Committee Delays Verdict On General Motors Battle

Harvard's decision on whether or not to support GM opponents in a proxy fight next month will have to wait at least another week while members of the Committee on Students and Community Relations consider the issues involved.

When the committee reconsiders the GM issue next week it will make a recommendation to the Faculty Council as to what action the entire Faculty as a body should take. The Faculty will then consider the Council's recommendation at its May 5 meeting.

The committee discussed a motion last Tuesday by Martin Kilson, professor of Government, that the Faculty urge the Corporation to cost its proxy votes against the GM management. Kilson had planned to introduce his motion at the April 15 Faculty meeting.

But, after about an hour of discussion, Kilson said later, he felt that the consensus of the group was to take more time on the issues before recommending to the Faculty Council that the Faculty consider the University's role in the GM proxy fight.

Delay

Kilson postponed his motion until the Community Relations Committee's next meeting, which will be on April 17-two days after the upcoming Faculty meeting. The committee has asked the Corporation to wait for its decision on the proxy fight

before committing Harvard's shares to either side.

Sources close to the GM proxy fight have said that delaying the commitment on Harvard's votes will make it harder for other institutions to oppose the GM management, but Kilson denies that this is his intention.

"I don't see any loopholes for stalling or delaying anything," he said last night. "That was not my purpose."

Tuesday's Community Affairs Committee meeting was the first time the student-Faculty group has met since its formation, and a student spokesman said yesterday the students were generally not in favor of Kilson's postponement.

But although there was opposition to postponing the decision the students felt that "it wasn't the time or place for a big snow of power," the spokesman added. Those on the committee felt it more important to avoid a damaging student-Faculty split than to press vigorously for a favorable position on the proxy fight, he explained.