-WICB writes individually to players
Office of the President Press Officer Kwame McCoy has confirmed to Stabroek Sport that President Bharrat Jagdeo is in receipt of the letter sent by the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) requesting him to arbitrate in their ongoing dispute with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and that he is prepared to meet.
The letter from WIPA President Dinanath Ramnarine was directed to President Jagdeo in his capacity as Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).
According to McCoy, President Jagdeo sees the matter as one of urgency because of the importance of cricket in the Caribbean.
McCoy said, however, that although the CARICOM chairman did say he would meet with representatives of both the WICB and the WIPA, a date and venue for the meeting had not been set but it would be as soon as possible so that the sport can return to some normalcy in the region.
Meanwhile, on the first occasion on which the WICB has communicated formally with players on the strike matter, the Board wrote individually yesterday to all players involved in the WIPA strike action.
That would include those who boycotted the ticket launch for ICC WT20 2010 and/or those who refused to play in the first Test versus Bangladesh after being selected to the West Indies squad, according to a media release yesterday from WICB Media Officer Philip Spooner.
The Board has also informed players that their actions were in breach of Rule 6 of the WICB Code of Conduct which states: “Players and team officials must not at any time engage in behaviour unbecoming that could bring the game of cricket into disrepute or be harmful to the interests of cricket.”
Each letter also noted that “in accordance with Section 3, Rule 2.1 (e) of the Code of Conduct” the said player is required to submit a response within ten days. Breaches alleged by the Board are as follows and have been cited where relevant to a player’s participation in the strike action:
(i) On July 4, 2009 failure to attend the Official Ticket Launch of ICC WT20 2010 at the Beausejour Indoor Facility in St. Lucia;
(ii) On July 7, 2009 refusal to travel to St. Vincent from St. Lucia for the 1st Test Match between the West Indies and Bangladesh on July 9, 2009;
(iii) Refusal to make yourself available to represent the West Indies team as per your selection, for the 1st Test Match between the West Indies and Bangladesh on July 9, 2009.
Additionally, the release stated, those players on retainer have been informed that their action breached that contract and therefore those payments have been “suspended immediately…until such time as you indicate in writing to the WICB your resumption of obligations under the contract.”
And the Board has also written to WIPA asserting that the strike action breaches the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the two entities, and has requested that the ongoing dispute be referred to immediate mediation.
Meanwhile, the release concluded, payments are currently in progress to all players who represented the West Indies in the recent tour to England; the ICC WT20 2009; and the four One-Day Internationals versus India.
In the past CARICOM had played a major role on several occasions in similar situations when Dr. Keith Mitchell, then Prime Minister of Grenada, was instrumental in resolving some of the issues.
In the WIPA letter it was pointed out that the association felt confident that the Heads of Government through its Chairman would find a mechanism to resolve the matters.
Ramnarine, in his letter to President Jagdeo, had stated that they were fully conscious of the importance of cricket to the economy and unity of the region, and the psyche of its peoples— “matters in which you and other Heads of Governments are continuously and intrinsically involved.”
It stated also that the players were deeply mindful of the responsibility they shoulder on behalf of this important group of stakeholders and it was therefore in that context that they wished to have a speedy resolution to the issues.
The actions of the West Indies team against the WICB and its policies commenced during the dying stages of the tour of India in the Caribbean.
At first they refused to attend the ticket launching of the International Cricket Council (ICC) WT20 2010 in St Lucia last weekend for the event which will be held in the Caribbean next year.
Following that, they refused to appear for the presentation at the conclusion of their India series with only captain Chris Gayle attending.
A day after, WIPA announced that the first-string players such as Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo and Jerome Taylor would not be playing in the present series against Bangladesh.
Their actions left the WICB hastily putting together a squad of mostly debutants to play against Bangladesh in the first test which they lost by 95 runs.
In the meantime, the second test starts today and with the issues between the WIPA and the WICB not yet resolved, the same players with the inclusion of Ryan Hinds will wear the maroon cap on the field.