U.S. Military Threats Aimed Against Panama

London police THE attack Caribbean carnival PageS A SOCIALIST NEWSWEEKLY PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF WORKING PEOPLE VOL. 53/NO. 33 SEPTEMBER 8, 1989 $1.00 Eastern U.S. military threats strikers aimed against Panama seek wider Troop maneuvers violate sovereignty backing on BY DON ROJAS Labor Day Concern is growing throughout Latin America and the Caribbean that the U.S. military is on the verge of carrying out a major BY SUSAN LaMONT aggression against Panama with the objective Striking Eastern Airlines workers will of forcibly removing Gen. Manuel Noriega, mark the beginning of their seventh month chief of the country's defense forces, and on the picket line September 4 by appealing replacing him and his supporters in the gov to thousands of fellow unionists at Labor Day ernment and the army with a regime favor marches and events to deepen support for the able to Washington. Eastern workers' ongoing fight. In an ominous move, the U.S. government In New York, Philadelphia, Miami, De requested a special meeting on August 31 of troit, and other cities, Eastern strikers have campaigned to place solidarity with their strike at the center of Labor Day actions. See editorial on page 14. The International Association of Machin ists is urging strikers from all over - and especially from New York, New Jersey, and the Organization of American States (OAS) Connecticut- to attend the New York Labor to hear "evidence" that Noriega had turned Day march, in which Eastern Machinists, Panama into a "haven" for drug traffickers flight attendants, and pilots will be the lead from Colombia. This move comes a week contingent. after the White House announced a $65 mil lion package of military assistance to the Three caravans of strikers - two from Colombian government, which it says is to Miami and one from Boston - will arrive in be used to crack down on the country's drug New York to join the contingent. The cara lords. vans have been traveling up and down the As its options narrow in the wake of the eastern United States for several weeks pub failure to get the OAS to force Noriega's licizing the strike. Strikers from Newark In resignation by September I, Washington has ternational Airport will also be part of the upscaled military action on its list of mea New York action. sures against Noriega and the Panamanian Washington, D.C.'s Labor Day event will government. be held September 6 at the Capitol. The lAM An August 21 editorial in Grani?Ul, official is asking participating unionists to join the organ of the Communist Party of Cuba, de Machinists' and pilots' Journey for Justice scribed a mid-August U.S. embassy briefing strike caravan for the last mile in its 3,000- in Panama in which embassy officials warned mile "picket line," which will wind up at the that the U.S. government stands ready to take Capitol rally. Continued on Page 13 Demonstration in Panama City, May 1989. Start-up of more flights Strikers in New York, Miami, and Wash ington, D.C., are planning rallies, expanded picketing, and other activities for September Black youth lynched in Brooklyn 7 - the day Eastern plans to increase the number of daily flights from 390 to 600. BY PETER THIERJUNG ered that evening in front of a candy store to the attack one of the group showed Strikers in other cities are also working to get NEW YORK- Yusef Hawkins, a 16- below the apartment of Gina Feliciano. They Feliciano a gun and warned her about her such actions called. year-old Black youth, was gunned down Au heard that the woman had invited Blacks to "nigger friends." Amid signs of trouble the Strike activists plan to appeal to Labor Day gus.t 23 by a gang of racist thugs in the mostly her 18th birthday party and they were pre woman called her friends and canceled the marchers to tum out at the airports September white Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn. paring, witnesses said, for a fight. The lynch birthday party. 7 to join them in these protests. Hawkins suffered two fatal gunshot wounds mob was armed with several baseball bats Hawkins and three Black companions, in "More workers in the lAM and the rest of in the chest. and at least one gun. Bensonhurst to buy a used car, happened to the labor movement need to look at solidarity Witnesses said that a gang of whites gath- A friend of Feliciano told police that prior walk down the street where the racists were as direct involvement as co-fighters in our congregated. The gang of up to 30 thugs battle," said strike activist Nick Gruenberg, followed them shouting racial slurs and mak from Newark. "Our message Labor Day will ing physical threats. "The hell with beating African leaders adopt ANC proposal Continued on Page 6 them up, forget the bats," one of them shouted, "I'm gonna shoot the nigger." A for negotiations with Pretoria chase began and moments later Hawkins was dead. BY GREG McCARTAN After the meeting was over, ANC Secre New York HARARE, Zimbabwe- The August 21 tary General Alfred Nzo told the press that Two charged with murder socialists file for meeting of the Organization of African Unity the OAU's endorsement of the proposals (OAU) here adopted the guidelines put for "shows the Africans taking the initiative on Police arrested six of the attackers by Au ballot status ward by the African National Congress for the issue." He noted that while the stand by gust 28. All have been charged with misde negotiations with the South African apartheid the OAU was a step forward, the South meanors or felonies. Two, Keith Mondello NEW YORK - On August 22, regime. African government was no closer to nego and Pasquale Raucci, have been charged with some II ,400 signatures - 4,000 over The heads of state from 16 countries across tiating with the liberation movement. murder. Another, Joseph Fama, who police the legal requirement - were filed the continent called on the Pretoria regime to The next day a summit of eight African say may have pulled the trigger, is still being with the Board of Elections here to get negotiate directly with the ANC without the leaders met to discuss progress in implement sought. ballot status for three Socialist Workers involvement of other countries. They added ing accords signed June 24 between the An Party candidates: James Harris for Initial police reports, press accounts, and mayor, Jerry Frei wirth for City Council that in order for negotiations to take place, golan government and the Union for the Total statements by New York Mayor Edward the regime must "release Nelson Mandela Independence of Angola (UNITA). Sup president, and Vivian Sahner for comp Koch attempted to blur the racist nature of troller. and all other political prisoners and detainees; ported by the South African regime and the the attack and killing. lift the State of Emergency; remove the ban U.S. government, UNITA has carried out a On August 24, Ezra Friedlander, a on the ANC and PAC [Pan-African Congress] 10-year counterrevolutionary war inside An They alleged that it was a result of registered Democrat, filed a general and all anti-apartheid organizations; and gola. The agreement included a cessation of Feliciano's ending a relationship with one of challenge against the signatures sub enter into a dialogue with the genuine repre all hostilities and the integration of UNITA the gang leaders and dating someone else mitted by the SWP, as well as those of sentatives of the South African people." forces into government institutions, includ who happened to be Black. Because the thugs the Workers League, New Alliance The OAU "reiterated the pressing need to ing the Angolan army. did not know the party was canceled, it is Party, and the Republican Rudolph impose comprehensive and mandatory sanc Some new terms of the accord were re implied that the killing of Hawkins was a Giuliani. According to the ballot rules, tions by the international community against leased to the public following the summit case of mistaken identity. Hawkins and his Friedlander had six days to specify the South Africa in order to force it to renounce meeting. They included the previous accep friends did JlOt know Feliciano. basis of his challenge. By the end of apartheid and accept the establishment of a tance of UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi of An attorney for one of the attackers denied the day on August 30, he had not filed united, democratic, and nonracial state based · "temporary and voluntary retirement" from the killing was racist and said "it was caused these specifications. on the principle of one person, one vote." Continued on Page 13 Continued on Page 12 Frederick Engels, 'working-class fighter' Iranian-born artist paints cofounder of modem socialism on Pathfinder mural BY SAM MANUEL Hormozi studied painting at several uni Zeitung. With the impending defeat of the traits featured are those of African National NEW YORK - A colorful portrait of versities in Britain. She has also been artist revolution, the Neue Rheinische Zeitung was Congress leader Nelson Mandela, the West Frederick Engels, cofounder of modem so in-residence at the Stroud Museum and at suppressed, and Marx was deported. Engels African communist Thomas Sankara, cialism, now looks out over the West Side Northeast London Polytechnic College. She joined the armed popular uprising and fought Grenadian revolutionary Maurice Bishop, Highway in Manhattan. The portrait, done by was assisted in painting the portrait of Engels in three battles before being forced to flee Argentine-born leader of the Cuban revolu Iranian-born artist Marjan Hormozi, is the by Los Angeles artist James Goodwin.

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