The Other Press The Douglas College student newspaper serving New Westminster, Richmond,

Surrey, Newton, Langley, Coquitlam, Maple Ridge and Agnes St. campuses.

Volume 10 Number 5 ~elruary 19, 1981

Inside: Student society won't pay pg 3 Hardcore '81 . pg 6 · ~

El Salvador pg 8

page two February 19, 1981

em pI 0 y m en t 52 1 -4 8 5 '----M-1-NI-ST_R_Y -0-F -LA_B_O-UR-.s-a-pp--::-ly---:-in-p-er-so-n-to-1--..,37---95-­

LET'S KILL A MYTH

"YOU CAN'T ENROLL IN THE ENGINEERING DIVISION OF BCIT BECAUSE THERE IS A WAITING LIST."

WRONG. ENROLLMENT IS ON A "FIRST COME,

FIRST SERVED" BASIS AND IF YOU ACT NOW, WE'LL HAVE YOUR CLASS SEAT READY FOR YOU IN SEPTEMBER.

ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TELEPHONE 434-5734, LOCAL 216 (CALL COLLECT IF YOU LIVE OUTSIDE THE LOWER MAINLAND). OR WRITE: ADMISSIONS CENTRE, BCIT, 3700 WILLINGDON AVENUE, BURNABY, B.C. V5G 3H2.

ENGINEERING PROGRAMS Biological Sciences, (Food Processing, Food Production, Landscape, Horticulture and Agri-Management Pro­grams}, Building, Chemical and Metallurgical, Civil and Structural, Electrical, Forest Resource, Forest Products (Lumber and Plywood Program, Pulp and Paper Program), Mechanical, Mining, Natural Gas and Petroleum, Recrea­tion Facilities Management, Surveying, Instrumentation, Fish Wildlife and Recreation.

WHY A BCIT ENGINEERING DIPLOMA? More than 93 per cent of BCIT's graduates have jobs in the professions for which they are trained within four months of receiving their coveted BCIT Diploma of Technology. Now that's action!

DO YOU QUALIFY? Even if you lack certain academic prerequisites,.SCIT of­fers pre-technology programs to assist applicants to meet specific requirements.

BRITISH COLUMBIA ~ ~NSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY ~U U 3700 Wllilngdon Avenue. Burnabv. B.C Canada VSG 3H2 Phone (604)434-5734

COMFORT.. TIME.

SUMMER YOUTH EMPL- 104th Ave. Surrey. OYMENT PROGRAM 1981 HOURS: Saturday & Sun-

day, 4:00 pm - 12:00 Mid­The ministry of Labour is night

once again sponsoring their WAGE: $4 .00/hr to start Summer Youth Employment Tutor Program which enables Douglas College to hire stu- A math tutor is needed in dents on a full-time basis the New West area to tutor during the period May 1 to .math levels 150 and 250, for August 31, 1981. this one hour a week. funding is available through LOCATION: New West the Provincial Youth Em-· HOURS: one hour per week ployment Program. Facul- WAGE: $5.00-$6.00 per ty, Staff, Students or Ad- hour At ministrative Personnel who CONTACT: Student Place.w' are interested in applying ment at 521-4851, Loc 269 in for funding are invited to NW for a referral. submit their proposals to Child care worker the Student Placement clerk in NW no later than noon, The Maple Ridge/Pitt

Meadows Community Ser­Wednesday, March 4, 1981. vices Counsel requires a Applications and further person with previous Child information may be obtai-

ned from the Student Pia- Care Worker experience pr cement office in NW at loc training to work with special

needs children and youth. 269. Applicants must have good

Programmer understanding of children's A small business in Van- needs and be prepared to

work both independently couver requires people with and as part of· a team. knowledge of basic accoun-

Applicants must have a ting systems and of compu- valid B.C.Z driver's license ters to work for them on a

and their own transporta­contract basis programmin~ h tion. They must also have micro-computers. T e wor

involves programming mi- the ability to resourcefully utilize communmity resour­

cro-computers for customers ces and be able to work who have bought a compu- after-school hours and some • ter and don't know how to

evenings. set it up. LOCATION: Main store in WAGE: $6.60/hr plus ex-Vancouver penses WAGE: Contract basis, Fee HOURS: Contractual basis. to be arranged Varies from 10 - 40 per HOURS: Flexible to your week depending on contracta schedule tract .., CONTACT: Student Pia- CONTACT: Student Pla-cement at 521-4851, Loc 269 cement at 521-4851, Loc 269 in NW for a referral in NW for a referral.

Caslier Owne1 ot a self-service

gas station in Surrey re­quires a part-time, bondable cashier for weekend shifts. Applicants are invited to

March FareCards

can be ordered now.

You must pay bycash

or certified cheque

Advance orders only

Order your Fare Card

throughyour student

council office or by

phoning 1522-6038

Fare Cards will be on

sale at the stulmt

society business

office on the New

West Campus from

Monday February

23/81 until Mach Southern Comfort. Enjoy it straight up, on the rocks, or blended with your favourite mixer. 9/81 -4pm

The unique taste of Southern Comfort enjoyed for over 125 years.

February 19, 1981 The Other Pres~ page three

nevvs __________________________________ __

SS t~ withhold payment by Rob Guzyk

Surprise , surprise , sur~

rise . The Douglas College stu ·

dent society won ' t be pay­ing their telephone bills at least until a new contract has been signed between the telecommunication workers union and the management of B .C .Tel.

Council passed a motion to withhold payment of their bills , with the condi­tion a letter be sent explai­ning why to the man~ge­ment of B.C. Tel.

''The union is asking for concerned groups and ci­tizens to stop payment so that the company won't receive interest during the dispute ," vice-president external Kim Manning said .

' 'The union has been without a contract for 13 months.' '

" We as students and members of the community should respect the workers against a foreign-controlled monopoly , " he said .

Student society president Kevin Hallgate expressed concern that the motion

would set a precedent in favour of the future strikes.

Manning replied that it was not taking a stand for unions, but a single case . ''By not withholding our payment , we are implicitely supporting the management of B.C. Tel. I think it's time for the student society to grow up -· it's not an in sular group. " Manning said .

An independent federal mediator's report was ac­cepted by the union, but not by the management of B.C. Tel.

PoCo women's centre by Carol Pope

A renovated concession stand , tucked in beside Centennial Pool , has offi­cially been the Port Coquit­lam .Area Women' Center for almost six years .

The women ' s centre is run as a collective by over 100 mem hers .

''The number of women drop in has tripled in

two years, " said member ]Noreen Hardy. " Last month we received 112 phone calls and 171 women came by.''

The centre acts as a meeting place for women to exchange ideas and infor­mation , find support and acceptance , and j{ist relax and make new friends.

" Many women get in-

volved with the centre be­cause they feel isolated and need some support or con­versation," said Hardy .

Legal assistance, cns1s aid, referals to doctors , lawyers and babysitters and information on education programmes are offered.

A feminist library and a children's corner are con­tained in the tiny building which was renovated and furnished by female volun­teers.

The building was sup­plied by the city of Port Coquitlam although funds are needed for the phone , coffee and paper supplies , insurance, babysitters and othe_; expenses.

Funds are also required to pay two organizers and

an office worker . A non­profit organization, it has received financial support from its members, the mu­nicipal, provincial and fe­deral governments, busi ness corporations and ser vic_e organizations .

The women's centre is credited with starting the Coquitlam Women's Emer­gency Crisis Shelter and with the production of a monthly newsletter. A book about the centre has been written by the founding members .

The centre is a member of the National Action Com ­mittee on the Status of Women.

It is open to all women from Monday to Friday, 1:00 to 4 :00 p .m . For information call 941-6311. .

·Socreds axe jobs VANCOUVER (CUP) -- The BC government has axed more than 5, 000 summer jobs , including 1, 500 speci­fically meant for students , in what is called a ' ' belt ­tightening move ," by the director of the employment

''"'n.-.rrnnities program . Virginia Greene said

February 9 no dollar figures would be available until March , but added the move would result in a sizeable decrease from last year ' s budget of $24 million.

Greene said 1, 500 student jobs were discontinued after the work in government program was cancelled. But she could not give an exact breakdown of the lost jobs, saying the government this year funded the creation of only 11 ,000 jobs, compared with 16 ,000 in 1980.

The University of B.C. stu dent council was quick to react to the job cuts.

At a meeting February 11 , council mem hers voted to write a letter of protest to the provincial government, which carried a promise of further action if the protest was ignored .

" I have no intention of sitting idle while they cut that money out of student hands ," external affairs of­fi~er-elect James Hollis said after the meeting .

' 'The action of the pro­vincial government is a severe oversight , and they must be made aware of the consequences to rethink their course of action, '' he said .

The job cuts also came under fire from the BC Students' Federation (BCSF) .

"It ' s intolerable , " BCSF spokesperson Steve Shallhorn said .

''Last summer, the un­employment rate among

students was as high as 19 .5 per cent. Combined with higher tuition fees and no student aid changes , its clear that the provincial government has a policy of keeping lower income stu ­dents out of school , '' he said.

Greene denied the char­ge, saying "I don't think he'd get much agr~ement from the provincial govern­ment on that. ' '

'' I think it may be diffi­cult for students to find jobs in the provincial govern­ment. But while the work in government program has been cancelled , there are still other summer job op­portunities in the public job market,' ' she said.

An additional 3,500 jobs in the non-profit organiza­tionand private sectors were c.ut in the government ac­tiOn.

During the last B .C . Tel strike , 20,000 people did not pay their B .C. Tel bills.

Meanwhile, in a move contrary to a motion two weeks ago, the student so­ciety passed a motion to deposit their funds with the Westminster Credit Union, instead of the Royal Bank.

At the last multi-campus council meeting on Monday, a motion to deposit funds in the Westminster credit Union was rejected in favour of the Royal Bank, which has invested in re ­pressive regimes such as apartheid South Africa and Chile.

Kevin Hallgate kicks around a few ideas while thinking about his strategic plans for the next grueling student society meeting.

Canada world youth by Sandra Fox

For its tenth consecutive year, Canada World Youth (CWY), a non-profit organization, is offering young Canadians between the ages of 17 and 20 the oppor­tunity to learn indepth about developing nations.

CWY will be sending 800 young Canadians this year on a seven month exchange programme to developing nations such as Africa, Asia, or Latin American as well as in Canadian communities .

The exchange program aims at helping young people to explore their role and place in society and in the world today. Brenda Wemp works temporarily in the CWY office and has had the opportunity of going on the program a few years ago.

Wemp said that the program "challenges peoples' beliefs in themselves as well as in other people from -different cultures.''

Throughout the seven months, these young Canadians live and work in vastly different cultures and commu­nities. Small teams of CWY particip.;nts start in Canada then overseas , and do volunteer work in fields such as agriculture, co-ops, environment, social services , small business, recreation and community groups .

"The program is quite an intense experience . There is some culture shock as well as a big adjustment experience from the program ," Wemp said.

Costs for food, lodging and transportation during the program are covered by CWY, as well as pocket money. This purposely allows the 7 month experience available to young people from all backgrounds and statuses.

Those Douglas yollege students who may be interested in the CWY prograqm may obtain information and application forms from the Dean of Student Services, 700 building, 2nd floor, New Westminster campus or phone local 270.

March 31, 1981 is the deadline for CWY offices to receive applications.

page four

. - . . -_ _. , . ···----·· ~-· .. ·-·· . . . . .. ~-······--· ·· .. --~···-· ·~- .. .

As if the dull, dreary mood of February isn' t enough , British Columbians are now being confronted with a hotbed of labour unrest.

To go along with the rain and clouds we are faced with stinking garbage lying uncollected, busses lying idle m gara~es and telephone lines lying slashed.

Why?

This question is best answered by asking some other key questions.

Why can unskilled, uneducated people make $13 or 14 an hour performing unskilled job ,tasks at a lumber mill? Why do longshoremen (or stevedores as they prefer to be titled) make $20 an hour for unloading ships? Why does the change room attendant at SFU make over $10 an hour for passing out clean towels?

The answer is that these individuals belong to strong powerful unions. Sure the unions have done great justice to working conditions and employee benefits, but now they have become excessively powerfull, selfish and negligent.

The power houses such as the Teamsters, IW A and the Longshoresman Union have this country by the balls and now they have learned how to squeeze - hard.

To combat economic woes and hardships of Canada , people must learn that they well have to sacrifice. In some cases their standard of living.

Unfortunately the union is not an allie in the struggle against inflation. Top union officials and negotiators are only interested in obtaining the best contract for their members but far to frequently these demands have become excessive and unparallel to on the job dutiP.s

But lets not blame it all on the unions . One only has to look at the recent demands being made by the B.C. College ofPhysicians and Surgeons to see that the unions are not alone when it comes to excessive demands .

The Other Press is a democratically-run studenl newspaper published twelve times a semester during the fall and spring terms under the auspices of The Other Publications Society . The Other Press is a member or Canadian University Press and is currently a subscriber to Youthstream Canada Limited .

The Other Press news office is located at the back of the New Westminster campus cafeteria . Phone 525-3542 .The mailing address is !he Other Press, Box 2503, Douglas College, New Westminster, B.C., V.3L 5B2

Managing Editor: Tom Schoenewolf; News Editor: Greg Heakes; CUP Editor: Jim McNaughton; Reporters: Carol Pope, Philip Staines; Business Manager : Dave S. Hayer; Other Staff~ Rob Guzyk, Ron Loveless, Ian Hunter, Charlotte Bregman, John Dhaliwal; Typesetter: Lynn Hughc::s

The Other Press

NO DJMPiNG

February 19 , 1981

letters_.__-_______ _

U.S. an allie Dear Editor,

In response to L. Wings letter in your last issue, I would like to refute the arguement he presented.

The U.S. , as one of our allies , .and one of the two big powers cannot afford to be pushed around like a piece of shit . I won't say the U.S . 's foreign poliq· doesn ' t often result in the oppression of people. But crude as it may seem , either the U .S . does the oppress­ing and protects its interests or Russia does it. In the final showdown , if there -is to be one , I would rather have more U .S. interests and allies than Soviet.

The world is full of injus ­tices ~aused by the struggle for money and power but remember that the more power that results from the

puppet regimes will pro­bably benefit us if another conflict starts.

Bill Fagen

Grossly insulted

Dear People, Having just read the

Pinions " amusing" issue of Feb. 9 , I find that my intellect has been somewhat grossly insulted. Two, " You know that ' s .. . " and a ' 'Don ' t you hate it when's ... ?" Come on! I mean that was great in Junior High , but in college?

Plus , their news (for the sake of argument , let ' s call it that) is stale and old . I trust that your level of reporting will never sink as lo~ as that of the Pinion ' s .

Sincerely,

Your faithful fan,

james Minshall

Mr. Nude? Dear Editor:

I was passing by Nel' s Diner , and to my surprise, I A saw an ad for a MR. NUDE . contest . Frankly, I was shocked I Why is it that we are exploiting men now, to parade around for a bunch of hooting howling women? This is sexism of the worst kind , and I for one will not stand it . Please stop this disgusting form of sexism , before all us men are shown off like meat in a butcher shop window .

Thank you,

Ron Loveless

Expand Yourself 11join the Other Press team''

we need other people,

photographers,

reporters,

layout artists , cartoonists,

Our sophisticated audien~e awaits you. Call525-3542

February 19 , 1981 The Other Press

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• • • !

Other Corner ~ New West Pub -~ . ~ ~------------------------------------------------• • • • : : Should wine and beer be sold in IJOCery stores?

1 February 20 ~ee;,\ 1

i Friday 8:00pm .1.e• ~ ~ -. ~~" ~ i ~~ i . ~ .

- ~ ~~i i ~ \\~:;, .~ Full Bar ~ • • • • • • • • • • • • • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Rum flavoured. Wine dipped.

Crack a pac){of Colts alongwtth the

Marie Pryce: Yes I think it would be , because it would Ie alot mor'!- han­dier, but i haven ' l really thought about it that much.

Steve Roche: No, I don't think they should be. Wine should be sold in specialty shops that deal strictly in wine like a delicatessen.

Graham Swan : Yes, so that its more accessible. It would save on gas because I wouldn't have to go as far.

Janice Shewfelt: No , I don't think it should be because it would be avail ­able to people who aren't old enough to drink. It's only for our conveniance and it shouldn't be that convinient.

This _page of The Other Press is reserved solely for the purpose of corresportdence and opinion. The views expressed on this page lio not necessarily reflect those of this newpaper. . ·

All letters and opinions must be types at a 60-stroke line, double-spaced and must. bear the na~e of the author for reasons of validity. Submissions which are not signed will not be published. Letters should be n~ more l than 200 words in length tnd opinion pieces should be either 450 or 900 words in length due to space and 'Jayout . , requirements. ' · '

We reserve the right to edit all letters and opinions for clarity and libel. Letters and opinions longer than specified will be edited to size. , Deadline for su~missions is 4 .m . . MoRda s. '

page six The Other Press February 19, 1981

entertainrnen~----------------------------

A-Mimo singer, Robi Hansen sees the light while Philip ]. Staines [foreground] bangs away on the drums at Gary Taylor's Rock Room Monday.

Photo by Maureen Bader

Hardcore 81 by Philip ]. Staines Approximately 300 people

gathered together at the Laundramat, Friday and Saturday night to pay tri­bute to Punk Rock, and wallow in punk decadence . Hardcore 81 drew a crowd of mostly punks , although many were there just to see how the other side lives.

The groups playing con­sisted of local punk bands , and a couple from San Fransisco, and Reno.

Friday night opened with " 7. Seconds " who appeared to be a bunch of drunk , blue collar rockers who ' s sound and presence were pathetic . Face it , even punk music

requires some refinement , but these guy ' s had nothing to offer but garbled , ago­nizing gash.

The second band calling themselves ''Bludgeoned Pigs , " weren ' t even as ta ­lented as their name im ­plied. The only good thing about them was ex-modern­ette , Mary Jo Kopekne, who played bass for a few mi-

nutes , then disconnected her cord, and stood back­stage and watched the Pigs make idiots of themselves.

The third band was ' ' No Alternative, ' ' from Reno. They were a 3 piece band who ' s music wasn't as coarse as routine punk. They must have been in Reno for too long because they reminded me of an Elvis Presley impersonation show turned punk.

Then came Black Flag" from San Fransisco , but unfortunately pandamonium broke out amongst the crowd and I had no chance of viewing them. .

Last but not least , was Vancouver ' s notorious household band D .O .A . They were quite obviously the drawing power of the event, and the most enter­taining band of the evening. It ' s really funny to think of

D .O .A . as a hardcore punk band because they have no threatening visual ingredi­ants . Their stage apparell reflects the west coast grea-

duo fronted the Rocket Norton All Stars at the opening of the VIP Lounge at Gary Taylor's Rock Room recently . photo by Greg Heakes .

A-Mimo highlight GARY TAYLORS TRIPLE

by Tom Schoenewolf The Spyders, Zipper and

A-Mimo played a triple bill at Gary Taylor ' s Rock Room Monday night.

A -Mimo proved to be the highlight , providing over an hour of diverse music to the enthusiastic crowd .

The three-piece group consists of Robi Hansen , guitar/ vocals, Douglas Col­lege student Philip J. Staines, dmms/ vocals and Brian Adolf, bass guitar.

A-Mimo didn ' t have a polished, commercial sound like Trooper and Prism (thank god!) which enabled them to maintain the raw energy of their ultra-pop style of music.

Songs like 'Fresh Dream, ' ' Writer,' and 'I'm Almost Happy ' m'aintained a defi­nite style that has been influenced by English bands such as XTC,The Who, Iggy Pop, Pink Floyd etc.

The rhythm section is

constantly fluctuating ; it is never stable or repititous in arrangement. Hansen ' s creative guitar style utilizes the simple melodic structure of the music .

Despite A-Mimo ' s unique sound , the band is just in its beginning stages . The band handled them­selves well , but lacked the experience of stagecraft.

According to Staines , the bands philosophy is to by­pass the club scene by means of recording studio tapes.

" We'll play clubs like the Rock Room for the simple fact of exposure. We don't want to get caught playing Top 40 because it's strickly stagnating to your music ability," Staines said .

The band has recorded a demo tape but Staines said it has since been " out­dated. "

"It was A-Mimo's first time in the studio and since then many things have

changed.'' The band is planning to

re -mix a few songs from the demo and record some some new songs .

We want to record again," said Staines, "be­cause we've learned basic­ally how to refine a product so it is exceptable without sacraficing the complexity and individuality of the group .

Opening the show at Taylors were the Spyders from Victoria who played a good set of fast rock. The band ' s highlight was their rendition of the Beatie's classic 'When I Saw Her Standing There. '

Zippers followed and pro­ved to be a Powder Blues clone . The only difference was that the volcalist changed costumes before almost every song. He even appeared in drag and sang some be -bop song about a boy-friend. Rock and horns just don't mix.

Coquitlam band A-Mimo are shown here rehearsing. ( Lto R) Uhilli ..

Staines ,Robi Hansen and Brian Adolf . ser fashion.

Rhythm guitarist Dave Greg looked as though he had just been raped . He jumped into the crowd and slam danced around the floor. The crowd expressed their feelings by doing all they could to inflict some pain on the masochistic punk .

On the whole, D.O.A. created energy without damaging anyone's hearing. They played all their favo­

rites including " Nazi Train­ing Camp,' 'The Enemy' ' , and " Let's fuck " .

The most ' accomplished musician of the whole event was D.O.A. drummer Chuck Biscuits, who's speed and energy is phenomenal.

Saturday evening proved to be much more civilized. The sound was tame in comparison to Friday's show, and the crowd was

more collegiate. Making an appearance

that evening was Vancou­ver's " Insex". The age brackett must have ranged from about 15 to 20, the group looked much younger than the other bands, and they were much more intel­ligent.

The most positive ingre­dient of the group was their music wasn ' t nearly as re-

volting as the rest . They had imagination and a well­blended sound. Their sin­ger sported an absolute look of insanity as he paced back and forth utilizing some threatening even though his intimidating style had little impact .

The Insex in collaboration with D.O.A . managed to make Hardcore 81 toller­able.

The difference between you and a person who's fit is that anything you can do he can do beHer. (;}.

Pam:apa§J. '-------- Theean.dian movement for personal fitness

February 19, 1981 The Other Press page seven

sports ________________________________ _

r -•

Douglas College baskefball. overpowered in Prince George by Greg Heakes

Most people feel that Friday, the 13th, is a one day affair that should be filed away early. But for the men's Basketball team, the fateful day haunted them throughout their stay in Prince George.

Friday Feb. 13, the Col­lege of New Calendonia bombed Douglas 107-47 and Saturday Feb. 14, they beat them again with a ll3-52 score.

"We were totally out­classed,'' said Douglas coach Dan Moore, "they were much bigger and were able to substitute new legs.''

"We can still finish in the piayoffs, but every game is a must win. Realistically, we have to start building for next year. This year I have only one returning player, but next year we should have four or five.''

Douglas' scoring w,as spearheaded by John DeAnna who recorded 12 points in Fridays game and 26 the next night. DeAnna, the league leader, also ad­ded 22 rebounds.

Douglas played well ir. thefirst half of Saturdays game, and lead 14-12 at the end of the first quarter.

vices of forward Randy Kennett. They did however aquire two new players for the Prince George trip: forward Glen Gadicke and guard Mike Elliot, from Aldergrove.

Meanwhile, Douglas' women's team were also soundly defeated by New Calandon.ia, 92-38 Friday, and 86-32 Saturday.

But CNC came back to ''It was the Valentines lead 46-30 at halftime. day massacre," stated Dou-They eventually outscored glas coach Mike Dendy's. Douglas by a whopping Our whole problem this 67-22 in the second half. year is that we don't break

Friday's game went sour presses properly and con­for Douglas after four of sequently, alot of teams use their five starters fouled a press on us. • • out. Peter Julian, Warren I thought our best game Meneghello, Dennis Milne was the second one because and Mike Elliott accumu- we played tough defence." lated the maximum five Wendy Ellis lead the fouls each. Douglas team in scoring

• 'It was the most lopsided with 12 pts in the first game ' refereeing we've ever seen, and 18 in the second. and even the other team This weekend the men • s agreed," said Maneghello. and women's teams play "They still would have beat V.C.C., Friday at Langara, us but the refereeing made Capilano, Saturday, and it such a lopsided affair." Kelowna on Sunday with

Douglas College basketball teams lost four games to the College of New Calendonia on the weekend.

CNC is one of the top teams in the Tot~m confe­rance currently in a tie for first place with Malaspino.

- 1 both games being played at · The· men's basketball Queen Elizabeth school in

team recently lost the ser- Surrey.

\vrLL .... VHA(N[XT PR. MAN,FRfE (J FRE£ Po~ Ff<EE" L UNC

~~-~ ...

youGol Mflo U"ut1PJ1H£ FRAZER RIVER

·~~---ON A MoToRCYCLE. AN D 1 ----- tNOtD UP I N .. fRAC1r'otJ foR ~SiX MONIHS.,_.__~

page eight The Other Press February 19, 1981

feature~-----------------------------

El Salvador. by Carol Pope

Vancouver's Saturday shoppers will likely pause a moment from their bargain­hunting to take notice of a stream of people stepping through the crowds in order to step-up interest in El Salvador.

A march to ·protest Ame-rican intervention in El Salvador is set for February 28 by the Nicaragua/El Salvador Support Commit­tee (NESSC).

Participants will meet at Robson Square at 1:00 be­fore marching to the Pacific Press building on Granville Street.

''El Salvador is in danger of becoming a second vietnam," said Jane Kalmikuff of NESSC at a recent interview in one of Vancouver's tiny coffee bars.

Both had recently retur­ned from Montreal where they had attended a national conference for solidarity for El Salvador organized by the Revolutionary Democra­tic Front (FDR).

A petition to be sent to the Canadian government was supported by the 200 delegates at the conference including representatives from CUSO, Revolutionary Worker's League, and poli­tical and student organiza­tions.

The petition announced opposition to the interven­tion of the United States in El Salvador and requested the Canadian government to use all diplomatic means to pressure the U.S. to cease intervention.

It also called on the Canadian government to ·pressure the United Nations 1to "stop all foreign inter­vention in El Salvador in order to prevent an expan­_sion of the conflict into all of Central America, and pro­test the fact that American government is ignoring the U.N. resolution calling for a stop to all arms shipments to El Salvador. ''

"The FDR thinks Cana­~ian attitudes are good but !hey should go farther,'' said NESSC spokesperson.

''Legislation in Canadian parliament supported the U.N. recommendation that there be no intervention in 11f the U.S. sent in troops· an ilemational

crisis would evolve.' El Salvador but made al­lowances for non-lethal aid,'' he said, ''which will Salvador and vice versa. If one moves, then the other

allow jeeps and other equipment ... maybe even napalm to be shipped in.''

"El Salvador is in danger of Vietnamiztion,'' he said.

Kalmikuff said the U.S. is now sending in arms and military advisors and might send in troops.

''This would destroy any chance for these people to have self-determination,'' she said.

"If the U.S. sent m troops, an international cri­sis would evolve. The FDR speculates that if the So­viets go into Poland, the Americans will move into El will for they would legi­timize each other,'' said the NESSC spokesperson.

He said the Nicaraguans and possibly the Cubans

could intervene for they would feel threatened and the U.S. would draw in more forces and lengthen the situation.

"We have the power to say no,'' said Kaimikuff, "solidarity is really impor­tant. The American people must be made aware of the situation so they will refuse to participate m military intervention.''

''Solidarity for El Salvador has become a na­tional body. The FDR represents the coalition of all solidarity groups," she said.

''The American interven­tion is due to economic interests. The U.S. want El Salvador to be open-door to their multi-nationals," said the spokesman. He said the present government in El Salvador is bankrupt and would not survive without U.S. support.

He said attempts have been made on a diplomatic level to deal with the situa­tion in El Salvador but the U.S. pulled out of the last planned diplo~atic meeting.

The NESSC member said there are several Canadian corporations investing in El Salvador, one of which is Pratt Whitney, a subsiduary of United Technologies with which U.S. State Secretary Alexander Haig was for­merly directly involved.

Haig recently dismissed

- 2nd Vietnam? Robert White from his posi­tion as U.S. ambassador to El Salvador following White's criticism of the Reagan government's hard line policy proposals for dealing with the country.

Kalmikuff said there has been a media black-out in El Salvador and that coverage from outside countries is

· limited and often inaccu­tate:

El Salvador had been dominated by military dic­tators for 48 years until Jimmy Carter implanted a "human rights junta" said the NESSC spokesperson. "However, this new go­vernment was just a new face for the same type or J;.epression. ''

''The reform-s were

merely a smokescreen,'' he said. "The U.S. continues to support the military junta despite the fact that it was responsible for 12,000 deaths in 1980. In fact, the U.S. sent over more aid just before Reagan's inaugara­tion. ''

El Salvador had previ­ously been controlled by the coffee-growing elite called the 14 families. Since the tiny country had separated from Spain in 1821, this class had maintained control with the aid of the army, the secret police, ORDEN and the na-tional guard.

Today, most members of the 14 families reside in Miami or Guatemala where they fund members of ORDEN who continue with their work despite the at­tempt of the new junta to abolish the secret police network.

Kalmikuff said that Carter's "human rights junta'' received fairly wide­spread support in El Salvador until it became apparent that the junta was only interested in repres­sion. She said that during December, 1979, and Jan­uary, 1980, many elements of the junta realigned their loyalties to the left-wing FDR, including the ''mili­tary youth'' officers faction and its colonel, Adolfo Majono.

''They wanted to avoid being involved in the afflic-

tion of the atrocttles of the military," she said. "The military junta is responsible for thousands and thou sands of cases of torture and murder."

~ ... thousands ofmses of torture and murder.'

''The majority of El Salvador's population 1s behind the FDR, · · said Kalmikuff. She said the FDR is supported by the peasants and all middle class sectors, the majority of the Christian Democratic Party, labour unions, stu­dent, political parties, and religious organizations.

''The military junta · is upheld by conservative el­ements of the military and a few members of the Christ­Ian Democratic Party,'' she said.

The NESSC spokesperson said there were 200,000 employed in repressive ac­tivity and a large number of people involved in parami­litary organizations.

In El Salvador's popula­tion of 4.5 million, 40 per cent are officially unem­ployed and 80 per cent live below the poverty line. Children have a 50 per cent chance of death before the age of five. Sixty per cent of El Salvador's land is owned by two per cent of the population. Ninety-five _per cent of the people are illiterate.

There are 250,000 El Salvadorian refugees who are unable to cross the borders of the neighboring countries of Guatemala and Honduras. The govern ments of both countries are American-backed and refu­se to allow border-crossing in order to prevent El Salvadorian guerillas from fleeing.

''There has been strong popular resistance to the military junta in El Salvador,'' he said, ''There was a mass demonstration in the country in February, 1980."

He said that El Salvador has been in a state of seize many times since March, 1980 and ''people were denied the right to meet, circulate freely, and many factories were occupied by the mili­tary.''

The NESSC member sta­ted that in March, 1980, the military junta assassinated Catholic Archbishop Oscar Romero who had recently spoken out against Carter's human rights assertions. The funeral attracted 400,000 demonstrators from which 100 were killed and 300 injured when the mili-

tary fired on the crowd, he said.

''The military also kid­napped, torture_d and mur­dered six leaders of the FDR," he said.

Reverend John Hilborn of Shaugnessy Church, who was an observer at the funeral of the FDR leaders, said at a recent benefit for El Salvador:'' Although the junta had promised to bring no weapons to this funeral, the people stayed away for they feared for their lives."

"The U.S. does not want El Salvador to become ano­ther Nicaragua,'' said the NESSC spokesperson. He stated that the Nicaraguans revolted in 1979 in order to achieve a more just distri­bution of the country's wealth.

''After the revolution, Nicargua wasn't open-door to U.S. interests," said, "The U.S. does not want to lose their control of El Salvador.''

The NESSC member said that the U.S. backed gene­ral Anastasio S'omoza, who had owned almost the entire country, during the Nicaraguan popular uprisings.

"During the risings, Somoza tried to mamtam control by murdering as many boys from age ten to eighteen as he could,'' he said, "and when Somaza knew he was losing, he bombed his own cities."

Somoza fled in 1979, only to be killed in Bolivia. Since the revolution, both men and women have remained in arms to protect the. Nicaraguan population from members of the National Guard who sometimes enter the country in small groups.

Nicaragua is currently involve·d in a literacy cru­sade to which the British 'Columbia Teachers' Foun­dation recently donated thousands of dollars.

The FDR is presently designing a distribution network throughout Canada for communications from the Salvadorian Press Agency. The information will be received by soJi~arity com­mittees.

A week of solidarity with El Salvador is planned for March 22 to 28 and a letter campaign, demonstrations, and public declarations are being prepared for Presi­dent Reagan's upcoming vi­sit to Canada.

Further. information on El Salvador and Nicaragua is available through the Nica­ragua/El Salvador Support Committee at 255-6369 (meetings are held Tuesday nights at 7:30) or the Latin American Student Union at 255-8004.