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:

Public control and development
of nuclear energy coupled with

f effective legislation and regulation

Protect the environment from
Auclear contamination are the

of

Central issues in the controversy
Over the peaceful use of nuclear

i Power, the cent.cal executive

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j Statement

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©Ommittee of .the Communist
“arty declared in a statement
4Ssued last week.
The Communist Party made the
in the wake of
Closures last month that waste
Used as land fill in Port Hope,
Mario had been contaminated by
l0active material.
Concern over the contamination
& dled some to suggest that any
“Urther development of nuclear
®hergy should be banned.

“The Communist Party shares
ah Concern for the public health
8 Safety of Canadians,” the

tement noted, “and we are
feply concerned that, in the

Sence of adequate safeguards in
he Production and use of nuclear
~ €rgy, neglect and errors in
pelgment may adversely affect the

alth of Canadians and may cause
~ <alalities.

‘
\
z

}. esd Al

oT]

‘esteem

“However, the Communist Party
does not share the view current in
some quarters of public concern,
that the production and use of
nuclear energy should be banned.
We consider that this would be a
retrograde step that would
negatively affect social develop-
ment, particularly in the face of a
growing scarcity of other energy
sources.”

The CP statement emphasized
that the central issue is one of
ownership and control and
declared that nuclear energy,
including the sources of resource
production, ‘‘cannot be left in
private hands’’ but must be
publicly owned.

“We are for the planned
development of the Canadian
economy under democratic con-
trol,’ the CP stated. ‘‘Such
development must take into ac-
count the rational use of our
natural and human resources and
the preservation of the ecological
balance and the natural en-
vironment. It should include
legislation and effective measures
to protect the health and safety of
the whole population.

‘Demand for oil price

4
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(

4)

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T

ro he Communist Party this week

paraly condemned the demand by

At Bennett that the price of

$1 be raised to the world level of
3.50 a barrel.

€nnett had voiced the demand

} . Vttawa during a conference on

; rere of provincial premiers and
as ated his stand at a press
erence following his return to
Titish Columbia.
Tovincial Communist Party

if yader Nigel Morgan charged that

4 fveleum corporations for which

3 . Increase would be ‘‘another
, “llout to the big multinational

peo it . : ill
heavily. e of this province will pay
tet imagine increasing the
| wane, Of gasoline to 90 cents a
15, On — upward of $3 more for a
Cr 8allon tank — on top of the in-
the ses for ICBC premiums and
Pep wtbending fare hikes for B.C.
Tries,” Morgan declared.
€ said that the new oil prices,
‘ther than guaranteeing any
‘Yelopment of the province’s

Ncrease condemned

economy, would ‘‘only cut deeper
into living standards and spark a
new round of inflation. The multi-
national corporations would be the
beneficiaries of that inflationary
spiral.”

Premier Bennett had sought to
justify pushing the price of oil up to
the present world level on the basis
that it would provide incentives to
oil companies to expand ex-
ploration, incentives which, he
claimed, do not presently exist.

“The increase should not ‘be
allowed,” Morgan stated. ‘‘We see
no justification for it since there
has been no substantial increase in
the real cost of production. It is
merely a pretext for amassing
greater corporate profits.

“The Communist Party
reiterates its call for public

-ownership of all energy resources

with a fully-integrated . all-
Canadian energy policy to provide
for the needs of the people at the
lowest possible cost.” es

” ihe:
Wh 4?)
(Miyy -

vi

York disarmament conference delegates report back: left to right, freelance broadcaster Ben Metcalfe; Dr.
James Foulks; David Cayley, who acted as moderator for the meeting; Reverend Robert Burrows, United
hurch; Vancouver and District Labor Council secretary Paddy Neale.

Public control, regulation

—Sean Griffin photo

‘Modern science is quite capable
of providing maximum tested
safeguards to ensure protection
from.the effects of radiation. What
prevents the _ fullest im-
plementation of effective
measures to ensure a safe en-
vironment is the refusal of
government to face up to its full

responsibility by adopting and
enforcing adequate en-
vironmental, health and safety

regulations and allocating the
funds necessary for these pur-
poses.”

Protective legislation should
compel all nuclear and atomic
energy-producing plants and in-
stallations to be so equipped as to
provide for purification,
neutralization or trapping of all
harmful discharges and to provide
for safe disposal of nuclear waste,
the statement urged.

It added that non-compliance
with such laws should be regarded
as a major criminal offence with
violators to be punished ac-
cordingly.

. The Communist Party statement

also pointed to the issue of over-
seas sales of Candu reactors and
noted Canada has an international
responsibility to ensure that such
reactors are used solely for the
production of nuclear energy for
peaceful purposes.

“Canada should actively pursue,
along with other countries which
export reactors, the adoption of an
international agreement con-
taining ironclad guarantees that
such reactors would be used for
peaceful purposes.”’

The statement urged that such
an agreement be drafted under the
auspices of the United Nations with
the proviso that sales to fascist,
racist or aggressive governments
which are not signatories to the
nuclear non-proliferation treaty be
prohibited.

“Above all,” the Communist
Party declared, ‘‘Canadians
should speak with-a united voice in
demanding that Canada associate
itself with all these countries and
governments which have set out
ferthrightly for the destruction of
all existing stocks of nuclear and
atomic weapons, and for the
prohibition of all further
production of these weapons under
an international agreement.

“For it is the possibility of world
nuclear war wherein lies the real
danger to humanity and the earth’s
environment.” .

Parley delegates
score arms race

A United Church minister, who
attended the conference on
disarmament in York, England,

‘March 28-April 1, told a report-

back meeting Monday night in
Vancouver, that it is necessary ‘‘to
bring sanity back to the world.”

Rev. Robert Burrows, who was
one of four delegates from B.C. to
attend the parley, told about 150
people at the First United Church,
that “a lot of consciences. are
waking up” and people in the
church must “‘pull their heads out
of the sand, like I have pulled my
head out of the sand, to stop
Trident and to stop the arms race.”’

The report-back meeting, which
was chaired by Donald Ross, with
David Cayley, of the CBC ‘‘Good
Morning’’ radio program as
moderator, also heard from Paddy
Neale, Vancouver Labor Council
secretary; Dr. James Foulks,
University of B.C.; and Ben
Metcalfe, freelance broadcaster

-and journalist. :

Neale told the meeting that the
York conference had been “a
reawakening for him. Pointing to
the lack of interest among many

. trade unionists on the issues of

peace, the labor council secretary
said the parley had “‘rejuvenated
my desire to get out and talk about
it,’ and indicated that he has
already accepted invitations from
two labor councils and a number of
local unions to speak.

“Young people do not realize the
growing urgency of halting the
arms race,”’ Neale said. Stressing
that he was not pessimistic but
rather optimistic at the outcome of
the fight for peace, Neale said it
was notable that representatives
from trade unions, churches,
universities and the media were

present on the platform,
“something not possible 20 years
ago.

“T came away with much more
desire, much more ambition, to
carry on in the disarmament

movement,” he said.

Dr. Foulks briefly outlined the
events leading to the York parley.
He said that world public
awareness must be brought to bear
on governments. “The road to
peace will be a difficult one, but we
must not despair because of these
difficulties. There are grounds for
being hopeful without being
unrealistic,” he said, pointing to
letters of support to the York
parley by the Archbishop of
Canterbury, the Archbishop of
York and Cyril Plante, leading
official of the British Trade Union
Congress.

“I don’t think people are
prepared to resign themselves to
nuclear war.For the immediate
future, if we want to make
disarmament more possible, it will
be done through our politicians.
What counts is the way people
educate themselves on the issues
and act,’’ he said.

Freelance journalist Ben -Met-
calfe criticized the media for not
doing their duty to the Canadian
people by reporting the York
conference. However, he voiced a
negative attitude to the parley,
expressing his disappointment,
and said the peace movement must
“rethink”’ its role, without spelling
out. what he thought it should do.

Metcalfe aroused some criticism
from people in the audience with
his remarks belittling the im-
portance of protest actions such as
petitions, and appeals to political
leaders and governments. He had
expressed the view that this action
was a waste of time. He was also

‘criticized by people in the audience

for references to the Soviet people,
who, he said, had no input to their
leaders on peace issues.

Chairman Donald Ross appealed
to the public to sign the York
Declaration calling for an end to
the arms race and for convening of
the UN conference on disar-
mament, and to send it to prime
minister Pierre Trudeau. (See also
story, page 9).

:
<E

—Sean Griffin photo ;

Getting a little bit of home, Soviet delegates from the Educational and
Scientific Workers Union, take in a Russian-style meal specially
prepared for them by a cooking class at the Britannia School complex
which the Soviets toured last week. Here as guests of the Canadian

' Teachers Federation as part of a reciprocal tour arrangement, their tour

included visits to schools as well as meetings with representatives of

teachers federations. From right to left they are Victor Berezin, first

secretary of the union, Alexandra Yevdokimova, Vladimir Nossov.
PACIFIC TRIBUNE—MAY 14, 1976—Page 3