|

Noube

:

genocidal rule under the Pol Pot regime, is coming back to life

By TERRY CANNON NEW YORK — Keo

Prasath, here in New York for

a discussion on aid to Kam- puchea held at the United Na-

‘| tions said that the People’s Re-

Volutionary Council of Kam- puchea would accept humanitarian aid from any

_ Source, so long as there were

ho political strings attached. Prasath said his govern-

ment, headed by Heng Samrin,

‘Tejected the proposal from Washington for a so-called

_ “‘landbridge,’’ that would

truck aid into Kampuchea along an overland route from Thailand.

“Kampuchea is indepen- dent, free and sovereign,” Prasath told this reporter.

or “The People’s Revolutionary

Council controls the entire ter- ritory of the country. We have every right to decide who en- ters Kampuchea and how. Airport, Harbor Open “*The airport in Phnom Penh is operating. The Kompong Som harbor is open. The Viet- namese have agreed to allow shipments up the Mekong River. Humanitarian aid can be brought to the people in these three ways. There is no need for a ‘land bridge’.”’ Prasath charged that the purpose of the ‘‘land bridge’’ ideais to ship aid and give polit- ical legitimacy to the remnant forces of the Pol Pot regime liv- ing in the jungles of Thailand near the Kampuchean border. ‘*This plan is aimed at reviv- ing the ‘corpse’ of Pol Pot,”’

Prasath charged. ‘‘Our posi- tion on this issue is that we want to maintain our sovereignty and territorial in- tegrity.”’

(The Tass News Agency re- ported that the UN has agreed to send all humanitarian aid through the People’s Re- volutionary Council in Phnom Penh. The Phnom Penh staff of UNICEF, which is overseeing aid shipments together with the International Red Cross, has reported that the Heng Samrin government has been “‘extremely conscientious’’ in distributing international aid to Kampuchean civilians.)

Revitalization

Meanwhile, hope and life are retuming to Kampuchea.

More than 1,300 elementary schools have been opened, at- tended by 300,000 children and taught by 7,500 teachers.

Prasath reported that 25 hospitals have been repaired (all hospitals in Kampuchea were destroyed by the Pol Pot regime). Rice has been sown

on 570,000 hectares of agricul- tural land and other crops are growing on another 200,000 hectares.

HENG SAMRIN

*‘We must start again from scratch,’’ Prasath told the Daily World. ‘‘We are a coun- try of four million survivors and three million dead.’’ He looked into the distance and paused. ‘‘I myself have not yet found one member of my fam- ily alive.”

The Chinese Government was the sole supporter of the genocidal Pol Pot government.

Kampuchea: aftermath of a holocaust

On Nov. 14, Keo Prasath, ambassador from the People’s Revolutionary Government of Kampuchea, was interviewed by New York Daily World reporter Terry Cannon, who has travelled _ extensively in Indochina. Cannon prefaces his report with the __observation that ‘‘Kampuchea, devastated by four years of

The United States engineered the overthrow of the Sihanouk government in 1970 and oblit- erated much of the countryside with massive bombing that began in 1969.

Asked what humanitarian aid was needed most, Prasath replied, ‘‘We need everything — food, medical supplies, seeds, animals, school books, pencils==.”

Vietnamese Aid

When this reporter men-

-tioned that the Western press

is trying to blame Vietnam for the current hunger, Prasath grew visibly angry.

“It is Vietnam that helped Kampuchea to overcome all our difficulties,’’ Prasath said. “It is Vietnam that helped free us from genocide. These are the people who have shared their rice with ‘us. How can justice-living people believe

_ Such lies against them? The

ones really responsible for the difficulties and hunger in Kampuchea are the rulers in Peking.”’

Patriotic Front wins major gains at London talks

pay for it. ‘We will not pay a cent for any land’’, said Ncube. ‘‘This is the only just solution for their milking our country for the last 100 years.’’ The imperialist coun- tries have agreed to set up a fund to buy the colonialists off. “‘If imperialism wishes to pay, let

By KERRY McCUAIG

TORONTO — ‘‘Our participa- .0n in the London talks was only One other front in the struggle for

Om,’’ explained Mtshana of the Patriotic Front of

babwe (ZAPU) at a public

Meeting held heré Nov. 17. ‘‘To

| Not a for -

S was a peace conference Constitutional conference, hile we engage in armed

\ ‘or w | Struggle we also seek means to

| disc

USS a peaceful solution.”’

the\cube was a feature speaker at with woting held in conjunction

0 i South Africa held over the

a Canada wide conference

Ckend. Other speakers in-

representatives from the

We will not Pay a cent for any land

them,” he said, ‘‘but if Canada should want to participate in this scheme you have a right to say no. Don’t allow your taxes to be used to subsidize racism throughout the world.”

This and all the other terms ag- reed to by the Patriotic Front are subject to how the organization < sees an acceptable ceasefire arrangement advancing. They 2 have also refused the British 3 proposal for dual citizenship for whites in the country. This has excluded 70% of the colonial army who are mercenaries from holding both home country and Zimbabwe citizenship. This is

a

Orns

(Ontnization of African Unity

» the African National

SS (ANC), International

Colo hittee Against Racism,

South ism and Apartheid in od frica and the South Afri- The seress of Trade Unions.

Comm

f initial ‘peace terms” of- Sted a - British were unac-

» they were terms that an have allowed Muzorewa Pats uth to retain power. The SVerat Front was able to wring

British, Concessions from the

Allow their Ncessions that would

"AM, Neube wee” to move for- se Front had ‘been asked to

Claims; for 10 years to towculd Not have been allowed Whites, tha land owned by the

they would have to

crucial for the Patriotic Front. Under international law these people would have been able to leave the country with huge sums of money. “‘It would have de- pleted our economy after one week of liberation,’’ said Ncube.

The British have also agreed to

recognize the army of the people of Zimbabwe at least as. equal with the colonial army. This will allow the liberation forces to re- tain their arms and oversee the

ceasefire arrangements.

The electoral council, for-

merly only an advisory body, will now have power to take action over any violations of electoral procedure. The Patriotic Front will have equal representation with the colonialists on this coun- cil.

And a major victory for the

Front, which will prevent a repeat of the former phony elections, 1s

A major concession won from the British by the Patriotic Front was to bring the half-million refugees back into the country to participate in the voting. The British will pay for their return.

gaining the right to vote for re- That is why Angola today is fugees. The British have agreed

fighting an almost lonely struggle. to a two-month transition period

That is why Guinea Bissau and

ihe Sak’

=

their life and death struggle for freedom with out fight against

unemployment or inflation,’ he

after the ceasefire is established to move the half-million refugees back into the country. ‘The British have agreed to pay for their ‘return’’’ said Ncube. ‘‘Th- ese funds will also go to feed our army.’ Any refugees not in the country at the time of the vote, may vote from wherever they are. In viewing these gains it would be wrong to think that peace is around the corner, warned the spokesman for ZAPU and the Patriotic Front. He cautioned the solidarity movements not to end their efforts as soon as independ- ence has been proclaimed. ‘*Let us not make the same mis- take as in Vietnam. When victory is achieved is when we should re- double our efforts. Imperialism waited to act. We failed as free- dom fighters, we didn’t under-

Mozambique today fight alone. The time. of reconstruction is

The British will pay to bring the refugees back

when solidarity is most urgently needed. Today is when we need

your support more than ever.”’

The contribution by those not directly involved in the national liberation struggles was outlined by Kader Asmaal of the Inter- national Committee Against Ra- cism, Colonialism and Apartheid

in South Africa.

‘*We do no service to our Black brothers and sisters to equate

said. ‘‘Ours is part of a tradition of solidarity to repay the debt of his- tory. When they overthrow imperialism they are speaking in our name, they are doing our work for us. - “Ours is not to question what methods they use to complete their historic mission. They have every right to say ‘don’t question who we support, don’t challenge our right to decide who our allies will be.’’’ How can Cuban aid in Africa be questioned? What cheek! What arrogance!’’ chal- lenged Asmaal. |

‘What is asked from the people in the imperialist countries is to extend a helping hand. This help will be part of seeing, next year, freedom for Zimbabwe and Namibia and the finish of the first stage of freedom for South Afri- Ca.”’

stand when to get off the train.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE— NOVEMBER 30, 1979— Page 7