'
|

A feature of the new place labor has gained in the national life
of Euope’s new democracies is the equal voice with management |
it has been given in many industries. Above, workers discuss some
of their production problems.

Contradictions within
the Labor Party

ee Labor government as at present constituted re-
jects the idea of measures which will strike at the
foundations of capitalism. Instead, it chooses the policy
of buttressing the general structure of British capitalism
by state action while finance-capitalist interests are assured
by its representatives that, even if all it plans are imple-
mented, “eighty percent of British industry will remain
under private ownership.” It is striving to maintain as
much as possible of the old imperialist power and _ its
colonial monopoly by becoming a junior partner of United
States imperialism. In the United Nations it stands con-
sistently with United States imperialism against the new
democracies and the USSR.

It is because of the contrast between the aspirations
of the millions who voted for the Labor Party in July,
1945, and the policies the government is pursuing that
revolt is simmering in the ranks of the Parliamentary La-
bor Party and among the government’s supporters through-
out the country.

How wide this dissatisfaction is, was emphasized to
me by a personal experience. Taking a weekend off to
visit my native ‘bailiwick in East Anglia I visited my
closest boyhood chum, Bert Alexander, in Bungay, Suffolk.

Bert has been an ardent supporter of the Labor Party
throughout the past 27 years. He has contested elections
as a Labor Party candidate. He had scarcely finished
shaking hands and introducing me to his wife before he
was launched upon a serious and extremely well informed
criticism of the basic orientation of the Labor government.
His position is that by placing its dependence upon in-
creasing cooperation with United States finance-capital, the
Labor government may succeed in protecting the interests
of British investors but only at the expense of British
workers. :

“What’s the use,” he asked, “of working our heads off
and foregoing necessary wage increases if the only result
of success will be’ to strengthen the capitalist interests,
which we thought were going to be abolished, at the ex-
pense of the workers, who we thought were going to
have all the advantages under the labor government?”
Bert’s attitude is not at all unusual, even in Bungay.

—An excerpt from Europe’s Rebirth by Tim Buck.

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FRIDAY, JUNE 27, 1947

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Natives want

By ROBERT LAXER

Cee 98 of the Indian
¥ Act defines a person as “an
individual other than an In-
dian.” In this six word
phrase is embodied for the
‘Six Nations’ Indians, the In-
dians represented by the, Na-
tive Brotherhood of B.C. and
other tribes the second class
citizenship to which they are
reduced. Against this  inhu-
manity 120,000 Indian Canad-
ians are gradually uniting as
they turn to the democratic
movement for support. Their
demand is equality of eco-
nomic, social and political
rights.

Take the story of the Six
Nations Indians. For decades,
they have been struggling for
survival on the shores of Lake
Erie through 160 years. of
North American wars, through
Confederation and the indus-
trial revolution.

Their story was unfolded to
me by Mrs. Alma Greene, an
Indian woman of Oshweken,
Ontario. She calls it ‘The Red
Man’s Appeal for Justice’

A. delegation from these
proud and honorable people re-
cently went to Ottawa. Their
appeal was neatly filed away
in the records of the Joint

Parliamentary Committee on
Indian Affairs.

When they were needed by
the British in 1779 in their
fight against the Americans,
these Native Indian people
were promised territory in per-
petuity.

Several years later, Governor
Haldimand, on behalf of the
King, delivered to Brant the
Indian chief a document “in-
viting him and his followers
to settle on those lands, des-
cribing them as a safe retreat,
under the protection of the
King, for his faithful allies and
to be enjoyed by them and
their posterity forever,’ Mrs.
Greene explains, They “were
settled on the Grand River,
running into Lake Erie, on
territory six miles on either
side of the river. This docu-
ment is known as the ‘Haldi-
mand Deed.’

Cs)

HIE. ‘Red Man’s Appeal for

Justice’ is a demand for the
abolition of the Indian Act,
passed 85 years later in 1869
by ‘the Dominion government.-

Mrs. Greene tells of one
breach of the Haldimand agree-
ment after another. One arose
out of the million dollar trust
fund’ which was set up after
the sale by the ‘Six Nations’
of part gf their land.

conveni-

“British officials ae
ently assuming an unlimite
and

right of guardianship
therefore dispensing with Aue
proval of the Grand_ River
people took from the Trust
Fund of the latter in 1835, the
sum of $150,000 and invested
it in a canal enterprise under
taken under Canadian patron-
age,” Mrs. Greene recalled.

“Every dollar of it was lost
and the loss has never been
made good.” A hundred yea
battle to retrieve this money
from the British and Canadian
governments has been fruit-
less. wey

There have been many COB

ferences between coptonsy
tives of the Dominion and

Six Nations.

“To avoid surrender of home
rule, the Grand River Six Na
tion Council stood ready to ee
cept an offer of the Canadian
Governntent to ‘refer that dis
pute to arbitration,” the Indian

spokesman explained. “while

rie 2 : in
negotiation over details was :

progress the Dominon Gov-
ernment raided the Grand aie
er Six Nations Country with
mounted police and a company
of rifles under arms and beat
ing numerous old processes
taken from their pigeon holes.

EXTHIBInONFORUM

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