FBIS Daily Report: Kabul Domestic Service reads an Afghan trade-union message blaming 'world-devouring imperialism led by U.S. imperialism'

Text on the object

Original (English) · read from the image, not independently checked

VIII. 19 Jun 80 AFGHANISTAN C 1
LABOR APPEALS FOR IRANIAN, PAKISTANI COOPERATION
LD182214 Kabul Domestic Service in Pashto 1530 GMT 1[illegible] Jun 80
[Text] The Afghanistan workers union message to the workers of Iran and Pakistan:
[Introductory poetic verse in Dari] O you who are thirsty for peace, rise with us with one voice and march ahead with us toward peace.
As a result of the struggle of the workers and toilers of Afghanistan, the glorious Sawr Revolution and its new stage of development were accomplished. The latter began on 27 December. The privileged classes were toppled and the path of welfare and prosperity was opened for all the toilers of our homeland. But the regional reaction and the world-devouring imperialism led by U.S. imperialism could not tolerate our success and embarked on conspiracy and subversion in our country, in accordance with its inherent character, by using elements which are attached to the toppled mercenary classes. They spread hostile propaganda which is devoid of truth through their lie-spreading propaganda machine. The toiling strata of our country, which are resolved to eradicate poverty and ignorance, are being harmed by their subversive activities.
There are no insoluble issues among the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan [DRA], Iran and Pakistan. If a misunderstanding is created by our common enemy, that is, the regional reaction and international imperialism, it can be solved through negotiation. For example, the DRA Government has proposed to your governments a seven-point program for a political solution. It has been endorsed, supported and warmly received by all the progressive and peace-loving countries of the world. In the first item of the program for a political solution it has been pointed out that the DRA proposes to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran that talks be held for drafting a bilateral agreement concerning normalization of relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan [as heard].
In the fourth item of the program for political solution, the following has been pointed out: The DRA Government, which proposes bilateral talks with its neighboring countries without preconditions, earnestly expects that hostile activities against Afghanistan should be discontinued against Afghanistan when the talks begin. (?In reality), with the start of the program for a political solution, practical measures are to be taken to prove that armed interference and other forms of interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan are being discontinued by the governments which take part in these talks.
Since the proposed program for political solution by the DRA Government is an obvious wish of the workers and all the toilers of our homeland, which has been reflected by our progressive and revolutionary government, we ask you, the workers and toilers of Iran and Pakistan, in a brotherly way, to struggle in order to gain acceptance for the program proposed by our peace-seeking government. In this way, the hostilities that your governments have adopted toward your toilers, in an attempt to harm the region's toiling strata, so that only the regional reaction, (?warlike) circles and international imperialism will benefit, will come to an end.
May we live in peace and neighborliness.
[Signed] The central council of the unions of Afghanistan

English translation (machine translation by Claude, not verified by a fluent reader)

The page is itself an FBIS English translation of a Pashto-language broadcast on Kabul Domestic Service; no further translation is needed. The Pashto original is not on the page.

Read against the page image, with OCR as an aid. Scan typewriter spacing joins some words ('withus', 'fora'); these are given as separate words. The day in the wire line 'GMT 1[illegible] Jun 80' is smudged on the scan (the second digit is unreadable; other items on the page are timed 18 Jun). '(?In reality)' and '(?warlike)' are FBIS's own uncertainty marks. 'discontinued against Afghanistan when the talks begin' and 'Afghanistan and Pakistan [as heard]' are as printed.