Peace in
Vernon

Peter Drabiuk, secretary-treasurer,
Vernon World Disarmament Coalition,
writes: The Vernon World Disarmament
Coalition recently held a very successful
rally and parade on Nuclear Awareness
Day, Apr. 23. Our city council originally
denied our association a parade permit
but because of the tremendous protest in
the community from doctors, Reverend
Warren Bruleigh of the United Church,
the editor of the Vernon Daily News and

Protest —
hits Chile

consulate

In an unprecedented unity, Chileans
from several political parties and group-
ings picketed the consulate of Chile in
North Vancouver Tuesday in support of
the growing defiance in the country to the
fascist junta of Augusto Pinochet.

The 80 demonstrators, including

BRITISH COLUMBIA

CHILE DEMONSTRATORS . . . picket consulate.

freedom”’ on Mar. 24. More than 200 were
arrested, and 34 people were incarcerated

mee:

PRESSION

UNE PHOTO — DAN KEETON

Two people — 15-year-old Victo!
Rodrigues and 22-year-old Andres Fuentes

last year.
summer,

nuclear free zone. :
May Day in
Kootenays

at Burchbank was a huge success.

other events.

the rally.

peace, jobs and unemployment.

even bigger event next year.

many others, council held a special
meeting and decided to issue the permit.
Reverend Bruleigh was so incensed with
council he personally led the march from
the steps of the United Church to Polson
Park to protest the city’s attempt to stifle
the peace movement. This is the same
reactionary council that rejected our bid
to hold a referendum on disarmament

The Vernon Peace Council was in-
strumental in forming our coalition last

Our project for the future is to con- |
vince city council to declare Vernon a

Elmer Pontius, Trail, writes: A picnic
put on by the joint May Day Committee
in Trail and Castlegar and held this year

People from as far away as Nelson,
_.» }Slocan>-and®Fruityale came to_ hear
speeches and to-take part in sports and

Guest speaker Lyle Kristianson (NDP-
Kootenay) lashed out at the Liberals’
policy on cruise testing as well as their
policies on jobs and inflation. Former
Trail mayor Buddy Devito spoke on the
peace issue, noting particularly Reagan’s
war policy. Other speakers also addressed

The younger people were clearly the
majority at the picnic indicating that it is
not only the old fighters thinking of

The committee is looking ahead to an

representatives form other groups such as
the Canada-Palestine Association, march-
ed for an hour before several filed upstairs
to sing Chile’s national anthem outside the
consulate’s locked door at 1124 Lonsdale
Ave.

The demonstrations which followed
similar actions in Winnipeg, Toronto and
Montreal in response to the latest Chilean
government crackdown on the growing
resistance movement, was organized by the
umbrella group office of Solidarity with
Chile. .

Recent events in Chile have highlighted
the growing opposition to the junta.
Thousands of women, children and men

ding the right to jobs, justice, bread and

marched in several Chilean cities ‘‘deman- «

in the Pisagua concentration camp, said
the group in a statement.

Hundreds of May Day marchers in the
Chilean capital of Santiago were attacked
by “armed civilians” while uniformed
police stood by and watched, stated the
release.

More than 2,000 people were detained
and an estimated 1,000 arrested in the San-
tiago shantytowns of La Victoria and Joao
Goulart May 11 during a massive
demonstration organized by the Copper
workers Federation with the support of the
Democratic Workers Union, the National
Co-ordinator of Unions and the Con-
federation of Private Sector Workers, a
former supporter of the Pinochet regime.

were killed.

“Even landlords are involved in the
struggle against Pinochet,” said Nacso”
Espinoza at the consulate demonstration,
adding that there would be further actions
“this week’’ and possibly ‘‘every 15 dayS
in Chile.

The Office of Solidarity with Chile ®
asking supporters to send telegrams
demanding ‘‘the restoration of civil rights
in Chile to the external affairs minister
Ottawa, the United Nations Commissio®
on Human Rights (UN, New York 10017,
U.S.A.), the UN Mission on Chile (UN,

New York) and the Ministerio del Interior

Council has

Vancouver city council made history on
May 10 when it adopted ‘‘as the keystone of
amunicipal strategy for economic recovery”’
the statement Ethical Reflections on the
Economic Crisis issued by the Canadian
Conference of Catholic Bishops. I would
strongly urge every citizen to read and study
this document, copies of which should be
available at your local Catholic Church.

Naturally the Catholic bishops’ statement
aroused the anger of the big corporations
and the politicians who serve them, such as
prime minister Trudeau. And on city council
the bishops’ statement was subjected to wild
attacks by NPA and TEAM aldermen who
stupidly labelled it a communist attack on
free enterprise!

The next day Mike Tytherleigh (a political _

bed-fellow of president Reagan and other
assorted reactionary politicians) attacked

| Rankin

Harry

council’s action in The Province. First of all
he claimed that it was not a decision by coun-
cil but by the “‘leftists’” on council. Ap-
parently he doesn’t understand or respect
majority rule. Then, quoting the ultra-right
Fraser Institute, he proposes as his solution
to unemployment the abolition of the
minimum wage, so that young people can
work for $1.50an hour or less because that is
all they are worth!

But the yappings of the Tytherleighs and
the right wing propagandists of the Fraser
Institute cannot hide the fact that our

Edificio la Moneda, Santiago, Chile.

chosen bishops’ plan —

economic system has serious struct
defects. Even its rabid supporters admit the
between now and 1991, from one million!
two million Canadians will lose their J.
due to technological change and that the
no hope for them. And even if and when
present cyclical economic crisis ends (a
there are no convincing signs yet
recovery is on the way) economists
politicians both admit that high unemplo
ment (somewhere between 12 and 15
cent) will persist.

Yes, the Catholic bishops are right whe
they say that the number one problem fai
Canada is unemployment and thats?
pretty basic changes are needed in 0
economic and political system before 4 ©
can be found. The people of Canada
have to-take their future into their °
hands. They can’t leave it to the econom*"

the politicians or to big business. 4
pout g ;

ew people buy the Vancouver Province to get the
Piicaenonal commentary by columnist Iya Gerol
since they long ago learned as much insight on interna-
tional affairs — and veracity, for that matter — can be ob-
tained by reading the National Enquirer.

But many more people might be picking up copies of the —

paper this week to see just what Gerol writes on the Soviet
Peace Committee visit—after watching his antics at the
public meeting organized for the Soviet delegation at the
Plaza 500 hotel Monday night.

The ballroom at the hotel filled quickly with hundreds
of people who had presumably come to hear the Soviet
peace movement’s approach to disarmament. But there
were a few detractors, many of whom carried anti-Soviet
banners half-concealed under coats and shirts. It was clear
they had something planned, but those in charge of securi-
ty indulged them, although they did ask one Polish-
speaking disrupter, who was carrying some particularly
lethal-looking banner standards with pointed ends, to
leave them outside (he refused).

But it was Gerol who presented the most intriguing spec-
tacle as people entered the hall.

There he stood, leaning up against a pillar in the middle
of the ballroom. And as the disrupters cameinto theroom,
many of them went over to him, spoke to him briefly, and
then took a seat in the audience.

As the meeting got underway, Gerol went to the front
and sat down on the floor near the stage. é

Curiously enough, for one who purports to be a jour-
nalist, he took not a single note.

He was on his feet quickly enough however, when, at an
apparently pre-arranged moment following the Soviets’
brief opening address, those carrying the banners unfurled
them — including one just behind Gerol.

‘As we watched him, he made a beckoning motion with
his hand. And the two banner-carriers behind him then

'

2 See
PEOPLE AND ISSUES

proceeded to parade across the hall and behind the stage
holding-their banner up.

It was all over quickly and for the remainder of the
meeting, the few hecklers that were present were met in-
stantly with a chorus of ‘“‘shhhs’’ every time one opened his
mouth. But in the few minutes that it took to settle things
down, Gerol was already on his way out the door, obvious-
ly not interested in the lengthy question period that was to
follow.

The objective journalist at work.

* * *

T he charge widely voiced earlier this year that the

Employers’ Council of B.C. was the spiritual author

of the changes to the labor code contemplated by the

Socreds will have considerably more credence now that

James Matkin, the man who drafted most of the original

labor code in 1973, has been appointed president of the
Employers’ Council.

It was in his capacity as deputy minister of labor that
Matkin laid out the framework for the labor code and
presumably under his supervision that the various amend-
ments, which have steadily eroded trade union rights, have
been drafted and passed by the government. And even
after he became deputy minister of intergovernment af-
fairs in 1981, Matkin still reportedly had a hand in framing
Bennett’s restrictive wage control program.

In making the jump from the ‘‘non-political’’ role as
deputy minister, Matkin follows in the footsteps of
another deputy minister, Tex Enemark, who went fro
deputy minister for consumer and corporate affairs to the
presidency of the Mining Association of B.C. One of his
most recent tasks in that position was to launch an action

under the Combines Investigation Act against the Buildis#
Trades.

So it’s a little difficult to accept that under Matkin, (
anybody else) the Employers’ Council will retain }
“moderate” stance, as has been widely suggested. Aftel
all, at the same time that outgoing council president Bil
Hamilton was publicly urging caution on the issue of 3
changes to the labor code, the council was preparing a prié!
to the Socred government which called for sweeping re
sions to the code to curb union rights. That the brief W
intended to be confidential (but was leaked) gave it 2
ominous tone, suggesting that the council wanted to mall”
tain the public appearance of moderation while work
privately for more restrictions on labor.

The changes sought by the council, together with thos
proposed by the Construction Association of B.C. a
pretty clear indication of the hawkish approach dt
employers in this province. So is the current stall
adopted by the big forest and mining corporation at
bargaining table. i

That approach isn’t going to change—no matter who}
in the president’s chair.

*

* *
ast week’s coverage of the strike at the Missid#
L branch of the Fraser Valley Credit Union may ha¥,
left the impression that all nine members of the oust”
board of directors were responsible for the attempt to P™
vent a first contract for workers at the branch.

In fact, while the maneuverings of the board can be nelé
responsible for the four and a half month dispute, not
of the directors supported the majority’s union-bust!
tactics. One of those mentioned by namein our article, 1
estate agent Terry Gidda, opposed the board’s stand. |
When the old board was voted out of office at a speci?)
membership meeting, Gidda was among those elected (0
the new board, which favors settling the dispute.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MAY 20, 1983— Page 2

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