QUEBEC TODAY

Throw out the traitors: —
For unity of the Common Front!

By SAM WALSH

The struggle begun by the Common Front of the three Quebec
central labor bodies with and on behalf of the public and para-
public service workers is far from over. On the contrary, it has
taken on new dimensions far beyond the just demands of those
who joined together to do battle with their employer — the state.
Furthermore a struggle of such breadth inevitably reveals who is
on the side of the workers and who is on the side of the bosses
(even among the leaders of the trade union movement).

The Liberal Party set itself the task of organizing bands of
“vigilantes” against the Common Front, aiming to invite the mayors
of all municipalities to grant them para-police power. These groups,
composed mainly of petty bourgeois, but organized by the big bour-
geoisie, would adopt the “law and order’’ line.

What’s more, the Liberal Party publicly declared, through a
member of Bourassa’s cabinet, that it intended to exploit all
“differences” between the rank-and-file of the trade union move-
ment and their leaders. No doubt this encouraged the three “D’s”
of the CNTU to do their dirty work, as well as some trade union
“leaders” paid directly by their “international” offices in New York,
Washington or Chicago whose ‘local unions are affiliated to the
Quebec Federation of Labor, not to speak of certain leaders of the
Canadian Labor Congress. We’ll have more to say about this later.

Reach New Dimensions

What are the new dimensions which the struggle has taken on?

Evidently the imprisonment of the three union leaders and about
50 other trade union leaders raised up a powerful movement for
democracy. The general strike was legal. Everyone knew that the
injunctions were not aimed primarily at safeguarding hospital
patients. It was clear that their main purpose was to alienate
public opinion, to divide the strikers, to break the strike and fin-
ally to destroy the trade union movement as a movement of
counteraction, dragging it back into the docile acceptance of the
capitalist system.

The protests, strikes and the control exercised over whole cities
by thousands of Quebec workers demanding the withdrawal of
Bill 19, freedom of the trade union political prisoners, and the
beginning of genuine negotiations by the government raised the
struggle to a new unheard-of level.

The idea spread that the working class could only expect exploi-
tation, injustice and the abridgement of democracy under the
present capitalist system. From-every side began to be heard ex-
pressions of determination to form a political party that belongs
to the workers. All the more so when Mayor Drapeau of Montreal

~. gave the supreme accolade to the leader of the Parti Quebecois,

Rene Levesque, declaring him to be a politician who had done the
most to split the rank-and-file trade unionists from their “revolu-
tionary” leaders. And Rene Levesque, flattered, didn’t even
renounce this kiss of death.

The struggle has brought into the open the ideological battle
which is taking place in all three central labor bodies — most
dramatically in the CNTU. Before a convention to take place in
June, the three “D’s” Dalpe, Daigle and Dion (who can be grouped
together under one “D”—disgusting) who constitute the majority
of the five member executive of the CNTU are bending every
effort to destroy the CNTU by forming a new central labor body
which would smash the Common Front, which would integrate
itself into the capitalist system and which would “purge” itself of
all radicals.

This inevitable confrontation is felt, to some degree, in all three
central labor bodies, for the influence of the bourgeoisie is felt
in all three and indeed predominated until quite recently.

Exposed Their Colors _

Having chosen the moment when the government had struck
so hard, when the workers had shown their will to resist and
especially when the president of the CNTU, Marcel Pepin, was in
prison for a year, the three disgusting ones have revealed whom
they really represent, which explains the loud applause their
treacherous moves received from Mr. Loubier, leader of Unite-
Quebec Party (formerly the Union Nationale).

The CNTU members in their June convention should pitch them
out (following their suspension, which has already taken place)
and affirm their solidarity with President Marcel Pepin and his
team = and ask Pepin to carry his policy to the logical conclusion
by inviting the two other labor bodies to participate in the forma-
tion of a federated mass party of labor.

No matter what concessions the Common Front is able to wrest
from the renewed negotiations with government, the class strug-
gle in Quebec has taken on political dimensions which will surely
grow and deepen, shaking the whole rotten anti-democratic system
of exploitation, national humiliation, unemployment and misery
to its very foundations.

REPORT ON CPSU-SWEDISH LEFT PARTY ACCORD

STOCKHOLM — A report on the May 14-20 meeting of a dele-
gation from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union with the
Swedish Left Party (Communists) was. published Monday in Stock-
holm. The CPSU delegation was led by M. V. Zimyanin, editor-in-
chief of Pravda and member of the CPSU Central Committee. They
had. extensive talks with C. H. Hermansson, chairman of the SLP
(DC) and other party leaders. In a joint statement, the two parties
stressed “‘a need to strengthen, by joint efforts, the unity of Com-
munist* Parties on the basis of Marxism-Leninism, actively to up-
hold the principles of proletarian internationalism, and to struggle
against the ideology and practice of anti-communism.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 1972—PAGE 10.

along with higher wages.

By F. GORYUNOV :

SANTIAGO—The 3rd session
of the UN Conference on Trade
and Development (UNCTAD) has
completed its work here in the
Chilean capital. The basic task
of this organization, as defined
in Geneva in 1964 at its con-
stituent session, envisaged ex-

‘pansion of economic cooperation

among all countries irrespective

.of social system.

From the very beginning of
UNCTAD, the socialist countries
have actively supported it. In
January 1965 the USSR annulled
all customs duties on commodi-
ties imported from Asian, Afri-
can and Latin American coun-
tries.

In 1960 the Soviet Union had
trade agreements with 23 devel-
oping countries; in 1970 with 52.
From 1965 to 1970, trade be-
tween the Soviet Union and the
developing countries more than
doubled, and in 1971 it increased
by 21%.

The USSR renders economic
and technical assistance on the
basis of inter-government agree-
ments to 40 developing coun-
tries. The interest rate on loans
and credits extended by the so-
cialist countries, as Manuel Per-
ez Guerrero, general secretary
of UNCTAD reported at the cur-
rent session, does not exceed
3%, whereas international finan-
cial organizations of the capital-
ist countries charge no less than

7-8%.
Aid Key Industries

It is characteristic of the eco-
nomic policy of the USSR and
other socialist countries with re-
gard to the developing world
that their technical assistance is
directed to the key branches of
economy—extraction and refin-
ing of oil and gas, metallurgy,
electric power, chemistry, ma-
chine-building, and food and
textile industries.

The rapidly growing economic
potential of the socialist camp
serves as a reliable support of
these countries in their struggle
for economic independence.

The industrially developed
countries of the West are invar-
iably coming out in a united
front in their attitude to the
developing countries. They even
objected to the discussion in

sae

= aie eat EE
“ EA ayeaad ©

abe

Santiago of the problems of the
currency and financial crisis,
though it has undermined the
economy of many developing
countries. As a.result of the lev-
elling out of currency exchange
rates, the UNCTAD general sec-
retary stressed, the developing
countries have lost more than
$500 million.

These countries protest
against the attempts of the
United States and other powers,
reigning supreme in the interna-
tional currency fund (ICF), to
adopt only decisions advanta-
geous for them, disregarding the
interests of the overwhelming
majority of the developing coun-
tries. These demand the revision
of the unjust ICF system and
their participation in the solu-
tion of international financial
problems.

Data on Plunder

In a message of greetings to
the delegates of UNCTAD,
Chilean President Salvador Al-
lende cited convincing data on
the imperialist plunder of Latin
America. From 1950 to 1967, he
said, Latin American countries
received in the form of financial
handouts $3,900 million, whereas
foreign monopolies, U.S. in par-
ticular, pocketed there in the
same period $12,800 million of
net profit.

On the eve of the session,
Western powers prepared a
“trump-card” for the dishonest
game. According to the news-
paper Financial Times of Lon-

$4
MAMMOTH TASKS OF SOVIET UNION’, Ww

How do the 98-million strong Soviet trade unions OPT out 5
monumental task of carrying out the extensive plans * of joi
24th Congress of the CPSU for the further developmen?’ comm |
and agriculture, for increasing living standards, for t
education of the working people? wor

INFORMATION BULLETIN No. 6-7 (Supplement tO 45th
ist Review) carries the address by L. I. Brezhnev 0 ndid
gress of Soviet Trade Unions. In it he outlines the spr
ments of the trade unions, deals with shortcoming east! eh |
nesses, and projects measures required for the suc¢ work a
ment of the Five-Year Plan. The magnitude of bee ments we
is clear when you consider that total capital inves iqlion ©
economy for the plan period will be more than 500 b
of which 128,600 million will be in agriculture.

In the same issue: political resolution of the
the Italian CP; policy resolution of the 21st Conv
of Canada; activity of Bulgarian trade unions; tasks mae

slovak trade unions.

jet

QF

: c.G-t
ey,

French construction workers’ demonstration in Paris demands better working and living cond

don, the program envistee at {
rendering of “special” 45° alop?
to 25 of the least see
countries to a total of fro tol
to $200 million. According toi"
paper, it is also plant test
significantly improve ai!
of the loans granted bY z
italist countries They al
trying to substitute pill
outs for a business-like Fal
to the solution of Va ral!
problems of internatio’ qi
and economic developme” opt
want to divert the 4% ji
countries from the 104 opt
economic and social P acs!
This new “program © gol
ance” is incapable © ems
cardinal economic prob
The policy of plundet ait
with a resolute rebu Pe
pants at the UNCTA at
Many delegates stress® ptf!
peoples of developing
do not wish any more My .
poverty, and they res? ore
test against such a? 4
things in the world ynes®
petrates their backwa! ith
By a 70 to 0 vol acl
abstentions, UNCTAD iin
passed a resolution Si oe
Israeli withdrawal ne
pied Arab territories * ye 5
quisite for reopenin
Canal. ing
Israel had argued ey oH
past five weeks AeA ng ‘ah
for the canal’s clos ti
placed on Israeli occur DF
the resolution prese™ ous
bloc of underdevel® rt
won resounding suP

py if

4
a

13th cont
ention °

=