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Why a Labour Peace Forum?

Peace is a Core Labour Issue

As part of the World Peace Forum in Vancouver from June 23 to June 28, the Vancouver and District Labour Council will be hosting a Labour Peace Forum on June 25 and 26.

The World Peace Forum and the Labour Peace Forum will be an important opportunity for the international labour movement to meet to discuss and debate our collective position on the issues of war and peace and the effects on working families. Unlike similar "big picture" issues such as globalization and sustainability, the Canadian labour movement has not developed a solid analysis of war and remains on the periphery of the peace movement. We simply do not regard it as a high priority item in the daily struggle to defend our members' economic and political interests.

Workers understand that the economic organization of the world is evolving. We understand globalization. We realize the necessity of sustainability. But we remain confused and unsure of the implications of war and peace in the economic agenda.

The implications are horrendous.

North America has never faced a major war on our soil. Workers, such as those in Asia and Europe who have been directly affected by war, understand what can happen. Factories get bombed, transportation disrupted, productive capacity destroyed – there is no economy. And it doesn't end there. Housing is destroyed, the basics of life - water, power, heat and nutrition disappear. Workers and their families, including many children, die as a direct result of war.

War is devastating to workers in the public sector and those who rely on public sector services. Look at the United States. The Bush administration has spent more than $255 billion pursuing the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The US deficit is soaring, due almost entirely to defense spending. Healthcare, education, social services and now even pensions are being cutback, while billions are spent on war.

War is also closely linked to globalization. Workers pay for wars in many ways while corporations profit. The economic powers of the world are also the military powers. While the world is being reorganized economically, the rules favour those with economic (and military) power. Resistance is met by force or the threat of force.

As part of the Labour Peace Forum in Vancouver, we will focus on the economic issues as fundamental to the interests of the labour movement in developing a comprehensive position on peace.

We have divided our Labour Forum into three general sections.

The First Section: "The Economics of War versus the Economics of Peace - What's In It For Workers", we will explore the economic implications of war and peace. The effect on the public services, the links to trade and Globalization issues and the basic question of what kind of economy best serves the interests of working people.

The Second Section will look at how the organized labour movement engages on the issue of peace. We will be looking at examples and experiences from around the world of how the labour movement interacts with the global peace movement and how labour can be most effective in advancing our work on this issue.

The Third Section will discuss the important issue of "where we go from here". The international labour movement needs to develop better organization on the issue of peace. In this section, we will present a roundtable discussion featuring international labour leaders addressing the issue of developing and improving labour's organization and role in the international peace movement.

These three sessions will be spread over a day and a half starting on Sunday afternoon, June 24.

Sunday evening will be a social for delegates and the general public. We will be hosting an international labour cabaret on the theme of workers and peace.

The World Peace Forum in Vancouver is an important event in the struggle to build an international workers movement dedicated to creating the kind of just, sustainable society that we are fighting for each and every day.

We hope that we will be able to count on your support.

Bill Saunders

President
Vancouver and District Labour Council
Labour Peace Forum Organizing Committee