WORLD ee Nicaragua begins | Leaving Reagan’s so-called peace , plan in the dust last week, the pres- idents of the five Central American States, meeting at the National Palace in Guatemala City, reached what they described as “an historic compromise” which calls for the achievement of a regional cease- fire within 90 days. Called the “Arias plan” after Costa Rica’s President Oscar Aras Sanchez who proposed it, the other signator states are Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador. Reagan, whose contra funding runs out at the end of September, had once again offered his plan which included the unacceptable demand that the Sandinista gov- ernment negotiate with contras. This prompted Nicaragua’s Presi- dent Daniel Ortega to comment: “We will talk to Reagan, the owner of the circus, not to the clowns...” U.S. critics of Reagan’s ploy note that the White House drags out its tattered and unacceptable “peace proposal” each time it plans to ask Congress for further contra funding — this time esti- mated at $150-million for the com- ing fiscal year. Reagan’s bellicose speech August 12 on national tele- vision and radio pledging con- tinued full backing for the contras, only strengthens this view. The next weeks are critical. Given a chance, political and diplomatic moves by _ regional governments, free from U.S. pres- sure and interference and its sup- port for the contra war, could lead to steps toward peace and stability in Central America. By contrast, Washington shows every sign of doing all possible to sink the Arias plan and press on with the contra war, with its ulti- In Guatemala City, Presidents Ortega, Duarte, Cerezo, Azcona and Arias confer on the peace plan. mate aim of overthrowing the Sandinista government. The Tribune spoke with Paster Valle-Garay, Consul General of Nicaragua in Toronto, for his government’s assessment: “The Reagan plan was an ultimatum,” Valle-Garay said. “He was telling Nicaragua “do as we say or we'll hit you again with renewed contra funding.’ “The Arias plan, with its faults, is at least a plan worked out and accepted by all Central American nations, despite our political dif- ferences. It should be a clear mes- sage to Washington and to the world that the Central American peoples who are the most affected, can solve Central American differ- ences. ‘The fact that the Reagan plan was rejected for discussion by these governments meeting in Guatemala should be a message to Reagan to stop interfering in Central American affairs. If he in- deed wants peace in the region, he ought to proceed with bilateral talks with Nicaragua and with the other states involved. “Tf the U.S. rejects talks, then it is obvious to peoples of both Central America, the U.S. and the international community that his so-called plan was nothing but a ploy for more contra money.” Valle-Garay noted _ that Reagan’s Aug. 12 television speech has made it clear he in- tends to press the contra war. *‘It is a message to us and all Central America that the Reagan admin- istration, despite its public words plementing Arias’ plan of support for peace in the region, intends to continue to wage war against Nicaragua. It presents us with a challenge: on the one hand, the. Central American states themselves work out political and diplomatic solutions and on the other we see our efforts being en- dangered by pressure from out- side, namely Washington. ‘Nicaragua, for example, has begun implementing the terms of the Arias plan. We have already held meetings with the legitimate opposition parties inside the country and with the head of the Catholic Church in Nicaragua. And if we see that the U.S. stops funding the contra war and condi- tions for peace are possible, we will have no reasons to maintain emergency measures such as press censorship, etc., brought about by wartime conditions: — ‘Nicaragua has shown enor ous good faith and goodwill ward the Arias agreement by, within days of signing it, be ning to implement the plan’s terms. We have also. publicl urged the U.S. to stop funding the contras, a key ingredient if plan is to have a chance. < ‘‘Reagan’s latest speech makes it clear his war of attrition will 2 on. But it’s also clear he has 8° broken the will and spirit of 0” people. In fact, you should kno that the former astronomical at flation rates in Nicaragua © beginning to drop. Latest repo show more goods in the shops dropping prices. We should n° begin to see a reversal of | economic hardships imposed ] | us by this criminal war.”’ | INTERNATIONAL FOCUS Tom Morris SDI, Sanity and Science et. About 12,000 of Balancing off sick minds like Edward Teller’s who thinks Star Wars is science’s gift to humanity and nuclear war isn’t all that bad, are other scientists who have not forgotten they, too, belong to the human race, and they too, live on this plan- them world-wide are boycotting Star Wars research. They include 21 Nobel laureates in chemis- try and physics. About 7,000 U.S. scientists, 3,000 in Japan and 1,000 in Britain are among those who have signed a pledge not to take part in any SDI-re- lated work. ‘‘An unprecedented re- sponse to a military program’, is how John Kogut of the Uni- versity of Illinois, a boycott leader, describes it in an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association. *‘It’s im- POSTER: Yutaka Haswgawa, Japan. 6 e PACIFIC TRIBUNE, AUGUST 19, 1987 portant that the SDI program not reach a ‘critical mass’, above which it will assume a life of its own regardless of its feasibility’, says Kogut. Reagan has earmarked some $26-billion to this pet project, doling out cash to the many big-name colleges in the U.S. and abroad in a crass effort to win SDI support. The refusal by these scientists to take part is a brave and principled ac- tion, taken often at great financial and career peril. But, like such groups as Physicians for Nuclear Re- sponsibility and other profes- sionals, these scientists have taken a lead in the fight against the madness of mass annihila- tion so diligently persued by many “Ol: their-s-lesser colleagues. Enter South Korea’s workers The drive to democracy is inexorable. Months of massive protests in South Korea have begun to crack the dictatorial regime’s stranglehold on the levers of state power. The simple con- cept that the people should elect = their leaders has become unstoppable. But there are the economic levers. And now South Kore- a’s workers are in the streets demanding the right to unionize. My God, the bosses, their politicians and their Western backers might well ask: What next? A South Korean autowor- kers makes $2.50 an hour, yet the automakers of that country pocket billions. Unions are il- legal. Seoul had a $7.6-billion trade surplus with the U.S. last year; its total exports jumped 37 per cent in the first four months of 1987 over 1986. The Hyundai Excel, selling 168,000 Hyundai worker: creating billions, ear units in the U.S. in 1987, broke — all records. But a South Korean auto- worker earns $2.50 (which !S double the average wage 11 that country). The profits are — incredible! ; None of this is lost on Rea gan’s ambassador to South Korea, James Riley, who say he regards South Korea’s na tional security more important than democratic reforms. The Americans are no fools: they have 40,000 troops there t0 keep the ‘‘economic miracle, built on South Korean blood and sweat, safe from democ- racy. ae ning peanuts. pe ee ee ee eS But that, too, shall pass.