The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-04-12
Former Ambassador
Writes On ''Peace''
John G. Winant Acclaims Coming Session of Inter-
national Labor Organization as Event of Importance

AS one Of the best means of es-
tablishing a lasting peace, John G.
Winant, United States Ambassador
to Great Britain, urges representa-
tives Of the democracies to the
twenty-sixth conference Of the In
ternational Labor Organization to
insure work under just and secure
conditions to men and women of all
countries in the postwar world
The conference with labor, indus
try, and government represented
will open in Philadelphia on April
10Th.
Because the I. L. O. Is one Of the
few institutions created after the
last war to prove practical, its ex-
perience and advice can be Of aid to
the United Nations in solving the
problems Of the postwar world, AM
baSsador Winant writes In an article
for The Saturday Evening Post. The
article, IAN International Organiza-
ton That Works." appears in the
current issue of the Post.
Terming the Philadelphia confer
ence one of the most important the
I. L. o. has ever held, Ambassador
Winant, former ranking American
member of the organizations Sec
retariat, believes the work Of the I.
L. o. must be adapted to fit the
problems Of the war and the post
war world.
Ambassador Winant contends the
particular social and labor problems
with which the organization must
deal are those involved In the tran
Sition from war to a notwithstanding
peace. These include problems Of
employment, social security, and the
conditions Of life of dependent peo-
Piles.
The most urgent of these, he de-
clareS, Is the organization of en-
ployment, which involves reversal
of the activities from those which
have made most countries into large
| fighting machines. "How shall we
turn from making tanks and uni
forms, munitions, and landing craft.
to bulldog homes and schools, print
ing new books, producing food, re-
frigerators and automobiles?" he
asks. "How shall we catch UP on all
the training for civilian work which
has been denied young men and
women who are in the armed forces
when they might otherwise have
been In school or apprenticeship?
How provide everywhere such new
opportunity as the United States
and Great Britain are trying to
create for their disabled, both in
the armed services and in industry?
How devise rehabilitation which
will be fair and practicable?"
Because 100000 workers and
displaced persons have been trans
ferred across national boundaries Of
Europe alone, Ambassador Winant
tional responsibility which cannot
be halted at frontiers. Realizing this
twenty-one American countries, in
Guiding the United States and Can
ada, at The First Inter-American
Conference on Social Security in
Santiago de Chile in 1912, set up a
permanent agency on social securi-
| ty, which works with the I. L. o.,
he writes.
There is knowledge enough Of
the problems, and of techniques for
dealing with them, so that those
major individual hazards Of sick
ness. old age and involuntary job
lessness can be dealt with, and so
that young children can be ade-
quately provided for" he declares.
But there must be agreement be-
tween governments, workers and
employers If knowledge is to lead to
action. And in these days, when war
has shifted great populations across
national boundaries in many direc-
tons, there Is need for agreement
between governments If social-in-
silrance benefits are to be available
to the victims Of forced transfer"
Ambassador Winant urges close
cooperation among the various gov
ernments as the best means Of i'm
proving the conditions Of life of de-
pendent peoples. The I. L. o. with
its twenty-five years experience
with labor committees, he asserts,
knows how deeply the war has STIR
red democratic hopes and desires
among peoples Of dependent terri
tories throughout the world.
Every government responsible for
the administration Of such terTit0r-
les" he contends, has a concern
] both for the opinion Of labor and