Coalition pushes antiwar referendum

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(Total foreign debt of some South American countries,_ BOSTON-Over 50 antiwar activists met last April 2l in the office of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union, Local 26, to launch a Central America referendum campaign. Organized by members of the Central American Solidarity Association (CASA), this initial meeting brought together different organizations and individuals throughout the Boston area, including religious, labor and community groups.

After a thorough and lively discussion, the meeting decided the referendum should consist of the following four points:

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the Soviet Union and China, but they were determined to make it possible for U.S. goods and capital to flow to any other part of the world where the profits were highest. All impediments to their commerce must be swept away.

One impediment was the poorer countries' lack of money. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were set up in 1945 to meet this problem. All countries were invited to kick in funds for these international lending institutions, but control has remained firmly in North American hands.

The United States has used its control to see that no "unworthy" country gets any loans. It vetoed a loan to Grenada for building an airport and stopped a loan to Nicaragua for building roads. Its veto power has also been used to force Third World countries to serve U.S. economic interests instead of their This means that no loans can go to projects that compete with U.S. exports; no country can restrict the flow of capital in or out; no serious tariff barriers can be erected to protect native industries. In the Philippines 60 percent of the textile industry went bankrupt and 100,000 workers lost their jobs when the World Bank insisted that barriers to textile imports be removed. In the U.S. world scheme, the Philippines and other Third World countries are to be areas of cheap labor for assembling calculators, tape recorders, and other products for Japanese and American entrepreneurs.

For 30 years, while Europe and America prospered, the Third World sank more deeply into debt. Then in the 1970s the situation of these impoverished countries moved from serious to critical. The rise in the price of oil pushed the underdeveloped countries to the point of desperation. They had no money to pay the huge new oil bills. They had to borrow again.

Borrowing more money was no problem: European and American banks were bulging with OPEC oil money. In 1972 the OPEC countries got $24 billion for their oil; in 1982 they received $230 billion. When the the oil sheiks deposited this money, the bankers were forced to lend it out at the best possible interest Desperate Third World countries could be forced to pay almost any rate of interest. So the bankers literally shoveled out the money to these impecunious borrowers—at the highest interest rates and millions in service charges.

Mexico's foreign debt went from $40 billion in 1980 to $80 billion in 1982. In two years Argentina's debt jumped from $13.7 billion to $40 billion in 1982. Poland increased its borrowing from $10 billion in 1976 to $27 billion in 1981.

Then in 1980 recession struck, push4 Socialist Action • Immediate withdrawal of all troops and military advisers from El Salvador and Honduras.

• End all military aid to BI Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala.

• End all aid to the forces fighting against the government of Nicaragua.

• Redirect funds allocated for such purposes to the domestic economy to create jobs and improve services.

The conference also decided to gather the 200 signatures necessary to place the referendum on the ballot in each of the state representative districts of Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, and Chelsea.

Local antiwar activists want to use Debt-laden South America in billions ) 10.3 ing down the price of Third World products to the point of bankruptcy for the producers. At the same time the price of oil dropped, cutting off the flow of OPEC funds to American banks. The wild spending spree was over. It was time to start collecting.

But nearly every Third World country is technically bankrupt-there is no money in the till. It is absolutely impossible for them to pay off the $400 billion they owe the banks. But the bankers cannot accept that fact. To write off $400 billion in loans as uncollectible would make the worldwide banking structure collapse like a house of cards. The great crash of 1929 would seem like just a fender bender in comparison.

Now the IMF comes to the aid of the bankers. It makes more loans to the debtor countries so that they can make their interest payments and the bankers can cover up the fact that the debts are uncollectible. Meanwhile, the bankers search for some way to load the whole debt onto the taxpayers. As a step in that direction, last September the IMF was given $8.5 billion of U.S. taxpayers' money.

THE ONLY WAY THIRD WORLD NATIONS CAN WEATHER THEIR CURRENT DEBT CRISIS...

INTERNATONAL MONEIARY FUND May 1984 32.4 17.8 10.6 Venezuela IS BY CUTTING OFF IMPORTS AND INCREASING EXPORTS America. If the referendum campaign is successful, Boston area residents will, for the first time, be able to go to the polls next fall and vote against Reagan's war policies.

Not since the Vietnam Referendum Campaign in 1970 have Massachusetts citizens had the opportunity to vote against the federal government's intervention in foreign countries. While the proposed referendum is non-bindinglocal elected officials are not required to support the position established by majority vote—the referendum will allow for the first direct expression of mass antiwar sentiment in the elections.

But the importance of the referendum is not merely in numbers and votes. For local activists, gathering signatures to place the referendum on the ballot is only the first step in an ongoing effort. In a leaflet circulated to build the April 21 meeting, CASA memArgentina Brazil The IMF loans come with heavy strings attached. The borrowing government must squeeze every last ounce of value out of its people to repay the voracious bankers. This means freezing wages, raising taxes, eliminating subsidies that keep basic food prices down, and devaluing the currency, thus raising prices and lowering the standard of living of the poor below the subsistence level. All this to keep the country on a merry-go-round of increasing debt and increasing austerity, with no end in sight.

The reality of the situation is becoming clear to the people of Latin America. Workers ask, "Why should we starve so the New York bankers can get fat?" Government leaders ask, "How far and for how long can we squeeze the masses before they revolt?" For President Raul Alfonsin of Argentina this was a vital question. He has replaced the generals with civilian rule, and the workers are expecting some improvement, not more austerity. Argentina's inflation rate is 450 percent!

This was the thinking behind Argentina's hesitation about making its last HOW CAN COUNTRIES INCREASE EXPORTS IF NO ONE IMPORTS? to do educational outreach and community organizing around the issue of Central America. It will enable us to (1) educate thousands of voters; (2) involve new people who have not yet been active on this issue; (3) broaden the movement against intervention by reaching out to new constituencies; (4) strengthen the connections between different groups working on this issue; and (5) create more favorable publicity for this issue.

Petitioning in the districts began April 28 and should be completed shortly. Further meetings will determine the next steps, but it is likely that fundraising, publicity and outreach work will be a priority. Raising money to continue the effort, which has begun, will be especially important. Anyone in the Boston area who can help by giving time or money should contact CASA at 1151 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, Mass. 02138, or phone (617) 492-8699.

interest payment. The bankers had refused its request for a lower interest rate on the loan: To drop the interest rate by a single point would cost the banks $500 million a year in profit. Argentina had some clout, however. It could threaten the rickety debt structure by going into default.

But Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia and Brazil- themselves heavily in debt—were not ready to bring the structure tumbling down. They persuaded Argentina to accept a very complicated series of loans that would avert the immediate crisis. Argentina did get a lower interest note on this loan, but it agreed to go back to the IMF and the latter's harsh terms for further financing.

The bankers are sighing with relief. But this deal averted only a single payment crisis with a single debtor nation. What happens when the next payment is due? What happens when the next country says it cannot pay up? This time four debtor nations collaborated to help Argentina make a payment. Next time they may form a united front to present their demands on their creditors.

As capitalist politicians, the Third World leaders may only ask for better terms for their indebtedness. But getting better terms will not be easy since the bankers do not want to sacrifice any of their profits by lowering interest rates. In fact, interest rates are on the rise. And a new wave of protectionism threatens to shut out even more Third World exports from access to the world market. Quick fixes such as the Argentina deal offer no long-term solution, but only prolong the agony.

But the workers and peasants of Latin America, Africa, and Asia, squeezed beyond desperation, are beginning to demand justice. The Dominican Republic has been shaken in recent weeks by several days of protest and street battles over increases in the price of basic foodstuffs imposed under the terms of an IMF loan. The masses of the underdeveloped world have no interest in more loans of this type. Scarcely a dollar of the billions borrowed have trickled down to them. They can gain only by declaring the loans null and void and using their national resources and labor power for themselves. The possibility of such a step is what gives the bankers sleepless nights.

IT'S NOT OUR ROLE TO MAKE SPECIFIC POI _ICY RECOMMENDATION:

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