Science meetings _ catch cold war chill The Carter boycott sham- bles has hit the scientific com- munity with one U.S. govern- mental department falling over another trying to interpret the president’s new policy. Two recent conferences, one on new computer technol- ogy and another on laser fusion held in the U.S., which tradi- tionally invite the international scientific community including that of the socialist states, last month felt the cold hand of the CIA and State Department. The latest issue of Science Magazine, reporting on the fiascos, describes the heavy pressure, threats of fines, inter-departmental mix-ups and the final exclusion of scien- tists from socialist states. In the case of the first con- ference, Science Magazine writes, ‘‘the impetus seems to have come from the CIA, which may have prompted the Commerce Department to take - action under the Export Administration Act. With the laser fusion meeting, it was the State Department which de- nied entry visas to five Soviet scientists and denied permis- sion to travel to a sixth scientist already in the U.S.”’ This sorry tale almost as- sumes a humorous tone when it tells about the dilemma en- countered over what to do with the Chinese delegates. The Office of Export Regulations saw the problem clearly: bar the Chinese. The State Department didn’t want them barred (guess why?) and the Chinese scientists found them- Selves touring an artists’ col- ony in Santa Barbara while the tussle went on. Finally State won and the Chinese were allowed in ‘pro- viding they signed a pledge not to divulge what they heard ‘‘to foreign scientists, in fact, were required to sign a similar ‘pledge promising not to tell anything to nationals of some 15 countries. -in San Diego”’, the magazine reports, “‘the disinvitations in- volved only the State Depart- ment. Visas for Soviet scien- tists were denied ‘because of Afghanistan and the treatment ~ of Sakharov’”’. But while the government bureaucrats and CIA gum- shoes were dilligently applying ‘the Carter Doctrine, many sci- entists voiced serious concern over the use of scientific meet- ings for political ends. Refer- ring to the visa denials and signed pledges, D. Allan Brom- ley of Yale University said, “this would be a disastrous mistake in terms of U.S. poli- cy. To have our own govern- ment erecting these barriers to free circulation I find unacceptable.” Here’s how John L. Vossen of Princeton, president of the American Vacuum Society, hosts of the computer confer- ence, found it ‘acceptable’. Writes Science Magazine: one. It was indicated to him that an offence against the Ex- port Administration Act is -——__—— INTERNATIONAL FOCUS any Eastern bloc national’’. All . ““As for the laser conference ~ 100% ‘*Vossen hoped to disinvite no punishable by a $10,000 fine and one year injail. He decided to wire the disinvitations as directed ...”’ The saga of the Kampuc- hean refugees continues. De- spite offers by the new government in Phnom Penh to negotiate with Thailand for an end to the situation and an or- derly return of these people to their country, the camps on the Kampuchean-Thai border are still being used as a battering ram by the West to smear the new government. Added to this, Chinese, Thai and U.S. support for the roving bands of gangsters of the former Khmer Rouge army continues. There is an effort to portray them as ‘‘nationalists”’ and an “‘anti- Vietnamese resis- tance force’. An insight into what kind of people they really are is pro- vided by a journalist writing in the Toronto Globe & Mail: from the area: ‘‘For several days, warring Khmer. Serei (free Khmer) armies, ostensi- bly anti-Vietnamese, battled ‘each other for control of the lucrative black market.’’ At one of the three Khmer Serei camps “the leader is Van Sa- ren, a former lumber smuggler, who claims to have an army of 3,000 determined to expel the Vietnamese and form a neut- ral, independent Cambodia.” The writer tells us most ob- servers say Van Saren ‘‘is con- cemed only with profiteering’ and that ‘‘the United Nations children’s fund says he and his soldiers take the international relief rice and sell it to the people rather than distributing ‘it free. UNICEF maintains that 80% of the rice given to the camp never reaches the people free of charge. “Refugees in the camp says he sells international relief rice at a profit as well as cheating them on gold sales,"’ the story continues. ‘‘Camp leaders re- ~ sell the gold in Thailand mak- ing a profit of between 50 and oO. And there you have the darl- ings of the West, the ‘‘freedom -fighters’’, the defenders of democracy. oa i Gi. Children used as -pawns for Western-backed black mar- keteers in Thailand. PACIFIC TRIBUNE—APRIL 4, 1980—Page 6 Junior officers stage coup os - New course of Surinam — By NORMAN FARIA BRIDGETOWN, Barbados — ‘““The army was a microcosm of the wider society, reflecting its problems and many of its junior officers had come to the conclu- sion that both the military and political elite were unwilling to solve, or incapable of solving, those problems.” So wrote. one of the first over- seas journalists to visit the South American nation of Surinam after last month’s overthrow of the government of Prime Minister Henk Arron and his National Party of Surinam. Little is known about the young army officers, among whom are three sergeants who were re- cently court martialed for being involved in trade union activity, or their links to other political forces and the trade unions. However, the main Surinamese trade union federation has come out in support of the government changeover and the-officers are anxious to involve civilians in administrative affairs. According to a news report from the rebel-held- Surinam News Agency there are no plans for major political reforms at pre- sent. ‘‘We are not planning to put aside democracy because it is deeply rooted in us, declared Lt. Michel Van Rey, one of the eight members of the ruling military council. ‘‘But we will investigate it, and if it is proven that it is the best system, then we will keep it,” he added. Political observers here see the catalyst behind the downfall of the Arron regime as frustrations coming out the officers failure to exercise their constitutional right to form a trade union. There is such a union in the Netherlands where the majority of the Surinamese Army officers were trained. Surinam had been col- onized by the Netherlands since the 17th Century until the South American nation of 300,000 gained its independence in 1975. Argentina — i Brazil It’s understood the officers were also dissatisfied with. poor working conditions, discrimina- tion, paltry pay and the little scope for promotion. The officers carried out a sit- down strike in Jan. 1979 in front of the Surinamese Staten (Parlia- ment) together with a letter- writing campaign to their army commander and the Prime Minis- ter — all to no avail. National elections were due to, be held March 27, but it’s understood the officers held little hope these would solve anything. During the actual street fighting on the morning of the coup, the military might of the revolu- tionary soldiers was directed at the higher paid police force which had previously carried out repres- sive actions against the army. The main police headquarters in the capital city were demolished by the guns of a patrol boat. All the police are now disarmed but some of them are working alongside soldiers to maintain order. The majority of Arron’s 12 Cabinet ministers have sur- rendered to the military a thorities. Arron turned himself shortly after the Feb. 25 break-UP _of his government. According reliable reports received here the majority of the population of this bauxite-producing country © mains calm. AF The military council has pub licly stated that it respects basic democratic principles, will serv’ and protect the rights of all people and will recognize @ fundamental rights enshrined the United Nations Chartel However, council members havé — said that ‘‘strict orders have beet issued’’ to smash up any sistance to the new administi@ tion. = a Meanwhile, the ‘‘Mirror newspaper of — neighborifs — Guyana has welcomed the of- “3 ficers’ victory. ‘Law and order'$ back in Surinam and the nation» has great hope in the future, De cause what was promised by the political parties — peace, order and a new ordering of the state—~_— was not brought, now is brought — by the army,”’ said a ‘“‘Mirrol editorial. Ka ‘Where theft becomes ‘reclamation’ Just days before his scheduled © meetings with Egypt’s Sadat and Is- — tael’s Begin, U.S. president Carter's * mid-East policy is being further ex- posed by the rapid expansion of Is- raeli settlements on occupied Arab land in the West Bank, Gaza and the Golan Heights. . The sign (right) at an Israeli settle- ment on the West Bank cynically transposes land seizure for ‘land re- clamation”. Following the Camp David sell-out, Israeli authorities quickly stepped up their settlement drive. Under a so-called ‘autonomy plan”, hundreds of thousands of acres of Arab lands are scheduled for ‘confiscation. Last year the World Zionist Organi- zation upped its allocation to one bil- pounds —_ for “strengthening” existing settie- - ments, and an Israeli daily, Yediot Aharanot, quotes the head of the WZO as saying the Begin govern- ment is “committed to settie 100,000 Jewish immigrants in the West lion israeli Bank.” : Israel's chief of Foreign Affairs and Security Committee followed this by telling the nation over radio fast Oc- tober: ‘“‘To carry out such a broad settlement plan is not possible with- out confiscating Arab land.” This pol- icy continues despite strikes and pro- yA AN va Mwai LAND RECLAMATION tests by the Palestinian people and in } ; violation of United Nations resolu- ; wEWISH Nationar Funp tions calling on Israel to withdraw from occupied Arab lands.