And, last year officials were sent
to. Uganda. He explained that
Mitchell Sharp offered in prin-
ciple, to accept exiles who had
gone to Chile in the past from
other Latin American countries
(whom he said number about
6,000) but-no practical steps had
been taken.

The chairman of the House
Foreign Affairs committee, Jack
LaChance clarified that he “per-
sgnally’ opposed the coup but
told the delegation that Canada
should have nothing to do with
the “internal affairs’ of another
country. |

The group got the most sup-
port from the 11 members of the
NDP who met with them.

Andrew Brewin was surprised
to. hear of Charpentier’s state-
ments, and felt that Sharp’s ex-
pressed position in the House
implied broader assistance to re-
fugees. He sent a letter to Char-
pentier asking for clarification.

ers got a price hike...
“Premier Lougheed’s new oil
policy was a bonanza for the
corporations.” The article quotes
1972 net profits of $151 million
for Imperial, $79 million for

Shell, $28 million for Hudson .~

Bay Oil & Gas, $29 million for
Pacific ‘Petroleums, $64.4 mil-
lion for Gulf; and 1973 profits
are away up.

The article refers to Premier
Lougheed’s railing against the

“discrimination against the
West,” but “What he repre-
sents,” it charges, “is ‘that

element of. rivalry between the
new formation of capital in
Western Canada and the estab-
lished industrial capital of On-
tario.”
Independent Policy
“The challenge before Can-

Railworkers’ conventios|

@ Continued from page 5

end the railway - strike, and
charged that the government’s
action makes: ‘‘a farce of demo-
cracy . . . and denies to the
working people of Canada the
wealth. which they produce by
their labor.

“Strike-breaking and compul-
sory arbitration,” he said, “is a
threat to all. unions. It destroys
free collective bargaining. It
strikes at the very roots of trade
unionism. Those shackles must
be broken, even if it requires
mass refusals to obey the law.”
He then went on to make it
clear to the delegates that such
actions can only be successful
when real unity is achieved so
that all the workers are in sup-
port of the action.

Bring Workers Together

When the delegates began to
deal with policy resolutions an
emergency resolution submitted
by Local 216 in Toronto came to
the floor. In light of the emer-
gency resolution, a substitute
resolution was prepared by a
committee, stating: “Recent
events surrounding railway
negotiations have dramatized

‘the need for rail unity,” and it

resolved that “this convention
instruct the National Executive
Board to take whatever steps
are necessary to bring into the
ranks of this Brotherhood all
railway workers in Canada.”

In speaking to the question,
the Brotherhood’s national vice-
president, Don Nicholson point-
ed out that any actions would
have to be studied and moved
upon with care. He also said
that the CLC should help in the
process and that “the CLC
should put its money where its
mouth is’ and call together all
railway unions to discuss unity.

Rail Workers’ Councils

“Railway workers’ councils,”

Nicholson added, “should also

- of building up the industries

‘adian energy policy bas

ada,” the author quotes th
Communist Party statement
energy, “is to reverse the tH?

the USA with Canadian ot
sources, and embark instead"
a course which could transi a
Canada into a great indepem™ |
industrial state, pursuing 4” il
dependent foreign policy ie}
developing extensive and ™ 4)
ally satisfactory two-way.
with the socialist countries a
all other countries in the Way

“A fully ‘integrated 4 tf

m0"

public ownership under (ig
cratic control is essential yee
achievement of these aims or
to balanced economic isi
ment, job opportunities, ind
standards and Canadian ©
pendence.”

wy pyrite
play an important role in oy
ing about unity.” Earle it
convention, delegates V®
give that statement mo» Wy
when they agreed to 4 cat
tion that called for “the ot
dian Railway Labor at
tions to establish and ris i
Railway Workers’ Count the
all major centres acres {
country, so that policies tit?
ed by the CRLA at the 9 i
level may be applied m0
tively.” not
The resolution als gecll#
“that should the CRLA © cif
to take the initiative colt
lishing Railway Workers scutlt
cils, the National ar st
Board should take proP® » i
to ensure the creation gut”

councils . . . and that (oy ify
funds be allocated any yf

Brotherhood) to cover
per expenses incurreé
ing out worthwhile P
these councils.”
Struggle f
While many deleg ncy
happy with the emeree
solution, many expres
opinion that ne a
that the Brotherhoo®
present national leadershiP gt
capable of leading thé ~ mil |
for national rail um!
the unions.” “Ae
One disgruntled ‘4p ‘
frustrated with what consi a
many other delegates ic P i (
ed to be undemocrat Yee 3
dures imposed on them “ee,
convention chairmam
ord, the Brotherhoo™ |,
dent, said: ral
reach a stage of real 4 aves
ers’ unity it’s going Wg
come from the ia ae
going to have to ont in |
cratic process and We wae
it from. the kind © oneal
displayed at this : aie
The establishment | "
worker’s councils 35 55
portant now than eve

cojed? i |