Kim Zander, United
Fishermen and Allied Workers’
Union, writes: On Jure 6 and 7,
I was one of about 150 people to
attend an unemployed con-
ference organized by the B.C.
Federation of Labor.

It was a conference that I, as
an unemployed shoreworker,
welcomed with open arms. As
many people know, the fishing
industry in British Columbia
has been all but destroyed, leav-
ing hundreds, even thousands,
out of work. They only thing
they have to look to, if they
qualify, is unemployment: in-
surance or welfare, both of
which mean poverty level ex-
istence.

Quite evident in the con-
ference (and in the daily news)
was the fact that I was not alone
in not having a job. I am one of
hundreds of thousands and that
is only according to the official
statistic which hides thousands
of the unemployed.

Introduced at the beginning
of the conference was a working
paper which laid out some basic
guidelines for “‘labor’s policy
program.”’ It was.a fairly good
paper which outlined the pro-
blems of the unemployed. As
the Port Alberni Organization
of Unemployed Workers put it,
we are “‘condemned to starve,
compelled to act.”’

The debate at the conference
by delegates of unions affiliated
to the B.C. Fed as well as the
Carpenters Union, strengthen-
ed the working paper and
brought forward several pro-
posals for action.

One of them was raised over
and over again and to me it was
the most important point raised
in the conference: the necessity
to organize the unemployed.

It was here that I was disap-
pointed in the B.C. Fed’s pro-
gram for not even once was the
organization of the unemployed
raised in the papers handed out
at the conference.

Several people emphasized
that if the trade union move-
ment doesn’t organize the
unemployed, they will be
organized against labor.- The
unemployed may not have any
desire to take people’s jobs or
work for substandard wages but
unless they can see themselves as
part of the labor movement,
they can be used and
manipulated by employers —
and once again working people
will be paying for a crisis they
had no hand in creating.

When the issue of organizing
the unemployed was debated at
the conference, feelings were
strongly expressed. The
brothers and sisters there were

Unions should be
organizing jobless

agreed that the unemployed had
to be organized to fight along
with labor for their rights as
Canadians, including their right
to a job.

As an unemployed worker
who faces an uncertain future in
an industry that is in crisis, I
need to know that the labor
movement will take leadership
in organizing the unemployed.
It can’t wait for elections — we
need action now.

Peace issue
for OAPO

_ Hamish MacKay, Burnaby
delegate to the Old Age Pen-
sioners Organization conven-
tion, writes: The B.C. Old Age
Pensioners Organization con-
vention was held June 16-18 in
Haney with 142 delegates in at-
tendance as well as 13 executive
board members and 96 visitors.

' Some very good resolution
were endorsed by the meeting,
the most important being a
composite resolution on world
peace based on resolutions sub-
mitted by two branches, Vernon
and Port Coquitlam. It read:
“Whereas tremendous amounts
of money are being spent on ar-

_maments which would be better

spent on the starving peoples of
the world, therefore be it resolv-
ed that this convention is in
favor of negotiations for
gradual disarmament of all na-
tions, leading to world peace,
under the supervision of the
United Nations.”

Another important area of
convention action was that deal-
ing with cutbacks in health care.
There were two important
resolutions. The first called on
the provincial ministry of health
to reconsider its financial cut-
backs to hospitals and also call-
ed on the federal government to
prevent doctors from double-
billing their patients.

Another resolution noted
that hospitals are ‘‘starved for
funds’’ and requested that the
provincial government apply
the revenue raised by the provin-
cial sales tax directly to hospital
and health services as was in-
tended in the original legisla-
tion, rather than placing it in
general revenue.

Delegates also passed a mo-
tion from Port Coquitlam
Branch 21 calling on the Cana-
dian Radio-Television and
Telecommunications Commis-
sion to rescind the latest rate in-
crease given B.C. Telephone.

Business scapegoats city |

On June 17, a number of Van-
couver business people, variously
estimated at between 350 and 500,

- held a meeting in Kitsilano High

School to protest increased proper-
ty taxes on business.

The meeting was billed as non-
political, but if that gathering was
non-political and non-partisan,
then we could say with equal
“veracity”’ that all sharks have
become vegetarians.

One of the main speakers was
none other than Jonathan Baker,
the NPA candidate for mayor,
who was there to drum up support
for his mayoralty campaign.

Other speakers included
businessman David Mathews, a
former Social Credit candidate,
Philip Owen, a former NPA can-
didate, and Fred Cavanaugh, who
was recruiting for the NPA while

leading a campaign against barriers .

It was cleatly a meeting organiz-
ed by Social Credit and NPA
business people to develop support
for the NPA and take the heat off
the provincial government.

And in case you might think that
this was a meeting of small
businessmen, bear in mind that one
of the main speakers, Philip Owen,
is also president of the Vancouver
Downtown Business Association
which speaks for the really big
businesses in this city. He had the
gall to say that the business tax
which we have in the city is a
“penalty for doing business in
Vancouver’’ and demanded it be
abolished. He failed to mention, of
course, the many extra expenses
that taxpayers have to bear to ser-
vice his business friends, in the
form of street maintenance, police
protection, fire protection and so
on. The business tax repays the city
for only a small part of these extra

expenses.

All the speakers at this meeting
were united on one issue — that city
council, and especially COPE,

were responsible for their higher

taxes. That again showed their,

political bias. They were a Social
Credit and NPA crowd; the whole
purpose of the exercise was to take
the heat off the provincial govern-
ment and blame city council. In do-
eg they stood the facts on their

The property tax policies that
municipalities operate under —and
this applies to both taxes for
general revenue and school taxes —
are established by the provincial
government. The only choice
municipal councils have is to
choose one of four ‘‘options’’ for-
mulated by the provincial govern-
ment, all of them bad. All that
these options do is distribute the tax
burden — if they use one option,
more of the burden is shifted to
homeowners. If they use another
option, more has to be paid by

Harry

Rankin

business. This ‘‘option’’ system
was designed by the provincial
government to place all the blame
on municipal councils and to get
homeowners and business people
fighting among themselves. The
whole purpose of the ‘‘option”’
system is to make municipal pro-
perty owners pay more so that the
provincial government is able to
pay less, and that is exactly what is
happening.
On top of that the provincial
government this year reduced
grants to municipalities, (the grant
to Vancouver was reduced by $7
million), forcing them to increase
taxes still more. ~

That still isn’t the whole’ story.
The provincial government’ ap-

‘would be possible to give a break 0

points the assessment commission:
Its practice has been to assess
commercial and industrial busine
properties at far below their marke)
value and so permit them to escap
paying their fair share of taxes.

Having said all that, it must als?
be emphasized that the smal
business person, (and this applié
to homeowners with low incomé
too), is hurting.

One solution to this problet
would be a variable or differentid
mill rate that would enable
municipal councils to levy differet!
mill rates on different kinds of pre
perty and also according to the!
size (their ability to pay). Then

small business people and to cot
pel big business to bear the main t#
burden. Another solution would
to assess big commercial and it
dustrial properties at their

market value and compel them 10
pay their fair share of taxes.
Of course the real problem fac
ing the small business person is the
state of the economy. They will jus
have to join with labor in fighting
for new government policies tha!
will stimulate the economy and put
more money into the pockets of
working people — policies such 4
a big program of building affot
dable housing, lower interest rates;
a roll-back of energy prices
building a Canadian merchant
marine, and building secondary
manufacturing industries to pro-
duce many of the things we import!
today from the U.S. and Japan,
(many. of which are made from)
B.C. raw materials in any case).

and Bukovsky’s — claim of ‘‘Kremlin manipula-
tion’’of the peace movement.
“T do not believe that people will allow themselves

Hanna Kawas, if
Canada-Palestine Assoc.

An Evening of Solidarity with

the Palestinian People

Sunday, July 11 — Ukrainian Hall,
805 East Pender Street

Speakers:

Bruce Yorke,
Vancouver alderman

Includes salmon barbecue; Adm. $7, OAP $5;
Sponsored by Vancouver East Club, CPC

t was probably inevitable that with the huge up-

surge in the disarmament movement, some
misanthropic voice would come forth from the
media to tell everyone that they are ‘misguided, even
duped, and have chosen the wrong issue on which to
campaign.

That is apparently the mission that Province col-
umnist Mike Tytherleigh has chosen if his column
June 28 is any indication..Apparently oblivious to
the real fear that many have for the very future of
humanity, he would have everyone join him, stan-
ding on the brink, looking backwards through the
telescope to an earlier cold war.

‘‘The trouble is with the peace movement,”’ he
writes balefully, ‘‘is that it has latched on to the issue
of peace versus war rather than freedom versus
slavery.”’

From there he turns it over to former Soviet dissi-
dent Vladimir Bukovsky whose burden, of course, is
that the peace movement has been engineered from
Moscow. He berates those demonstrating for
disamament with these words: ‘‘Your recent mass
demonstrations were disastrous because in them,
you identified yourselves, willingly or unwillingly,
with the rulers of the Eastern countries.”’

Giving Bukovsky the tag of ‘‘respected author’’
for the purpose of his column, Tytherleigh echoes
that assertion. ‘“The movement includes many well-
intentioned and genuinely concerned and frightened
people but the company they keep leaves much to be
desired,”’ he lectures, quoting a New York Times
writer to claim that those campaigning for disarma-
ment are “‘manipulated by the Kremlin.’”.

As it turns out, the appearance of Tytherleigh’s
column coincided with the arrival in our office of a
report of the final press conference in Moscow by
the Parliamentarians for World Order, headed by
Doug Roche, the Conservative MP for Edmonton

tarians in 24 countries, was there just before the UN
session opened.

Significantly, Roche answered Tytherleigh’s —

Beople and issues

South. The group, which represents 600 parliamen- .

to be pushed around,”’ he stated. ‘‘They are pro-
testing because they are concerned. I am concerned
too. But nobody pushed me. I have five children and
I want them to have a life. I don’t want to see them
destroy

In that press conference, Roche had some other
things to say, on the question of parity of nuclear |
arsenals and on ‘‘limited nuclear war.’’

On the first issue, he said: ‘“We are certain, based
on our study by reputable experts, that there exists
today a rough parity between the two
superpowers.’

On the issue of limited war, he was forthright:
“We reject completely the idea that there could bea
limited nuclear war. It is our belief that. limited
nuclear war would quickly move into general
wholesale destruction.”’

At the end, he told reporters: ‘‘We leave Moscow
with a measure of hope.”’

That hope — that a comprehensive arms reduc-
tion treaty can be achieved — is the hope of millions.
It is the hope of all of those who have marched in the
disarmament campaign.

But apparently it is a hope that Tytherleigh and
Bukovsky cannot — or will not — comprehend.

* * *

T he- hardworking staff at the People’s Co-
operative Bookstore in Vancouver now has 2
Volkswagen van to get their wares around the pro-
vince thanks’ to the generosity of Tribune reader
Elaine Podovinnikoff. Elaine donated the van to the
store following the death in February of her hus-
band Nick, who had earlier outfitted the vehicle as a
camper.

Ironically, Elaine had to pay a price to Victoria
for her donation. Since provincial tax authorities
don’t accept the idea of cars as gifts, she had to pay
sales tax on what Victoria deemed to bea fair market
value.

Despite that, the licensing and transfer of owner-.
ship was completed this month and store manager
Linda Chobotuck hopes to use the van soon to begin
getting books around to various centres in the pro-
vince.

—

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—JULY 2, 1982—Page 2