The Results of the Peking Conference Go Beyond the Borders of Asia and the Pacific (WIDF, 1952)

=== [PDF page 1] === The Results ofthe Peking Conference Go Beyond On’ October 2nd in Peking, where the joy ef a whole people over the 3rd anniversary of the Chinese People's Républic was still re-echoing, the Peace Conference of thesAsiatie and Pacific Countries was opened, with the participation of 367 delegates ftom 37 countries,’ and numerous, guests’ and observers. Severdl reports were presented, especially on the solution) of{the Japanese and ‘Korean questions;“on national independence, on, the rights. ofwomen and children, on economic, and, cullural..relations,,and. in favor of a Peace Pact. between the Five. Great..Powers The women,delegated to this Conference took,a very important part in the proceedings. Mobilise the peace forces In her opening speech, Mme. Soong Ching Ling spoke in these lerms: “We, must.assure the success. of this: effort made to save peace, Although our peace movement draws the greatest part of its strength from its mass character and ‘its excellent organisation, although unity rules in itg"rdnks and it’ benefits by the devoted activity of hundreds’ of ‘millions ‘of people, we must not lose the advantage of the d¥ive accumulated up ‘to now. We must extend» ourselves’ still further and see that’ our will to cooperate ‘with-all those who sincerely want/peace bears new fruit. s,., Let: us!mobilise the peoples to demand that all countries: participating in. armed conflicts,cease hostilities by means of legal.procedures and in accordance, with international conventions, thus. assuring the world of the peaceful, coexistence. and cooperation of nations which were former enemies. “Tet us mobilise the peoples so that they fight for Normal conditions, making possible a wholesome atmosphere which rejects hatred and war and creates love and undérstanding between all peoples.” Put an end to the wars going on The delegates from countries where war is raging denounced the American, British, and French governments as responsible, for the massacres of children and‘of popu lations, the use of bacteriological weapons, and:'the systematic destruction of their towns and villages. In Korea Mme, Kim Yung Su, member of the Korean delegation, denounced the crimes. committed against the Korean people; *.. In \their»attempt to take our lives ‘and: those of our ‘children, the aggressors have systematically.cultiwated the bacteria of; infectious diseases. and tried to utilize them, by every. ingenious.means, in order to spread; effective. contagions. among our population. “If, international »moral laws) and, codes, human écience andsreason have any power over the conduct of man,;if humanity does, not,desire its own destruction, then,why.jaye»such abominable atrocities not punished @s, the.most hateful:erimes? “The monstrous’'bacteriologicalwarfare dnd’ destruc= tive »térnori raids onKoreaiby the American occupants have» taken» place during! ithe »armisti¢e* talks) This) 7 think, particularly merits yourattention\orbectuse! vit shows that American government circles do not consider the Kaesong armistice talks as a means of re-establihing peace; “instead, “they intend’ to utilize “them ‘for shing peace; spreading the “war.” In Malaya Mme. Chan Suat Hong, delegate from Malaya, described the sitiatién of her country: “tn the course of these last 4 years, Great Britain, with the’ support of the United States, mobilised® nearly 400,000" soldiers and poli¢é, used new ‘types’ of ‘airplanes, artillery) and” great’ quantities of poison gas “and cheniical weapons, carried out mass bombardments. of homes and’schools, and pitilessly massacred’a great many civilians, In addition, the) British, colonial; authorities arrested or deported more than thirty, thousand. innocent people, expelled almost, 400,000, peasants, from_, their farms and many workers from their place of employment in order to crowd them together in what they call ‘recolon ion zones, ‘thus ‘depriving them of the liberty to work and the liberty to move about freely.” “The truth must be repeated again and again” Moniéa Felton, holder of the International Stalin Peace Prize, who visited Korea for a second time, spoke with emotion of her trip. “The war in Korea has gone on far too long—far too long. And now the time ‘has come for the peoples of the world’ to*act. “What are we—we who are attending this Conferenee—going to do about it? “Let me quote John Quinn, one of the American pilots who has taken part in bacteriological warfare. ‘What can Ido?’ he demanded of me. ‘What can I do to help the ‘people of my own country’ to léarn’ the ‘truth? ‘The American people are good» people—and: I ‘know ‘that? if only they could learn: the» truth they would»not: allow these things to be done in their name.;..’ “Among my own’ countrymen, too, the'same ‘attitude Was.expressed overand “over again: for example;. by Lance-Corporal,, Campbell, whose eyes) sparkled. with happy.pride of. the work that his mother has done in the peace movement in Britain—and as. I.. listened, I remembered how his mother had. described how her own work for peace had been inspired by a letter from her son that I was privileged to carry back from Korea last year. Théte were many ‘others—tod many to recount in detail—who proudly described ‘the work’ that’ their wives “and parents fwere doing: to strengthen’ ‘the cause of peace, But) there were: others; too;-who questioned me_closely, anxious to know what was, being done in their own, districts, and whether they. themselves could not do more {o rouse the consciences of their own people “shave told. you.the truth, but. the,truth..must. be repeated again. and again—in every.country,,.and, in every language—told with repeated urgency,until.we have roused the consciences of all the common people of the world. The task is urgent. Desperately urgent Let us’ pledge ‘ourselves ‘today {6 Work with fresh and stronger ‘enérgy. The cause" of the’ Koreari pedple is the cause of peace, and’ the’ cause ofvall’ that is*best among mankind. *Letus tryito'be worthy of it?’ the Borders of Asia and the Pacific A view of the hall during the Conference of the Asiatic and Pacific Countries. In the foreground, Carmen Zanti, W.I.D.F., representative, is greeted by Pioneers. Anita Willcox, delegate from the United States, came forward to express the desire of American mothers to see an end to the war in Korea: “To most of our people the horrible facts of our use of napalm are only now becoming known. Of the facts of germ warfare they are still unaware. The findings of the International Scientific Commission and the testimony of Lieutenants F.B.O’Neal and P_R. Kniss have not yet been widely circulated in the United States. The administration knows that the whole idea of the spreading of diséase is so repugnant to our people that the highest civilian and military authorities have flatly denied any such action. They have persisted in these denials even after the confessions of Lieutenants K.L. Enoch and J. Quinn were reported in the press. “Most parents refuse to believe that our sons could commit such acts. But the fact is-that daily denial of basic rights to our colored brothers at home by: lynch terror, police brutality and social discrimination, conditions our youth for the perpetration of the heinous crimes that are being committed in Korea.” Mrs. Willcox then brought the Conference an assurance that American women are fighting for peace. Fight for national independence Mme, Olga Poblete, head of the delegation from Chile, presented the report on national independence. “’., On the American shores of the Pacific, especially in Latin America, the problem of national independence is linked with the preservation of peace and progress. “In a general way, all the countries of Latin America are suffering attacks on their ‘independance, chiefly through the appropriation of their national economy by foreign monopolies, “It is plain that all the peoples of Latin America ardently. wish, to put an end to this abnormal and intolerable situation, The movement of the peoples, their demands for the establishment of diplomatic and trade relations with China, the Soviet Union, the People’s Democracies, all the countries represented at this Conference, all countries in the world, without any. discrimination, guided only by mutual respect and mutual interests, have acquired 9 vigor anda strength on our continent which affects all social classes and the different circles of political and economic opinion.” Fight for the rights of women and children The report on the rights of women and children was presented by Mme. Tahira Mazhar, member of the delegation from Pakistan. “,..War and war preparations in a great many countries of Asia and the Pacific constitute a serious obstacle to the progress of women in their struggles for their right to be treated as human beings and the universal desire that children also be as well fed and protected as possible. To preserve the right to the decency of civilised life, to preserve the right to raise their children, to preserve the right to see their children grow up into adults the women of Asia must range themselves among the partisans of peace.” The support of the W.I.D.F. Bringing with her the solidarity of the women of the whole world, Mme. Carmen Zanti, representative of the Women’s International Democratic Federation, stated that the W.LD.F. “in all its activities defends the lives and rights of children, that it involves women in demanding their rights as mothers and workers and Participating in the general fight for liberty and peace“. “In its most recent Executive Committee meeting in Bucharest last July, the Women’s International Democratic Federation called on its national organisations, and on all women, to redouble their efforts for the defense of their rights, for the development of the children’s movement and the peace movement. “And at the great World Congress of Women for peace which will take place next year, women will bring to bear the weight of a determination which may be decisive in our common struggle, “The Women’s International Democratic Federation has appealed to all women to support the Peace Conference of the Asiatic and Pacific Countries.” In her message she called on women to participate in the Congress of the Peoples for Peace in order to “see the menace of war replaced by a spirit of negotiation and understanding among the peoples.” Apart from the speakers already quoted, many women spoke at the Conierence—Lillian Rita Smith of New Zea- Jand, Emilia Prieto Tugores of Costa Rica, Le Chan Phuong of Viet-Nam, Umi Sardjono of Indonesia, Lucile Barasch of Canada, Mireya Lafuente of Chile, Isabelle Cerney and Joan Hinton, members of the delegation from the United States, and Eva Sanderson of Canada. Among the many resolutions adopted by the Conference, we reprint the following passage from the resolution on the rights of women and child wellare: (continued on page 12) === [PDF page 2] === The Results ofthe Peking Conference Go Beyond On’ October 2nd in Peking, where the joy ef a whole people over the 3rd anniversary of the Chinese People's Républic was still re-echoing, the Peace Conference of thesAsiatie and Pacific Countries was opened, with the participation of 367 delegates ftom 37 countries,’ and numerous, guests’ and observers. Severdl reports were presented, especially on the solution) of{the Japanese and ‘Korean questions;“on national independence, on, the rights. ofwomen and children, on economic, and, cullural..relations,,and. in favor of a Peace Pact. between the Five. Great..Powers The women,delegated to this Conference took,a very important part in the proceedings. Mobilise the peace forces In her opening speech, Mme. Soong Ching Ling spoke in these lerms: “We, must.assure the success. of this: effort made to save peace, Although our peace movement draws the greatest part of its strength from its mass character and ‘its excellent organisation, although unity rules in itg"rdnks and it’ benefits by the devoted activity of hundreds’ of ‘millions ‘of people, we must not lose the advantage of the d¥ive accumulated up ‘to now. We must extend» ourselves’ still further and see that’ our will to cooperate ‘with-all those who sincerely want/peace bears new fruit. s,., Let: us!mobilise the peoples to demand that all countries: participating in. armed conflicts,cease hostilities by means of legal.procedures and in accordance, with international conventions, thus. assuring the world of the peaceful, coexistence. and cooperation of nations which were former enemies. “Tet us mobilise the peoples so that they fight for Normal conditions, making possible a wholesome atmosphere which rejects hatred and war and creates love and undérstanding between all peoples.” Put an end to the wars going on The delegates from countries where war is raging denounced the American, British, and French governments as responsible, for the massacres of children and‘of popu lations, the use of bacteriological weapons, and:'the systematic destruction of their towns and villages. In Korea Mme, Kim Yung Su, member of the Korean delegation, denounced the crimes. committed against the Korean people; *.. In \their»attempt to take our lives ‘and: those of our ‘children, the aggressors have systematically.cultiwated the bacteria of; infectious diseases. and tried to utilize them, by every. ingenious.means, in order to spread; effective. contagions. among our population. “If, international »moral laws) and, codes, human écience andsreason have any power over the conduct of man,;if humanity does, not,desire its own destruction, then,why.jaye»such abominable atrocities not punished @s, the.most hateful:erimes? “The monstrous’'bacteriologicalwarfare dnd’ destruc= tive »térnori raids onKoreaiby the American occupants have» taken» place during! ithe »armisti¢e* talks) This) 7 think, particularly merits yourattention\orbectuse! vit shows that American government circles do not consider the Kaesong armistice talks as a means of re-establihing peace; “instead, “they intend’ to utilize “them ‘for shing peace; spreading the “war.” In Malaya Mme. Chan Suat Hong, delegate from Malaya, described the sitiatién of her country: “tn the course of these last 4 years, Great Britain, with the’ support of the United States, mobilised® nearly 400,000" soldiers and poli¢é, used new ‘types’ of ‘airplanes, artillery) and” great’ quantities of poison gas “and cheniical weapons, carried out mass bombardments. of homes and’schools, and pitilessly massacred’a great many civilians, In addition, the) British, colonial; authorities arrested or deported more than thirty, thousand. innocent people, expelled almost, 400,000, peasants, from_, their farms and many workers from their place of employment in order to crowd them together in what they call ‘recolon ion zones, ‘thus ‘depriving them of the liberty to work and the liberty to move about freely.” “The truth must be repeated again and again” Moniéa Felton, holder of the International Stalin Peace Prize, who visited Korea for a second time, spoke with emotion of her trip. “The war in Korea has gone on far too long—far too long. And now the time ‘has come for the peoples of the world’ to*act. “What are we—we who are attending this Conferenee—going to do about it? “Let me quote John Quinn, one of the American pilots who has taken part in bacteriological warfare. ‘What can Ido?’ he demanded of me. ‘What can I do to help the ‘people of my own country’ to léarn’ the ‘truth? ‘The American people are good» people—and: I ‘know ‘that? if only they could learn: the» truth they would»not: allow these things to be done in their name.;..’ “Among my own’ countrymen, too, the'same ‘attitude Was.expressed overand “over again: for example;. by Lance-Corporal,, Campbell, whose eyes) sparkled. with happy.pride of. the work that his mother has done in the peace movement in Britain—and as. I.. listened, I remembered how his mother had. described how her own work for peace had been inspired by a letter from her son that I was privileged to carry back from Korea last year. Théte were many ‘others—tod many to recount in detail—who proudly described ‘the work’ that’ their wives “and parents fwere doing: to strengthen’ ‘the cause of peace, But) there were: others; too;-who questioned me_closely, anxious to know what was, being done in their own, districts, and whether they. themselves could not do more {o rouse the consciences of their own people “shave told. you.the truth, but. the,truth..must. be repeated again. and again—in every.country,,.and, in every language—told with repeated urgency,until.we have roused the consciences of all the common people of the world. The task is urgent. Desperately urgent Let us’ pledge ‘ourselves ‘today {6 Work with fresh and stronger ‘enérgy. The cause" of the’ Koreari pedple is the cause of peace, and’ the’ cause ofvall’ that is*best among mankind. *Letus tryito'be worthy of it?’ the Borders of Asia and the Pacific A view of the hall during the Conference of the Asiatic and Pacific Countries. In the foreground, Carmen Zanti, W.I.D.F., representative, is greeted by Pioneers. Anita Willcox, delegate from the United States, came forward to express the desire of American mothers to see an end to the war in Korea: “To most of our people the horrible facts of our use of napalm are only now becoming known. Of the facts of germ warfare they are still unaware. The findings of the International Scientific Commission and the testimony of Lieutenants F.B.O’Neal and P_R. Kniss have not yet been widely circulated in the United States. The administration knows that the whole idea of the spreading of diséase is so repugnant to our people that the highest civilian and military authorities have flatly denied any such action. They have persisted in these denials even after the confessions of Lieutenants K.L. Enoch and J. Quinn were reported in the press. “Most parents refuse to believe that our sons could commit such acts. But the fact is-that daily denial of basic rights to our colored brothers at home by: lynch terror, police brutality and social discrimination, conditions our youth for the perpetration of the heinous crimes that are being committed in Korea.” Mrs. Willcox then brought the Conference an assurance that American women are fighting for peace. Fight for national independence Mme, Olga Poblete, head of the delegation from Chile, presented the report on national independence. “’., On the American shores of the Pacific, especially in Latin America, the problem of national independence is linked with the preservation of peace and progress. “In a general way, all the countries of Latin America are suffering attacks on their ‘independance, chiefly through the appropriation of their national economy by foreign monopolies, “It is plain that all the peoples of Latin America ardently. wish, to put an end to this abnormal and intolerable situation, The movement of the peoples, their demands for the establishment of diplomatic and trade relations with China, the Soviet Union, the People’s Democracies, all the countries represented at this Conference, all countries in the world, without any. discrimination, guided only by mutual respect and mutual interests, have acquired 9 vigor anda strength on our continent which affects all social classes and the different circles of political and economic opinion.” Fight for the rights of women and children The report on the rights of women and children was presented by Mme. Tahira Mazhar, member of the delegation from Pakistan. “,..War and war preparations in a great many countries of Asia and the Pacific constitute a serious obstacle to the progress of women in their struggles for their right to be treated as human beings and the universal desire that children also be as well fed and protected as possible. To preserve the right to the decency of civilised life, to preserve the right to raise their children, to preserve the right to see their children grow up into adults the women of Asia must range themselves among the partisans of peace.” The support of the W.I.D.F. Bringing with her the solidarity of the women of the whole world, Mme. Carmen Zanti, representative of the Women’s International Democratic Federation, stated that the W.LD.F. “in all its activities defends the lives and rights of children, that it involves women in demanding their rights as mothers and workers and Participating in the general fight for liberty and peace“. “In its most recent Executive Committee meeting in Bucharest last July, the Women’s International Democratic Federation called on its national organisations, and on all women, to redouble their efforts for the defense of their rights, for the development of the children’s movement and the peace movement. “And at the great World Congress of Women for peace which will take place next year, women will bring to bear the weight of a determination which may be decisive in our common struggle, “The Women’s International Democratic Federation has appealed to all women to support the Peace Conference of the Asiatic and Pacific Countries.” In her message she called on women to participate in the Congress of the Peoples for Peace in order to “see the menace of war replaced by a spirit of negotiation and understanding among the peoples.” Apart from the speakers already quoted, many women spoke at the Conierence—Lillian Rita Smith of New Zea- Jand, Emilia Prieto Tugores of Costa Rica, Le Chan Phuong of Viet-Nam, Umi Sardjono of Indonesia, Lucile Barasch of Canada, Mireya Lafuente of Chile, Isabelle Cerney and Joan Hinton, members of the delegation from the United States, and Eva Sanderson of Canada. Among the many resolutions adopted by the Conference, we reprint the following passage from the resolution on the rights of women and child wellare: (continued on page 12)