ase}

U.S. agents
seized aid
in Canada
bound for

Nicaragua
— page 9 —

eee

COPE rally marks election gains

Victorious Harry Rankin, returned after a two-yea
humour-laced speech at Committee of Progressive
Weinstein (I) and Libby Davies (r), along wit

Victories for civic progressives.

Vancouver progressives fought a civic
Campaign during the last three months in
Circumstances that were hardly the best.
And in the face of that, the fact that the
abour and community supported civic
forces doubled their plurality can only be
Considered a victory.

Libby Davies, re-elected handily to a
fourth term on city council representing
the Committee of Progressive Electors,
Put it succinctly: “We live in a province
that is run by the right wing, we have a
Night-wing city council and yet we have
Made a comeback, and I think we should

© really proud of that.”
cheering audience greeted those
Temarks as supporters gathered to mark a

oi nt gain by COPE and its electoral allies,
ae New Demag: ane COPE
election night, Nov. 19.
ee it had become clear that COPE
had three representatives on council: the
voters had re-elected Davies and Bruce
Eriksen, and returned 20-year veteran
Harry Rankin after a two-year absence.
They also elected Pauline Weinstein,
former trustee and board chairman, to the
Vancouver school board to replace retir-
ing COPE trustee Phil Rankin. And for
good measure, they elected first-time can-
didate Anne Beer of the Civic New Demo-
crats. a
The return of commissioner Pat Wilson
to the parks board ended the two-year

ar absence to Vancouver city council raises smiles and laughter with a
Electors’ rally Nov. 19. Flanked by successful candidates Pauline
h Pat Wilson and Bruce Eriksen, Rankin said the electoral gains herald future

total domination of the seven-seat body,
and put COPE representation back on all
three local governments.

And while Jean Swanson lost to Gor-
don Campbell in his re-election bid for
mayor, the long-time community and
anti-poverty activist was hailed for raising
issues that forced last-minute policy
changes by Campbell’s developer backed
Civic Non-Partisan Association.

Several factors worked against the pro-
gressives regaining the ground they lost in
the 1986 election, in which the NPA,
backed by a millions-dollar campaign
from big business, swept city council, and
parks and school boards.

see COPE page 2

November 28, 1988
50°

Vol. 51, No. 44

eep up the pressure
against trade deal,
urges AFL president

No mandate
in Tory vote

The Alberta Federation of Labour has
called upon the leaders of the Liberal and
New Democratic parties to continue the
fight against the Mulroney-Reagan free
trade deal with the “greatest of determina-
tion and energy.”

AFL President Dave Werlin made the
statement Nov. 23, the same day Liberal
leader John Turner and the New Demo-
crats’ Ed Broadbent said they would not
block the deal’s passage when Parliament
opens on Dec. 12.

Werlin said he was making the appeal
“on behalf of hundreds of thousands of
Canadians who worked day and night
through the long election campaign against
the free trade deal and the neo-conservative
agenda it represents.

“These people are fighting for Canadian
sovereignty, jobs and a decent standard of
living for working people, for the preserva-
tion of our social services network, our cul-
ture and our Canadian way of life,” he said.

Broadbent and Turner must not turn
their backs on these Canadians and
“meekly” accept what they correctly identi-

see KEEP page 6

The campaign
after Nov. 21

The 1988 federal election will not
only be remembered for its outcome,
but even more because it marks a new
stage in Canada’s political process.

Never before have Canadians
endured such a barrage of corporate
propaganda selling the trade deal. All
stops were pulled: employees were lec-

Editorial

tured in office lunch rooms, letters
appeared in pay envelopes, pro-free
trade materials arrived at millions of
homes in government mail, tens of
millions were spent in advertising and
a storm of polls was unleashed, some-
times three in a single day.

So completely was the media cap-
tured, that only two or three daily
newspapers in the entire country
opposed the trade deal. Much of the
television coverage was little more
than thinly-disguised pro-free trade

see CAMPAIGN page 4

ae