PRA “
GEORGE GIDORA
...in Surrey.

The Communist Party this week
completed its nominations for the
March 10 provincial vote with the
nomination of three candidates,
two for the double member riding
of Surrey and one for the Delta
riding.

George Gidora and Josephine
Arland are running jointly in Surrey
and John Stevens will contest the
seat in Delta, bringing the total
number of provincial candidates to
seven.

Gidora, 24, worked in the Surrey
school system for several years, and
was delegated by his union CUPE
728 to represent them on the New
Westminster and District Labor
Council, which he did for three
years. Gidora, as a young trade
unionist, is an active advocate of
youth rights, and presently holds
the position of provincial secretary

B.C.

Running with Gidora is Joseph-
ine Arland, for many years an activ-

women’s movements. She partici-
pated in the organization of both
the International Women’s Year,
1975 and the Women’s Lobby to

of the Young Communist League in|

ist in the peace, tenants, PTA and:

\

GARY SWANN
... in Alberni.

Victoria protesting cutbacks in day
care and social services in 1976.

Running in the neighboring rid-
ing of Delta is 29-year-old fisher-
man John Stevens, an active mem-
ber of the United Fishermen and
Allied Workers Union (UFAWU).
He served as secretary-treasurer of
the UFAWU Ladner local and for
four years was an official delegate
to the Vancouver and District La-
bor Council. As a past member of
the Young Communist League,
Stevens will campaign strongly fora
better deal for youth in this pro-
vince. :

The campaign around youth
rights found its first expression in a
statement issued this week by Sur-
rey candidate, George Gidora, who
labelled his Socred opponent,
former human resources minister
Bill Vander Zalm,° ‘‘the worst
enemy of youth in this province.

‘*As human resources minister,
Vander Zalm, along with the rest of
the Socred government, was
responsible for a whole series of dis-

-criminatory policies aimed at youth
and the unemployed,” Gidora said.

He cited examples of the earlier
300 per cent increase in ICBC rates

UEROA
. .. in Van couver Centre.

CP completes B.C. nominations

for those under 25, the continuing
cutbacks in the youth and summer
employment programs funded from
Victoria, and the obvious discrimin-
ation against young people in the
recently adjusted GAIN rates.
‘‘Nearly 50 per cent of the over
150,000 British Columbians pres-
ently unemployed are under 25 and
the Socred government allows its,
corporate friends huge profits while
they continue to shut down plants
and lay off workers with complete
impunity,’’ Gidora charged.

Gidora and Josephine Arland,
along with the rest of the Commun-
ist candidates will present a compre-
hensive program of economic and
social reforms to reverse the present
Socred strategy of selling out our
natural resources to private cor-
porate interests; to create jobs
through the development of sec-
ondary industry; and to defend and
extend democratic, economic and
social rights.

Maurice Rush and running mate,
Miguel Figueroa, Betty Griffin and

Gary Swann were earlier nominated ©

to contest the ridings of Vancouver
Centre, Burnaby North and Alberni
respectively.

hen the internationally-acclaimed GDR singer Lin

Juldati and her pianist husband, Dr. Aberhard
Rebling perform in two special concerts at the Peretz
School May 3 and 4, the name for the concert — a trib-
ute to Anne Frank — will not merely be a title for an
evening of fine music. Both were active leaders in the
anti-fascist resistance in the Netherlands and in Jul-
dati’s case, she was imprisoned in the Nazi concentra-
tion camps of Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen along with
Anne Frank, whose diary detailing the lives of a Jewish
family in hiding from the Nazis is known in virtually
every language. In Rebling’s case, he was sentenced to:

death but managed to escape before the execution -

could be carried out.

During the months before their capture by the Ger-
man fascists, the two artists gave clandestine recitals
and concerts in private homes in the Netherlands, per-
forming Yiddish folk songs and other songs banned by
the occupying Nazi forces.

They moved to the German Democratic Republic in
1952 where Rebling has held the positions of chancel-
lor of the famous Hanns Eisler conservatory in Berlin
and Juldati a drama teacher and author. Three times
they have made concert tours of more than 20 coun-
tries in Europe and Asia.

Their concerts in Vancouver, both at the Peretz
School at 47th and Ash in Vancouver, are scheduled
for 8 p.m. May 3 and 4. We hope also to obtain an in-
terview for a subsequent issue.

a * * * *

hen John Nebot, then a Republican soldier, and his

¥ wife Mercedes left their native Spain just ahead of
Franco’s pursuing troops, they left behind a country
that for nearly 40 years was under the heel of fascist
dictatorship. The Nebots have spent most of those 40
years in this country but from Osoyoos where they
now live, they can take pride in the fact that their fam-
ily has taken a prominent place in the powerful resurg-

ence of the Left, marked particularly in the recent mu-

nicipal elections, the first held in nearly half a century.

A nephew of the Nebots, Juan Saura, was contest-
ing the office of mayor of Hospitalet, a town just out-
side of Barcelona in Catalonia and although the out-
come was not yet known, he was fully expected to win
the seat for the PSUC, the United Socialist Party of
Catalonia.

Incomplete returns for the Spanish elections showed
that the Left was on its way to significant gains in ma-
jor urban centres. With 73 per cent of the vote counted

in Barcelona, the Socialists appeared to have 15 seats,.
- the Communists nine and the so-called centrists nine.

In Madrid, with 50 per cent of the vote counted, the
Socialists had picked up 24 seats and the Communists
nine and a Communist-Socialist alliance was expected
to have the majority in city hall.

* ~ a oe fe

n another electoral front closer to home: If the stu-

dents at one class at Prince of Wales High School
in Vancouver were to decide the future of the country
the Communist Party of Canada would form the of-
ficial opposition in the next federal Parliament.

Students had been assigned to interview the various
federal parties and prepare submissions to the class
after which a mock election was held.

When the votes were tallied, the Communist Party
was second only to the Liberals. At least some things
are changing. :

* * * * *

he average age around the Tribune office took a

substantial drop this week after associate editor
Fred Wilson and his wife Pat headed off for Grace
Hospital to welcome their first born.

As it turned out, however, it was Tuesday morning
at 10 minutes before 11 a.m. when two weary parents
greeted their eight pound, five ounce daughter, Saraid
Elizabeth.

The name, Saraid, is an Irish rendition of Sarah and

blends Pat’s choice of name with Fred’s ethnic
heritage. And if she can combine that kind of com-
promise in life with the independent spirit she
displayed in birth, the folks say, Saraid will have no
problem making her distinctive name well known in-

deed.

Pleased as they can be with the arrival of their
daughter, the parents note that she is the latest in a str-

ing of births in the progressive movement in which —

boys have predominated. That suits them, and Saraid,
just fine, because of course; they insist that she is good
looking and pleasant enough to have her pick of the
crop.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—APRIL 20, 1979—Page 2.

By ALD. HARRY RANKIN

If the Social Credit government is
re-elected on May 10, 1979, muni-
cipal autonomy will be still further
eroded, if not abolished altogether.
There is reason to suspect that Bill
Vander Zalm, minister of tulips and
municipal affairs, would like to in-
troduce the county system to re-
place our present system of regional
government (GVRD), municipal
councils and school boards.

The record of this government is
one of taking more and more con-
trol away from municipal councils

_and school boards and putting it in-

to the hands of the provincial
cabinet.

In 1977 the provincial govern-
ments abolished the right of muni-
cipal councils to charge impost fees
against developers. These fees were
charged to cover additional costs to
the municipality arising from de-
veloper projects, such as water,
sewer, street use, etc.

At the same time the provincial
government abolished land use con-
tracts. These contracts enabled mu-
nicipalities to designate the uses to
which any developer might put his
land, the services he would provide
and so on.

Last spring the government pas-
sed legislation that reduced the
council majority necessary for any
development project from two-
thirds to a simple majority. The
two-thirds majority rule offered
some protection to citizens and
made it more difficult for develop-
ers to ‘‘persuade’’ individual alder-
men and mayors to support their
demands.

Last fall the provincial cabinet

ruled that municipal budgets. must,

not be increased by more than five
per cent, and that any surpluses that
councils had saved up must be im-
mediately spent. This took away the

right of municipal councils to de-

cide their own finances, to decide
how much money should be raised
and how it would be spent.

At the same time the provincial
cabinet ruled that hospital budgets
must not be increased by more than
five per cent. Because of an infla-
tion rate double that figure and be-
cause the cost of hospital equip-
ment has zoomed astronomically,
this in effect forced hospitals to
reduce staff and.cut services.

The Socred government also told
the school boards that they must

‘limit their budget increases to five

per cent and that they must cut staff
and services, under threat of being
taken over entirely by the cabinet.

All these steps were taken, said
the government, to protect the tax-
payer. The falsity and hypocrisy of
this statement is proven by the fact
that while it was telling municipal-
ities and school boards to hold the
line on taxes, it was piling one tax
increase after another on homeown-
ers to pay for school costs.

The government imposes a mill
rate on taxpayers to cover educa-

_ VERNON

May Day
Meeting

Hear Sean Griffin,
‘Editor, Pacific
Tribune
e

Film Showing:
LOS CANADIENSES
refreshments

AUUC Hall

civic government

tion costs called a basic levy. If

It has been raised every year sim

all of the Canada Works projec!

- others.”’ Z

Sat. Apr. 28, 6:30 p.m.

doesn’t raise enough money to
the costs in any school district, t
grants are given by the provill
government to cover some of
balance.

In 1975 when the Socreds t
over, the basic levy was 26.5 mi

then and this year went up to
mills. ;

The more it raised the basic le
the greater the share that taxp@.
had to pay and the less the pro
cial government had to pay.’
Vancouver this year, out of a
get of $126 million, the taxpa!
have to put up 94 per cent, while
provincial government contrib
only 6 per cent.

To top it off, Bill Vander
the minister of municipal af:
who has the same degrees of ©
cern for municipalities as he h
welfare recipients, flailing aw:
his usual mindless fashion, has
come up with the idea that B
should establish the county syst
of government, like they have
Washington, Oregon and Albe
This would abolish school boat!
and perhaps also local munict
councils, and place the citizens
both still more under the thum
the: provincial cabinet.

Because of all of the above I 4
convinced that if Social Credit ist
elected we will not only suffer fur
ther erosion of municipal auto™
omy; it could be abolished entirely:
together with school boards. ¥
Brother Vander Zalm would thé
take over entirely.
. That would be a bad day for B.&

City cuts off:

In spite of Vancouver city coun:
cil’s final decision April 10 to ©
off all funding for the DowntoW
Eastside Residents’ Associati
DERA’s Gore Street office will 1
main open and will continue to pl
vide necessary services for | 4
residents. ”

But the loss of the $12,000 from
the city will have a serious impat
on the ability of DERA to maintail
those services, president Bruc
Erikson told the Tribune this week
“Tt will have to hurt us eventually,
he said. ‘‘Without paid organizers!
is impossible to run the range of s&

_vices that we have and ‘to organ!

3
3

that provide employment fo!

City council voted down DERA
grant appeal by a vote of five
four with only alderman Ranki®
Harcourt, Marzari and Little vot!
in favor. NPA alderman Helé
Boyce and Warnett Kennedy wal¥
ed out of council chambers just a
DERA’s appeal was about to v6
heard.

ag

COURTENAY
- May Day
Celebration

Speakers
Buffet
Dance

-MAY5,7p.m.

Grantham Hall (Island:
Hgwy., across from Tsolum
school.) | a

Admission $6, OAP $3 —
Proceeds to Tribune drive

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