COMPLICITY WITH U.S. CHARGED Canada’s role in Vietnam condemned in open letter An open letter to Parliament and the Canadian government this week accus- ed Ottawa of “‘complicity” with the United States in the ‘‘cruel tragedy of Viet- nam.” The letter, signed by faculty members from six universities and a large number of prominent Canadians in the educational and students field called for “an immediate and full debate in Parliament in order that Canada may move be- yond the limitations of our curfent actions and contribute to peace in Vietnam.” VOL 27, NO. 9 President Nkrumah and his Egyptian-born Huge gas wife, Fathie, ere shown here sellout must be blocked __ Details were released Tues- day of a mammoth sellout of B,C,’s natural gas resources to the U.S, Westcoast Transmission Co,, headed by Frank McMahon, ‘who announced that a deal had been arranged under which 600 Million cubic feet of gas per day will flow into the U.S, Northwest. PRIME MINISTER WILSON, shown Gbove outside 10 Downing Street shortly after he announced the British Seneral election for March 31. John : British Communist Party leader, seid the elections should be turned into © nation-wide demand for « new Policy for Britain.” B.C.'s sold to the El Paso Natural Gas Coa,, which will have an option to purchase an additional $00 million eubic feet a day over and above the 600 mifiion, This con- tract, which will run for 25 years, is a major victory. for U.S. fi- nancial interests and a further serious blow to the future of B.C, and Canada. The deal marks a giant step towards further integration of Canada’s economy with the U.S, and would give U.S. monopolies a strong grip over B,C,’s econo- my. Natural gas jsone of nature’s - most versatile gifts and has long been considered as the possible basis for a giant petro- chemical industry in B,C, The deal also means that B.C.’s gas is now ear- marked for the U.S, market and not the Prairies and Eastern Canada, The sellout deal must still be approved by the National Energy Board in Ottawa, Canadians should demand that the Board hold up any decision until public hearings have been held across Canada and particularly in B.C, The NDP should be urged topro- test this sellout in Parliament, The lengthy open letter traces the history of Canada’s partin the Vietnam conflict and chargés that *Canade’s government has pub- Nely echoed the American in- terpretation of events in Vietmam, and continues to voice support of her military actions there.” _ The oper letter is the main document around which a large demonstration of students and faculty members is taking place on Parliament Hill this week. A 28-hour vigil will be- posted around the Parliament buildings during the week and a large teach-in will be held in Ottawa at which Yale professor Staugh- ton Lynd will speak, “The war in Vietnam presents the Canadian people and Parlia- ment with a crisis of growing magnitude, Canada is involved in, this crisis because we share the North American continent with the US. E that country is to be involved in a-long.and large war in Asia, we will be increasingly implicated. “We are politically involved in ‘that war because ofour member- ship in the ICC created by the Geneva Conference . . . Our growing failure from 1955 to act with impartiality and vigor on that Commission has contributed to the escalation of the war,” says the opening lines of the letter. : The letter says that because of “our conduct on the ICC, Can- ada must take somie-responsi- bility for the war tn Vietnam, Canada has not earried out the duties inherent in membership on the Commission”, The letter Hsts the major vio- lattons of the Geneva Agreement hs SOVIET PAVILION. Here is a mode! of the Soviet building at the Expo 67 World Fair in Montreal. It will be one of on whieh Canada failed as a member of the ICC to carry out its commitments, Included among these was the failure by Canada to insist on the elections to unite North and South Vietnam which was provided for in the Agree- ment; not to protest the Diem governmeni’s declared aim to oppose the elections and prevent reunification, Tt also accuses Canada of fail- ing to act when in 1961-62 the U.S. increased its military aid to’ Saigon and created a “de facto military alliance” in violation of the Agreement, Nor, charges the letter, did Canada reportthe U,S, military build-up which it could have done as a member of the Icc, The letter urges Canada to “publicly call for an immediate end to the U.S, bombing of North Vietnam” and to also call “on the U.S. government to end its scorched earth policy in South Vietnam, its poisoning of crops and its saturation napalm bomb-= ing of civilian targets.” Some other proposals contain- ed in the letter urge the gov- ernment to: e Withdraw permission for Ca- nadian firms to export any arms or materials, such as Caribou aircraft, helicopter parts and electronic equipment to the U.S, or other countries to be used in the war in Vietnam. e Publicly support Secretary General Thant’s call for recoge nition of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam as a full participant in any negotiations to settle the war. @ Publicly declare support for the principles of the 1954 Geneva Agreement as providing the basts for a true peace in Vietnam: these include the withdrawal of ali foreign troops and bases, and supervised free elections to lead to the reunification of Vietnam, See OPEN LETTER, pg. 3 Vietnam protests set for March 26 Huge protests against the war in Vietnam are shaping up for March 26 which have been called for by U.S. peace groups as a Day of International Pro- test. : Last week a conference in Toronto attended by about 1,000 persons, decided to organize a march on Ottawa on March 25-26 to protest the Vietnam war. In Vancouver many peace groups met Monday night to lay plans for a giant parade on March 26 through city streets, which will culminate with a mass raily. Details of the parade will be announced Uy the most expensive pavilions at the exhibitien, being ex- ceeded only by the Canadien pavilion.