Phosphate protesters target NZ company

The Sahawari Government has asked fertiliser company Ravensdown to give it $7 million – the value of the phosphate cargo landed in Napier last Friday.

Either that or turn the ship away from port, Kamal Fadel, a representative from the freedomfighting movement Polisario, said. Both Ballance AgriNutrients and Ravensdown have refused to back down on the controversial trade.

Pressure is mounting on the companies to stop importing phosphate from the Western Sahara. Lobby group Western Sahara Resource Watch says from the beginning of next year the number of importers will fall to only three – New Zealand cooperatives Ballance AgriNutrients, Ravensdown and Paradip of India.

Paradip is a subsidiary of the Moroccan government agency OPC, which is in charge of the phosphate mining operation.

A Ravensdown spokesman said it had a commercial agreement with the suppliers of the phosphate rock, OCP, which had valid title for that shipment.

‘‘This company has demonstrated that it is complying with UN guidelines which apply when dealing with areas such as Western Sahara. ‘‘Rather than asking New Zealand farmers to pay for this essential rock twice, we continue to suggest that activists like the Polisario Front direct their attention to the UN, because this is a complex geopolitical dispute that clearly needs ongoing negotiation,’’ the spokesman said.