A dependable comrade and fr

occasional fact, which in the capitalist media, are inter-'

Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, General Secretary of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union and President of
the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR died
Nov. 10 at the age of 75. Following four days of official
mourning, he was buried in Red Square Nov. 15 follow-
ing funeral services attended by statesmen and world
leaders from over 70 countries. Present also were lead-
ers from Communist and Workers’ parties from
around the world including William Kashtan, general
secretary of the Communist Party of Canada. Speaking
at the funeral services were newly-elected General Sec-
retary of the CPSU, Yuri Andropov and Soviet Defence
Minister Dmitri Ustinov.

TORONTO — At a memonal meeting honoring the
memory of Leonid Brezhnev, Soviet president and Com-
munist Party leader, Peter Boychuk, ideological director of
the Communist Party of Canada, spoke of Brezhnev’s con-
tribution to his country, to world peace, and to the
advancement of humankind.

Chairman of the November 14 meeting Mel Doig, mem-.
ber of the party Secretariat, called for two minutes’ silence
in respect for Brezhnev, and Zacharias Koukounaris sang
movingly the Hymn to a Fallen Comrade. Members of the
Central Executive of the CPC were present on the platform.

The following are excerpts from Boychuk’s remarks,
which were followed by the playing of the Soviet anthem
and the playing and singing of The Internationale.

‘Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev Was an outstanding communist
of our time. He was a comrade and dependable friend of all
those who were involved in building socialism in the coun-
tries where the working people had taken political power
into their own hands.

‘He was acomrade and dependable friend ofall those who
are striving to achieve the socialist transformation in their

countries, of the national liberation movement, of the work-
~ ing class in capitalist countries which is actively struggling
against being saddled with the burden of the economic crisis
| brought about by monopoly capitalism, of all the genuine

~ fighters against imperialism, of all the sincere forces fighting
for a world at peace.

“The Soviet Union and its Communist Party has been in
the forefront in maintaining peace in Europe and preventing
the fiashpoints in other parts of the world from erupting into

a world conflagration, into a nuclear war which could spell
~ the end of the human race.

Distinguished in Struggle

“The Soviet Union and its Communist Party, in the
course of their history have reared, developed and brought
forward great numbers of people who have distinguished
themselves in the struggle for peace, without which there
can be no thought of building a classless society. Comrade
_ Leonid Brezhnev was one such person.

‘*He not only reflected and gave expression to all that was
finest in the life of Soviet socialist society, he also con-
tributed much as an individual to further the cause of social-
ism, of communism. His name and his leadership of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union and of the Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics is indelibly associated with the
struggle for peace, for détente, for easing of international
tensions, for peaceful co-existence, for banning nuclear
weapons and other means of mass destruction. _

_Mass Media Treatment
‘The Canadian mass media treatment of the passing of

Leonid Brezhnev stretched from obscene journalism to

inability to decide on which lie to focus on, including the

The following message was sent by William Kashtan,
General Secretary of the Communist Party of Canada
on behalf of the Party’s Central Committee:

The untimely passing away of Comrade Leonid
Brezhnev, general secretary of the CC of the CPSU and
president of the presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the
USSR is a great loss not only for the peoples of the Soviet
Union and the Communist Party but for all progressive
mankind. Comrade Brezhney’s name is identified with
the cause of peace, the struggle for peaceful coexistence,
détente and the prevention of nuclear war.

A firm internationalist, a consistent upbolder of the
principles of Marxism-Leninism, defender and builder
of socialism these are tributes to an outstanding per-
sonality of our time.

We pay our deep respects to the Communist Party

‘ and to the people of the Soviet Union.

changeable.
‘*First it was the ‘power vacuum’, the ‘struggle for pow-
er’, ‘who was going to take over the mantle of Brezhnev’,

‘what to expect in a system where there is no organized.

transfer of power in case of death’ and on and on.

‘*Had they taken the trouble to read the Constitution of
the USSR, and the Constitution of the Communist Party of
the Soviet Union, or had the media published or quoted the
relevant parts of the two constitutions they could have
avoided making themselves look like utter fools.

‘*While all this drivel was being thought up. . . the leader-
ship of the CPSU was already meeting, as provided for by
the party constitution, to select the new general secretary.
The deputy chairman of the presidium of the Supreme
Soviet carried on as acting chairman until the regular or
special convocation of the Supreme Soviet elects a new
chairman.

‘‘Why, in the face of the well-known constitutional pro-
cedures, did the media persist in its distortion of facts?

Called on to Solve Problems

‘*When the USSR was formed in December 1922, its total
industrial production was just under 1% of the total world
industrial production. Yet, in spite of the terrible destruc-
tion and devastation caused by the Nazi invasion of 1941 —
lasting till 1945, the industrial production of the Soviet
Union is now over 20% of the world total. Since the rest of
the world did not stand still, and also advanced, it means the
industrial production of the Soviet Union had to increase
over 600 times in that period ....

‘‘In 1930 unemployment disappeared in the Soviet Union
never to appear again. That was the year Canada was deep
in its worst crisis with mass unemployment. More-than a
half century later capitalism is out to break the unemploy-
ment records of the ‘dirty thirties’. The reason the economy
of the USSR is taking a different direction from the Cana-
dian is, in no small measure, due to the direct influence of
Comrade Brezhnev. :

‘*Born into a family of steel workers, in Ukraine, he
showed early in his life a marked aptitude in industrial

production, organizational ability and the promotion of —

socialism. He was always at the service of the CPSU. After
active service during the entire war against the Nazi in-
vaders, he was called by the Central Committee of the
CPSU to direct the work of reconstruction in Ukraine,
especially in the steel industry, which now produces more
steel than any west European country. He was also as-
signed to Moldavia, at one period, to help overcome the
backwardness imposed upon it by the Romanian mon-
archical-landlord class. Today it is a thriving industrial-
agricultural Soviet republic with a high standard of life.
*‘Comrade Brezhnev was also assigned to Kazakhstan to
open up the virgin lands for grain production, which was a
major contribution to the solution of the Soviet Union’s

many agrarian problems.
* * *

‘‘Comrade Brezhnev never failed to state and restate that
the main role of détente is to regularize the relationships

between states with differing social $
course to war or military confrontatid
had nothing to do with curtailing the ml
dictions and class antagonisms Wi
countries.

Socialism Needs Ft

‘*This was in keeping with Lenin’
(1917) October Revolution that so
will exist, side by side, for many
goes socialist. Peace is indispensable
socialism and therefore in such a sill
countries must do all in their power!
co-existence ...

‘Comrade Brezhnev’s greatest con
of peace and socialism and for whic
capitalist class enemy, is that he alway
of the party, the great collective of co
nized leaders of the Soviet people.

‘The policy of. the CPSU, in its
always reflected and defended not ofl
Soviet Union and the socialist system
of the national liberation movement, #
ing-class movement, the movement”
against that policy is to be condemned!
kind. To fight for its realization is the&
an individual can make. é

‘“‘Comrade Brezhnev did it very W®
spects to him it has to be said that nog

- PACIFIC TRIBUNE—NOVEMBER 19, 1982—Page6 =

MOSCOW — ‘‘Our Party our people and
all progressive Mankind have suffered a
heavy loss,”’ said Yuri Andropov, General
Secretary of the Communist Party of the
Soviet Union, in paying tribute to the life and
work of former Soviet leader Leonid
Brezhnev at funeral services Nov. 15 on Red
Square. Andropov continued:

‘‘We are paying our last respects to Leonid
Ilyich Brezhnev, a glorious son of our home-
land, a firy Marxist-Leninist, an outstanding
leader of the Communist Party and the Soviet
state, a prominent leader of the international
Communist and working class movement, a
tireless fighter for peace and friendship
among peoples.

‘*‘Leonid Ilyich belonged to the group of
political leaders who grew up and were tem-
pered during the years of the Soviet peoples’
struggle to consolidate the gains of the Great
October Revolution, for building socialism in
our country and for its freedom and
independence.

-*‘A worker and soldier, an outstanding or-
ganizer and a wise political leader, Leonid
Brezhnev was flesh of the flesh and bone of

the bone of the people and was linked with
them by unbreakable bonds. All his life and
activities were subordinated to serving the
interests of the working people.

‘‘He devoted his great talent, all his tre-
mendous energy to the cause of building a
society of developed socialism — a society of
freedom and social justice, of the brother-
hood of working people.

‘‘Anextremely important period in the his-
tory of our Party and country was associated
with the activities of Leonid Brezhnev in the

highest position of authority in the Party and

the state. It was under his leadership that
Party policy, permeated with constant con-
cern for the .working man, for raising the
people’s welfare was worked out and con-
sistently translated into life. ...

“Leonid Brezhnev will always be re-
membered as an outstanding fighter for a last-
ing peace and for peaceful cooperation
among peoples. He consistently fought for
relaxation of international tensions, for
delivering Mankind from the threat of a nu-

clear war, for strengthening the cohesion of