SOME 300+ rice farmers from around the country have taken to the streets, protesting outside the Ministry of the Presidency and the Ministry of Agriculture to press demands for attention to what they term the current ‘crisis’ facing the rice industry.Under determined leadership of Dharamkumar Seeraj, General Secretary of the Rice Producers’ Association, the protesters converged on Vlissengen Road in Georgetown, braving the sweltering heat of the midday sun as they hoisted placards on which were stated their demands.

“All is not well in the rice industry,” they insist. “Rice farmers are in crisis. We are feeling the pressure and cannot continue like this,” they said.

But while their situation is admittedly dire, they claim that officials of the Government are, through the print and electronic media, creating the impression that everything is ‘hunky dory’ when that is not the case.

Moreover, they were incensed that, because of pressures facing them, just two weeks ago, an Essequibo rice farmer lost hope, buckled and committed suicide after being owed some $6M by a rice miller who failed to pay him.

The protesters began their agitation at Anna Regina on the Essequibo Coast last Thursday following the suicide death of the rice farmer whose only name was given as ‘Mikey’. Farmers are claiming that ‘Mikey’ lost hope, and this must be brought to the attention of the Government, so that the relevant officials could know and appreciate the difficulties rice farmers are facing. According to Seeraj, the reality is that people don’t know the plight of the rice farmers, and those who know are silent on it.

“Rice farmers’ situation is different from what is being told. They are feeling the pressure,” he declared.

Sporadic demonstrations have been planned for other rice-producing communities, but the farmers shifted their protest to the administrative centre of Government because they anticipate that their activities would have greater impact here.

Yesterday’s protestors were drawn from Regions Two, Three, Four, Five and Six; and Seeraj has said it is hoped that the demonstrations will send a powerful message so the powers that be can get it right.

“I wrote, I spoke and nobody is listening; so if people don’t listen, you have to find a way for them to listen,” he declared.

Seeraj said the millers are incensed that they had supplied over 285 containers of rice to the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) and, after six months had elapsed, the GRDB had given back the rice to millers who had supplied it, claiming that Venezuela was not taking it, so the millers must come and take it back.

This, he said, incurred a loss of $400M, and the big question is: What are they going to do with the rice?

The temerity of the situation, Seeraj explained, was that the millers have a contract to supply the rice to the GRDB for onward shipment to Venezuela. The rice was taken to the wharf, and then they were told, after six weeks, to come and take back their rice.

He argued that it is a breach of contract on the part of the GRDB, since the millers would have satisfied their contractual obligation by delivering the rice. He said it matters not what had subsequently transpired between the GRDB and Venezuela.

Seeraj said the industry has lost about $400M on that single arrangement, and one miller has already taken the GRDB to court.

And alluding to the Budget Speech of the Minister of Finance, the farmers are saying that Minister Jordan had committed an allocation of $23B specifically to pay 7,000 rice farmers, thereby raising their hopes. But all hopes have now been dashed.

“But we did not see any $23B in the Estimates… It’s written in his speech. He spoke of it, and farmers were happy about it and thought it would go to fulfill the promise made to pay them $6,000 and $9,000 for rice; but now it is a different story,” Seeraj lamented.

He described the situation as a massive deception on part of the Finance Minister. He also argued that there was a panel discussion with three individuals: Chairman of GRDB, Mr. Housty; General Manager (ag) of the GRDB, Mr Nizam Hassan; and Dr Peter DeGroot, member of the Board of the GRDB.

The rice farmers are questioning why the Budget caters for concessions to miners, when rice, the largest foreign exchange earner of the country, is now going through some crisis and no measures are being put in place to bail out rice farmers.

Having picketed in Georgetown, the farmers vow to take their demonstrations to their respective regions if their voices are not heard and their demands acceded to.

By Shirley Thomas