and
_ determination up to, and includ-

Congress demands constitution
with rights for Frenc

The 23rd Convention of the
Communist Party of Canada, Oct.
9-11, dealt in some detail with the
need for a made-in-Canada Con-
stitution based on our bi-national
State. The following resolution,
which sums up the Convention’s
Conclusions on the issue was
adopted unanimously.

The failure of the federal-
Provincial conference of first
Ministers at the beginning of Oc-

tober on the “‘patriation’’ of the

British North America Act,
which serves as Canada’s Con-
Stitution, was inevitable in condi-
tions of deepening crisis of state
Monopoly capitalism and
Capitalist policy.
€ crisis of confederation is
aggravated by the _ non-
Tecognition of the French-
nadians of Quebec as a nation,
their right to self-

Ing, the right to secession if the
Majority of them so desire.
Trudeau’s policy of bilin-
8ualism denies the bi-national
Character of Canada, and was in-
tended as a substitute for a
8enuine solution to the problem of
the relations between the two na-
tions which exist since the British
Conquest of Canada. While failing
Completely to satisfy the national
Tights of French-Canadians . in
Quebec, Trudeau’s bilingualism
Policy has been used by the big
Monopolies and multi-nationals,
as well as by diverse reactionary
Political groupings to whip up
Chauvinist and racist sentiments
among English-Canadians to

drive politics to the right. This, in

turn, brings grist to the mills of the
Separatists in Quebec, who wel-
Come every such expression as

é:

proof,of the “‘impossibility”’ of
the two nations living together in
Canada.

The patriation of the BNA Act,
even if an amending formula
could eventually be found which
would satisfy the first ministers, is
another ploy to evade dealing
with the basic roots of the crisis of
Confederation. If Trudeau really
carries through his threat to pat-
riate the Constitution unilaterally
this crisis will become very im-
mediate and much sharper.

There is no way in which the
patriation of the BNA Act or its
amendment can correct its fun-
damental flaw, its non-.
recognition of the existence of the
French-Canadian nation and its
national democratic rights.

This 23rd Convention of the
Communist Party of Canada reit-
erates its long-held position that
the BNA Act should be scrapped
and that a Constituent Assembly,
composed of equal representation
from the two nations of Canada, be
convened to work out a new made-
in-Canada Constitution which

should have as its base the follow- ;

ing fundamental propositions:

1. A bi-national state with-lan-
guage and culture guaranteed to
the English and French Canadian
people;

2. Redistribution of national in-
come in favor of the working
people;

3. Resources to be under the
sovereign control of the people
through public ownership;

4. Fundamental human and
democratic rights to be guaranteed
to all Canadians, these to include
the right to a job, health, educa-
tion, the right to free ‘speech, to
assembly, to organize, to collective

h Canada

bargaining, to strike, the right of
national minority groups to ex-
press themselves in their mother
tongues and cultural forms;

.5. New relations to be estab-
lished between the federal, provin-
cial and municipal governments
giving municipalities rights not
presently enjoyed;

6. Full recognition of the na-
tional rights of the Native people
and development of their cultures;

7. Full equality and democratic
rights for all Canadians.

This 23rd Convention notes
that the working class of English
and French Canada is uniting
more and more in action in de-
fending their common interests
against their common enemy —
monopoly and multi-national
corporations. The enemy is doing
its utmost to divide them by the
encouragement of chauvinism,
narrow nationalism and separa-
tion.

We pledge to intensify our
work to explain our position to
the working people, to build
mutual confidence and respect, to
strengthen unity of action of the
working class of the two nations
—the only class that can lead the
fight for a genuine solution of the
crisis of Confederation, for a new
made-in-Canada Constitution on
the basis of equality and national
self-determination. '

Convention backs
student national
day of protest

The National Student Day of
Protest, November 9, received
backing at the 23rd Convention of
the Communist Party of Canada..

A resolution adopted there
pointed out that “‘an accessible
and democratic post-secondary
education system is an important
issue for the working class,” but

fx that the “government represent-

Thousands.cf Greek-Cypriot women before the barbed-wire encircle-

Ment of the town of Famagusta, demanding that their relatives be allow-

€d to return to their villages.

Solidarity with Cyprus

A World Conference of Solidar-
ity with Cyprus will be held in
furt, FRG, from October 28

to 31 to seek ways of support for
Cypriot sovereignty and indepen-

In solidarity with this confer-
ence, the Communist Party passed
the following resolution, at its con-
Yention, Oct. 9-11.

This 23rd Convention of the
Communist Party of Canada ex-
Presses its solidarity with the
People of Cyprus and calls for the
Implementation, without further
delay of the United Nations re-
Solutions on Cyprus.

These resolutions call for the

Tespect of the independence and .

Sovereignty, and territorial integ-
ity of the non-aligned Republic of
Cyprus, for the immediate and
Unconditional withdrawal of all

foreign troops from Cyprus, the
immediate return of all refugees to
their homes under conditions of
safety, and for the peaceful solu-
tion of the Cyprus problem by
meaningful and constructive
negotiations between the two
Cypriot communities under the

auspices of the United Nations, to ~

be conducted freely on an equal
footing for a settlement, serving
the interests of the two com-
munities of Cyprus, Greeks and
Turks. nak Re

This Convention solidarizes it-
self fully with these U.N. resolu-
tions — which have also been
supported by the Conference of
Communist and Workers’ Parties
of Europe for peace, security,
co-operation and social progress
in Europe, held in Berlin, GDR,

June 1976.

ing monopoly capital is currently

waging an attack on post-

secondary education by cutting
back funds available for its de-

*. velopment and shifting the

financial burden onto the indi-
vidual students.”” _

The resolution notes further
that the National Union of Stu-
dents is the legitimate representa-
tive of Canadian post-secondary
students outside Quebec, and...
has called for a National Student
Day on Nov. 9 to protest attacks
on education.”’

The convention resolved ‘‘that
the Communist Party of Canada
endorse National Student Day,
and ... that Communists partici-
pate wherever possible to guaran-
tee the greatest possible success
of National Student Day.

Zukin Winnipeg
council member

The resolution entitled, Celeb-
rate 50 Years of Communist Rep-
resentation in Winnipeg, adopted
by the 23rd Convention of the
Communist Party of Canada, pub-
lished in last week’s paper, suf-
fered from a serious omission. In
the process of getting the resolu-
tion from the Convention floor to
the pages of the paper the name of
Alderman Joseph Zuken,’ pre-
sently a member of Winnipeg City
Council, was left out. We
couldn’t claim that 50 years with-
out him. We regret the omission.

The working peoples of French and English Canada are fighting in

unity to repeal Bill C-73. Anew Canadian constitution embodying in it the
rights of the French Canadian nation would cement this unity.

Congress pledges full support
to liberation of South Africa

“This 23rd Convention of the
Communist Party of Canada re-
affirms its total opposition to fas-
cist apartheid in South Africa, and
once again expresses its full sol-
idarity with the vanguard organi-
zations of the people of South Af-
rica — the South African Com-
munist Party and the African Na-
tional Congress (South Africa).”’

So begins a resolution adopted
unanimously at the CPC Conven-
tion, Oct. 9-11. The remainder of
the text follows:

We greet the ‘heroism of the
workers, the peasants, the youth
and the students whose militant
resistance to fascist brutality and
for a new humane order, has
claimed thousands of dead,
wounded and thousands of ar-
rests.

We dip our banners in salute to
those who have fallen to this bes-
tiality.

As the final chapter of this vici-
ous race oppression draws to a
close in South Africa, world im-
perialism still tries vainly to re-
verse the course of history, to re-
trieve its ill-gotten colonial plun-
der. U.S. Secretary of. State

Henry Kissinger flits from capital
to capital attempting to promote a
shabby worn-out neo-colonial
solution for Zimbabwe. However
he cannot and will not succeed in

blunting the will of the oppressed
people of Zimbabwe, Namibia
and South Africa to be free.

For our part we will, in the
spirit of proletarian ‘inter-
nationalism and solidarity, as well
as in the name of freedom and
democracy, do everything in our
power to aid the course of total
victory in South Africa.

We will help to mobilize pres-
sure on the Canadian Govern-
ment to condemn the racist re-
gime of South Africa, not only in
words but in deeds. Government
agencies should be the first to
honor their commitments speci-
fically by living up to the UN re-
solutions calling for the total iso-
lation of South Africa, politically,
economically, militarily, dip-
lomatically and _ culturally.
Boycotts at a consumer level are
not a sufficient response by the
labor and democratic movement.
All economic intercourse must be
ended between South Africa and
Canada. -

We will work to strengthen all
genuine solidarity organizations
in Canada, and where they do not
exist co-operate to bring them
into being, embracing churches,
non-governmental agencies and
all forward-looking individuals.

This is our duty and we can do
no less.

Joining with progressive peoples around the world, the 23rd Congress
of the CPC reaffirmed Its total opposition to apartheid and full support

for the peoples of South Africa.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—OCTOBER 29, 1976—Page 5