By JOHN MacLENNAN

OTTAWA — Militant farm
Sate organizations from nine
Countries met here July 7-10 to
discuss ways to defend the family
farm. The conference, ‘‘Forging

Links’, sponsored by the.

Canadian Farm Survival Asso-
_ lation, U.S. Farmers’ Associa-
tion, and the North American
Farm Alliance, was held in the
Parliament. buildings. Present

m Canada were farm groups
from Saskatchewan, Manitoba,
Ontario and Quebec.

Around the theme ‘‘Forging the
Links”’, the delegates stressed the
heed to build coalitions with other
8roups and develop unity with the

Peace and trade union move-
Ments.

_ The role of financial institutions
and big agri-business in squeezing
almers were repeated again and
again by the farmers who are
forced to buy fertilizers and ma-
hinery at monopoly prices.

Allen Wilford, president of the
anadian Farmers’ Survival
Association, told delegates the
basis of unity of the CFSA was to
Stop foreclosures’ and to
Teceive a fair price for their com-
Modities’’. He said Canadian
armers make up three per cent of
Society and we can’t make it
alone.” We must build coalitions
With other groups struggling in
Canada, he stressed.
. Arie Van den Brand, a Dutch
‘atm. organizer, told delegates
cvery ‘minuté of every day one
armer in Europe is being forced
Off the land.’ Environmental
Questions were raised by French
and West German delegates.
Acid rain threatens 80 per cent
* the Black Forest,’’ a West
rman farmer reported.

Agricultural Minister Eugene
Whelan addressed the meeting
and told them Canadian farmers
had it good. He was followed by
CLC president Dennis McDer-
mott who responded by saying,
‘*‘We in Canada who know the
minister take everything he says
with a grain of salt.”

McDermott stressed the need 2
to build coalitions. “‘No one can 3f
go it alone anymore,”’ he said. He $
attacked the banks and reported =

the recent NDP convention advo-

cated nationalization of one of the

six Canadian chartered banks.
The threat of nuclear war and

the need to link farmers’ struggles 3 (ee &
with the growing peace move- = .

ment was raised repeatedly. En-
rico Baltie from the National
Union of Italian Farmers told the
conference that in Italy the slogan
is, ‘‘Before everything else —
peace.’’ This theme was repeated
by U.S. and Japanese delegates.
Delegates receive a support
message from the peace camp
protesting Cruise testing which
has occupied Parliament Hill for
87 days. Mark Richie, a U.S. de-
legate told this reporter, “‘It’s
quite natural that farmers, coming
from the land, would be con-
cerned about the threat of nuclear
war.” ies
- The conference agreed to at-
tempt to organize a north-south -
conference to include represen-
tatives from Central and Latin
America. John Elcich, CFSA
member and chairman of Wel-
land’s unemployed committee,
asked that ‘‘organizers consider
inviting representatives from
socialist countries.”” This was
supported by Richard Rattai of
the Manitoba chapter of the
Canadian Agricultural Movement
who said, ‘‘We should have con-
tact with farmers all over the

Bes

=

At the farmers conference (from |) Dennis McDermott, CLC President; and the two conference co-chairmen,

Allen Wilford, President, Canadian Farm Survival Association; and Merie Hansen, Chairman of the North

America Farm Alliance.

world and also get the results of
this conference into their hands.”

A steering committee was
selected to organize the con-
ference in 1984 or 1985.

Taking part in the workshops
were representative of the On-
tario Federation of Labor, Dun-
can MacDonald, and east coast
fishermen’s union representative
Kirby Nickeson. Workshop
resolutions were adopted on
commodity programs, impact of
U.S. price policies on the Third
World and equity of trade. Also
adopted were resolutions in sup-
port of Nicaragua, and the Japa-
nese farmers’ fight against land
expropriation for airport expan-
sion.

After a spirited debate, a mo-
tion to retain the Crow rate was
adopted with one vote opposed.

This was the first conference of
its kind where small farmers
gathered to discuss common
problems and experiences. Most
left satisfied with the results.

Canadian arms production
decried by labor council

Police erred in not
charging disruptors

TORONTO — The Metropolitan Toronto Police in a letter have
tacitly admitted they did not act properly at the May Day march and
rally held here this year.

The march by about 1,000 trade unionists and others was con-
tinually harassed and followed by a group of so-called Solidarnosc
supporters (mostly Trotskyist splitters) who demanded they be al-
lowed to participate in the march to celebrate International Workers
Day. = ’

Organizers of the May Day rally had informed police at the begin-
ning of the rally the Trotskyists group was not part of the demonstra-
tion and would the police ask them to vacate the area under city
by-law 42.

City by-law 42, section 5, states ‘‘When a permit has been issued to
any person, organization or group of persons for holding of a parade
orprocession, nootherorganization, grouporotherperson shallinterfere
with such parade or procession, by joining or taking part in it without the
permission of its organizers, or otherwise.”

After several letters between the Toronto May Day Committee and
the Toronto police, Staff Inspector R.J. Buchannan, in a letter dated
July 4, stated: ‘‘We will endeavour, in the future, to ensure that the
Parks and Parade by-laws are enforced and that persons who attempt
to disrupt groups who are conforming to the regulations by operating
under a proper permit are charged.”’

/

Children,
our hope
for future

TORONTO — Children, our

__ Attacking ‘‘the false assumption that arms
Production creates jobs,’’ organized labor in Metro
Oronto has called on the federal and Ontario
80Vernments to commit resources instead to
ROn-military goods.
The anti-arms-production position was con-
tained in a statement adopted July 7 by the Labor
Ouncil of Metro Toronto. It was in response to a
Tecent statement by Gordon Walker, former On-
© Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism
{tow provincial secretary for justice).
Walker had declared that his government should
©onsider assisting the arms industry as a way to
SOlve the job crisis, and that he would “‘go any-
here” for a deal.

‘The Canadian arms industry,’’ noted the labor
Council, ‘follows this motto totally.”’ That is why,
tt Continued, Canadian small arms and military

ts and ammunition are found ‘‘in the hands of
anti-democratic regimes in Latin America, the.
: iddle East, South Africa and other hot spots on

he globe. ee ;
b The people of Ontario do not want to contri-
_ ute to world strife. We want a world which will be
E € for us and our children. Safe not only from a
“hiaied holocaust, but also from the tyranny of
\ctators.
a. ror Canada to maintain its image as a country
t Peace, our leaders must refrain from making
Ndiculous statements like that of Gordon Walk-

&

er’s. Canada must also get out of the arms trade and
therefore concretely contribute to world peace.”’

On the ‘‘false assumption’’ that building arms
means jobs, the council statement cited com-
parative figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics to show that peace-time spending means
more jobs than spending for the military.

“The truth is,” stressed the statement, ‘‘that
arms production is capital intensive, inflationary
and produces goods which, once made, contribute
nothing to the economy.

“If the Canadian and Ontario governments are
really interested in reducing unemployment, they
would not be committing our resources to arms
production. Instead they would be developing
industrial policies to meet the needs of the Cana-
dian people and to produce non-military goods
needed around the world.”

The council agreed to ‘“‘continue its opposition to
increased arms production and support the
conversion to peaceful production of existing arms
industries,’’ and urged all trade unionists to take
part in peace demonstrations slated for Hiroshima
Day, Aug. 6, and Oct. 22, the International Day of
Disarmament.

In other business, the labor council condemned
the raids and harassment on the Morgentaler abor-
tion clinics in Toronto and Winnipeg, and reaf-
firmed council support for free-standing medical
clinics providing abortions fully covered by pro-
vincial medical plans.- ;

TORONTO — This city, the
first nuclear weapons-free city in
Canada, has declared July 23-29
as Arts For Peace Week. Mayor
Arthur Eggleton, in his proclama-
tion notes: ‘‘In this age of nuclear
technology, peace has become a
precious commodity. It is to be
strived for and treasured.”’

As part of peace week there will
be a Celebration of Life at Har-
bourfront, a park complex on the
shores of Lake Ontario. For two
days more than 100 artists will

‘sing, dance, act, play, storytelland

much more in a festival organized

by Arts For Peace. Performers —

will include dancer Karen Kain,
poet Gwen MacEwen and the To-
ronto Symphony Chamber
Players.

Arts For Peace is a national
organization dedicated to promot-
ing peace through the arts.

hope for the future, will lead off
the march, August 6, Hiroshima
Day, planned for this city. Many
will be dressed in their national
costumes and all children will be
able to make their own posters
and paper cranes, which sym-

“bolize the. fight against nuclear

war.

Marchers will be assembling at
Christie Pits and the Castle Frank
station at 11 a.m. and walk to
Queen’s Park.

The children’s activities are
being organized by the Inter-
national Children’s Day Commit-
tee. Anyone wishing to assist this
aspect of the rally should phone:
691-6775.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JULY 22, 1983—Page 5