Prime Minister Dean Barrow met today with members of the Belize Sugar Cane Farmers Association to try and iron out kinks between cane farmers and American Sugar Refinery, ASR, over payment of bagasse. The PM said that they will now have to meet with ASR and had already indicated to their agents that he wants to have that meeting, and he supports the cane farmers in their plight.
RT. HON. DEAN BARROW
“There is no compromise yet. There is simply a matter of our needing to talk to ASR to see if there can be a compromise after such meeting. Mr. Montalvo said because of the Thanksgiving holidays he was not able to get in touch with the central authorities. He would have an answer for me by close of day today as to how soon that can take place. We will take to ASR, the position which we had stated at the press conference and which we had repeated to the farmers today and see if on that basis we can bring the two sides together for a face to face negotiation.”
Meanwhile, Vice President of the Belize Cane Farmers’ Association, Alfredo Ortega, said that cane farmers are not prepared to deliver cane while negotiations to work out payment details progress.
ALFREDO ORTEGA
“At this point what we are looking for is to have a commitment from ASR/BSI where we will be looking forward in this negotiation. At this point we cannot say that we will be starting the season. All we are looking for, the Prime Minister agreed that he will be seeking ASR to come to the table and start negotiations and thereafter we will see what that first meeting will be pointing to with ASR.”
Meanwhile Barrow said that he won’t start to work on the cane roads, which have been in dilapidated conditions since long before the rains came. Barrow said that his government prioritizes road works and work on the cane roads will take place if he can get an assurance if there will be a crop. Ortega responded to the PM’s comments in this fashion.
ALFREDO ORTEGA
“It’s not only the cane farmers that live in the north; it’s not only us that use the roads, we have other farmers in other areas, we have the papaya industry, we have vegetable farmers, the Mennonites and we have the students that need the road and so, regardless of what happen with us, cane farmers and ASR, the road should be fixed.”
Ortega said that some farmers did record some losses totaling in the range of three million dollars due to the recent flooding. Meanwhile, today’s meeting was cut short because of a bomb threat at the Best Western Belize Biltmore Plaza Hotel. Ortega told reporters how the news was broken as they discussed their problem with the PM.
ALFREDO ORTEGA
“At least we went through the main core of our queries and then they went up and said there was a bomb threat and so we had to evacuate the building. I really don’t know anything about the bomb threat; it was told to the Prime Minister and he passed on the message to us and he told us that we need to evacuate the building due to the bomb threat.”
LOCAL REPORTER
“And the fact that you noticed no one else was evacuated?”
ALFREDO ORTEGA
“Well, it’s funny because they said that each and every one had to evacuate the building.”
Another date will be set for the discussion to proceed after the PM meets with ASR this week.