Another
Example of the Unfair Treatment of Western Canadians!
Bruce
Webster, the Chairman of the Ontario Wheat Producers Marketing Board was
on the Jim Fisher talk show on Wednesday October 2, 2002. He was asked two
very important questions by a listener. The first question asked
was if the Ontario Wheat Producers Marketing Board had applied to the
Federal Government for the authority to issue export licenses to their
producers without going through the CWB. The answer was yes
they had and that he and the general manager of the OWPMB were to meet
with the Federal Government in a few weeks time to discuss the matter and
perhaps change the legislation that covers this issue.
The
CWB has absolute authority for issuing export licenses for any wheat and
barley exported from anywhere in Canada. To obtain a license at the
present time the OWPMB knows that they have to apply to the Canadian Wheat
Board for the export permit. The permit is freely granted but they still
have to go through the process.
The
second question asked was if the Ontario Wheat Producers Marketing
Board had ever issued an export permit without the authorization of the
CWB. Mr. Webster said yes they had issued one permit out of
their Guelph Ontario office and had received little reaction. When phoned
the next day, Bruce Webster expanded his explanation and said that the
export permit had been drafted by their legal department and the grain had
been exported without any problem through Canada Customs even though the
document presented was not a regular CWB export permit. Agriculture Canada
was notified but instead of ordering the grain brought back to the
original destination and making arrests, detaining vehicles and bringing
charges, nothing was said except that it was illegal for the Ontario Wheat
Producers Marketing Board to do this and they should refrain from issuing
any more permits. Could this be considered a double standard?
An
organization that has been applying to the CWB for decades for export
permits decides one day that it has the right to issue export permits
without the authority of the CWB. This organization then goes ahead and makes
their own export permit, allows a producer to transports grain across the
border (with the blessing of Canada Customs), sell his grain, and come
back across the border (again with the blessing of Canada Customs) and go
home with the proceeds of the sale. The point to be made here is that
there was no legal export permit in existence during this transaction
and all parties were aware of it! Agriculture Canada then tells the
OWPMB that they should not try it again.
Lets
draw a parallel.
Now we travel west……..The farmers involved in the border
crossings in 1996 must have somehow forgot to forge an export permit to
present to Canada Customs. They took anywhere from one bag to a truckload
of grain across the border. Some of the grain was donated to a 4-H Club in
the States. The bottom line here is that the Farmers from Western Canada
were fined, their property confiscated and now some of the farmers are
facing jail time for charges stemming from not having a export license.
What
legal action would have occurred if Canada Customs had stopped the
transportation of grain by the Ontario producer? Would he have been
charged with presenting a false document and not having a legal export
license? Would this have led to other charges? Should the OWPMB be charged
for issuing an illegal document to the producer, knowing that what they
were doing was against Canadian law? Did they receive bad legal advice? We
will never know because the Federal Government only wants to prosecute
farmers in Western Canada. In this issue the fairness of the government,
Canada Customs and the entire justice system is sorely lacking.
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