The Time Is Now
PURCHASE by South Korea of a Norwegian factory ship is a development .of no small concern to British Columbia salmon fishermen in view of that country's avowed intent to enter the North Pacific high seas salmon fishery.
As the United Fishermen and Allied Workers Union long has warned in its campaign for a new multi-national North Pacific fisheries treaty, the time was bound to come when other countries around the North Pacific rim acquired distant water fishing vessels. So long as they were not party to any fisheries convention, they were not bound by the provisions. In fact, as countries producing no salmon themselves, they preferred not to be.
Now, it appears, that time has come and Canadian fishermen's interests will be jeopardized by their government's sins of omission, just as they have suffered over the years by their government's sins of commission.
The Pearson government, in particular, has striven to create a public image of itself as the friendly critic of the U.S., the better to disguise the fact that on no vital issue does it run counter to U.S. policy, even when that policy impairs Canada's own interests.
As with other of our natural resources, salmon is a sacrifice on the altar of this strange friendship whereby we are being sold into economic and political bondage. For expedient political and military considerations, the U.S. sacrificed the interests of its salmon industry to Japan — and Canada has gone along. Whenever the logic of including the USSR in a new treaty became too strong for refutation, the government evaded the question by claiming that the USSR was not interested. Soviet fisheries minister A. A. Ishkov, on his recent visit to this country, made it clear that the USSR is interested, but only in a new treaty, not the present convention on renegotiation of which the U.S., Canada and Japan themselves remain deadlocked.
The prospect that South Korea, another of the United States' sorry vassals, will be fishing salmon on the high seas this year should be enough to perturb even the complacent Hon. Hedard Robichaud. But will he display even hindsight by counselling wider negotiations for a new treaty?
Certainly the development proves the soundness of the UFAWU stand and underlines the importance of its convention demand that the government place before the UN a request that salmon be declared the rightful resource of the countries in whose streams they spawn.
ALP. HARRY RANKIN
What Ba$is for Amalgamation of Vancouver, Burnaby?
VANCOUVER City Council and Burnaby Municipal Council have begun exploratory talks on the advisability of amalgamation. Marriage is still a long way oft—in fact, they aren't even going steady yet, but both are showing a new interest.
Amalgamation could be good for both, I'm sure, but it should not be gone into lightly or without a great deal of study and preparation.
At first look, it appears that the short term advantages of amalgamation are definitely on the side of Burnaby.
That municipality lags considerably behind Vancouver in such municipal services as sewers, roads and streets, street lighting, sidewalks, parks, libraries, community centres, sports, and recreational as well as cultural facilities. It will take a lot of money to bring these up to the level of Vancouver and it could mean more taxes for Vancouver homeowners.
On the other hand, Burnaby has ample room for expansion of industry, residential housing and parks, which could be to our mutual advantage. Vancouver with an area of 44 square miles has 410,000 people and Burnaby with 40 square miles has 115,000.
★    ★ * AMALGAMATION   IS CER-
tainly preferable to metropolitan government.
The metropolitan type of "super council" government has proven unsatisfactory to the people of Winnipeg and Toronto. It creates still another level of government between the city and the province, a sort of buffer administration.
Metropolitant government has curtailed democracy and the ability of the people to control their elected representatives. It results in interminable buck-passing between the super council and the existing city councils, and engenders antagonisms between these levels of government which impede civic democracy.
While welcoming the idea of amalgamation, a note of warning must also be sounded.
The Bennett government has been pushing regional forms of government with one idea in mind—to have the regional and amalgamated areas finance their own activities so that provincial grants can be reduced. The gov-
ernment is endeavoring to escape its financial responsibility for raising the level of municipal services and would like to place the entire burden on the regional governments. It wants the municipalities to unite in a sort of "share the poverty" scheme, while it keeps all its own funds for such projects as the Peace River Dam.
★    ★ ★ DISCUSSIONS   ON THE terms of amalgamation of Vancouver and Burnaby should include these considerations: —Guarantees of substantial grants from the provincial government for a period of five years to bring municipal services  in Burnaby  to the level of those in Vancouver. —A new appraoch to taxation, including a $4,000 basic tax exemption for all homeowners and higher taxes on big industrial and commercial properties through a graduated business tax. —Establishment of a Lower Mainland Public Utilities Board to take over from B.C. Hydro the distribution of electricity and natural gas and the bus transit system. —A temporary freeze on the sale or lease of all unoccupied and   undeveloped   lands to keep them out of the hands of real estate speculators and enable the council to adopt a
plan for their best use in the best interests of the people and the amalgamated city.
—An increase in provincial grants for education from one third to one half.
—An expanded council based on a ward system with one member for every 25,000 people to assure regional representation, plus the election at large of a board of control composed of a mayor and four members, all members to have equal voting rights.
—Re-establishment of council control over public facilities such as the Vancouver General Hospital and the Pacific National Exhibition.
—Amalgamation to be decided by a referendum with the provision that it must pass in each of the two municipalities.
—Discussions on mergers of various departments, such as police, fire, civic staff, so as to give full effect to seniority and job rights.
Our two councils should lose no time in setting up the necessary machinery to make a thorough study of all problems involved in amalgamation, including provision for public hearings where citizen groups may present their views and secure information. No time should be lost in urging citizen groups to prepare and submit briefs on the subject.
138 East Cordova Street, Vancouver 4, B.C. Phone 683-9655
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FISH AND SHIPS
• Aid. Harry Rankin was one of the speakers at the rally held in Pender Auditorium January 13 to demand outlawing of injunctions in labor disputes.
THE FISHERMAN — JANUARY 26, 1968
WE hope the members of the legislature relish the unique submission they will be receiving from Port McNeill as much as Pacific area fisheries director W. R. (Rod) Hourston, who recited a few lines from it as his contribution to the program at the traditional social for UFAWU convention delegates held on January 13. The excerpt that took Rod Hourston's fancy was this:
Port McNeill girls are prettier than most,
Of  their  beauty  uie  really must boast,
Their magnificent rumps Are caused by the bumps On the roads up the north Island coast.
It was one of the winning limericks in the contest — the First Great International Limerick Competition — sponsored by Port McNeill Chamber of Commerce and promoted by director Gerry Furney to publicize demands for better roads and ferry services at the north end of Vancouver Island.
Publicity was the aim of the contest and publicity it got, although it's doubtful if the provincial government will appreciate the public image of itself as drawn by this first prize winning limerick  entered  by an anonymous Victoria resident: / will take a flight up in my jet, Said Gaglardi, the premier's pet, For my friend, "Instant Dan," Build a road if you can, But not now, later on, but not yet.
Furney informed the 10 prize winners, chosen from more than 300 entrants, that if they did not feel their cars were equal to the 200 mile drive north from Campbell River to claim their wine and candlelight dinner at Port McNeill, he would have their dinners frozen and flown out to them.
All the entries are now being compiled in booklet form for presentation to federal and provincial cabinet ministers as well as MLAs.
★ ★ *
Re-election of Vancouver long-line fisherman Harry Allison to the UFAWU general executive board by the recent convention has a special significance, for it will be Harry's twenty-fifth term in office in the UFAWU and its predecessors, spanning a period of close to 30 years. His reelection for another term was itself the finest tribute his fellow unionists could accord him for a lifetime dedicated to trade union service.
★ ★ *
Ira Griffith, Vancouver Island troller—his home is at Saltair— and a delegate to the UFAWU convention from Gulf Islands Local, drew our attention to an error in the article, "Sealers Made History" in our Christmas issue.
The article said that "Joe Silvey, longtime UFAWU member who died last February, had sailed as a boy aboard the Triumph . . ." As Ira, whose wife Irene is a daughter of Tony Silvey, pointed out, it was Tony Silvey who sailed on the Triumph. And our apologies to Joe Silvey, who is indeed alive and living in retirement on Reid Island.
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During a coffee break at the UFAWU convention, William (Bill) Wilcox, a guard at Imperial Cannery, Steveston, and a delegate from Steveston Shore-workers Local, was telling us about his visit to Britain last year, his first since he emigrated to this country 40 years ago.
While he was still only 13 years of age, he went to work in a steel plant and when he turned 14 he got a job in the coal mines at Atherton, near Manchester. He broke an arm in an accident in the mines and the only doctor available was a little man, so slight in build that he lacked the strength to pull the
broken bone back into place. The doctor overcame the difficulty by putting his foot on Bill's chest and pulling with all his might.
During his visit, Bill was recounting this incident for members of the Atherton Rotary Club, concluding with the remark, "I don't know if that doctor is still alive." A little wizened man rose slowly at the back of the room. "I am that doctor," he said.
★ ★ ★
From Prince Rupert delegates to the convention we garnered the information that James Wilson, a former fisherman and more recently a shoreworker at Nelson Bros, in Prince Rupert, died of a heart attack on January 3 while he was visiting Smithers. "He was one of our staunchest supporters during the strike last summer," UFAWU general organizer Florence Greenwood reported. "Since he was unable to work, he was always on picket duty."
We also learned that Joe Bud-nitsky, an ice dock worker with 21 years' seniority at Prince Rupert Co-op and one of the "outside" group of employees who stood by trade union principle in last year's dispute, suffered a heart attack on December 21 and, at last report, was in Prince Rupert General Hospital.
★ * ★
From odd corners of the press we have some interesting statistical information.
The first item relates to a study of industrial mortality rates conducted by the New Zealand health department. One disturbing fact elicited by the study was the high cancer death rate among New Zealand fishermen — 233 compared with a ■norm of 100. This, in itself, might not be so significant if it were not that a similar study made in Britain produced a like result.
★ ★ *
The second item, culled from Hotline, recently established IBEW Local 258 monthly publication, is a report made by the Norwegian Academy of Sciences on its study of the frequency and severity of wars since the beginning of recorded history. To quote Hotline:
"It found that since 3600 B.C. the world has known only 292 years of peace. During the period studied there had been 14,531 wars, large and small, in which 3,640 million people have been killed.
"The value of destruction would pay for a golden belt around the earth 165 kilometers wide and 10 meters thick.
'"Since 650 B.C.,' the report said, 'there have been 1,656 arms races, only 16 of which did not end in war. The remainder ended in economic collapse of countries concerned'."
ETTERS
QCI Dredging Work Finished
Editor, The Fisherman:
I have been informed by district marine agent G. R. Stewart that dredging of Louise Channel, Queen Charlotte Islands, is completed now.
The channel is marked with single dolphins. At present the marine agent felt that port and starboard hand markers were unnecessary as it was felt that pilings themselves will suffice.
Any comments on the above inforamtion by UFAWU members should be forwarded to the Chairman, Northern Navigational Aids Committee, UFAWU Local 37, 869 Fraser Street, Prince Rupert.
KEN HARRIS Prince Rupert, B.C.