March 8 marks the 7Ist an-
Niversary of International Wo-
men’s Day. The Canadian Labor
Congress has recommended that
this year’s emphasis be on child
Care services and is calling on all
its affiliates to mark the day. The
CLC wants child care recognized
a8 a social right made available
through public funding.

The Congress of Canadian
Women is celebrating the event
under the United Nation’s theme
of Equality, Development and
Peace. In Toronto the CCW has
again this year. sent jetters to all

Mayors and councils in the area Five men were arrested in Toronto early

enc i on Sunday, Feb. 15, when caught spray-
raamns them to endome ee ing Ku Klux Kian and “white power”

messages at two locations Deaton
: . Another group using green cha -
celebrations and demonstrations 4,064 the Peaiesoe surrounding the

Id seperately and jointly by building site of 24 Cecil St. (photo) They
several women’s groups and grew swastikas and made the threat:
“Communists must die”. Police have

The CCW’s will be held March beenasked by the building committee to
8, at 585 Cranbrooke, beginning conduct 24-hour surveillance of the site,
which. was burned to the ground by

Proclamation of Women’s Week.
The week will be marked by

trade unions.

at 1:30 p.m.

| and the constitution. :

arsonists last June 24. However, they
expected to be told first who was re-
sponsible for the slogans. The commit-
tee said it could not help but compare
the 150-police raid on downtown bath
houses with the inability to watch a
building which had been attacked on
occasions before it was burned. “We
are taking every precaution,’ said
committee chairman Oscar Kogan, “the
building is now being watched 24

~ hours a day.”

Manitoba party gears all to elections

‘Moderation’ wins at NDP meet

pecial to the Tribune
WINNIPEG — The focus of this year’s Manitoba
New Democratic Party convention was on gearing up
the party in anticipation of an early provincial election.

Bolstered by an increase in membership and improved ~

financial position, the delegates displayed an air of
Confidence in being able to defeat the Lyon Tory
government and once more return the NDP to power in
Manitoba.

With only few exceptions contentious’ issues were

avoided and inner party differences, characteristic of
. Previous conventions, were suppressed. The appeal

from the leadership to the 800 delegates, time and time

again, was not to stir things up, not to take too radical
’ Positions which could play into the hands of the Tories.

The emphasis was on party organization at the consti-
tuency level and on ‘‘moderate”’ policies which could
appeal to the broadest strata of electors.

Only two issues aroused heated discussion, both
Tefiecting pressures from organized labor. The previous
two conventions, after bitter debate, had gone on record

_ 48 favoring anti-scab legislation which would ban all
hiring during strikes. The NDP caucus in the legislature

d refused to go along with the convention decision and
pe still in power didn’t introduce the necessary legis-

ion. ;

An attempt was made this year to water down a similar
Tesolution by restricting it to the hiring of professional
strike-breakers. In the words of former cabinet minister,

Uskiw, it would be ‘‘political suicide’’ for the NDP
to call for all-embracing anti-scab legislation. However,
the delegates approved the original resolution by a good
majority.

Plant Closures

The. second hot issue concerned plant closures and
Centred around a resolution, requiring companies with
More than 12 employees to give one year’s notice before
laying off workers. References were made to the shut-

down of Maple Leaf Mills’ operation in Winnipeg which -

Tesulted in 200 workers losing their jobs. Delegates call-
€d for government action to keep the flour mill open for
at least one year. Pe
Opposition to the resolutions came from those who
Opposed government intervention or take-overs and
'€Ven included the argument that if companies were to be
Compelled to give a year’s notice before closing down,
Ay employees should be obliged to give a year's notice
Ore leaving the job.
While the original resolution was passed, although
Watered down witi. respect to severance pay, the debate
Tevealed once again sharp differences within the party on

labor policy and fears among the right wing that too close
identification with the trade union movement would lose
the party votes at the polls.

This was borne out by Howard Pawley, Manitoba
NDP leader, who refused to commit the party caucus or
a future NDP government to the labor policy resolutions.

Most of the resolutions passed were routine in charac-
ter, beamed to the anticipated election. They included
the further development of the province’s hydro poten-
tial and ‘‘use of all energy forms in an integrated way”’
but said nothing about bringing all energy resources
under public ownership; postponing indefinitely the de-
velopment of nuclear energy production in Manitoba;
further development of daycare programs and a Daycare
Act setting and enforcing standards of operation; a
minimum income level for all residents to meet basic
needs; privately owned personal care homes to become
publicly owned and operated on a non-profit basis; op-
position to the Garrison Dam project; an affirmative.
action program for women and minorities; and opposi-
tion to ‘‘Plant Breeders Rights’’ which would leave the
field of public crop and seed research to the multi-
national seed and. chemical corporations.

No Constitution Debate

Onthe major issue of economic development for Man-
itoba, a province with a narrow industrial base, the com-
posite resolution adopted by the convention spoke in
only vague terms to the ‘‘expansion of industry and
technical research capability; planning of, and participa-
tion in, a balanced public investment program in which

the public sector would take a more active role in invest- -

ing in selected economic opportunities.”

There was no discussion on the constitution debate or
on matters relating to Canada’s foreign policy, the threat
of nuclear war, disarmament, etc. The sole exception
was the passing of a resolution condemning the mass
murder and political repression in E] Salvador and call-
ing on the Canadian Government to take a public posi-
tion against continued U.S. intervention.

An emergency resolution on Chile never reached the
floor.

Howard Pawley was re-elected NDP leader with no
opposition. There were no contests for the table officers,
and the official slate for executive members at large was
overwhelmingly endorsed.

It appeared that everything was subordinated at the
convention to the need to paper over differences and
emerge with a ‘‘moderate’’ program for the anticipated
provincial election. With the party machine evidently in
full control, the NDP ‘“‘left’’ was barely noticeable.

| and the right of economic opportunity

Women’s meet
on constitution
takes narrow
view on issue

OTTAWA — It was asurprise even to confer-
ence organizers when over 1,000 women from

every province and territory in the country con-
verged here, Feb. 13-14 for a conference on women

The hastily called meeting was thrown together
in less than three weeks by an ad hoc committee of
various women’s groups. They acted after the Ad-
visory Cquncil on the Status of Women voted
January 20 to postpone their conference scheduled
for the same dates. Controversy surrounded the
decision with the resignation of the council presi-
dent and accusations being levelled that Lloyd
Axworthy, minister responsible for the status of
women, pressured the council to postpone its
meeting because it would be embarrassing to the
‘government.

_ Nan McDonald, director of work among women
for the Communist Party, attended the conference.
She called the geographical breadth and numbers a
victory for women. With no funding the organizers
had expected only 250 delegates.

It was understandable why the Liberals pres-
sured to have the conference postponed, she
charged. They were right when they felt it would
embarrass their government. Women at this con-
ference were striving to protect their rights and it
became painfully obvious that the Liberal pro-
posals didn’t do this.

The Tories made several attempts to gain by this,
said McDonald. The *‘Tory feminist’’ Laura Sabia
tried to inject her party’s position to bring the BNA
Act to Canada unamended, but there was no over-
whelming support for the Tories.

However there were some weaknesses at the
conference, McDonald noted. Representation
from the labor movement was sadly lacking. The
Canadian Labor Congress sent only one delegate
and she made no public contribution to the discus-
sions. The panelists were comprised of lawyers
and professors of law who concentrated on the
legal jargon, rather than advancing the principled
portion which would protect women under new
constitution.

The delegates in the main took a bourgeois
feminist approach. It was stated again and again,
said McDonald, that we were there to discuss wo-
men. This led them to reject the rights of Native
Indian women and French Canadian women to
their own nationality. They seemed intent, she
said, in making the British North America Act fit
women’s needs, without realizing this act could
never fully protect Canadian women.

McDonald did manage to get the Communist
Party’s position on the constitution read into the
meeting. It calls for the scrapping of the BNA Act,
replacing it with a made-in-Canada constitution
which would recognize the ‘rights of the French
Canadian nation in Quebec to self-determination.
The scheduling of the conference however did not
allow for debate on this important question.
Although, McDonald noted, a petition being circu-
lated at the conference calling for a made-in-
Canada constitution was endorsed by the majority
of the participants. ‘

The conference concluded stating that a charter
of rights should not be included in the constitu-
tional package unless there are substantial guaran-
tees assuring equality for women.

Included in a charter of rights the conference
demanded: 3
e a statement assuring rights and freedoms are
guaranteed equally to men and women
e the word ‘‘person’”’ be used throughout the char-
ter ; oes
e assurances be given for reproductive freedom -

e no discrimination on the grounds of marital
status, sexual orientation or political beliefs.

The conference also called for the resignation of
Lloyd Axworthy as minister responsible for the
status of women. They want the ACSW restruc-
tured so it reports directly to parliament, not a
minister and they want the composition of the
council broadened to include representatives from
Native, immigrant and professional groups and
representatives from the political spectrum.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FEB. 27, 1981—Page 5