Reply of Fr. Shay Cullen to Ian Bretman RE: PREDA DRIED FRUIT

Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2006 00:59:21 +0800
To: ian bretman <ian.bretman@fairtrade.org.uk>
From: "preda@info.com.ph" <preda@info.com.ph>
Subject: FTF/FLO causes Preda huge losses. Reply to E-mail of 29 March 06

Dear Ian Bretman,

 am writing after some delay as I had to consult with legal advisors among our campaign organisations about this matter and decide what action to take and put right the wrong done by Fair Trade Foundation/ FLO and against the well being the people we serve.

The decision to protest and seek justice either by legal action or through a world wide appeal campaign will come later when we hear from you as representative of Fair Trade Foundation/FLO. It is our right and duty to seek redress.

These predatory actions of Fair Trade Foundation/FLO to remove our products from the Sainsburyıs supermarket chain have been clearly done to promote Fair Trade Foundation/FLOıs own interests and create the situation where your organisation stood to make financial gain at the expense of Preda.

It has hurt greatly our organisation and the Preda human development projects for farmers women and children and human rights. Did you ever consider the consequence of your actions, knowing what harm they would do?

Our pro-bono legal and campaign advisors assure us that your admissions of lengthy communications with Kestrel and Sainsbury's and the subsequent actions of Sainsbury's to remove our products are sufficient evidence to make a strong case that Fair Trade Foundation/FLO caused us huge losses.

Two containers of dried mangos have been cancelled so far -a loss of income of $22,000 and more cancellations are possible. It is sufficient to prove that we lost by these actions and FTF/ FLO gained by them.

Fair Trade Foundation/FLO has acted wrongly, unjustly and immorally against Preda. We have suffered unjust competition and our name has been slandered,libelled and defamed. More evidence can be had later by the right of discovery to prove this beyond a doubt.

In your opinion we may be just a small vulnerable organisation in the developing world. You never bothered to respect our right to be consulted or contacted when Fair Trade Foundation/FLO was working to get our products out of the market.

After you succeeded in having our dried mangos removed and we were suffering losses the additional hurt was to receive that E-mail from your organisation suggesting we apply for a Fair Trade Foundation/FLO label and pay the fees.

First you get us off the shelves and we are suffering losses daily then we are invited back on provided we pay the fees for the FLO label. Is it economic torture or extortion? The suffering will stop if we pay up? That however will be for the court to decide.

You can be assured that we are going to pursue this to the very end to find justice and truth and restore our good name and our right to sell wherever we can to benefit the exploited women and children in the sex trade and poor farmers.

Perhaps we don't fit into your definition of fair trade but FTF/FLO apparently apparently doesn't meet itıs own criteria and standards either as your action against us proves. Yet we can show the world more than 31 years of helping people through fair trade and humanitarian service.

What development projects can Fair Trade Foundation/FLO show the world? How to be dominant, jealous, greedy and squeeze out a small fair trade organisation that is successful without the FLO label? How do you explain this to the public? They have a right to know.

Even if it takes years of legal and media action,international campaigning, we and our partners will prove we were unjustly defamed,were caused unjust losses to our development and charitable projects and we will receive just recompense and compensation one way or another.

A lot of people are really angry at what you have done. Your denials and protestations of innocence does not remove the evidence of the truth. The empty shelves is evidence of the truth.

We demand a reversal of this defamatory slanderous and libellous information spread to Sainsburyıs against us that we are not a fair trader. Why else would Sainsbury's act against us as they did if FTF/ FLO did not intervene and advise them to do so. We want compensation for the financial losses incurred.

If FLO wants to settle these damages now it has every chance to do so. I look forward to a definitive agreement of settlement within two weeks. After that we consider ourselves free to go public and seek justice in the courts or the European council or wherever we will be heard. And we will be heard.

Father Shay Cullen
Founder and President
Preda Foundation
www.preda.org