Trade with Chile

Press, 16 July 1980, Page 22

Trade with Chile

Sir, — “The Press” : (July 14) joins Mr Templeton in positing ecoribmic activity and returns as the deciding, if not sole criteria for human activity and motivation. What a monstrous denial of the human potential for caring and rational 'decision. The attempt to liken Allende’s Chile with- Pinochet’s reveals an? unbelievable lack of research — resulting in a lame effort to distort facts. If “The Press” believes other countries are equally worthy, of boycott it might act on its and set something in motion. Allegations such as the ban giving “a warm glow of selfrighteousness” to a few New Zealanders is hardly honest. Had' the writer of the. editorial. ever passed through the slums and prisons of Chile and understood one tittle of the underlying causes behind the poverty and oppression, he could not possibly have stooped to such flippant and irresponsible comment... Yours,-etc.,: •-?- ' D. t CASEY, Chairperson, Chilean -Working Peoples’ Solidarity Committee. July 14, 1980. J / . Sir, — It is incredible that in view of our present economic plight the- Government allows the F.O.L. to dictate our trading policy. At election time the Government said that it would not allow the unions to.run' the country. Now we find the F.O.L. and its supporters still. saying: “We can threaten you, but you must not threaten us.” One would think that with the private sector having to reduce staff, the F.O.L. would seize every opportunity to extend “ trade and provide jobs. A - more positive directive from our Government in face of the union’s disruptive tactics would give the more conservative members of our society a feeling of hope for the future; , not the despair we now have, with Mr Knox and company running the ship. — Yours, etc., ' (Mrs) C. PARKER. July 14, 1980.