When we left you on Christmas Eve - both sides of the sugar dispute were "this close" to settling on a final agreement for the start of the crop season. Well, tonight, the bad news is that they've gotten no closer; in fact, they are probably further apart!
Here's what happened. As we told you the cane farmers had one last change they wanted BSI to make to the draft final agreement. BSI agreed to that change and sent over what should be the final modified draft to the Cane Farmers Association this afternoon. But it hasn't been sent back.
And about two hours ago we learned why. One of the BSCFA's branch directors Lucilo Teck filed an injunction in the Supreme Court against the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association's Committee of Management and Ezequiel Cano prohibiting them from signing a final agreement with BSI.
It was filed today by attorney Audrey Matura-Shepherd. The injunction says, quote, "Lucilo Teck applies to the court for…an interim injunction to restrain the 1st and 2nd Defendants… from proceeding to sign the agreement as the Committee of Management… without taking the matter to the General Assembly to accept by resolution the terms of such agreement..." End Quote.
The injunction goes unto to explain that Lucilo Teck files this injunction on the grounds that unless restrained, he fears that Chairman Cansino will sign the proposed agreement which, quote, "goes contrary to the resolutions issued by the General Assembly… in relation to the matters and points to be negotiated with ASR/BSI." End Quote.
This evening, Lucilo Teck and his attorney granted an interview to the media, in which they explained why this injunction needed to be filed:
Lucilo Teck
"We are very concern because it is our strong view that as the proposals now stands, they have been shifted by the Committee o Management because the past resolutions as I mention before in Spanish - that the Committee of Management and the resolution was passed by the general assembly on July 28th, 2013. What happens is that right there, the resolutions stated that we call GOB, BSI stakeholder to recognize by legislation our right, the rightful owners, that the cane crop belong to us. We invest to produce that product, so it belongs to us. To recognize that whenever there is any bi-product, there should be a fair distribution of payments and it was accepted. The Committee of Management was then mandated to honor it, to work for it, to show it and the government recognize it by legislation that we are the true owners of the cane products and that was not being done."
Audrey Matura-Shepherd
"If we had done the application ex parte, we could have heard it today. But we want them to get an opportunity to defend their position. Under this application, we ask for a 3 days' notice to them by the court, so that they can then come to the court and respond. But also, as Mr. Teck has indicated, there is another application that will well go before the court because legally, the sugar industry board is mandated by law to set the date and they'd relinquish their responsibility - that is where the government 
should intervene. That is where all those senior officials of the government want to intervene should go and tell them, to do what is lawfully their duty to do. If you go to the section of the law that deals with that; that is section 6 paragraph E, of the sugar industry act, it tell you clearly that the board, the sugar industry control board, must set the date. They must consult with both parties and that once they set the date, the factory must accept the product and unfortunately no one has seen it proper to explain that to the farmers, so that they know that they don't have to sign an agreement for the crop to start. That there is a legal basis on which the crop can start without reaching an agreement."
Teck attests that he is a farmer for the past 40 years and that this agreement will bind him and the other members of the BSCFA to an agreement that goes contrary to their interests.
At its general meeting two weeks ago, the General membership voted to sign the proposed agreements so that the sugar crop can start. That is of course, minus the disputed clause about the Sugar Cane Production Committee being replaced by the Harvest and Delivery Control Unit. That dispute, as we've told you, should have now been resolved because BSI/ASR has excised all references to it from the final document.
As we showed you before the Christmas break, Matura-Shepherd arrived on the scene at the office of the BSCFA as a representative of the National Trade Union Congress of Belize and as the President of Christian Workers Union. She's now acting as attorney for this move to block the deal from going through.
So, the question needed to be asked about the role she's playing in leading the resistance to the agreement. We put it to her last week, and here's how she answered:
Daniel Ortiz
"How do you answer to the criticism that many hand spoil the pot and Mr. Chris Coye, their attorney is already there and you are inserting yourself?"
Audrey Matura-Shepherd
"Let me tell you, we are not even hands, we are whole body in and we cannot spoil the pot. I am not here as the legal representative of anyone. I am here as the National Trade Union Congress and as the president of CWU and thank God yes I do have a law degree, so the b!@#*t on the farmers, when they try to insert a new clause cannot happen."
Now, at this time the injunction has been filed - but no hearing has been held so it is not in effect.
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