African parley seeks to unite all continent ADDIS ABABA — The big- gest-ever gathering of Afri- ean heads of state opened here last week. Leaders of more than 30 countries will attempt to move forward to- ward continental unity. The three-day meeting aims at establishing an all-African “club” and enabling the inde- pendent countries of this con- tinent of over 250 million peo- ple to speak with one voice in the councils of the world. If the heads of state accept the recommendations on which their foreign ministers have been working for nearly a week, they will: @ Set in motion machinery for the drawing up of a “mas- ter charter’ to which they would all subscribe in a new organization of African states superseding existing blocs, such as the hitherto rival Monrovia and Casablanca groups. . @ Agree on strong joint measures to help African countries still under white rule to gain their indepen- dence. These may include pro- viding money, arms and train- ing facilities for “freedom fighters” and support for gov- ernments in exile. @ Agree to pool their ef- forts in certain fields such as economics, health, science and culture. The leaders are ex- pected to call for study of the possibility of setting up an African Common Market. @ Supporting plans for set- ting up an African develop- ment bank to make their countries independent of di- rect aid from outside the con- tinent. @ Call for a larger repres- entation in the U.N. Security Council ang other internation- al bodies, and establish an “all-African voting bloc” in the U.N. assembly. At its opening session the African foreign ministers cone demned racia! segregation in the United States. A Liberian amendment which also cen- sured Bulgaria over treatment of African students was re- jected. This was done on grounds that discrimination in the U.S. was a permanent state of af- fairs affecting the whole com- munity, while the reported in- cidents in Bulgaria were of a transient character. HIS LAST FLING! ‘Hicks Wed area H-free’ The Soviet government last Tuesday proposed that the en- tire Mediterranean area be declared a zone free of nu- clear rockets. Arrests go on in india Six months after the cease- fire on the border with China, Indian Communists are still being arrested. R. P. Dutte, vice-chairman of the British Communist Par- ty told a meeting recently that “nearly 1,000 Indian Con:- munist and militant trade un- ion leaders have been placed in prison without charge or trial under the Emergency De- fence of India rules.” Five leading jurists have told Premier Nehru that the rules were a violation of the Constitution. Included among those . ar- rested are the C..P’s general secretary, 11 of the 30 mem- bers of the executive, ten MP’s and 40 members of leg- islative assemblies. In similar notes sent to the U.S., Britain, and 13 Mediier- ranean powers, it said thy plans to station Polaris subs would turn every sea mile of that area into a launching site, risking its becoming a Dead Sea in the full mean- ing of the word. The note charged the NATO powers with exposing to the threat of nuclear war the 300 million population of the Med- iterranean in both NATO and non-NATO countries. It said if other states under- took similar obligations, the Soviet Union was willing to join in providing guarantees that, in the event of military “complications,” the Mediter- ranean should be regarded as a zone in which nuclear wea- pons would not be used. The Soviet note accused the NATO powers’ plan to station Polaris in the Mediterranean as part of the policy of ‘‘unre- strained armaments race and spreading of nuclear wea- pons.” x CITY HALL ROUNDUP: Homeowners get jolt as tax bills arrive By WILLIAM E. STEWART Vancouver City is in an acute financial crisis. Three matters combined this week to illustrate the gra- vity of this crisis and the bankruptcy of City Council in dealing with them. City tax notices arrived on Vancouver doorsteps inform- ing the overwhelming major- ity of Vancouver homeowners that their taxes had jumped on the average of $20 a year and up to $300 in some cases. One hundred and_ nine workers in the sewage and pavement department of the City of Vancouver were ad- vised that they were to be laid off due to cut backs in work. City Council referred to public hearing an application of Webb and Knapp Ltd. (closely linked with the CPR through the Bank of Mont- real) for a high rise apartment complex at Coal Harbour. *« * * What is the connection be- tween these three develop- ments? The cost of civic govern- ment went up $3.6 million in Vancouver this year resulting in net tax increases for 32.5% of Vancouver homeowners while the other 67.5% escap- ed any out of pocket increase in taxes through the provin- “cial government $20 increase in the homeowner grant. This 32.5% consists of homeown- ers, and multi family dwelling owners in the West End and in the area of the city west of Burrard and north of Broadway and in the Kerris- dale and Kitsilano areas gen- erally, where the value of homes is above the average for the city and where land is being reassessed from apart- ment to commercial and from residential to industrial. * * * ~ On the face of it. these figures indicate that the cost of civic government, including increased school costs, went up by $3.6 million while in- creased assistance from the provincial governments through increased homeowner grants, grants in lieu of taxes and a small increase in per- capita grants amounted to $1,- 522,000. This leaves a tab of $2, 078, - 000 to be picked up by city taxpayers.. This is not the whole pic- ‘NUCLEAR ISSUE NOT DEAD B.C. Communists plan to intensify campaign Plans to extend the campaigr against the imposition of nuclear weapons on Canada by _ the United States were laid by the B.C. Provincial Committee ol the Communist Party last week- end. ; “Last week’s NATO conference in Ottawa has indicated the reason for U.S. interference in the recent Canadian election,” Nigel Morgan, provincial leader of the party. declared. “The issue of nuclear arms is far from dead. It will keep com- ing up, and the next time will probably be in about ten days, when the new budget comes be- fore Parliament. ERHART REGIER, last week called on Social Credit MP for Fraser Valley, A. B. Patterson to resign his seat becaue he_ be- trayed the trust placed in him by voters by voting for nuclear arms on May 21. Regier charged that during the election campaign Patterson pretended agreement with the NDP against nuclear weapons for Canada. “Conditions in this country are compelling opposition parties tc unite in voting against certair key features of the Pearson pro- gram and the switching of but six votes on the NDP motion of “non confidence’ .would have brought the government down,” Morgan stated. APPEAL MADE The meeting appealed to all clubs and members of the Com- munist Party to place the strug- gle to force the Pearson admin- istration to retreat from _ its brash, arrogant and extremely dangerous nuclear arms policy at the centre of all work. Plans to extend the party’s” campaign on newspaper public- ity, meetings, leaflets, etc. were laid, and emphasis was placed on the impertance of helping to stimulate the broadest possible united front movements directed towards Parliament on such is- sues as the government’s nuclear policy, the Columbia River sell- out, the North Pacific Fisheries Treaty, trade and economic de-' — velopment. AUUC PROVINCIAL PICNIC SUNDAY —JUNE 23 UKRAINIAN CAMP in HANEY 2® Ukrainian Food @ Sports & Games @ Cultural Program Busses leave 805 E. Pender St. at 11:00 a.m. Everyone Welcome ural deterioration under way. | _ May 31, 1963—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page ture, however. The action by the Vancouver works depart-— ment to lay off 109 workers from their roads and sewers staff represents a decision to © cut back on maintenance and |— replacement of civic services. — The replacement of the | Georgia viaduct has been | postponed and there are no | major public works projects © designed to overcome the nat- | * * * u In other words the city | council is presiding over the | deterioration of Vancouver — and taxpayers are shelling out an additional $2 million a year to accommodate this pro- — cess. a A desperate city council, pressed by irate taxpayers and hemmed in by a cold war na tional policy, which is at the heart of civic crisis and with which it is in political agree- ment, is being compelled to seek some solution to its dil- | emma. : Its solution is‘to sell the | city to real-estate speculators — (mostly big American capital) and in the true tradition of © hucksters, attempt to resolve — the problem by anticipated re- _ venue from such real estate deals and through the attrac tion of tourists to the city — (shades of Havana, Cuba). a Thus the foreshore of Van- — couver harbor, from Stanley — Park right down to Granville © Street is up for grabs to the > highest bidder. ' City Council has announced © its intention to hold a public | hearing to consider the rezon ing of the Coal Harbor area from light industrial to com- prehensive commercial to ac- commodate the plans of Webb and Knapp Ltd. for the con- area. A similar proposal is before — council for development of — the area east of Coal Harbor to Granville along similar © lines and there is little doubt that the one is-the foreshadow of the other. * * * Vancouver City Council, which is dominated by real estate and downtown inter- ests, and has no real solution — to the financial crisis which is lighting fires under them is prepared to sacrifice the long term interests of - the Port of Vancouver, which is — at the heart of the future | growth of Vancouver, to such speculative schemes as these. In the absence of any fore- sight or responsibility by the City Council or commercial and industrial interests in Vancouver for the future of our city, it is all the more urgent that labor come for — ward with its own program — for the building of Vancou- ver and the systematic reduc- tion of homeowner taxes by : placing a larger burden of taxation on the shoulders of industrial and commercial in- terests; relentless pressure on senior governments for more assistance to municipalities and national policies of trade with all countries and espe- cially China, which .would lead to the expansion of our port and the development of large scale industry in the Vancouver area.