gp photos: Soviet postal workers
Ping in convention. Bottom
Photos: CLC convention, 1974.

Example of trade union democracy

Power in hands of the membership

Special tothe Tribune

MOSCOW — As Ontario trade
unionists prepare for the annual
convention of their provincial
labor federation, their brothers
and sisters in the Soviet Union are
planning for the next congress of
the All Union Central Council of
Trade Unions (AUCCTU) set for
March 21, 1977.

Meetings by 683,000 union
groups across the USSR began
two weeks ago to review their

work and elect delegates. There

are about 107 million members in
unions in the USSR which takes
in about 97% of all wage earners.

Unlike any trade union centre
in the capitalist world, the prep-
arations for the (AUCCTU) con-
gress involves a massive effort
through membership meetings
conferences and meetings of
work teams (composed of groups
of about 30 workers), to encour-
age the participation of union
members at the basic level. These
meetings review the work and
leadership of the unions since the
last congress and chart the plans
for the future participation of the
unions in Soviet life.

It is on the basis of. these re-
views and plans that local, district
and republic union leadership will
be elected.

In contrast to the AFL-CIO,
the Canadian labor movement
and its central bodies are essen-
tially democratic in operation and
the input and control of the rank
and file.

However, nothing in Canada
compares to the degree of partici-
pation of the average Soviet
worker in the formulation of pol-
icy and criticism of the leadership
of the USSR labor movement.

As the fight put up by the dele-
gates to the last CLC convention
to defeat undemocratic constitu-
tional amendments which would
have limited rank and file partici-
pation in conventions showed,
Canadian trade unionists must
jealously guard their hard won
rights to an open and democratic
labor movement.

In Canada not enough lo: al
unions are encouraged by their
parent bodies to discuss the issues
of the day pertinent to labor and
to formulate policy in the form of
resolutions for convention dis-
cussion. Some unions actually try
to discourage their membership
from actively participating in the
central labor bodies. The current
underground campaign being
waged by many U.S.-dominated
building trades unions, resentful
of the growing trend towards au-
tonomy within the Canadian labor
movement from U.S. influence,
to encourage the withdrawal of
these unions from the CLC is a
case in point.

The 15 million strong AFL-CIO
sends delegates to convention
who are with very few excep-
tions, appointed by top executive
committees of the respective na-
tional affiliates. Members don’t
even get the chance to discuss
policy or elect delegates to con-
vention let alone determine the
AFL-CIO leadership. ~

The AUCCTU daily organ
Trud, has emphasized that the
meetings preparing for March 21
should concern themselves with
all problems affecting the work of
unions including those concern-
ing the five-year plan and the
workers’ living conditions.

“They: should be carried out’’,
said Trud, ‘‘ona high political and
organizational level with strict
observance of internal union
democracy, a Leninist norm of

-trade union life, on principles of

collective leadership and demo-
cratic centralism.”

The reports at these meetings,
Trud said, should be made in the
spirit of ‘criticism and_ self-
criticism with an objective evalu-
ation of the work and an analysis
of shortcomings.””

The paper also called for the
advancement into leading posi-
tions of more women, leading
workers and youth in the
AUCCTU.

ea

Canada-Soviet Union exchange
_ delegations of war

Large numbers of Canadians

ave recently marked November -

_ ‘1 as Remembrance Day, a day
©n which they pay tribute to the
€ad of two world wars.

Not so many Canadians are
aware that this year and last wit-
hessed exchange visits between

anadian and Soviet veterans.

ast year a Canadian delegation
Visited the USSR as guests of the
co War Veterans’ Commit-

This year, two Soviet military

Officers attended the Royal Cana-
; a Legion’s 26th bi-annual con-
ference in Winnipeg, in June, and
JOined Legion officials in toasting
Improved relations between the
‘Wo countries. _

The Soviet representatives,
Admiral Semyon Zakharov,
leading the delegation, and

ajor-general Alexander

Golyakov, joined in signing a_

statement of accord between the
Legion and the Soviet War Vete-
rans’ Committee.

The accord said the two groups
‘expressed their mutual desire to
develop the relations . . . between
our organizations, to seek new
ways of cooperation and thereby
to promote the deepening of ties
between our two organizations 1n
the interests of the good relations

‘established between the peoples

of Canada and the Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics.”
Representing the Legion were
its president, Robert D. McChes-
ney, who headed last year’s
Soviet visit, and other senior of-
ficers of the Dominion Command.
Other Soviet officials included.
Victor Smirnov, chairman of the
executive committee of the
Soviet of Working People’s De-
puties of Moscow’s Lenin-
gradsky District, and Adolph
Feidorov, assistant chief: of the

veterans

foreign relations department of
the Soviet War Veterans’ Com-
mittee.

The accord said the two groups
were determined to work to con-
tribute toward the developing in-
ternational detente.

The Soviet officers told a news
conference at the time that there
are more than 9,000,000 war vete-
rans in the USSR. The veterans’
committee administers a wide
variety of benefits for veterans,
the disabled, and veterans’ de-
pendents, the Soviet spokesmen
explained, as well as making legis-
lative proposals.

-Jn addition to pensions and
medical benefits, the news con-
ference heard, the Soviet system
pays half the rent of disabled vete-
rans, allows them free access to
city transit systems and pays for
one trip annually anywhere in the
Soviet Union.

The AUCCTU comprised of 683,000 union groups representing 107

’

Tagg,

million workers or 97% of the workforce, will meet in convention in March

1977.

Uruguayan Communists
celebrate anniversary

MONTEVIDEO — _ The
Communist Party of Canada has
received a letter from the Com-
munist Party of Uruguay, over
the signature of its general secret-
ary, Rodney Arismendi, on the
occasion of the Uruguayan Par-
ty’s 56th anniversary, Sep-
tember 21.

The letter outlines the valiant
history of the Communist Party of
Uruguay and the bitter conditions
under which it has been working
since the fascist coup in 1973. It
describes the resistance by wide
sections of the people to the
dictatorship and the role of
Uruguayan communists to unite
all anti-fascist forces who oppose
the torturers and assasins now in
control.

Expressing its appreciation for
the solidarity shown-their struggle
from the international community
and especially the socialist com-
munity of states, the letter says
that today the struggle for the re-

lease of the many militants,
Communists, unionists and
others in fascist prisons has
reached new heights.

_Rodney Arismendi’s letter
listed some of the leaders of the
anti-fascist struggle now in pris-
ons and at the mercy of the tortur-
ers. They include former presi-
dential candidate of the demo-
cratic popular front, General
Seregni and two others leaders of
the democratic coalition, General
Licandro -and Colonel
Zufriatequi.

Communist Party Central
Executive members Jaime, Perez,
Jose Massera, Alberto Altesor,
Gerardo Cuesta and Rosario
Pietraroia, and Communist Party
Central Committee members
Wladimir Turiansky, Luis

Touron, Eduardo Bleier and Rita ~

Ibarburu are imprisoned as well

as Communist Youth League —

general secretary Jorge

‘Mazzarovich.

Brother from the West---

nor in the sea

the great struggle continues.

at night embrace their children
and depart before dawn.

Many will not return.
What does it matter?

From you, brother, we expect
and to you we offer
not the hand of charity

but the hand of comradeship

‘Brother from the West

This thought-provoking poem, unsigned, appears in the beauti-
ful 1977 African National Congress calendar which is available
for $3. by writing to P.O. Box 123, Station ‘E’, Toronto.

(How can we explain that you are our brother?)
the world does not end at the threshold of your house
nor at the stream which marks the border of your country

in whose vastness you sometimes think ~
that you have discovered the meaning of the infinite.

Beyond your threshold, beyond the sea

Men with warm eyes and hands hard as earth

We are men tired of shackles. For us
freedom is worth more than life.

which misleads and humiliates

— committed conscious.
ee can you refuse, brother from the West?

y,

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—NOVEMBER 26, 1976—Page 7