Legislature to pass resolution

Manitoba first province
to reject nuclear arms

By FRANK GOLDSPINK
_ WINNIPEG — The Manitoba government
Introduced a resolution in the provincial legislature
May 6 to declare the province a nuclear weapons
free zone. When the resolution passes later in this
Session, Manitoba will become the first province to
make such a declaration. ;

Opposition leader Gary Filmon indicated his

Onservative party will support the resolution. —

The resolution points out that whereas Mani-
tobans ‘‘continue to state their desire to end the
nuclear arms race;” that developing new weapons
Systems ‘‘only serves to escalate the tension be-
tween the superpowers”’ ...that although over
two billion dollars a day is spent on weapons, ‘‘mil-
lions of men and women live in poverty, and star-
vation confronts much of the Third World;”’ that
the concept of nuclear weapons free zones has

€n internationally recognized by treaties (Ant-
arctica, outer space, Latin America, etc.),
“therefore be it resolved that the Legislative
Assembly of Manitoba declare Manitoba a nuclear
Weapons free zone to signal Manitobans’ desire for
World peace.”’

In a statement, Communist Party of Canada
Provincial leader Paula Fletcher said the Commu-
nist Party welcomes the resolution, but proposes
that the NDP government also come out against
Reagan’s Star Wars.

In an interview, she said Communist Party
workers are reporting a very positive response in
the early stages of the party’s door-to-door mass
leaflet campaign against Canadian support for or
Participation in Star Wars. At least 15,000 leaflets
will be distributed to homes, plant gates and public
€vents in parts of Winnipeg and Thompson.

The Communist Party statement said the vast
Majority of Manitobans will support the nuclear
Weapons free zone declaration, “coming as it does

Wars’’. The statement says the NDP must urge the
Mulroney government to follow in the footsteps of
France, Belgium and Norway in rejecting the plan
to militarize space.

The statement also saluted the large numbers of
peace and community groups who had vigorously
taken up the nuclear weapons free zone slogan,
encouraging the province to introduce its resolu-
tion. The statement notes that the Communist
Party has advanced such a policy for the last 25
years.

Atanews conference May 7, the NDP resolution
was applauded by leading peace groups, including
the Winnipeg Coordinating Committee for Dis-
armament, Physicians for Social Responsibility,
Educators for Social Responsibility, Interchurch
Disarmament Group, Manitoba Peace Council,
and the Manitoba Action Committee on the Status
of Women.

An editorial in the Winnipeg Sun said in part:
“The immediate threat is nuclear war. That is a
prospect to terrible to contemplate and it must be
removed ...One can sign petitions, write letters to
politicians, march in peace rallies and support
symbolic efforts like Premier Pawley’s resolution.

‘It has to start somewhere. Manitoba is the first
to declare its position. Maybe other provinces will
follow suit. What starts as a small murmur even-
tually becomes a tide which cannot be ignored.

Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce president Ed
Martens said ‘‘the thought of nuclear war is so
abhorrent that I don’t fault any government for
trying to lead the way’’. However, Martens de-
fended the right of Winnipeg-based manufacturers
like Boeing of Canada and Bristol Aerospace Ltd.
to continue producing components for nuclear
weapons and bidding on Star Wars contracts.

“It should be left to the marketplace and to the
individual businessmen and their consciences,”’

TRIBUNE PHOTO —BRENT FRASER

March targets on
Star Wars, Cruise

EDMONTON — Edmontonians
turned out by the hundreds on
April 27 to join forces in opposi-
tion to Reagan’s Cruise missile
and Star Wars scheme.

Demonstration organizers and
the local establishment media es-
timated that between 300-500
marchers turned out for the trek
from the provincial legislature to
city hall, organized by Musicians
for Social Concern (MSC).

The anti-war protesters
gathered at city hall for an after-
noon filled with music, over-
coming chilly temperatures and
overcast skies. Folk singers Lynn
Weeds, Naomi Rankin and Steve
Goff kicked off the entertainment
with splendid renditions of tradi-
tional and current tunes.

The establishment media here
have all but pronounced the peace
movement dead in Edmonton,

ignoring the demonstration and
concentrating instead on ac-
tivities elsewhere in the country.

But that’s far from the case. A
gathering of peace activists plan-
ned for April 30 was expected to
disprove that, as in fact several
activities preceding the
demonstration have done. Some
80 progressive and democratic
organizations and peace groups
are expected to form, or at least

‘lay the foundations for, a new

peace coalition presently known
as the Edmonton Peace Network
(EPN).

EPN has already organized
several public meetings to force
Edmonton Members of Parlia-
ment to explain their positions on
the arms race. The meetings have
been well-attended by con-

‘Stituents throwing tough queries

at their elected representatives.

at a time of massive Canadian opposition to Star

Martens said.

Young Edmontonians march for peace on April 17.

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Ont. Tories rejected, but issues remain

By JAMES LEECH ee

A summer election in Ontario is a distinct possibility
given the realities of the May 2 provincial vote. Premier
Frank Miller’s Tories, with a mere 52 of the 125 seats,
faces the combined power of the Liberals led by David
Peterson (48 seats) and the New Democrats led by Bob
Rae (25 seats). The Tories could, conceivably, go down
to defeat on a vote of confidence soon after the legisla-
ture is called. The earliest date for a meeting of the
legislature is May 27.

On the other hand, NDP leader Rae emerged from a
caucus meeting May 6 with the hopeful strategy of letting
the other two parties compete for NDP support on the
__ basis of how far they will back NDP election planks. If

“SES lieutenant-governor were convinced that lack of
Confidence in the Tories in the legislature warranted
asking the Liberals to form a government rather than call
an election, that could be the outcome. __ ;

A question for the NDP is whether making either a

ory or a Liberal government work — and they always
Work in the interests of monopoly capitalism — is the
tole for the NDP. A previous NDP balance of power in

ntario, under Stephen Lewis, kept a William Davis

Ory minority in power for two years to no great advan-
tage to the people of Ontario. .

During this election the NDP campaigned for an end to
the 42-year Tory reign. If it now decides to see what a
80Vvernment of the monopolies has to offer, its credibility
will be under severe stress. On the other hand, if the
NDP does not know what a Liberal government stands
for, Bob Rae, a former federal MP, should think back to

© long years of Pierre Trudeau.

Majority Anti-Tory

The electorate, which the parties in the legislature
Claim to want to ‘*spare’’ another dreadful election cam-
Palgn, made a big step toward getting rid of the Tories,
€vidently because its priority was to spare itself another
four years of reactionary government. a

‘The popular vote showed this, going 38 per cent to the

°

News comment

Liberals, 37 percent to the Tories, 24 percent to the
NDP, and one per cent, about 37,000 votes, to other
candidates. Eight Tory cabinet ministers were defeated
— five by Liberals and three by the NDP.

The majority of voters (63 per cent) said they-didn’t
want the Tories running their lives, and that is something
to consider.

While the Tories threw everything into the election-
promises pot, one need only look at a string of Tory
governments across Canada to see how concerned they
are not about job creation, rent controls, Canadian
sovereignty to protect living standards, and how ready
they are to hand over the lion’s share to corporations.
Election promises don’t build a secure future, parti-
cularly when they are made by the anti-labor right wing.
And, evidently a large part of the electorate saw through
the promises.

The Communist Party ran 10 candidates who, with a
group of dedicated campaign workers, circulated the
platform of the party to hundreds of thousands of voters.
The policies advocated were designed to turn around the
economy, reinforce the social programs of the province,
oppose being dragged into U.S. Star Wars and economic

‘domination, develop Ontario in line with the needs of its

citizens and all Canadians for jobs, homes, health care,
education, social programs and peace.

Communists in Campaign

While the Communist vote does not reflect the increas-
ing acceptance of the policies advocated, the vote is
consistently increasing despite a hostile media, and the
submerging of the electorate in the doctrines of mono-
poly capitalism. !

In the May 2 election, the candidates, their ridings and
votes were: Gordon Massie, Dovercourt, 298; Maggie
Bizzell, Riverdale, 322; Cathy Laurier, St. Andrew-St.
Patrick, 263; Ed McDonald, York East, 924; Mike Ster-
ling, Oakwood, 366; Kerry Wilson, Hamilton Easi, 252;
Jim Bridgewood, Brampton, 515; Eric Blair, St. Catha-
rines, 305; Mike Longmoore, Windsor-Sandwich, 198;
John McLennan, Fort William, 289.

The Communist Party campaigned on crucial issues
which have lost none of their importance and which need
to be dealt with in the new legislature, and in the throne
speech and the budget. More than ever there is needed a
powerful response of the working people outside parlia-
ment to demand that their agenda be tackled. Job crea-
tion, job security, equal pay for work of equal value, a
halt to public funding of separate schools and opposition
to any plans to fund private schools.

The Communist Party also stood in the election and

stands now for nationalization of U.S. multi-national

corporations operating in this province.

These are the kinds of issues that public pressure will
have to bring to the Ontario legislature, whatever the
manoeuvres that take place there.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE, MAY 15, 1985 ¢7 |