Last night we told you about the meeting between FECTAB and the BTB which went into the night. Both sides are trying to find a way ahead that will allow BTB and NICH to hold to its standards for cave safety while allowing FECTAB members to earn a living. The main issue is the 48 inch rule which prevents anyone under four feet tall form entering the caves. That's a disadvantage to the local tour operators who specialize in family tours. They say that yesterday's meeting brought them no close to a resolution:..
David Almendarez, Fantasea Belize
"On the 17th October they implemented a 48 inches rule which basically says that any kids that we take under 48 inches, we can not longer take. We've been dialoguing with the BTB and NICH since then. Today we were supposed to have a meeting where we can address these issues and they can formally hear our concerns. We believe that they've heard our concerns for the past 3 weeks already, so basically we gathered here again to reiterate our concerns and they are going to sit down and digest it and get back to us before the end of the week - that's what we've been told."
Reporter
"I understand that you guys walked out of the meeting. Give us an update as to what transpired?"
Yohnny Rosado, Cavetubing.com
"David and Tom has been coming to the BTB for almost a month now and they have been tricked. I told them, they've been tricked. Every week we lose money. This is about finance, we have to pay bills. This is not about us anymore. If you go to the cave tomorrow like how you guys waited for us this evening - this is embarrassment for the government. Politically it's stupid because the government are losing votes, so I 
don't know how the government - before they enter power, they say for the people and when they are in power they are not for the people. One of the reasons we walked out is because they don't want to talk about Dark Knight - their dirty business. They want to talk about this book, that this was properly gazetted that was properly done. Dean Barrow knows the law, they will never do anything against the law, but bread from our table they can take away anytime."
Reporter
"Have you guys found out who the principals of Dark Knight are?"
Yohnny Rosado, Cavetubing.com
"It's a mystery, just now we try ask a question and they say we are not here to talk about Dark Knight, we are here to talk about 48 inches."
David Almendarez
"We have a lot of issues that we been confronting. This book has been turned into law from May we understand. From May of this year this book was turn into law that regulates the 48 inches. In 10 minutes of conversation just now we showed them so much loophole that this book was poorly made. We ask them for a simple solution just now. You know something, you are not regulating Chukka, and you are not regulating Dark Knight. You say you are going to regulate them - regulate us when you regulate them - that's fair in any way and they said no we got to meet, we got to talk and we got to get back to you before the end of the week. People at upper echelons of NICH do not have the local tour operator and the local native Belizean at heart."
NICH would not comment today.
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