APRIL 6, 1979 50 CENTS VOLUME 43/NUMBER 13 A SOCIALIST NEWSWEEKLY/PUBLISHED IN THE INTERESTS OF THE WORKING PEOPLE in ion: Socialist urges: Support the Teamsters! As the Militant goes to press, 300,000 Teamsters union members are ready to strike when the union's Master Freight Agreement expires at midnight March 31. Andrew Pulley, Social­ ist Workers Party candidate for mayor of Chicago and a member of United Steelworkers Local 1066, has issued a statement of solidarity with the Teamsters. Pulley's message is being widely distributed among the 143,000 Teamsters union members in Chicago. The day before the April 3 mayoral election, Pulley will be campaigning at the membership meeting of 29,000-member Teamsters Local 743, the largest Teamsters local in the country. Following is the text of Pulley's statement: The Carter administration and the forced overtime and to murderous trucking bosses have taken aim at the speedup schemes. They want better Teamsters union. By trying to force safety and health conditions on the truck drivers and warehouse workers job. They want more secure pensions. to accept a wage settlement within All these demands are in the interest of Carter's 7 percent limit, they are at­ other workers as well. tacking every working person in the I believe that an end to forced over­ country. time and a shorter workweek through­ Carter says a low settlement for out industry-with no cut in pay-is Teamsters will help fight inflation. the best answer to the unemployment I say the opposite is true. that afflicts millions of workers, espe­ The best way for union members and cially young people. other workers to fight the devastating · I also believe that the bipartisan effects of runaway inflation is to sup­ gang-up against the Teamsters by port the Teamsters. Democrats and Republicans shows how urgently working people need to If the Teamsters can bust through break from these two antilabor parties the guidelines and get a decent wage and get into politics in our own increase, then millions of other interest-with a labor party based on workers whose contracts expire this the unions. year-in auto, rubber, electrical, gar­ The Carter administration says a ment, and other industries-will find it Teamster settlement of 9 percent or that much easier to get wage increases more would be "an act of aggression that meet their needs. against the American people." The Teamsters also want an end to Continued on page 9 Evelyn Reed (1905-1979) Marxist champion of women's rights -PAGE 26 In Our Opinion VOLUME 43/NUMBER 13 APRIL 6, 1979 CLOSING NEWS DATE-MAR. 28 purpose is to try to whip up support for military intervention against the Arab peo­ ples. S. African scandal Already, U.S. arms and U.S. advisers have Intense pressure has been building up all begun pouring into North Yemen. After saying around the world against the racist, white March 12 that up to 300 U.S. advisers would be minority regime in South Africa. This pressure sent there, U.S. officials backtracked and has now blown the lid off a scandal known as Mideast battle plan claimed that fewer than 100 would go. But on the South African Watergate. "Battle Plans for Peace" was the way the March 24 Rep. Les Aspin (D-Wis.) charged that A secret international campaign was under­ editors of the New York Times described the the Pentagon had lied and actually planned to taken by the South African Information Minis­ Egyptian-Israeli treaty signed March 26 under send about 230 Americans to Yemen in the try to counter the anti-apartheid movement in the watchful eye of President Carter. next few months. the United States, Britain, Norway, and other "Battle plans" is exactly right. "It's all too easy to make a comparison with countries. According to the latest revelations it Under the guise of supporting peace, Carter the way our commitment to South Vietnam included: is pumping billions in new arms into Egypt mushroomed," Aspin commented. • Bribes to U.S. senators, British members and Israel. U.S. planes will be engaged in At the same time, there are indications that of Parliament, and other legislators; regular reconnaissance flights over the Sinai Washington is becoming more heavily in­ • Subsidies to right-wing, pro-apartheid or­ Peninsula-and presumably over the sur­ volved in Afghanistan, where rightist forces ganizations and political campaigns; rounding region as well. are carrying out a guerrilla war against the • Payments to newspaper columnists and The Mideast deal also opens the possibility pro-Soviet regime. reporters; of U.S. troops being stationed in the Sinai. The One person on the street, interviewed by the • Purchase of newspapers in order to con­ agreement calls for Washington to organize New York Post March 26, zeroed in on Carter's trol their editorial policies; and maintain "an acceptable multinational real battle plan when he said: "It's too much of • Bribes to labor officials, who were sup­ force" if the United Nations Security Council a coincidence to have a treaty and talk at the posed to sabotage a 1977 boycott of South fails to provide troops to police the deal. same time of having the draft reinstated. I African trade; Even more ominous is Carter's pledge to the think the treaty is a set-up, a deal because of • Disruption of anti-apartheid activities. As Zionist regime-revealed by U.S. officials our need for oil." Eschel Rhoodie, the central figure in the $73 March 27-of support if and when the treaty Such skepticism among the American people million operation explained: "If a certain unravels. has been accompanied by a massive upsurge organization was out to arrange an anti-South "Among the possible 'economic, political of protest throughout the Middle East. African rally or was trying to get companies to and military' steps that the United States The Arab masses and the people of Iran withdraw investments" they would be dis­ would consider taking to protect Israel," the know that the treaty will perpetuate the Zion­ rupted. Washington Post reported, "are naval action ist occupation of the West Bank and Gaza and The South African Watergaters were aiming to break a sea blockade and emergency mil­ the oppression of the Palestinian people. It will at the same targets the CIA and FBI have itary resupply efforts similar to the arms facilitate direct U.S. intervention against the been victimizing for years-civil rights groups, airlift during the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.... " interests and aspirations of all the peoples of trade unions, and socialists. With such an Such steps-and others not mentioned­ the Middle East. elaborate operation under way, there can be would supposedly be invoked only if "Egypt" Palestinian strikes and demonstrations in little doubt that the FBI and CIA knew exactly repudiates the treaty. But what if the Egyptian Israel and on the West Bank, massive rallies what was going on. people repudiate Egyptian President Anwar el­ in Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon, and protests in If their secret files were opened, we might Sadat, along with Sadat's betrayal of the Iran, have all served notice on Carter, Begin, well find that the U.S. spy agencies helped out Palestinian people? and Sadat that it will be easier to sign such a as well. After all, the South African govern­ Carter has tried to meet this threat by deal than to carry it out. ment exists in its home base only because of promising Sadat up to $2 billion in U.S. arms. "Even if King Hussein wanted to go along the support of U.S. imperialism. A helping But as Palestine Liberation Organization head with President Sadat," Marvine Howe reported hand to the apartheid regime here in the Yassir Arafat pointed out March 26, "This is a in the March 27 New York Times, "he could United States would be right in line with what joke. I ask Carter what happened to all his not because the Jordanian people are angry Washington is already doing around the tanks and planes in Iran." and feel that Mr. Sadat has betrayed them, world. Mindful of the experience in Iran, Washing­ according to authoritative Jordanian sources." But the South African Watergate also shows ton has made promises to Israeli Prime Minis­ The Washington Post, commenting March that Pretoria is feeling the pressure from the ter Menachem Begin that may yet involve U.S. 28 on the ceremonies on Capitol Hill following American people. The important thing is to troops in a counterrevolutionary war against the signing of the treaty, reported: "There was keep up that pressure by mobilizing the labor 40 million Egyptians and the rest of the Arab a marked absence of jubilation or celebration, movement, Blacks, and students against the masses. and a lot of talk among senators about the racist apartheid regime and U.S. complicity While Carter is carrying out a military build­ fragility of the new peace treaty." with it. up under cover of the misnamed Israeli­ Despite Carter's battle plans, the imperialist Students across the country are planning Egyptian "peace" treaty, imperialist propa­ rulers in Washington know very well that they protests for April 4-11 against the U.S.-South gandists are also churning out scare stories on have not heard the last word from the Arab Africa connection (see page 7). We urge our the so-called energy crisis. Once again, the masses. readers to join and build those actions. The Militant Militant Highlights This Week Editor: STEVE CLARK Associate Editors: CINDY JAQUITH ANDY ROSE 3 Steelworkers march on Paris Busmess Manager: ANDREA BARON CHINA 4 Marroquin hearing nears Editonal staff: Peter Archer.