Father Christopher Hartley
[INSERT NAME & TITLE]
Tate & Lyle PLC
Head Office
Sugar Quay
Lower Thames Street
London EC3R 6DQ
United Kingdom
July 10, 2009
Dear [INSERT NAME]:
Tate & Lyle’s recent purchase of 30,000 metric tons of Dominican sugar under the EU-Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Caribbean (ACP) countriesrecently prompted meto express my concerns toSir David Lees, courtesy of Mr. Rowan Adams, your Director of Corporate Communications. In question was the “wisdom” of procuring product that is grown and harvested by human beings whose basic rights and fundamental physical needs are systematically suppressed by every one of the EPA supplier companies in the Dominican Republic.
Although courteous, Mr. Adams’ replies skirted the real issues and touted affiliation with the Better Sugar Cane Initiative and the Fairtrade Foundation, as well as use of Cert ID services,as proof of Tate & Lyle’songoing commitment to ethical practices. However, as you know, the Better Sugarcane Initiative is only that—an initiative. While membership in BSI is growing and its code of conduct, which I am happy to have helped draft, is laudable, the Initiative is currently engaged in fact-finding and development. BSI presently holds no authority and bears no clout within the industry. As to the use of Cert ID (independent auditors) to monitor producers, there is no evidence that their services have been retained by your company in the matter of Dominican sugar. Use of these as verification of Tate & Lyle’s dedication to Fairtrade principles in this particular instance is imprudent.
The issuesat hand are so serious and far-reaching that my colleagues and I felt it would only be proper to contact individually each of the members of the currentBoard and the two incumbents,as well asone member of the Executive Committeewho serves as Chief Executive for Sugars.
This is the first time ever that sugar harvested in the Dominican Republic is available to the EU marketplace. And for the first time ever, that same Dominican sugar—knowingly produced in violation of both internationally accepted human rights principles and Fairtrade standards—will be stirred into the morning coffee of millions of European consumers. Herein lieboth opportunity and dilemma. Opportunity: Tate & Lyle has access to raw product that can fill a supply deficit. Dilemma: Tate & Lyle proudly and publically claims to be a Fairtrade company.
Fairtrade espousers and long-term human rights abusers make for strange bedfellows.
What the public will see is that Tate & Lyle’s certified suppliers of record in Belize are still being scrutinized for adherence to Fairtrade standards; the company is still purchasing sugar from them; and, nothing seems to have changed. The reality is that a percentage of raw product from the Dominican Republichas already been procured under the EPA. “Un-Fairtrade” sugar nowenters into your supply chain and your production line. Where is your accountability? Who is scrutinizing the practices of your new supplier(s)? [This is a responsibility that cannot rest on local government in the case of the Dominican Republic, because the CEA (Consejo Estatal de Azúcar) is a government producer and complicit in private sector practices.] And who will oversee Tate & Lyle, as a purchaser? As an advertised member of the Fairtrade Foundation are you simply “allowed” to make “Un-Fairtrade” purchases and still retain the Fairtrade logo on your final product packaging? We suspect not. Dominican sugar is produced under conditions that are antithetical to both the actual standards, as well as the spirit, of Fairtrade.
“Who is this person and how can he make such claims?” Because—quite simply—I was there, a witness who lived in the midst of these de-humanizing “antithetical conditions.”
In 1997 I went as a Catholic missionary priest to the Dominican Republic, where I spent ten years of my life among Haitian sugar cane cutters on the Vicini family plantations within my parish. The human rights abuses I encountered there were nothing I could have steeled myself for in advance. The violations included—and to this day, still include—daily and systematic disregard for fundamental human dignity in the forms of “statelessness” (and its inherent lack of civil liberties), human trafficking, extreme poverty, child labor, racial discrimination, lack of education and healthcare, and general squalor. The laundry list goes on and is further compounded during this harvest season (2008-2009) by new variations, which include: 1) failure to withhold social security (IDSS) contributions, leaving workers without basic benefits; 2) preservation of sub-standard, poverty-level wages; 3) new forms of fraud in the weighing of, and remuneration for, cut cane; 4) resurgence in trafficking of human persons (after a hiatus of approximately three years); 5) deprivation of entitled healthcare benefits; 6) arbitrary terminations and denial of earned benefits; and, 7) refusal to issue written contracts guaranteed under Dominican law.
I would be a horrible man and a worse priest if I turned my back and did nothing. In 2006, I was expelled from the Dominican Republic, but the impoverished and valiant people I came to know and love have never left me. I am committed to do whatever I can to garner awareness for their situation and to push for the legislation and moral oversight that can help restore their basic human rights—because I know that without rights, a man is nothing more than a slave.
And, if you think nothing can change; think again. I refer back to abuse #7 above. As you read this letter, 500 impoverished Haitian sugar cane cutters are making declarations and appearing before the Labor Court of the Dominican Republic in an unprecedented proceeding to counter an appeal by the Vicini Company which would overturnprior court approvalgranting workersthe written contracts they are entitled to under law. With their colonial mentality, the sugar barons could not have dreamed of litigation such as this, even as little as a year ago. Long-term feelings of entitlement and superiority candull the heart as well as the business savvy of Dominican sugar’s corporate executives.
For all their well orchestrated rhetoric and machinations, Dominican sugar cane producers can no longer conceal the extent and gravity of the human rights abuses that occur on their plantations. In the materials we have included for you herewith,there are DVDs of four recent major documentaries:
The Price of Sugar—Uncommon Productions, 2007. Executive Producer: Tim Disney. Directed by Bill Haney. Narrated by Paul Newman—Academy Award-winning actor, director, American icon, and noted philanthropist;The Price of Sugar was his last film.This powerful, heart-wrenching and intelligent examination of the human rights abuses and daily struggles of Haitian sugar cane cutters on the Vicini Company plantations was so compelling that the film was short-listed for the 2008 Academy Awards in the documentary category.
The Price of Sugar is also a recipient of the following awards and citations: Seattle International Film Festival-Official Selection; The 2008 Gabriel Award-Best Documentary; 2008 Slow Food Film Festival, Bologna-Best Documentary; International Black DocuFest-Best Human Rights Watch Award; SXSW Film Festival-Audience Award; Silverdocs Film Festival-Witness Award, Honorable Mention; Docuweek Showcase-Official Selection; and nominated for the 2008 Image Award for Outstanding Documentary. (Largely focused on human rights abuses taking place on Vicini Family plantations.) In English and French.
Big Sugar—Galafilm,2005. Written, directed and narrated by Brian McKenna,a prize-winning documentary filmmaker and journalist. This two-partTV series aired on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Newsworld and was produced in association with the CBC. Big Sugarwon the Gemeaux Award for Best Documentary and Best Research for a Documentary Series, and was nominated in two other categories. Big Sugar also won four Golden Sheaf Awards at the 2006 Yorkton Short Film and Video Festival. (Largely focused on human rights abuses taking place on Fanjul Family plantations.) In English and French.
The Sugar Babies: The Plight of the Children of Agricultural Workers in the Sugar Industry of the Dominican Republic—Siren Studios, 2007. Written and directed by award-winning producer and filmmaker Amy Serrano. The Sugar Babies is narrated by acclaimed author Edwidge Danticat, winner of over ten awards, including The 2007 National Book Critics Circle Award for "Brother, I'm Dying." The Sugar Babies was produced in association with The Hope, Courage and Justice Project (New Orleans, LA) and The Human Rights Foundation (NY), of which Armando Valladares (who appears briefly in the film) is Chairman, while Elie Wiesel is a member of HRF’sInternational Council. The Sugar Babies featuresinterviews with a host of officials and activists, as well as gripping field testimonies and hidden camera footage. (Focused on child labor abuse across all Dominican sugar cane plantations.) In English, French, Creole and Spanish.
Azúcar Amargo—Italy 2006. Produced by Simone del Grosso and Peter Ranelli, in conjunction with Solidaridad Fronteriza, Fratelli dell’Uomo, etc. Hailed as 2006 Best Documentary Film at the 8th International Festival of Film Societies, Italy. This beautifully photographed documentary features narration by Fr. Pedro Roquoy, who eloquently describes and exposesissues such as trafficking, fraud and statelessness, as well as the complicity through which these situations thrive. (Largely focused on human rights abuses taking place on Campollo Family plantations.)
Each of these acclaimed productions examines the issues of human trafficking, child labor, racism, statelessness, lack of basic sanitation andhealthcare, etc., in the bateyes of Dominican sugar plantations. The making of these four films (a fifth is currently underway) is no accident, signifying—sadly—the severity and scope of the violations they portray.
You will observe many of theappalling living and working conditions captured in the still photographs. But, you will also recognize inthe images, the indomitable spirit of human beings who remain dignified in spite of the many indignities they endure.
You will read articles from The Financial Times, El Mundo, The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor; The Boston Globe, etc.,and, you will study reports of human rights abuses published by the US Department of State and Amnesty International.
The violation of human rights is a not a matter that can be dismissed with polite rhetoric culled from Tate & Lyle’s website. Involvement in the EU-EPA has changed everything.
As a member of the European Union, the UK agreed to the substance and spirit of the Economic Partnership Agreement, whose original intent was to aid the economic, social and cultural development of ACP participants. As a UK company participant in the EPA, you agreed to the same. You are therefore obligated to examine the “ethical provenance” of EPA products introduced into the EU market, regardless of your membership in the Fairtrade Foundation. You are also obligated under the spirit of the agreement to determine whether your transactions are indeed subsequently benefiting the economy, society and culture of the Dominican Republic, and notsimply enhancing the bottom line of the CEA, and Vicini, Fanjul and Campollo families.
Perhaps this 2008-2009 purchase of 30,000 metric tons of Dominican sugar can be deemed an unfortunate blemish on Tate & Lyle’s hitherto very commendable image as a company that values and rewards fairness in the supply chain. That being said, the EU-EPA with Caribbean countries is ongoing. Sugar from the Dominican Republic will be available to the European market for many years to come. Will Tate & Lyle lead the way in terms of ethical purchasing behavior going forward?
It is no secret that positive press coverage and favorable public opinion can increase sales and bolster a company’s brand equity—especially today, when consumers are well informed about “green” and “Fairtrade” matters. Also “no secret” is the fact that bad press can generate negative public opinion. And negative public opinion can wreak havoc with sales.
A unique and history-making opportunity awaits EU purchasers of Dominican sugar right now. Tate & Lyle (as well as Tereos and St. Louis Sucre, who have also been contacted in this regard) can choose to take the higher road and make a significant difference in the quality of life for thousands of men, women and children. And your example can set the bar high for Tate & Lyle’sother competitors as well.
Perhaps, you—as members of the Board and Executive Committee—will take a stand and vote to make any future purchase of Dominican sugar by Tate & Lyle contingent upon rectification of human rights abuses on the sugar cane plantations of the CEA, and the Fanjul, Campollo and Vicini families. We make this appeal to you as a matter,first, of conscience and, second, of good business.
I would sincerelywelcome the opportunity to discuss the contents of this letter and the accompanying materials with you at your convenience.
Most respectfullyyours,
Father Christopher Hartley
Recipients:
Sir David Lees, Chairman
Sir Peter Gershon, Chairman-Elect
Iain Ferguson, Chief Executive
Javed Ahmed, Chief Executive-Elect
Tim Lodge, Group Finance Director
Richard Delbridge, Senior Independent Director
Evert Henkes, Independent Non-executive Director
Dr Barry Zoumas, Independent Non-executive Director
Robert Walker, Independent Non-executive Director
Elisabeth Airey, Independent Non-executive Director
Robert Gibber, Company Secretary and GeneralCounsel
Ian Bacon, Chief Executive, Sugars
cc: Rowan Adams, Director of Corporate Communications
encls:
DVD’s—four highly acclaimed documentary films on the subject of human rights abuses on the sugar cane plantations of the Dominican Republic: The Price of Sugar, Big Sugar,The Sugar Babies, andAzúcar Amargo.
Photographs—documenting child labor practices, living and working conditions, laborers and their traffickers, an ambassadorial visit, etc.
Articles—a sampling of eightprint articles from prestigious publications addressing aspects of human rights abuses on and/or involving Dominican sugar cane plantations.
Selections from 2004 & 2006 US State Dept. Human Rights Reports—specifically relating to the plantations of the Vicini Family.
Useful Links—additional press/media coverage.
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