_At the PNE

MAKE CA

SHIPYARD WORKERS

Photos above show three booths which attracted a lot of attention at

est your knowledge

ILD A CANADIAN MERCHANT marine

—Dave Werlin photos

this year’s PNE. Top is the B.C. Federation of Labor booth which featured a quiz. Centre is the Marine Workers and Boilermakers Union booth urging action on a Canadian Merchant Marine. People are shown signing a petition to Ottawa; Bottom photo shows the People’s Co-op Bookstore booth which featured progressive literature and

records.

Court ruling on cabinet order blow to democracy

A B.C. Supreme Court judge handed down a judgment last week whic that if the freedom and rights of citizens is threatened by a provincial cabinet ord

they cannot take it to court to challenge its legality.

Instead, they must wait until they are proceeded against by the government before the order can be tested.

This decision, which is a blow at democracy in the province and entrenches the power of reac- tion through the courts, was brought down as a result of a challenge by a number of promi- nent citizens to a provincial cabinet order-in-council passed at the time of the FLQ crisis in Quebec.

The order-in-council, rushed through while the War Measures Act was in effect, said:

“It is declared as public policy that no person teaching or instructing our youth in educa- tional institutions receiving government support shall continue in employment of the institution if they advocate the policies of the Front de Libera- tion du Quebec, or the overthrow of democratically elected governments by violent means.”

Although the - Federal government has since revoked the use of the War Measures Act, the B.C. government continues to maintain this order in force.

The challenge of the order was filed by lawyer Tom Berger on behalf of six teachers and backed by the B.C. Civil Liberties Association. It named the attorney-general as defendant and asked the court to rule the cabinet had exceeded its powers.

The challengers of the order sought to have it declared ultra vires — outside the powers of the provincial government — since no statute of the legislature delegates power to the cabinet to make such an order.

In presenting his case, Berger argued that the BNA Act places matters of fundamental rights of citizenship in the power of the federal government. -

Lawyers for the provincial government were unwilling to see the cabinet’s order-in- council tested on its legality. Instead they argued that the teachers did not have the right to take legal action since they had no status to initiate and maintain the court action because they did

Jobs, rights top issues

Cont'd from pg. 1 working people, not just the trade unions.

“Organized labor will have to meet this problem unitedly; all splits, divisions and juris- dictional squabbles must be left aside.””

Dave Werlin, Canadian Union of Public Employees: ‘“‘Over a million workers unemployed and no relief in sight. The most

serious economic crisis since -

1939; a flood of repressive legis- lation aimed at labor; the unem- ployed, and youth who are fighting for their rights. That is the picture facing the working people and the youth of Canada this Labor Day.

‘‘High prices and interest rates, inflation and unemploy- ment have flowed over the U.S. border into Canada because of

our conomic ties to our giant neighbor to the south.

‘*Now that Mr. Nixon has imposed wage and price controls in the U.S., no doubt Canadian business circles, the media and government spokesmen for big business will again take up the cry for wage controls. At the same time they will push for more anti-labor legislation and repressive mea- sures to prevent labor and youth, twin victims of this crisis, from fighting back.

“‘Labor must reject wage controls. We must unite with young people and_ the

unemployed, our natural allies in —

this struggle, and go over to the offensive in a mighty campaign to end the war in Vietnam, to roll back repressive legislation and to put Canada back to work.”

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1971—PAGE 12

CP booklet

now available -

Power of the People, the pic- torial highlights of the Com- munist Party of Canada, 1921- 1971, is available now at the Co-op Bookstore, 341 West Pender; the Communist Party Office, 408 Ford Bidg., 193 East Hastings, and from all party clubs.

Written in both French and English, the booklet commem- orates 50 years of struggle of the workers in the Canadian Communist Party, from 1921 onward. Historic photos and quotes from books by party leaders highlight the pages of this valuable document.

*

h meals

aaa

not allege interference with their private or public right occasioning them loss. or damage.

Mr. Justice J.S. Atkins, in a written judgment, supported the arguments of government lawyers, and turned aside the challenge to the order. He said ‘the plaintiffs have no more than a hypothetical interest.”

Berger said after the court judgment that it was “unfortunate” that the govern- ment was unwilling to see the order-in-council tested on its merits. He added that ‘‘If the judge is right, this judgment means that if the freedom of any profession is infringed by cabinet order, they can not take it to court to have it settled.

Instead, they must wait unt t

of them is proceeded agail® the government.”’ ae An appeal agains! | judgment is being consider” 5 The most significant a8 iy the court action-was the fa provincial government #4 ‘ put up a fight to preva. challenge of the order itsel: “al | would indicate the er is government intends to kee? | order-in-council in force, ™ iit it the only government will Canada to continue gel?! emergency legislation Pa" the time of the Quebec erist is The cabinet order 4% al sweeping provision are @ to everyone’s civil liberti€® iy J main fight must be to com stil | Bennett government 1 the order.

LABOR SCENE:

Mounting death rate Stirs loggers protest |

Loggers in the Sproat Lake division of the MacMillan Bloedel empire have been off work since July 19. They refuse to go back until the company has resolved the question of having a scaler on the job with each faller.

In 1970, 13 fallers and buckers met their death on the job. Fallers use new high-powered saws, so noisy they must wear earplugs, and sometimes must get down on their knees to make a cut. Obviously, as one union man said, four eyes are better than two eyes, and company chiselling to cut down on the number of scalers per faller is not going to cut the death rate in this hazardous occupation.

To make matters more com- plicated, the Workmens

Compensation Board made a - ‘ruling this week that other

workers must be at least 300 feet away from the faller when he is

cutting down a tree. * * *

B.C. fishermen through their union, the UFAWU, have expressed their protests against the arrest of the head of Canada’s Farmers Union in Prince Edward Island.

Roy Atkinson and 12 members of the farmer’s union were arrested last week during a demonstration protesting PEI government policies and its refusal to bargain with the union. They were arrested under the Criminal Code with ‘‘conspiracy to intimidate,’ because their tractors had slowed access to a ferry crossing during the demon- stration.

UFAWU president Homer Stevens, secretary Jack Nichol and business agent Glenn McEachern said in their wire to PEI Premier Alex Campbell that the arrest and jailing of NFU members was an unjust

‘their striking em

alternative to meeting> bent the NFU and the govel git discuss the problems @ ances of the farmers:

Last year the NFU soe the fishermen’s strike ia, Canso area of Nova SCO: igt farmers in the M@ ij provinces are victims <a same type of corpora? ove big-business-orientate e ment.

** * (be

The Executive Board ‘ British Columbia Divisie gi dian Union of Public” gl ees, meeting last wee id Vancouver sharply crab | the new Minister 9

Honourable James Chabl oh

The meeting instructed | President Harry Greene al a telegram to Chabot et ing that he direct the 9 soy! the Sandringham Priva ly el tal to bargain cole yet

a required under Relations Act. \e

Greene said that 18) including some 1ab0 pot y were hopeful that Uh@ bring a new style 0 office of the Minister & ql The illusion was cope impartiality and creat had arrived on the ser abot cy labor peace and

rus

synonymous. : a “Any such illusions i, shattered,” said OEE]