Peace Movement

And they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, And their spears into pruning hooks: Nation shall not lift up sword against nation; Neither shall they learn war anymore. Isaiah 2:4

The eighties dawned across the world with the hint of peace for all. World War II was but a distant memory, and the Cold War seemed nothing more than a stalemate. The Canadian Labour Movement stood generally on the side of the doves isolating National Defence as a supporter of outdated NORAD and NATO.

Anticipating problems, UNDE prepared to defend the rights of those who defended the rights of Canadians. The situation worsened when, in 1983, the Alliance came down firmly on the side of the Peace Movement. Left to her own devices, UNDE was forced to strike back. The situation was so tense that secession from the Alliance almost seemed like the logical next step.

Intense bargaining ensued! By 1986 the Alliance had agreed not to support a movement that jeopardized members' jobs. Unfortunately they then contradicted the whole accord by officially declaring that Canada should be a nuclear-free zone. A plan that might put Defence bases under the gun.

In early 1987 UNDE met with representatives of the Alliance and the Labour Congress to hammer out an agreement to protect their interests. The following year the Labour Congress adopted a comprehensive document that incorporated a positive aspect about Defence. To wit, it stated that the government should "maintain an adequate Defence establishment . . . and program that will be useful to ourselves, our Allies and the United Nations."

The battle was won, but not the war. For years to come UNDE would have to stand on guard for the rights of its members, and the citizens of Canada.