BELLA COMMUTES AIT AHMED DEATH SENTENCE
On April 12, just two days after a revolutionary court had condemned Hocine Ait Ahmed and Mohammed Ben Ahmed to death for an attempted counterrevolution which cost a number of deaths in the Kabylie, Ben Bella exercised executive clemency and commuted the sentences to life imprisonment.: Ait Ahmed was an early leader of the Algerian revolution imprisoned with Ben Bella for six years, The decision was taken as proof of the strength of Ben Bella's regime.
ONCE AGAIN -- THE SLL AND VIETNAM
By Joseph Hansen
In a previous article [see World Outlook March 26], I called attention to the sluggish way in which the leadership of the Socialist Labour League reacted to the opening of the war on North Vietnam by U.S. imperialism, and suggested that this was a second case in recent months of the SLL yielding to imperialist pressure. One of the leaders of this generally ultraleftist British organization, Cliff Slaughter, has attempted an answer in the April 3 issue of The Newsletter.
The reply is of abysmal mediocrity. The author makes no attempt to consider the issues. He seeks, instead, to evade them, to cover up the facts and to deafen the audience by shouting "outrageous lies and slanders." He even entitled his article, "HANSEN'S BIG: LIE.
To begin with, let me recall that I expressed the hope that under criticism the jeaders of the SLL would correct their course, I stated: "Even at this late date, we should be most happy to see them open up a campaign against American aggression in North Vietnam, with particular attention to the real role of the Wilson government. "
They appear now to be making the effort. In the March 26 issue, The Newsletter elevated the U.S. war