Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - April 24, 1981, Winnipeg, Manitoba 4 int Preas. Friday. April 24.1981 cd getting a Facelift the Way doctors perform facelifts but this worker is the Public safety building Are receiving a coat of paint As part former Beauty regain some of its past Charm. The of a the buildings were built in 1882 and Are take hotel and Bawlf Block on Princess Street across from now undergoing a Mot Balling Constitution plan clears House Clark tories proud of the work we have done in improving Resolution i Iran Page 1 the opposition Leader said he is Prend of the delay he has caused in the House Over the Constitution. My party and i Are proud of the work we have done in having Parlia ment delay and improve this resold he said despite Maceachen s Conten Tion parliament has been following to ideas s personal obsession. Instead of treating the Constitution As though it belonged to the whole country he has acted As though it is his alone to change in ways that Are his alone to Cark said. The Liberal party lets him get away with it As does the nip sitting com patently Back while the constitutional measure which is this Man s obsession is forced through this parliament. I do not begrudge the prime minis Ter his place in Clark said. But i would like him to leave us a protestant extremist groups forge new Alliance in Ulster Belfast a protestant extremists angered by roman Catholic rioting spurred by the fast of a jailed Irish Republican army member threatened to retaliate against the Ira and its supporters. The threat of a protestant backlash raised fears of new sectarian violence in this British run province where roman catholics militants have pro raised to unleash a Campaign of terror if hunger striker Bobby Sands Dies. Sands 27, was reported near death on the huh Day of his hunger strike in Maze prison outside Belfast. The current situation is considered to be of such a serious nature that All personnel of the organizations have been put in a state of the Ulster defence association largest of the protestant Street armies said after forging a new Alliance with four other rival groups in a secret meeting in Belfast. Joint army Council the protestant threat came after nine Days of rioting in Belfast London judge rules bookmaking charges not substantiated bookmaking charges against James Stephen Wilson were thrown out of provincial judges court yesterday after judge accepted a defence motion of to evidence. Provincial judge Ian Ubienski framed a defence motion that there was do enough evidence to substantiate nine betting related charges in hiding five of keeping a common bet Ting House. Wilson 36, who pleaded not guilty to All the charges still faces one count of conspiracy. Earlier this month judge Ubienski refused to accept evidence obtained under four wiretap authorizations stat ing the manner in which the police accumulated it would bring the administration of Justice into the judge also refused to allow police officers to testify about things they Learned through the wiretaps. Crown counsel Phillip Schachter said that after the judge made the ruling the Crown presented its other evidence which was ruled not sufficient. Derry and other towns in support of Ira demands to end British Rule in this predominantly protestant province. The protestant statement was issued by the joint army which is said to represent the Uda and two outlawed organizations the Ulster Volunteer Force and the red hand com Mando As Well As the Orange Volun Teers and former members of the b specials a Force of police auxiliaries disbanded in 1970 because of their anti Catholic activities. The protestant move followed a flurry of last minute efforts by Sands sup porters including former . Attorney general Ramsey Clark to mediate an end to the hunger strike. Clark arrived in Belfast yesterday along with Rev. Daniel Berrigan hop ing to see Sands but British authorities rejected their request saying it would serve no useful Sands who was elected to the British parliament from a roman Catholic District on april 9, is demanding jailed Ira guerrillas be treated As political prisoners. Prime minister Margaret Thatcher s government has refused on grounds the guerrillas were jailed for common crimes. The showdown is widely seen As the ultimate test of Britain s will to stamp out terrorism after years of conflict. Country to live in when he is Clark said Trudeau still could meet the provincial premiers and work on what Clark said is a basis for future discussion the provincial Accord among eight dissident premiers seek ing simple palliation of the 1867 British North America act with an amending formula that would allow provinces to opt out of constitutional changes reducing their Power. He has one More Opportunity now to prove that his concern is for the coun try and that his motive is National and merely not narrowly Clark said. Myths pushed Maceachen said the opposition has been pushing two other myths the majority of the people Are against constitutional change and that the fed eral government is leading Canada on a radically new course. Neither is Correct he said. The myth that most of the people oppose the Federal proposal has been repeated so Long that it has taken on a life of its own Maceachen said. Well i do not find anyone knocking on the door of parliament asking that we Stop this Maceachen said polls which show that the people oppose unilateral Feder Al action Are distorted and by election results favouring the liberals in Prince Edward Island s Cardigan Riding and London West in Ontario show the feds Are in Good shape. The people of those constituencies in two widely separated provinces had an Opportunity to say no. But they did not Maceachen said. And the Gallup poll taken in the midst of Clark s successful attempt to Stop parliamentary activity the liberals Are right Maceachen claimed. They were screaming out their questions of privilege in the House of commons the people responding to the polls were saying we prefer the grits. We prefer them More than we did in the last election " Lalonde wants users of fuel to pay for Deal continued from Page 1 time the takeover was announced that Consumers would face Only minimal increases to pay for the Deal. Asked whether he thought it fair to impose the Levy Only on Consumers of Petroleum products since All canadians own Petrosina Lalonde replied that the government wanted the Oil and Gas sector to pay for the Deal. Lalonde also announced an extra charge of Between a barrel and a barrel on All Marine and aviation fuels consumed by Domestic and foreign carriers with International destinations. The charge also effective May 1, will reduce Price differences for International Marine and aviation fuels which now exist in different regions of the country. The ownership charge is being placed on natural Gas As Well As Oil because Petro Canada is a National asset la Londe said. The government Oil company will borrow to pay for the remaining 15 per cent of the Cost. Lalonde said the government decided that rather than asking the state Oil company to add to its current debt Load which could hamper its Short term activities Ottawa would pay for 85 per cent of the Petrosina Purchase Price through the ownership account. On the postal front Ouellet was an swering questions at the Senate com Mittee on transport and communications which is studying legislation to turn the Post office department into a Crown corporation. Rates have to Rise the legislation was passed in the commons last week and Ouellet said it should be proclaimed into Law by sept. 1. Postal rates would Rise in the Early months of the corporation s exis tence. He said rates would have to Rise whether or not the corporation was created to allow the department to Cope with increased expenditures such As the Cost of fuel for postal trucks. How High rates will go is up to the Liberal Cabinet. The amount has not yet been fixed. Post office revenues Rise by million for every one cent in crease in the first class rate. The revenues Are also expected to help reduce the Post office deficit. Finance minister Allan Mac Eachen has predicted the Post office will be deficit free within four years. Postal rates have not been increased for two years. Another financial Job for the administrators of the new corporation will be to separate postal services that can be run under competitive business rules from social service styled operations that parliament would be asked to subsidize. An example cited by Deputy Post master general James Corkery for the senators was the delivery by the Post office of Green groceries by Parachute in Remote Northern communities. Not really mall that s not really mail Corkery said but it is a service the Post office provides will continue to provide and should be recognized by Parlia ment As a necessity that should be subsidized. Corkery made a Point of telling the senators that existing Post office management supports conversion to a Crown corporation. Last week the coun try s largest postal Union said the management opposes the conversion. The Canadian Union of postal workers said Michael War Ren appointed president of the corporation will have a difficult Job get Ting control of the administration and changing the attitudes of managers who Are resisting the conversion. However Corkery said the managers Are most anxious to see this transformation to a Crown corporation come about with its new opportunities and challenges to revitalize this venerable and yet modern and essential service to All the people of some senators made last ditch appeals to Ouellet to change the Legisla Tion so that the corporation s Powers will be More limited. They wanted greater limits on the company s right to get regulations from Cabinet without parliamentary approval. Ouellet promised to discuss their proposals with Justice minister Jean Chretien and Treasury Board president Don Johnston. He said changes could be made in legislation that will cover the operations of All Crown corporations or in routine Justice legislation which changes anomalies in various Laws. Residence rates up 13.9% at the u of m the University of Manitoba Board of governors last night approved a 13.9 per cent increase in residence rates. The increase proposed by the univer sity s administration after an analysis of costs and overhead including food services which Are included for Many live in students was first discussed with student representatives a univer sity official said. The University official said apart from inflationary pressures increases Are necessary because summer Resi Dence income is expected to fall Short of last year because conference activities this year lag behind 1980 Levels and Utility rates Are up 27 per cent. Residency rates for Mary Speechly Hall and tache Hall will Rise to from for single occupancy for the Winter session while double occupancy rates increase to from meal plans will Range from to up from a to Range. At University College residence rates go to from for single occupancy and to from for double. Discussions leading to the determination of the increase involved the Provost of University College the act ing director of residences the director of food services and executive Mem Bers of the residence students association. While the students did not endorse the rate increase they have indicated they Are prepared to accept the in crease if it is kept to less than 14 per cent. As it turns out the increase comes in at 13.9 per the University official said. He said food services will not break even in the 1980-81 academic and Resi Dence year. Movement for Western separatism has run out of steam separatism has lost the momentum it had before Christmas but that Doet not Lux unit is dead says Roger Gibbins associate professor of political at the University of Calgary. In this article Gibbins deals with the death and ret Mctune of Western separatism. Calgary up in the Short term the separatist movement in Western Canada is dead the victim of its ideological extremism. However the Lorf term prognosis for the move t is much less certain. Public opinion surveys conducted Over the last few months show that support for separatism remains Low Wen in its Alberta heartland. Today in than one person in 10 would support separatism and that proportion has not been growing. Tie love Lieut has lost the Momen Tum it had before christinas. Separatist Raffies Are less frequent and More sparsely attended Media coverage is falling off and West fed the major separatist organization is in disarray. A recent West fed meeting in Cal Gary Drew lest than two dozen people despite the appearance of the group s Leader Elmer Smitson. The separatist movement has impaled itself upon ideological extremism. Initially it attracted a Broad spec Trum of ideological individuals who had found themselves on the losing Side of political decisions Over the last decade. The separatist movement became a vehicle for a Host of ideological grievances that had Little to do with traditional Western Canadian concerns. It became the forum for vociferous attacks on gun control bilingualism immigration minority rights legalized abortion and socialism. Ottawa was attacked not Only for what it was doing to the West but also for its position on communism and government growth. Minority support this ideological crusade enjoys at Best minority support even in Alberta. Thus committed separatists who Are not aligned with the ideological extremism of spokesmen such As Knutson Are abandoning West fed in an attempt to save the separatist cause from right Wing ideological contamination. However the internal disintegration of the separatist movement should not instil complacency about the Polit ical future of Western Canada. Western alienation from which the separatist movement feeds is still a very broadly based and strongly held Western political predisposition. The Federal government has done Little to ameliorate Western alienation. Ottawa s preoccupation with constitutional Reform Reform which is being handled in a Way that is abrasive to most Western canadians Means that Long standing Western problems Are not being addressed. Ottawa has taken some initial Steps towards a Resolution of the Crow nest freight rates dilemma. However the difficult but unavoidable Choice of hurting either Saskatchewan Grain Farmers or Alberta cattlemen is Likely to postpone any final action. Reform overdue the Federal government has taken no Steps to Reform National institutions so As to make them More representative of and More sensitive to Western Canadian interests. Senate and elector Al Reform appear to have disappeared from the liberals Agenda. Yet Reform of National political institutions is critical to the nation s survival. A repeat of the 1980 election in which the West was almost completely shut out of National Power would pro vide a stimulus to separatism be fore which the National Energy policy would Pale in comparison. Gibbons Reform needed without Reform westerners will continue to rely upon their provincial governments to represent their interests in Ottawa. In the Long run this Reliance will Foster separatism recent actions by the Alberta government foreshadow this fear. For example it has proposed legislation that would enable referendums albeit of a non binding character to be held with in the province. If passed such legislation would be a godsend to the separatist movement. To Date most separatists have been unwilling to enter the electoral Arena or to form a political party. Alberta separatists have been particularly reluctant to confront directly the electoral steam roller of the Lougheed conservatives. The passage of the referendum legis lation would provide an outlet and one that would bypass electoral combat with the provincial conservatives. The separatist movement could be reborn with the Mission of pressuring the Lougheed government into holding a referendum on separatism. Other actions by the provincial government present and proposed Are equally disturbing. The province May Well pull out of the National medicare system thus sever ing another link1 Between albertan and Ottawa. The provincial govern ment has also threatened despite Strong opposition from agricultural organizations to pull Alberta Farmers out of the Canadian wheat Board. On the natural resources front the Alberta government is trying to extend the ownership of natural resources to control of such resources in inter pro Vinci Al and International Trade. In essence it is seeking to acquire Powers usually wielded by Sovereign states. The suggestion is not to be made that the Alberta government is controlled by closet separatists. That government has simply been responding to the weaknesses and opportunities of a fed eral system incapable of effective regional representation at the Centre. Nonetheless the Strid ency of the Al Berta government and its efforts to reduce the Federal presence in the Ince to the Bare minimum if not beyond suggest that in the years ahead separatism May receive greater institutional support than it enjoys at pres ent. Ties severed during the last six months a significant number of Western canadians have severed their emotional ties with Canada and have become separatists. They will survive the collapse of West fed and will continue their quest. That quest will be sustained by a Broad base of Western alienation that will not soon be eroded by a Federal government still insensitive to Western interests and by provincial govern ment strategies that logically if not rhetorically offer Solace to the separatist cause ;