Vancouver, British Columbia, Soetoro 18, 1953 SEO EER PIES Oe Le: ‘$ <>* PRICE TEN CENTS Don’t let 4 doi 8s fp enant appeal to all moth- Sova, Prevent the provincial chijgcment from king the ang 8 of arrested Doukhobors domes cing them in foster Tribune Was sent to the Pacific Lobe mn this week by five Douk- ing fistyee’® along with a moy- bow s and account describing Oakalla babies died in 1932 at ‘others Tison Farm where their line * Were imprisoned at that Th tere death of the babies is re- Doth in the Report of the dertake, Research Committee Bo a €n at the request of the lst yeg, tment and publistied a “eport outlines how ar- ahq Sia, Sukhobor men, women Mites ty, began in 1929, and ‘tome at “by the end of the Of 1932 the provincial Yop e i ‘ Stuy ttling of the Doukho- wt of that & Shocking indict- che 8a, Lp Sovernment,” Nigel aed in Provincial leader, “lic y.| & Statement to the The i Une this week. “edu lation of normal trial i rildven’ the forcible seizure 0 are but innocent Sine SUch. ay Circumstance and tea to het itrary action is not " ngly -P in solving an ex- tg Poblem wicult and complicat- hs Can’. He said. “Such ae- weg of wy serve to fan the rouble Mtolerance, distrust them take °ur children away’ authorities found themselves re- sponsible for 365 Doukhobor chil- dren whose parents had been committed to prison.” The children were placed in private foster homes and orphan- ages, but seven breast-fed infants “were allowed to remain at the prison.” Three of these babies died ‘‘of gastro-enteritis;” says the Report. The Sons of Freedom made world-wide appeals for relief from cruelty, and investigations had to be undertaken. Oakalla of- ficials claimed the babies ‘‘were a sickly group” on arrival and “were -suffering from colds and gastro-enteritis.” (For ,the Doukhobor women’s own story of what happened at Oakalla leading up to the death of the children, see full. text of their appeal on page 6.) “What right have the RCMP to bring those accused to Burna- by to face the charges, away from their families, friends, ad- visors and those who might post bail? This unusual and danger- ous precedent, which might well be used against the labor move- ment during times of strike, must not be allowed to pass un- answered. “By what right has the govern- ment seized and removed from their homes, relatives and com- munities the children’ of those accused even before they had been charged, let alone tried and ‘ LAND STEAL BEHIND JA ‘\ LING OF AS By BERT WHYTE Behind the arrest and jailing of 144 Doukhobors and the placing of their 104 children in detention home last week, lies a plot to steal millions of dollars worth of Doukhobor land, homes and buildings in the Slocan Valley.: If the praposal of the vigilante “Slocan Valley Citizens’ Committee’’ is accept: ed by the provincial government, farms worked by the Doukhobors since they first came to B.C. before the First World War. would be seized and resold to ‘‘veterans’’ and P condemns government for ‘hdling of Doukhobor situation found guilty. Such presump- tuous, arbitrary action is a com- plete violation of humanity and | justice. “Why hasn't the Bennett gov- ernment taken steps to resolve the basic injustices out of which the present intolerable and un- fortunate situation has arisen?” Morgan announced that the Labor- Progressive party was sending a strongly-worded protest to the government demanding justice for those accused of vi- olating the laws of the province and an end to the criminal treat- ment of jnnocent children. the Sons of Freedom (a Doukhobor sect numbering some 3,000) would “‘not be allowed into the Kootenays again.” The land in question now “‘belongs’’ to the provincial government as a result of a previous bare-faced steal car- ried out against the Doukhobors in 1938. The Doukhobors have never acknowledged the legality of the action taken by the provincial government of that day, and they have good legal grounds for their stand. Briefly, here is the story of the 1938 land steal: By 1914 the Christian Community of Universal Brotherhood, under the leadership of Peter Vasilivich Veregin had bought 14,403 acres of land in the West Kootenays. It was unsettled land, but the thrifty, hard- working. Doukhobors built roads, bridges, sawmills, con- crete reservoirs and irrigation facilities, planted thousands of fruit trees and opened a jam factory. The community expanded and prospered during the Continued on page 7 — See DOUKHOBORS stiles na unease eat oom, i) ay rer ” bs Ui in al Ula SAKES TEPER TE A an P a ia il omreerens ide mT “y rir i lel laid tat ml & ar Peres ry