WIPA 'muddling facts' - WICB

ST JOHN'S, Antigua (CMC):

The verbal war between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and WIPA West Indies Players' Association (WIPA) continued on Tuesday, with the board accusing regional players' union of "muddling the facts" pertaining to a proposed intervention from the International Cricket Council (ICC).

The WICB was responding to WIPA's claim that there was no need for the ICC's intervention in the ongoing dispute since this would have been non-binding and since there was already an agreement in place to deal with the impasse.

However, the WICB hit back claiming that the ICC intervention, in conjunction with international players' body FICA, had not been intended to take precedence over the existing agreement, but would have run parallel to it.

"The joint ICC/FICA proposal would have offered a framework - based on how other ICC full members had resolved similar issues to the satisfaction of all parties - for settling the specific issue of image rights and intellectual property," the WICB contended.

"It was made very clear that if the framework was not accepted then the process of arbitration would continue."

With reference to WIPA's argument that the ICC/FICA mediation would have been non-binding, the WICB said all that was needed to make the mediation binding was a decision by both parties involved.

"For an arbitration to be deemed binding, the parties - in this case WICB and WIPA - must agree that they would be bound by the judgment," the regional board said.

"Similarly, had WIPA not rejected the joint ICC/FICA proposal and along with the WICB, agree to be bound by the decisions therein, it would have been binding on both parties.

"For WIPA to skew the facts to suggest that the joint ICC/FICA intervention could not have led to a binding agreement is disingenuous."

In their latest release on Tuesday, the WICB also said it was surprised by WIPA's claims that arbitration was "due to be heard shortly before a panel of distinguished Caribbean jurists".

"WICB is taken aback by this statement as we are not aware that any date has been set for the arbitration hearing. The truth is WIPA's delaying tactics stymied any chance of an agreement - by the December 2009 date as outlined in the New York Agreement - on the terms of reference for the arbitration," the regional board said.

"In the last few days, the WICB has been at pains to seek WIPA's agreement on a meeting of both parties to progress the matter, but WIPA has been non-committal.

"Critically, the WICB is proud of the fact that it has honoured every single commitment in the New York Agreement, whereupon WIPA remains in breach, thereby attempting to keep West Indies cricket in a state of limbo."

The WICB once again urged WIPA to reconsider the ICC/FICA offer and also honour its obligations to the New York Agreement.