The Lower North Island Resistance Ride has been organised in response to the great enthusiasm that was generated for such a ride after the South Island Resistance Ride of last summer As with the South Island Resistance Ride this years ride is being organised by the Campaign Against Foreign Control in New Zealand and in particular the Wellington Branch which was set up earlier this year.

CAFCINZ aims to awaken New Zealanders to the alarming extent of foreign capitalism in this country. In the words of Dr Sutch, New Zealand's people will never be able to control their own social and economic progress if they do not control their finances. Our finances are increasingly being placed in the hands of foreing investors and multinational companies for whom the welfare and long-term interests of the New Zealand people matter little New Zealand fought against the militant imperialism of the Japanese during World War Two. Today, however, many large imperialist powers have infiltrated New Zealand in much more subtle ways than open war. The loyalty of these foreign concerns is to their head offices overseas which see New Zealand solely as a source of profit. New Zealanders have no say in the activities of these concerns.

CAFCINZ does not only indict foreign monopoly capitalism. We also condemn local monpoly capitalism. Many of the places that the Ride will visit are examples of the way in which local and foreign monopolies work hand in glove. We concentrate on foreign monopolies in New Zealand because we want an economically independent New Zealand. We don't want foreigners dictating through their economic power what our Government's policies will be.

As well as visiting Comalco the South Island Resistance Ride visited many other examples of resource exploitation... e.g. the beech scheme and Mt Davy coal. However it is not only New Zealand's precious resources that are being ripped off by foreign investors. The New Zealand working people suffer under the profiteering motives of foreign capitalists.