By LEISELLE MARAJ Tuesday, November 24 2009

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SUGAR PRODUCERS SOUR: Cane producers yesterday picketed outside the British High Commission in St Clair where they delivered a letter intended for Bri...

A LETTER addressed to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, head of the Commonwealth, was sent by cane farmers yesterday who also wrote a letter to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, detailing the farmers’ concern over delays of the implementation of the National Adaptation Strategy for the sugar industry.

Members of the Cane Producers Association (CPATT) gathered with placards around the compound of the British High Commission in St Clair while association secretary general Seukaran Tambie was allowed to pass on the letters to a security officer at the guard booth of the commission. The guard assured Tambie the letters will be handed over to Embassy personnel. “We believe we have a legitimate case to present to the Queen and the Prime Minister. We are asking them to publicly take this issue on their agenda and make a statement on the matter,” Tambie told reporters.

Tambie said the association originally planned to send the letters to PM Brown and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon but decided to send a letter to the Queen instead of Ban, because of the United Kingdom’s commitment to support African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries in achieving sustainable development and reducing poverty which may arise after these countries exit the sugar industry. He explained the UK Statement on Accompanying Measures to Assist ACP Producers in their Response to an EU Sugar Reform also stated the assistance package should correspond with the impact made by the reduction of the EU sugar subsidy.

The European Union allocated funding to TT for the period 2007-2013, in the form of budget allocations which were to be used to promote economic diversification in sugar-dependent areas and to address social, environmental, community and area-based issues. According to the association no allocation has been accessed to date by Government for the benefit of cane farmers, their workers and families.