Union leaders offer to mediate in Cockpit Country stand-off

Three trade union leaders have offered themselves as mediators in bringing all parties together to iron out vexed issues surrounding the Cockpit Country.

In a release, Kavan Gayle of the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union, Lambert Brown of the University and Allied Workers Union, and St Patrice Ennis of the Union of Technical Administrative and Supervisory Personnel say that with their expertise in social dialogue and engagement, they are willing to help bring closure to the matter.

Environmentalists and residents of the biodiverse region, which is a major source of water in the island, have been at loggerheads with the Government over the boundary of the Cockpit Country Protected Area (CCPA). The groups contend that the state’s boundary omits sections of the Cockpit Country, leaving them vulnerable to activities such as mining, which could threaten their livelihoods and the environment.

Representatives and staff members of Noranda Bauxite Ltd, which has been given a special mining licence to operate outside of the protected area, have been protesting against the pushback, saying that the company does not intend to violate its agreement and will respect the CCPA boundary.

This week, both groups marched on the nation’s Parliament to defend their positions and make an appeal to lawmakers.

The unions, which represent workers at the Noranda Bauxite Company, noted that they were of the view that there was no polarity of division that could not be resolved through dialogue.

“As inveterate practitioners in the field of social dialogue, the unions are confident that a resolution to the imbroglio surrounding the Cockpit Country can be found if all the stakeholders are engaged in dialogue and are committed to a resolution that is in the best interest of the country,” a section of the release read.