Email

Print

Jules Vasquez found out more when he went to the meeting on Saturday:...

Jules Vasquez reporting
About 500 farmers came out to the open air auditorium at Escuela Secondaria Technica Mexico in San Roman Village.

Jules Vasquez
"How do you respond to the criticism that only a few hundred farmers attended? He counted 700, I counted 500, but its only 10% of the full amount."

Alfred Ortega, Bagasse Negotiating Team
"Well Jules, you see me here standing up, I am representing 8 farmers. Mr. Keme is representing 10 farmers and there are many of us in this meeting that we work as family and we represent family members. So if you see 800 members here and you times them by 5, you don't have to go to 8 - by 5 and you will see the amount of farmers that are here. So the voice of these people that are here today is a strong voice."

While we saw lots of empty chairs in our area - the Association stressed they have 100% support of the cane farmers:

Alfred Ortega, Bagasse Negotiating Team
"We have the full support and you can see we have 99.9% support less BSI that is a farmer and he is not supporting the issue. But all the rest is supporting the issue."

And with the Association bosses say its game, set and match to them:

Alfred Ortega, Bagasse Negotiating Team
"I think today has proven that the agreement that BSI has put forward has come to an end today. The farmers had already passed a motion that they are prepared to start a crop with the interim agreement. So that means that what BSI has put forward has come to a dead today."

Javier Keme, Chairman, Finance Committee
"The rumors or there are groups that have the intention or the idea of reaching to our signing that agreement offered by BSI as an option is now shown that that is not so."

And now that they say they have the full support of the cane farmers - meaning the upper hand in this dispute - the Association passed a resolution to lay out its terms:

Oscar Alonzo, CEO - BSCFA
"The BSCFA and its members are prepared to start the crop and that an interim agreement be signed."

Javier Keme, Chairman, Finance Committee
"The best thing is to get BSI to agree to accept the interim agreement to start our crop."

Oscar Alonzo, CEO - BSCFA
"Famers want the crop to start, but all the relevant authorities BSI, Government, SICB need to act quickly in respect of the cane farmer's request."

Of course none of that is new: it's basically saying that just like ASR we're holding our position - except now the responsibility for solving the problem shifts to the government, namely the Sugar Industry Control Board.

Alfred Ortega, Bagasse Negotiating Team
"Because we need intervention of the government to resolve this situation."

The chairman of the sugar industry control board - former UDP Minister Gabriel Martinez - was there to defend himself and to give assurances that Government was monitoring the situation:

Gabriel Martinez, Chairman - Sugar Industry Control Board
"Correspondences have been shared and requests have been made to the SICB, hence our reason for responding to the request which have been made at this time."

Javier Keme, Chairman, Finance Committee
"With the commitment of the chairman of the SICB in our meeting committing that they will be more active in trying to reach to a solution in a shorter time or before the 28th or the end of this month to have a more committed time to start the crop on time."

The subject of the resolution is not new: that the Sugar Board basically compel BSI/ASR to agree to an interim agreement and then impose the appointment of an independent negotiator:

Jules Vasquez
"Do they have unreasonable expectations of the government? They want the government to step in and fix it and force ASR/BSI to deal with the sugarcane farmers association or to accept the interim agreement."

Gabriel Martinez
"Well Jules as I said, the SICB will provide that environment, it will facilitate the process. Whatever comes out of the meeting with the board, I cannot foretell."

Oscar Alonzo
"We ask the SICB to act quickly on the request that had been made; 1). That an independent expert be recruited to evaluate the 2 formulas for the payment of bagasse; and also to consider the request of the BSCFA where it says that it is determine to start the crop, but that an interim agreement be sign."

Jules Vasquez
"Sir but ASR/BSI will not accept an independent expert. That what the Prime Minister said."

Gabriel Martinez
"Jules, the SICB is here to facilitate the process. We will call a meeting."

That meeting though is planned for the 25th - and this meeting called for an answer within five days:

Mike Rudon, CH5
"They are looking at now. Yet you all are looking to meet the 25th."

Gabriel Martinez
"I mentioned a while ago that on Monday, we are going back to our members to see if we can accommodate for a time that according to the assembly was mentioned a while ago."

But there were no definitive answers, and no palpable sense of urgency:

Gabriel Martinez
"Well I guess that the announcement made today by the BSCFA that they are in pro of starting a crop on time will speak a lot to get the farmers in tune and in line to more dialogue and better results at the end of the day."

Jules Vasquez
"Is it a desirable state of affairs for the Sugar Industry Control Board that there be independent contracts commercial arrangements signed between the mill and the reaping groups or the famers independent of any association or any other intermediary? Is that a desirable state of affairs?"

Gabriel Martinez
"No Jules. Of course we would want to have the present association; the Belize sugarcane farmers association properly grounded on its feet."

But the association is also aware of its power. This man spoke about a demonstration on Belmopan.

Farmer (translated)
"If we start the crop without an interim agreement if that decision is not made then we will proceed with a big public social demonstration."

Oscar Alonzo
"We start the crop without an interim agreement, if that decision is not made, then it will proceed with a big public social demonstration to have all parties understand the gravity and the need to resolve this issue before the end of this month so that we have a crop to begin."

Alfred Ortega
"The farmers are looking forward into a 5 days period that things be solve and that means this Monday to Friday and from there after then things need to be move to be shown that things are going on."

So now the terms of the engagement going forward have been declared - yet still no one knows how it will unfold:

Mike Rudon, CH5
"Where do you see this going? What's the best case and worse case scenarios?"

Gabriel Martinez
"The best case is that we start a crop on time because everyone has realize the losses that were incurred last year. About the worst case scenario, well I wouldn't want to think about it because farmers have different feelings and at certain instances they have displayed their strong personalities and what's not."

So all eyes are on the Sugar Industry Control Board - and up to this afternoon they had not changed the date for their November 25th meeting. We'll keep following it.