We first told you about it last night, and sure enough, there was a dramatic showdown at the Port this morning. The showdown was the culmination of weeks of hostility between the stevedores and the private owner of Port of Belize Limited Luke Espat. Espat had set December 1st as 'd-day' to move forward with a new stevedoring regime at the Port. And with the mediation of national development minister Assad Shoman, both sides had agreed to a compromise contained in a memorandum of understanding, or, as its called an MOU. But when it was not signed by December 1st, all bets were off and when the ship pulled in this morning, the rule of Espat came into effect: he would clear it using his workers. That meant no work and no earnings for the gang of stevedores assigned to a ship and as we found out, coming between a man and his money - the only money he may make this Christmas is enough to cause a riot. And that it nearly did. Jules Vasquez and Alfonso Noble were there from beginning to end.
Jules Vasquez Reporting,
At 7:00 this morning, this truck, which was carrying the 15 members of stevedore gang #4 was denied entrance by Port Security. Realizing they were being blocked from doing the work that would earn their only paycheck for the next month, or possibly the next two months, the stevedores took the key out of the truck. By 7:20, the road and the entrance to the Port had been blocked by the truck flanked with 50 stevedores, ready to confront police.
["If we mek those men go in today then we will have no job. I am raising a young son. Me can't go thief out deh. Me can't go shot people and rob nobody. And that will start to have to happen from today."]
And while the crowd outside agitated, the members of gang 4 sat cool but tense and defiant.
Jahson Arnold, Stevedore
"They are looking to start a war you know. Real thing."
Jules Vasquez,
But you came to…
Jahson Arnold,
"I come to work this morning."
Jules Vasquez,
So what's happening?
Jahson Arnold,
"Well the man they deny we from enter the gate. I don't know what all this is about. I think it is the prime minister, he knows exactly what he is dealing with. He is only fronting through Luke Espat. They already told us one thing: that we will sign over on Monday so go through and work today and work Monday and everything will be settled. Now the man they are saying we can't come in. It's a war they want to start or that is what it will boil down to brother. I am on the screen and I am making you know that this will be war brother once you all don't straighten this out."
"They are all about money right now and then he already messed up with the money and they are trying to put their hands on everything right now they can get their hands on. You know what I am saying? My people have to wake up brother. My people have to wake up. This is no politics thing brother but we have to stay together. We have to stick together."
That's what was at stake a community of earners with their livelihoods on the line. And while the Port of Belize had BDF soldiers with M-16 rifles on the ready to protect it, outside there was no law as the workers retained control of the far end of Caesar Ridge road, causing a blockage that by 7:30 am extended to the junction with Central American Boulevard.
But their time would be limited. At a few minutes to 8:00; the officer commanding eastern division ACP Maureen Leslie came up. She too sought to dialogue but was met with fiery intransigence. When that did not work, traffic had to be diverted to a side entrance because the road could not be cleared. It remained block and as trucks streamed past the diversion ACP Leslie continued the talk, making her terms stricter and clearer.
Maureen Leslie, Assistant Police Commissioner
[Speaking to Protestors] "By whatever means the vehicle will be moved."
But the vehicle was not moved and hostilities escalated because gang #4 started to sense that other dockworkers had been hired to do their job.
Leopold Smart, Stevedore
"We understand that he will have 12 man out there from the compound right here to go out there and do our job. We are not satisfied with that. We put that truck there because then we are supposed to go out there and do our job because we were negotiating."
And that rancorous feeling extended to Port's Operations Manager Oswin Blease who entered to try to find a solution. He and Leslie agreed to bring in a towhead to move the truck but when the dockworkers saw that, they got more angry and rushed into the compound to hold back the truck.
[Dockworkers jumping on top of truck and blocking attempts to move it]
And the chain they had hoped to use was removed which led to a confrontation with Blease that got ugly
Angry Stevedore Speaking to Blease,
"This is murderation. This is murderation today today. Blood will shed. Blood will shed. So long I stand out here and I don't say anything but blood will shed. Blood will shed. Blood will shed today."
And while that continued) the point was that the stevedores were in the compound, no longer outside the gates. And hard talk changed to hostile talk when they became aware that someone else, not the waiting gang 4, had been cleared to remove the containers from the ship..
Stevedore,
"Our ship is being worked right now. Watch there: containers are coming off right now."
With that the stevedores would wait no more and while Blease got on his radio, they decided to storm the gates and our comeras followed:
[Stevedores running into compound and towards bridge]
They ran over the bridge running to the pier head to protect their livelihoods and if necessary force a showdown. And sure enough when they got there a container had already been cleared off the Hyde Ship 'the Isle' by dockworkers. But no more, the stevedores took over and mounted a defiant stance on one of the containers that had been taken off. And the angry confrontation between Maureen Leslie and the workers continued.
Maureen Leslie,
"You can't go do that."
Stevedore,
"Miss Maureen you can lock me up if you want but that is our right."
Maureen Leslie,
"You can't go do that. You are breaking the law. You can't go do that man."
Stevedore,
"Miss Maureen they broke the law from they took away our jobs."
Maureen Leslie,
"Alright alright."
But it was not alright, chaos prevailed on the country's major deep water pier and with no one else to single out, Leslie pounced on long time fire starter Odinga Lumumba targeting him for removal.
[Maureen Leslie pointing at Odinga Lumumba and telling him to move]
Odinga Lumumba,
"I have been a sea man long. What are you coming with?"
And with a steady drizzle now falling, the workers of gang number 4 started doing their job while the police stood by helplessly disorganized and confused. Shortly Blease along with Hyde shipping agents Stanley and Jack Longsworth were at the pier head with Antonio Gonzalez, the union leader, all trying to mollify and control the angry mob and get them off the pier head.
Antonio Gonzales, CWU President
"They are prepared to bring down their people if we bring our people down and then get out of the gate and before they bring in the BDF and we begin a discussion. We are suggesting, and we had a meeting with the prime minister this morning and he is prepared, Mr. Luke is prepared, to sign the memorandum of understanding this afternoon at 2. So if we sign that memorandum 2 o'clock then we start to work the ship. Once we sign the MOU we will work the ship."
Stevedores,
But the ship is already being worked!
Antonio Gonzales,
"But they will stop now. We won't tolerate any nonsense, Mr. Blease we understand one another so don't lock us out and then they start to work the ship because it will be worse."
And with a fully equipped riot squad on the ready, not only Gonzalez was issuing a threat, the police were making it clear they were ready to rumble even with the deep seas waiting below. Realizing that, Gonzalez got his stevedores moving and took our questions
Jules Vasquez,
But you all had an opportunity to sign from earlier in the week, why didn't you utilize that? From Wednesday Luke was willing to sign. The last outstanding point in the MOU had been cleared up, which is the drug testing?
Antonio Gonzales,
"The mediator sent us a part of the MOU which we had to ratify with our people before and that came after December 1st. So it was finalized or ratified around Wednesday and thing like that."
Jules Vasquez,
Did Luke Espat proceed in bad faith by going ahead this morning and allowing these people to clear off the ship? Did he proceed in bad faith?
Antonio Gonzales,
"Well I should think so because even the mediator isn't here at the moment. So maybe if the mediator was here in Belize this wouldn't happen any at all because I went to Belmopan yesterday to seek an audience with the mediator and I learnt then that the mediator was out of the country."
Jules Vasquez,
Is this by the shipping agent or by the Port, whoever ordered it, to get scab labor in here?
Antonio Gonzales,
"Well surely, this shouldn't happen at all. So I believe if you could classify it as that, that is what it really is: getting scab labor and no union would tolerate any scab labor depriving our workers of monies especially during this time. These people won't work until the next two months."
With a few more very strong words 44:26 for Blease, the workers agreed to leave the pier head but even with the threats, Blease would make no promises.
J_ules Vasquez,
Will you all continue offloading this ship or will you wait for gang 4?
Oswin Blease, Operations Manager Port of Belize
"We will discuss further to any gentleman agreement that myself and Mr. Gonzalez has."
Jules Vasquez,
But the concern is these guys say they need to make their money and if this ship is offloaded by someone else they won't.
Oswin Blease,
"That will be after discussion with the Port and Mr. Gonzalez."
Jules Vasquez,
Who allowed them to offload the ship, non-union labor? Who would give that green light?
Oswin Blease,
"I don't know."
[Stevedores shouting: "It's you. You are in charge"]
Oswin Blease,
"I don't know."
Senior Superintendent Jeffries arrived on the scene and discussed the situation with O.C. Eastern Division Maureen Leslie and devised a strategy to clear the area. But the crowd lingered on the Port's private compound within the gates. But not for long, Supt. Crispin Jeffries after consulting with commanding officer Maureen Leslie started moving them out. And with that gang no. 4 was called off. Jeffries kept pushing them back and those who did not want to move, Jeffries took in hand and physically removed. And he would not say please - the word was simply, "move!"
And once they were moved, the next task was to move the stevedore truck that blocked the entrance. And once the workers were back on the outside, opposition leader and ad hoc legal advisor Dean Barrow was called to the scene to re-assure the dockworkers.
Dean Barrow,
[Speaking to Stevedores] "The MOU was agreed but he can't sign nothing until you all ratify it. As I understood it, the Port of Belize wanted him to sign it the 1st of December. But after legally everything was cleared he has to get back to you all, the President has to. He can't go and sign it without your ratification and that is what caused the delay. But basically the man is ready to sign, since you ratified it, and all the application forms we can fill out now."
Jules Vasquez,
However the owner of the Port Mr. Luke Espat is saying there's been unpardonable foot dragging on behalf of the union and that the union hasn't been working to pace and he has to go ahead and do things the way he needs to do it because he claims he has conceded to every demand and they need to just sign.
Dean Barrow,
"But they are ready to sign and they have been ready to sign. I know that I spoke to the President who has been in consultation with me all along from a legal point of view and based on my legal advice has signed off certainly since Wednesday. But he had to get ratification from the members so that has slowed him down. But what is the problem? The man is ready to sign formally now and application forms can be filled in so what is the problem? Its bad faith if the Port doesn't want to allow the union to sign and give the men their application forms so they can work. I can't see the problem."
And after re-assuring his support, the Leader of the Opposition left and Gonzalez went back into the meeting while the thick mob waited patiently outside. But the Port Authority had its own ideas.?Workers were instructed to lock the gate while the riot squad practiced under Mr. Jeffries instruction inside in clear view of the dockworkers. After another hour, Gonzalez came out.
Antonio Gonzalez,
[Addressing Stevedores] "We had a meeting just now with the CEO, Miss Francine Waight, and we didn't get through anything. But during that break, we had a recess, the acting Ports Commissioner Major Swazo called me and he said that our workers would work the ship and that the MOU would be signed this afternoon. I just received a call from Mr. Ghandi and along with Mr. Ghandi, and he was must have been in Belmopan, was Mr. Luke Espat. And he is adamant and he has stuck to his point saying that he wants his workers to work the ship and not the stevedores. We told him we stick by our position that we want our stevedores to work the ship and we are prepared to sign the employment forms right now and we are also prepared to sign the MOUs this afternoon. Well he distinctly said that if that is the position, he will make the ship go back. He threatened us in the sense that he will not entertain any unions at the Port and that he will create his own union. This brothers we will not tolerate. I believe that we need to remain together. Remain together because this has not been completed. We noh finish this case yet. We are going to the Port Authority now to seek an audience with Major Swazo because he is the one who told us that you were going to work the ship."
"So brothers it is still not finalized, we will still continue meaning that we will not go to Belmopan because he refuses to sign the MOU. He refuses to sign the MOU and he doesn't want to accept that the union work, that the stevedores work."
Jules Vasquez,
Is there any reason, any known reason for Mr. Espat's sudden intransigence on this issue?
Antonio Gonzalez,
"Well he said over the conversation that he was blaming the union that he had given up to 1st of December for the union to sign up."
After the meeting with the commissioner, half an hour later, Gonzalez finally had some good news.
Antonio Gonzalez,
"They have agreed, along with the shipping agent who is Mr. Stanley Longsworth, that the boat be worked and that the our stevedore will work the boat commencing at 2 this afternoon."
Jules Vasquez,
Without an MOU?
Antonio Gonzalez,
"We will still go to Belmopan and sign the MOU meaning the union has all intention to work along with the management of port of Belize limited so we have all intention to go to Belmopan and sign that MOU. If the Port of Belize doesn't want to sign it, we cannot force them."
Jules Vasquez,
So for now its settled: gang #4 that came at 7am this morning will get to clear off the boat and will get the money as expected?
Antonio Gonzalez,
"Once they work and work the ship as usual they will get whatever salaries and wages they need to get."
And while the day would end with the MOU signed, the feeling of bitterness and betrayal will linger long for these dockworkers.
Leopold Smart, Stevedore
"We feel betrayed and disrespected. We feel betrayed by the prime minister who sell the place and didn't get this thing straightened and by Mr. Luke Espat who thinks that he owns this thing or could do whatever he wants with Belize people. We are poor people and we know that the government is not looking out for poor people because we should have had this thing straightened out long ago. He is looking for a murderation or something like that happen because we, I am not saying we but me, if my kids they can't eat or can't go to school it will be a different thing with me. I will kill man if my children can't eat. Because the prime minister let me down, Polo Smart. He goes on like he doesn't have any sense. He takes blame for everything that happens. If he takes blame for everything that happen then come straighten out here because what happened here is wrong. See the prime minister and Luke Espat and Fonseca they sold out the place."
Harsh words but that was the prevailing sentiment this morning at the port where the dockworkers fought and won.
And despite the harsh words on all sides, in the end, the MOU was signed. At about 4:30 this evening the Christian Workers Union sent out the agreement and government chimed in with a release of its own. Now both sides will have to work on a collective bargaining agreement which in any labor context is an often contentious process.