THE FIRST meeting in the mediation process involving the dispute between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) lasted for some five hours yesterday in the office of the Mediator, Sir Shridath Ramphal, located in his home in Christ Church, Barbados

Under the agreement brokered by Guyana’s President and current CARICOM chairman, Bharrat Jagdeo, last week in Georgetown, each side nominated a ‘facilitator’ to work with Sir Shridath.

A brief statement released at the end of the lengthy session with the mediator disclosed that the nominees participating in the meeting were the WICB’s representative, Gerard Pinard, and WIPA’s President Dinanath Ramnarine.

Without providing details, the release said the meeting settled the rules of procedures to guide the mediation process and emphasised the need for “confidentiality”.

After the meeting, Sir Shridath expressed “satisfaction” that a start had been made, but emphasised that “success in both resolving immediate differences and settling relations between the Board and WIPA on a path of lasting cooperation, as envisaged by President Jagdeo, will require a major effort by both sides…”