Last night, 7News told you about the Rosewood Amnesty: a 19 day suspension of the moratorium during which Rosewood dealers can recover their confiscated product from government, bring out all those flitches they've been hiding, and sell it all, most likely on the export market where it fetches top dollar.
The decision has stirred public outrage because it seems to be a complete reversal in policy for Ministry of Forestry, which enacted the moratorium 13 months ago to conserve the precious but rare hardwood because it was being rapidly depleted.
The fact remains, however, that rosewood is a valuable commodity, and millions of dollars in wealth was sitting on the ground at the Forestry Department. The official position put out in a press release yesterday is that quote, "The Ministry has decided to…allow the sale/export of already harvested rosewood over the (amnesty) period…to avoid the complete loss of value. As we understand it, Government will share 50/50 in the proceeds of sales of all confiscated Rosewood.
Though all the details are not known – it's an unusual arrangement that illegal traders should profit from legitimate sales of confiscated product.
The first organization, which has come out publicly against the amnesty, is the Citizens Organized for Liberty through Action (COLA). Today, the organization's president, Giovanni Brackett, told 7News that it has the appearance of government corruption:
Giovanni Brackett - President, COLA
"This we can't help, but it smells like corruption; it looks like corruption. The question is it corruption? We won't know the real answer until we get a full statement from Minister Alamilla. Now, when COLA got outraged at the burning of the Rosewood, when we thought that these Rosewood could have been sold at that time, and the money could have been used to some social benefit. We now have to question maybe she did in fact do the right thing, that if she didn't do it, those same Rosewood that were destroyed would have now been issued out back. What is even more outrageous, Daniel, is that the proposal for the government to have 50% profit, and 50% goes into the hands of these culprits. That is ridiculous! I mean, it's almost as though you're taking Marijuana or something, and now you decide to put an amnesty and still give half of it back to the drug dealer - or cocaine. I know that may be defamatory, but it is outrageous what the government is doing. It has no explanation; it is very vague and we do not know what really is happening. And why is it that Orange Walk license plate, Orange walk dealership continues to come up into this? We have to begin to question who is profiting from this. Why is it that we are watching our natural resources being depleted right before our eyes? We finally had a minister who was trying to protect it, not trying to kill the business, but trying to do it in a sustainable way. And as soon as she leaves the country, then it is being given out with some thing saying it is an amnesty."
Daniel Ortiz
"In this scenario, Belize gets 50% of all of the revenue from the illegally harvested Rosewood. What else, isn't that a benefit for the country? We would have had to let it sit and it would have been stolen at some point; it's just too valuable."
Giovanni Brackett
"Mr. Ortiz, you bring up a fully loaded question mixed with personal statements. But sir, you have to break what you are saying in three different parts. One, you made the assumption that no one knows what to do; that is your opinion. I am sure that there are a lot of people who know what to do. Secondly, you also mentioned that if these Rosewood were kept there, they would have been stolen. Then, you are alluding that we have some weak forces. Then again, they stole arms from the BDF. Who else will they not be able to steal from? It just simply means that we should have done more consultations, or not even consultations. There are people who know in the Government. BELTRAIDE does a lot of research; you can't tell me that we don't have officials who know how to make the right connection to sell. It's just a matter of selling. This is a valuable commodity that China and other parts of the world want badly. It's just a matter of picking up the phone and selling what you have. Then, if you're telling me that you're satisfied with 50% with the profit and 50% goes to the culprit - if you read our release, it said that we should get a 100% of the profit and then a percentage of the profit should go back into replanting and replacing the trees that have been lost. That is what COLA is saying."
Daniel Ortiz
"But sir, we have it now. At some point it will go missing. You may say that it's a personal opinion but-"
Giovanni Brackett
"Then sell it before it goes missing then Mr. Ortiz. That is it; let the Government sell it before it goes missing. It appears that we have led ourselves to a level of mediocrity, and we used that mediocrity as excuse to do foolish behaviour. It is time for us to move forward. You can't tell me that this day and age, it's 2013, we can't secure two or three containers of Rosewood, and we can't secure it? We have to hurry sell it and share profits with the culprit before it is gone? Then that tells us a whole lot about where we are as a country."
According to our information, the Forest Department will duly quantify and measure all the Rosewood product and will allow it to be sold locally or for export. Reports from the South say that the Amnesty has already excited a buzz of activity as hidden flitches are being moved out by Rosewood agents – who bought product at distress prices and stockpiled it during the moratorium period.
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