Pag« 2 Portland Oba«rvar March B. 1981
Traitors sentenced to death
EDITORIAL/OPINION
Get involved; know the facts
The nation is moving rapidly -- and its direc
tion will be determined either by the citizens or
by those who control it by default.
A depression is upon us -- the signs are all
around. High unem ploym ent rates; "tig h te n -
the b e lt" cut backs, at least for the poor; e f
fo rts to strip workers of their rights through
d e s tru c tio n of u n ions; m o vem ent of c o m
panies abroad to make use of cheap labor.
High in fla tio n ; high in te re s t rates; tig h t
money.
Along with this declining style of life, comes
crime particularly street crime and crimes of
violence. To meet this threat, police actions
are strengthened and civil rights restricted.
Facism is the ultimate result.
W e have seen th is happen all over the
w orld; w ill it happen here? The national and
state budgets are an indication that it could.
So is the recent decision to bring the FBI more
closely in to local police w o rk, the e ffo rt to
dism antle the Freedom of Info rm ation A ct,
the m ove to stre n g th e n and secretize the
FBI / CIA and make surveillance of Am erican
citizens easier, the attem pt to make dem on
s tra tio n s illegal, the move to re strict press
freedom.
C ongress and the n a tio n a l g o ve rn m e n t
seem a long way away, out of reach, but they
do so m etim es repond w hen p o litic a l e x
pedience beckons.
Closer at hand is the State Legislature which
daily reviews legislation of crucial im portance -
the racial harassm ent b ill, the B lack and
H ispanic C o m m m issio n s, S o u th A fric a
d ive stm e n t, changes in Civil R ights Bureau
rules, changes in crim inal law; budgeting fo r
education, w elfare, health and other needed
program s; ta xa tio n . These decisions w ill be
made whether the citizens participate or not.
The L e g isla tu re is nearby o n ly an ho u r
away. Our elected representatives are as close
as the telephone. Yet many of us never bother
to find out w hat is going on and never express
an opinion.
The City and the County are also facing d if
fic u lt decisions
the C ounty is enterin g its
b u d g e t process; the C ity is g ra p p lin g w ith
Housing and C om m unity Development grant
p ro p o sa ls,
CETA
fu n d in g ,
e c o n o m ic
d e v e lo p m e n t, etc. The S ch o o l Board is
slashing budgets and g e ttin g ready to close
several schools.
We urge the people of our com m unity to get
involved before it is too late.
We also invite you to our Legislative B run
ch, held every o th e r S a tu rd a y m o rn in g at
Bourbon S treet at 9:30 p.m . This Saturday,
meet Representative Hardy Myers, Speaker of
the House the man w ho makes co m m ittee
appointm ents, assigns bills, and gets things
done in the House. It's your chance to tell him
what you want and what you don 't want.
Who will suffer?
W ith its massive increase of military aid and
its deploym ent of additional U.S. advisors to
the m ilita ry governm ent of El Salvador, the
U nited S tates is ta kin g a n o th e r rapid step
tow ard another " V ie tn a m ." Even the same
rational is being used - the need to stop com
m unist (Soviet Union, Cuba, e tc.,) interven
tion in Central America.
The excuse to continue the Vietnam War, a
war whose disasterous effects are still felt in
the A m e rica n eco n o m y, was the "d o m in o
theory." This theory said that if one Southeast
Asian country fell - all would "go com m unist."
The same sto ry is now heard a b o u t El
Salvador. "If El Salvador falls into the hands of
the communists, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa
Rica, and even Mexico will fo llo w ."
This theory com pletely overlooks reality
that the United States created and maintains a
b ru ta l m ilita ry d ic ta to rs h ip . This "g o v e rn
m ent" has slaughtered over 12,000 civilians in
the past year, w ith U.S. weapons training and
guidance.
The U .S . " g o v e rn m e n t” is risking the
d e s tru c tio n o f all the w o rld to save th is
governm ent from its own citizens. Those ob
servers w ho have been to El Salvador - in
cluding leaders of the church and social agen
cies say in truth this "governm ent" does not
exist. The military is in full control of the coun
try and a broad coalition of workers, students,
peasants, professionals and business people
are try in g to o v e rth ro w the m ilita ry and to
establish a democratic system.
But in the face of o p p o s itio n of Canada,
M exico and most of Europe, as well as many
South American nations, the United Nations,
the W orld Council of Churches, the U.S. goes
ahead aiding this illegal government.
W hy? There are no vital econom ic interests
or strategic defense interests in El Salvador.
The people of El Salvador are being massacred
because the U .S. governm ent fears that the
fall of a dictatorship in El Salvador w ould in
spire their neighbors in Guatemala to rise up
a g a inst th e ir o pp re ssive d ic ta to r. A nd
Guatemala has oil!
As the peo ple of the U n ite d S ta te s sit
quietly and let the President send them to war
they should consider some que stions: W ho
makes up a large percentage of the Army and
the Marine Corps, the troops that will fight in
El S alvador? W h o w ill s u ffe r w h e n m oney
should be used for housing, employment, and
medical care goes to buy napalm and bullets to
kill innocent people far away?
Can the U .S . go th ro u g h the p o litic a l
divisions, the econom ic losses, destruction of
the youth that it suffered during the Vietnam
W ar? If w e are n o t co n ce rn e d a b o u t the
people of El S a lva d o r the p o o re s t in the
W e ste rn H e m isphere
are we co n ce rn e d
about our own children and ourselves?
Portland Observer
The Portland Observer IUSPS 969 680I is published every Thurs
day by E«ie Publishmq Company Inc . 2201 North Killmysyvorth
Portland Oregon 972,7 Post Office Eo. 3,37 Portland Oregon
97208 Second class postage paid at Portland Oregon
Subscriptions $10 00 per year in Tri County area Postm aster
Send address changes to the Portland Observer. P O Bon 3,37
Portland, Oregon 97208
The Portland Observer was founded in Octobei of 1970 by
Alfred Lee Henderson
■
M tM B C »
J
1
i Oregon
Newspaper
Publishers
S ' Association
1
MEMBER
NHWAw
The Portland Observer is a champion of justice equality and
liberation, an alert guard against social evils, a thorough analyst
and critic of discriminatory practices and policies a sentinal to
warn of impending and existing racist trends and practices and a
defender agamst persecution and oppression
The real problems of the minority population will be viewed and
presented from the perspective of their causality unrestrained ano
chronoically entrenched racism National and in te rn a tio n a l
arrangements that prolong and increase the oppression of Third
World peoples shall be considered in the context of their e<
pioitation and manipulation by the colonial nations including the
United States and their relationship to this nation s historical
treatment of its Black population
283 2486
N ational A d ve rtisin g Representative
Am algam ated Publishers Inc
N ew York
Attocxrion - Founded IMS
I
t
V ic to rio u s F R E L IM O forces
marched trium phantly into Maputo,
the capital o f M ozam bique, almost
six years ago. As th e ir supporters
u lu la te d , danced and sang in the
streets to m ark the b irth o f a free
nation at last, the hated Portuguese
flag came dow n to be replaced by
M o z a m b iq u e ’ s
p ro u d ,
re v o lu tio n a ry Red, Black and
G reen. T his m arked the end o f
almost five hundred years o f P o r
tuguese colonial exploitation.
Since then, M oza m b ican s have
settled down to the serious busines
ot re b u ild in g th e ir shattered
econom y, d iv id e d n a tio n and the
rest o f all that it takes to be a truly
independent nation. Along the way,
M oza m b iqu e w atched w ith great
s a tis fa c tio n and jo y as Zim babw e
was born. The b irth o f Zimbabwe,
her western neighbor, signalled fu r
ther consolidation o f her hard won
independence. T he Ian S m ith
regim e, then in pow er in the then
“ Rhodesia” had been in the habit
o f staging cross-border raids in to
M o za m b iq u e in a vain e ffo r t to
destabilize the new nation.
A ll is w ell in M o z a m b iq u e , it
w ou ld appear b u t, u n fo rtu n a te ly ,
that is not the case. M ozam bique,
like any other country in similar c ir
cum stances. has not been able to
escape the scourge o f th a t most
hated o f all “ beings” that lowest o f
the low ; the tr a ito r . Some people
• *
ca ll them “ d is s id e n ts " but in
M ozam bique's case, that would be
m isle ad ing . A sm all g ro u p o f
malcontents, unhappy w ith the tact
that LR E L IM O was able to save
M o za m b iq u e fro m the thores o f
c o lo n ia l e x p lo ita tio n and w in the
respect o f not only all Mozambicans
but the world as a whole, have kept
up a tric k le o f anti-governm ent ac
tiv ity throughout the last six years.
I ittle bands o f these tra ito rs ,
w o rk in g hand in glove w ith
R hodesia, M a la w i and South
A fric a , have jo in e d in to a te rro r
g ro u p know as “ A fric a I iv re ”
w h ic h , iro n ic a lly , tran slate s to
“ free A fric a .” They have attacked
o u tla y in g villa g e s, m ined roads,
killed government o ffic ia ls , spread
anti 1 KI I IM O propaganda and,
generally, done whatever they can
do to u n d e rm in e the n a tio n a l
governm ent. The governm ent has
therefore been forced to deploy fo r
ces to p a tro l the border areas and
hunt down these renegades in an ef
fort to protect the lives and property
o f Mozambican nationals.
T h irty -o n e m em bers o f this
renegade g ro u p went on tr ia l the
first week o f November accused o f
treason against their own country,
l o u r were sentenced to death and
the other 27 received prison terms
ranging from eight to fifte e n years
in prison. The m ilita ry trib u n a l, in
passing sentence, remarked on how
sad it was to be m eting out justice
against
people
w ho
are,
theoretically, fellow Mozambicans
but went on to emphasize that the
severity o f the crim es le ft the
tribunal with no choice. Enemies o f
the people w ill be dealt w ith , and
severely too. This should serve as a
warning to any and all who may be
c o n te m p la tin g such n e fa rio u s
deeds.
Since the independence o f Z im
babwe and the in itia l steps towards
the creation o f the Economic t om-
m unity o f Southern A frican States
o f which M alaw i is a i.em ber, re
lations between Malaw i md M o
zam bique have im prov d quite
some. M alaw i may tl
ore soon
deny these turncoats tl, sanctuary
they have enjoyed fo r so long.
Shortly after the new government
o f Z im babw e assumed o ffic e in
H arare, the c a p ita l, Zim babw ean
and M ozam bican o ffic ia ls met to
plot a jo in t strategy for elim inating
this menace once and fo r a ll. W ith
th e ir a llies, fe llo w c o n s p ira to rs ,
planners, financiers, train ers and
bosses; (Smith and Muzorewa) to p
pled in Z im b ab w e, these tra ito rs
were forced to flee to M alaw i and
South A fric a . Under the unpredic
table leadership o f H astings
k a m u /u Banda, M alaw i has been
one o f the sanctuaries where these
tra to rs fled to when I REL. I M O
came after them in pursuit.
The second Martin Luther King
Hy Dr. Munntny M arahle
LUTHER
Hruce Hroussard
Editor/Publisher
Hv K invai k u m h u la
Last m o n th m any m illio n s o f
Am ericans, Black and w hite, paid
trib u te to the life and th o u g h t o f
M a rtin I u the r k in g , Jr. A lm o s t
20,000 people attended a m a jo r
march in Washington, D .C ., urging
Congress to make kin g 's birthday a
n a tio n a l h o lid a y . I was in v ite d to
speak on the c o n trib u tio n s o f k in g
to the freedom Movement at a con
vocation at I lorida State University.
We remember the long marches
that M a rtin I tither k in g , J r., led
against the segregationist in Albany,
G eorgia, M o n tg o m e ry , A labam a,
and C icero, Illinois We can imagine
the n ig hts he su ffe re d in ja il to
defend our rig h ts to a tte nd w hite
u n iv e rs itie s , to be h ired on our
m e rit, to live where we w anted.
M artin is im portant, because we as a
people are im portant. His sacrifices
were ours; his struggles fo r in te r
n a tio n a l peace in an era o f war is
our own; his message o f nonviolent
activism and passive resistance in
the light o f injustice and race hatred
is his legacy for our day.
But we m ust rem em ber that
M a rtin was a m an. He made
mistakes; sometimes he was right ad
sometimes he was not.
What distinguishes M artin 1 uther
k in g , J r., as tr u ly great was the
potential w ith in each one o f us, to
overcome our own weaknesses, to
grow in understanding, to attem pt
to live life with a quiet dignity in the
face o f a d v e rs ity . That also is
M artin's legacy.
M any speeches were given
th ro u g h o u t J a nu ary in h o n o r o f
M artin, demanding government ac
tio n to create his national holiday.
The great m a jo rity concentrated on
the years between the M ontgom ery
Bus B o ycott o f 1955-56 and the
Selma, Alabam a Protest M arch o f
1965. Most depict the “ h ig h p o in t"
o f M a rtin ’ s career at his March on
W a s h in g to n , D .C ., address in
August, 1963.
There
is a n o th e r
M a rtin ,
however, that many people fa il to
remember. In 1966, 1967 and 1968,
k in g broke w ith the Johnson A d
m in is tra tio n on the V ietnam war.
He began to move in the direction o f
M alcom X , by m oving fro m c iv il
rights to human rights.
A fte r his fa ilu re to integrate the
Chicago neighborhood o f C icerto,
k in g began to make p u b lic state
ments w hich c o n flic te d w ith the
stated goals o f the m a jo rity o f his
followers and the civil rights hierar
chy. “ f o r years I labored w ith the
idea ot re fo rm in g the existing in
stitutions o f society, a little change
here, a little change there. Now I
feel quite d iffe re n tly ."
T he experiences o f defeat in
C hica go and his d is illu s io n m e n t
with the m orality o f white America
had made k in g much m ore in
terested in econom ic re fo rm and
non vio len t social tra n s fo rm a tio n .
“ I think you've got to have a recon
stru ctio n o f the entire society and
revolution o f values,” he declared.
At the barest m inim um , this would
have included the rebuilding o f the
cities, the n a tio n a liz a tio n o f some
industries, a c ritic a l review o f this
country’ s foreign investments, and a
guaranteed annual income.
I ike members o f the New I e ft,
k in g firs t expressed his new views
on the need fo r com prehensive
social change in his stated o p
position to the Vietnam W ar. kin g
had p riv a te ly opposed A m e ric a 's
in vo lve m e n t in the W ar since the
early 1960s, and had written against
the W ar since 1965. H ow ever, his
C ivil Rights activities had taken him
away fro m his d ire c t e ffo r t to
cooperate
w ith
the
Peace
M ovem ent, k in g 's decision to in
c o rp o ra te
the
C iv il
Rights
M ovem ent w ith the m ovem ent to
end the war was supported by A.J.
Muste, a leading American pacifist,
D r. B e njam in Spock, and Yale
U niversity C haplain W illia m Sloan
C offin.
T hus, on A p r il 4, 1967 k in g
spoke at New York C ity ’ s Riverside
Church to an overflow crowd about
V ie tna m . In th is speech which
received nationwide press coverage,
king o ffic ia lly broke with the John
son - lib e ra l - in te g ra tio n is t - pro
war c o a litio n . He stated: “ The
Great Society has been shot down
on the b a ttle fie ld s o f V ie tn a m .“
Am erica had to reach a negotiated
settlem ent w hich recognized the
humanity o f the Vietnamese people.
“ It w ould be very inconsistent for
me to teach and preach nonviolence
in this situation and then applaud
violence when thousands and
thousands o f people, b oth adults
and children, are being maimed and
m u tila te d and many k ille d in his
war; so that I s till feel and live by
the principle. Thou shalt not k ill.
The next stage o f domestic civ il
rights struggle, kin g implied, had to
address its e lf to in te rn a tio n a l
questions o f w ar and peace. On
A p ril 15, 1967, k in g led a demon
stration o f 125,(XX) pacifists through
C e n tra l Park to the U .N . to
denounce America's participation in
the V ietnam W a r. D u rin g the
parade a g ro up o f seventy w hite
youths burned their draft cards and
L lo yd M ckissick and Stokely C a r
michael (now kwam e Toure) spoke
against the genocidal tactics o f the
war. By the end o f May, in Geneva,
he called again fo r the negotiated
settlem ent and ennunciated a five
p oint peace plan, which included
an end to all bombing in N orth and
$ o u th V ie tna m ; a to ta l ceasefire,
and end o f m ilita ry b u ild u p ;
re c o g n itio n
o f the
N a tio n a l
I iberation fr o n t; a dale set fo r all
U.S. troop withdrawls.
End of Part Ona
1st Place
Community Service
ONPA 1973
1st Place
Best Ad Result
ONPA 1973
Subscribe! - $10. per year
5th Place
Best Editorial
ONPA 1973
Honorable Ment on
Herrick Editorial Award
NNA 1973
2nd Place
Best Editorial
3rd Place
Community Leadership
ONPA 1975
3rd Place
Community Leadership
O N °A 1978
3rd Place
In depth coverage
ONPA 1979
Name.........................................................................................
Address.....................................................................................
City-
State-
Zip-
Portland Observer
Box 3137
Portland, OR 97208