Argentine democrats appeal
to United Nations for aid

A document has been forward-
€d to the United Nations by the
Argentine League for the Rights
of Man drawing attention to the
Serious political situation in that
Country and calling for public
Support for thousands of politi-
Cal prisoners.

he document points out a
‘seriously escalating right-wing
terror and actions of ultra-left
Sroups” which have resulted in
the government reinforcing re-
Pressive legislation in Argentina.

€y warn that in this situation,
Teactionary forces
greatly strengthened—including
former members of Argentina’s
Political police and others who
form the assassination teams of

€ Argentine Anti-Communist.

Alliance (AAA) which has been
Tesponsible for more than 300
Killings in 1974.

The document calls for a full

investigation into the anti-natio-'

nal plot now underway, includ-
Ing the role of the CIA and
agents of bordering - right-wing
juntas (Brazil, Chile, Uruguay)
Who operate within Argentina’s
orders, These reactionary for-
ces aim both to put pressure on
€ economic and financial fields
48 well as resorting to political
terrorism. They hope to force the
Argentine government into limit-
ing democratic rights and civil
liberties, weakening it. and mak-
Ing it easy prey to the right wing
and their multi-national backers.
The document shows that
Many anti-democratic laws were
Not’removed in 1973 with the re-
turn of Peron and that they are
being implemented against de-
MOcratic movements and_indi-
Viduals. More than 2,000 people
are detained under Executive
Ower by virtue of the state of
Seige now operating. For these
People there is no judicial pro-
Cess. The document lists'many of
their names and ‘the organiza-
tions they represent.

While detaining thousands of

In the Socialist World ©

could ‘be’

democrats, the government per-
mits foreign agents to function.
Examples are given, including
the. assassination of Chilean
general Carlos Pratt by Chilean
agents last year. “This activity,”
says the document, “shows that
behind all this is the hand of the
CIA” which has invested more
than $20-million during the last
half of 1974 ‘in financing a plan
of political interference” in Ar-
gentina. : :

The material was received
from the International Relations
Committee of the Communist
Party of Argentina with an ap-
peal that telegrams and letters
demanding an end to terrorism,
for freedom of political and
trade union prisoners, an end to
repression and torture and a lift-
ing of a ban on newspapers be

- sent to: The President of the Re-

public, Sra Maria Estela Marti-
nez de Peron, Casa del Gobieno,
Argentina.

To Dominican president

10 years after the Marines landed ...

Dominican struggle continues

Ten years ago this month on
April 28, 1965, 40,000 American
marines landed in the Dominican

Republic. President Johnson saw
the action as a way to permit the
Dominican -people “to freely
choose the path of political
democracy, social justice and
economic progress.” Canadians
were told by Prime Minister
Lester Pearson “that the United
States Government has interve-
ned in the Dominican Republic
for the protection of its citizens
and those of other countries.”

Ten years later the world has
come to recognize the events of
1965 as another example of
“gunboat diplomacy” that sup-
pressed a constitutionalist revolt.
Johnson’s words were a thin veil
for the imperial designs of the
United States; Pearson’s stand as

an example of the poverty and_

dependency of Canadian foreign
policy.
With the passing of Trujillo,

YCL protest letter

In a letter to Dominican presi-
dent Dr. Joaquin Balaguer, sent
April 4, the Young Communist
League of Canada marks the 10
years ‘since the U.S. invasion of
the Dominican Republic:

“The invasion of the Domini-
can Republic by United Sattes
imperialism ten years ago on
April 28 has not been forgotten.
Canadian youth at that time de-
monstrated their condemnation
of this aggressive action and
their full support for the Domi-
nican people and youth struggl-
ing against the Golpist dictator-
ship. :

“Progressive Canadian youth
today continue their support and

_ solidarity with the Dominion

youth who fight for their rights
against repression and corrup-

tion and against foreign capital
which plunders the natural re-
sources of their country.

Their aspirations and strug-
gles will not be stopped by re-
pressive actions and imprison-
ment of youth leaders, such as
the 30-year jail sentence passed
on Miguel Blanc on false accu-
sations of the national police,
and hte 8 months’ imprisonment
without trial of Luis Salce.

“The Young Communist League

' of Canada demands your govern-

ment end its policy of repression
against the. youth and popular
movements, and demand the ban-
ning of the new terrorist orga-
nization ‘Accion Anticommunista
Dominicana.’
immediate release of Miguel

Blanc, Luis Salce, and all poli-

tical prisoners.”

Hungary
BUDAPEST. — Implementa-

tion of the 15-year housing con-
Struction program launched in.

60 was recently discussed in
the Building Workers’ Union. It
Was found that 30,000 apart-
Ments more than the planned

One million will probably be

Completed,

The representative of the
Ministry concerned announced

that the new 15-year housing

Construction program is already
Under preparation and special
attention will be devoted to pro-
Viding suitable housing for
Workers with larger families.

German Democratic

Republic

BERLIN (ADN) — The Peace
Committee of the German De-
™Mocratic Republic has affirmed
its firm and fraternal solidarity
With the Arab people of Pales-
tine on the occasion of a Week
Of Solidarity with the Palestine
People in March.

It condemned all attempts by
the ruling Israeli quarters at tor-
bedoing efforts by the Soviet
Union and the other progressive
forces to find a solution to the

Middle East conflict, and at
denying the Arab people of
Palestine their national rights.
“The Peace Committee in the
GDR supports most emphatically
all initiatives: which aim at in-
stantaneously reconvening the
Geneva Middle East Peace Con-
ference with the participation of

all sides interested, including the.

PLO,” the statement said.

Bulgaria
SOFIA — Again this © year
Bulgaria will receive vast

amounts of timber from the
joint lumbering areas in the
Komi Autonomous Republic in
the Soviet Union (approximately
92 million cubic feet—about 2%
of Canada’s total annual produc-
tion).

More than 10,000 Bulgarians
are working in the three timber
enterprises in the Komi Repub-
lic. A fourth Bulgarian timber
complex is being built in this
part of the USSR. The new tim-
beryard and industrial complex
will be able to turn out one mil-
lion cubic metres (35 million
cubic feet) of timber annually. A
108-km. (65-mile) highway is to
be built through the Komi taiga
to facilitate transport to and

from this enterprise at Gorno-

Mezensk.

One of Bulgaria’s major raw
material problems has been sol-
ved through being able to do
joint lumbering work with the
USSR. The timber processing
combine which is being built

near the Danubian town of Silis-- - |

tra at present will be one of the
biggest enterprises for process-
ing Soviet timber for the next
few years. The USSR and
Poland are taking part in the
building operations.’ This com-
bine will comprise eight plants
handling half the imported So-
viet timber. :

Democratic Republic

of Vietnam
HANOI — Recently, answer-

ing a journalist’s questions, Gen- ©

eral Vo Nguyen Giap, minister
of national defence, of the DRV,
and commander-in-chief of the

Vietnam People’s Army spoke of .

the whole Vietnamese people,
indivisible, and their victories
over imperialism.

He paid tribute to the “strong
sympathy, support and assist-
ance from the people of the
brother -socialist countries and
progressive mankind.” He gave

Toronto to hear

We demand the |

Juan Bosch emerged as President
after the first democratic elec-
tions to be held in over 40 years.
But only seven months later,

Besch’s government was over- _

thrown by a military coup which
prevented the institution of
much-needed economic, political
and social reforms.

Expresion Joven

To commemorate the 10th
anniversary of the Dominican
revolt and subsequent U.S. in-
vasion, the Latin American
Working Group is sponsoring
a tour of the Dominican
group “Expresion Joven” who
sing the new protest songs of
the workers and peasants of
their country. Following on a
very successful tour last year,
“Expresion Joven” will partici-
pate in two public events in
Toronto this month: a concert
‘on April 17. (Central High
School of Commerce, 570
Shaw St., 7:30 p.m., admission
by donation) and a Pena
(fiesta) on April 18 (Church of
the Holy Trinity, 20 James St.,
8 p.m., admission $1.50). For
further information contact the
Latin American . Working
Group, 533-4221. ‘

credit to the Vietnam Workers’
Party, Marxist-Leninist science,
and the guidance given by the
late president, Ho Chi Min. He
said:

“Although a country may be
small . . . once its people have
risen up and united to struggle
. .. they are fully capable of
defeating all imperialist aggres-
scrs, including the American
imperialists.

“In past centuries, we waged
people’s wars which were either
led by the feudal class or born
of mass movements of the peas-

; General Vo Nguyen Giap applaudes Vietnam's military leaders.

Constitutionalist forces began
a struggle on April 25, 1965, to
restore Bosch as the legitimate,
elected President. What began as
a small rebellion met with spon-
taneous participation of the peo-
-ple and the revolt turned into a
mass. popular uprising taking
control of Santo Domingo, the
capital city. As the constitutio-
nalists were nearing victory over
the anti-Bosch forces, the mari-
nes landed. Five months passed
before all fighting through the
country ceased. With American
troops still in occupation elec-
tions were held in 1966 and ex-
Trujillo aide, Joaquin Balaguer,

was installed as the new Presi-

dent.

American intervention in the
Dominican Republic, as more re-
cently in Chile, has as its objec-
tive the prevention of the loss of

domination over a nation that |

serves its interests through in-
vestments, trade, cheap labor
supply, sources of raw material
or strategic military importance.

Large multi-national corpora-
tions — such as Gulf and West-
ern in sugar industry, Falcon-
bridge in nickel, Alcoa in baux-
ite, and Anglo-Canadian Tele-
phone in utilities—prosper while
the majority of the population
remains oppressed.

Today in the Dominican Re-
public 35% of the work force is
unemployed; half the population
is undernourished; life expect-
ancy of a Dominican peasant is
40 years; 40% of the people are
illiterate. Massive doses of fore-
ign aid have been necessary to
keep Balaguer in power; that

~ and the use of U.S.-trained pol-

ice and military forces. In Bala-
guer’s nine years of rule, over
2,000 political opponents -have
been assassinated or have simply
disappeared. Today there are 600
or more political prisoners rot-
ting and tortured in Dominican
jails and the labor movement is
tightly controlled and severely

' repressed.

antry. At present, we have
waged a people’s war under the
leadership of the working class,
with a new political goal, a new
content, a new quality and a
new force.” Our armed forces
must, he said, “. . . firmly safe-
guard the socialist North, con-
tribute a worthy part of the
completion of*the people’s de-
mocratic national revolution in

South Vietnam, and struggle for

national reunification, and the
building of a peaceful, reunified
independent, democratic and
prosperous Vietnam.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, APRIL 11, 1975—Page 9