Free the political prisoners:

SANTO DOMINGO — Orlan-
do Martinez, a young militant,
was assassinated March 17 by
the Balaguer regime in the Do-
minican Republic, reports the
Dominican Communist Party.
“Comrade Martinez was killed
because of his exposure of the
role of multinational corpora-
tions such as Alcoa Exploration,
Falconbridge and Rosario Min-
ing and Gulf and Western,” the
report charges. The Communist
Party of Canada, April 18, sent
a letter of sympathy and soli-
darity to the Dominican Com-
munists and, on the same day,
sent a letter of protest to the
newspapers “Ef Nacional” and
“Ahora” asking that those res-
ponsible for Martinez’ death be
brought to trial.

Uruguay

MONTIVIDEO -— Appealing
for more pressure to force the

BY BRUCE MAGNUSON

- The corruption and crime ex-
posed in the Cliche Commission
report on the Quebec construc-
tion industry can be traced to
the employers, their friends in
the leadership of certain reac-

tionary international craft

unions in the building trades, .
both in Quebec and in Washing--
ton, D.C., and their co-partner in .

crime — Premier Robert Bou-
rassa and his Quebec adminis-
tration.

The destruction of a James
Bay Hydro Quebec power pro-
ject site, which resulted in the
appointment of the Cliche Com-
missicn, could not have taken
place without a conspirational
alliance between the Bourassa
Government and powerful finan-
cial interests in the USA. The
aim of this capitalist alliance—
making the fullest use of its un-
derworld connections—was and
still remains to undermine the
credibility and, if possible, to
destroy the legitimate trade
union movement in Quebec.

Sensational Revelations

The Commission, which for 68
days of public hearings dished
up a daily diet of sensational
revelations of corruption and
crimes by the underworld and
its political mentors in the Bou-
rassa government, was cleverly
conceived and constructed. Its
chairman was Judge _ Robert
Cliche, a former leader of the
New Democratic Party in Que-
bec. Brian Mulroney, a top Que-
bec Progressive Conservative
organizer, and Guy Chevrette, a
member of the Parti Quebecois,
were the two other members of
the three-member Commission
of Inquiry.

_. While the terms of reference
were to find solutions’ to viol-
ence and corruption in the con-
struction industry, political in-
volvement kept coming to the
fore, implicating both employers
and the government. Yet, the
Commission evaded these prob-
lems in its conclusions and re-
commendations, and, in fact,
went out of its way to cover up
for the government and the em-
ployers, thus enabling Premier
Bourassa to publicly boast that
“the Cliche Report clearly de-
monstrates the integrity of my
government.” :
Yet, even the Cliche Report

release of Uruguayian Commun-
ist Party Central Committee sec-
retary Jaime Perez the First Sec-
retary of the UCP, Rodney Aris-
mendi called for an increased
campaign to release the many
in Latin America who have fall-
en victims to reaction.

Arismendi said that Perez was
arrested in October 1974, tor-
tured and sentenced last Febru-
ary to 18 months imprisonment.

Perez has been a member of
the Party’s Central Committee
since 1954 and was a Deputy
from 1971 to 1973 when the
military coup dissolved parlia-
ment.

- Arismendi, himself arrested
and recently released following
a world-wide protest, also call-
ed for the release of another
UCP leader, Jorge Massarovich
who was released in February

|

of this year and re-arrested at
the end of April.

Chile

SANTIAGO — The number of
political prisoners being held by
the fascist junta is a constant
source of contradiction if you

were to take the figures issued

by junta spokesmen.

On Oct. 6, 1974 the Minister
of the Interior declared only 748
persons were imprisoned. In
January; the junta used the fig-
ure of 2,900 who were either in
trial or in jail. By March 1975
the number was 4,454 arrested
on political charges, another
1,057 in trial and still another
2,896 arrested without charges.

At the same time, “Ercilla”
magazine in Chile reports in an
interview with the Director of
Investigations that 41,728 per-
sons were arrested between Jan-
uary and November. 1974.

WU RShs A conspiracy —
against all labor

has not been able to hide the
official corruption and political
immorality. Bourassa was forc-
ed to recognize that fact as well,
when he attacked Toronto news-
papers for “giving an exagger-
ated impression of corruption in
the province.” : :
Clean Bill of Health

The Confederation of National
Trade Unions, which was given
a clean bill of health by the re-
port, at the same time stated
that it was “impregnated with
class consciousness” and -is
“scandalously easy on the gov-
ernment: and the employer’s
associations.” :

Marcel Pepin, CNTU presi-
dent, in a statement issued the
day after the release of the
Cliche Report, said the commis-
sion has pointed out the real
problems in the construction in-
dustry and properly “identified
the bandits in the Quebec Fe-
deration of Labor,” but Pepin
said he objects to the contents
of the report on _ ideological
grounds because it goes too far
and tramples over workers’
rights. ; é

Pepin says the report would
destroy the labor movement in
Quebec because it would place
it in the hands of the Govern-
ment instead of the workers. He
says that if QFL president Louis
Laberge had cledned up his
house many years ago, the
Cliche Commission would never
have written such an anti-union
report. Pepin accuses the com-
mission of class bias by letting
politicians and government “off
easy,” while coming down hard
on the union leaders “who they
put under the magnifying glass.

Critical of Commission

Mr. Pepin is critical of the
commission for saying it will
leave it up to the people at elec-
tion time to judge the actions of
Labor Minister Jean Cournoyer
and the Liberal Government. He
wants Cournoyer to resign now
because of his “incompetence

-and favoritism” toward the QFL

during the past decade.

Specifically, Mr. Pepin objects
to the following Cliche recom:
mendations:

1) Abolition of union hiring
halls and establishment of gov-
ernment hiring hall;

2) Compulsory legal incorpor-

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MAY 16, 1975—Page 8

.

ation of all unions and obliga-
tory annual reports and publish-
ed financial statements;

3) Restrictions against con-
victs holding union office;

3) Reduction of the powers of
the union steward on construc-
tion sites;

5) Trusteeship of four unions
by the government;

6) Surveillance: of union vot-
ing procedures by government
officials;

7) Presumption of guilt
against union officers in the
event of illegal strikes and work
stoppages (a complete reversal
of judicial practice);

8) Government interference in
spending of union dues by union
officers;

9) Government control of in-

terpretation of construction in- :

dustry relations.

. Problems in the Industry

Mr. Pepin says there are prob-
lems in the construction indus-
try but adds that Cliche’s medi-
cine may be worse than the ail-
ment. “You don’t have to abol-
ish the entire union movement
just to get rid of the cancer.”

But Pepin endorses the pro-
posal for a guaranteed annual
income for construction work-
ers, and says the CNTU has
been pushing this idea for years.

Mr. Pepin is right. There are:

indeed problems in the Quebec
construction industry. These
problems have been fostered by

the anti-labor bias of capitalist

politicians doing the dirty work
for the bosses and enlisting the
underworld as the means by
which to implement their aims.

Placing the unions under gov-
ernment trusteeship is like put-
ting the fox in charge of internal
security in a chicken coop..
The Cliche Report is a bi-
partisan document aimed against
labor. It has clearly placed the
onus for cleaning the house of
labor on the wrong people. Que-
bec workers are not only capable
of cleaning up their own house,
but of seeing to it that a corrupt
government is replaced by one
which will govern in the inter-
est of the working class and the
people, moving in‘ the direction
cf extended democracy instead
of in the direction of an authori-
tarian neo-fascist corporate
state. :

UAW SETS DEMAND
FOR SIX-HOUR-DAY

WINDSOR — The six-hour
work day is a primary, United
Auto Workers (UAW) target in
‘1976 contract negotiations,
Charles Brooks, UAW Local 444
president said.

“The six-hour day is absolute-
ly necessary in order to have
people pay their own way in-
stead of relying on unemploy-
ment cheques and welfare,” he
said.

Mr. Brooks made the com-
ment during the second day of a
Local 444 reunion of retired
workers.

He said that a six-hour day
could result in a 25% increase
in the total North American au-
tomotive industry work force.

STRIKE AT AIR
‘CANADA CONTINUES

PARIS — A demonstration in-
volving more than 100 workers
tock place outside Air Canada
offices in Paris as a_ strike
against thé airline moved into
its third week.

The workers, mostly Air Can-.

ada employees, plus some rep-
resenting other ~airlines, were
protesting plans by Air Canada
to subcontract its operations at
Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport
“as an economy measure.

The workers say the decision,
if implemented, will mean lay-
offs for about 45% of Air Can-
ada’s staff in France.

Air Canada, maintains that its
agreement with the © subcon-
tractors will allow for all but
“one or two” of the staff to
simply switch companies. This
is not acceptable to the employ-
ees, according to an airline
spokesman, because they will
lese their seniority.

MUNRO PLANS TO
CHARGE
LONGSHOREMEN

OTTAWA — Charges will be
placed “in the fairly near fu-
ture” against Quebec longshore-
men who have defied a ‘back-to-

‘Labor Code “and possibly 7 3

-members of the United T&

-year and $4.62 in the seco

- $50 cost-of-living payme™)

work law passed by Parliam®)
Labor Minister John Munro

He told the Commons 4?)
junction will be sought toi
Montreal, adding the force wt
court order to the speci@
passed two weeks ago. Aa

This will be followed by i)
vidual charges under the ©@"))

Criminal Code,” he said.

SPAIN FORCED TO
PERMIT STRIKES

MADRID — The fascist
ish government approved @
that will legalize labor
for the first time since the
of the civil war in 1939.

Labor Minister Fernando
yez ‘announced after a
meeting headed by Gen-
cisco Franco that under
law, strikes will be recom”
as “a last action in supP® |
economic demands.”

‘Under the law now in fr
strike instigators are liable 4,
number of sanctions incll™
fines, dismissal and in «th
cases imprisonment. Stri¥y
have been tolerated, howevel)
the motives were judged
solely economic. es

TEXTILE WORKERS
RATIFY NEW CONTRAY

MONTREAL — About 2%).

Workers of America at sit)
minion Textile Ltd. plants ™
ratified a new contract pro
ing a 40% wage increases "|
two years, the union said. —

The union said the new 45)
ment makes the employee
factories in Cornwall, Ont. |
leyfield, Que., and Montreal)
highest-paid. textile worket}
the Western world with ave
hourly rates of $4.11 in i

The contract also provid@

August and includes a cl
guaranteeing a one-per-cen”
crease for each 0.5% rise ity
consumer price index in_
second year of the agree!

|
QUEBEC CITY — Louis Laberge, president of the Quebec Fed!

tion of Labor, hops over a riot fence outside the National Asee")
The fences were erected to prevent the union demonstrators |

‘bringing their protest over the Cliche report into the Assembl