The Fruit Exporters Association of Chile AG (Asoex), SalmonChile, the National Confederation of Cargo Transport, ChileTransportes and the Association of Entrepreneurs from Chile demanded that the government authorities end the nine-days customs' strike.
The representatives agreed that, even though the customs officials were making a legitimate demand, the conflict was obviously hurting the export sector as it was losing perishable products (salmon and fresh fruit) and it was seriously affecting their image, credibility, trust, and customers, which ultimately would be very difficult to recover and would result in a loss of competitiveness for Chile as a provider.
"We have to understand that the solutions that have been raised previously have been implemented without thinking about the long-term, there hasn't been a fundamental solution, rooted in an institutional framework that can ensure continuity to certain services that are fundamental to the country's economy and development. It's not fair that the mistakes from the authorities have to be absorbed by the private sector. It is time we roll up our sleeves and work together to find long-term solutions," said the president of Asoex, Ronald Bown. He also stated they needed to implement a system to resolve disputes, agreed by all parties, in order to find solutions to such conflicts.
Meanwhile, Mauricio Perrot, president of ChileTransportes, said: "It is urgent to find a solution to this strike. It's very important that the Government becomes aware of how much our country's trade has increased trade in the last 30 years. This should serve so that we have a Customs service that is at the level of our country's current major international trade, so we don't continue to risk our reputation in global markets."
"As the conflict drags on, we lose manoeuvrability. This means we can not harvest our fish and that can cause serious health risks that may affect the credibility of our business," said Carlos Vial, vice president of SalmonChile .
Meanwhile, Juan Pablo Swett, president of the Association of Entrepreneurs of Chile, invited the Minister of Finance to chip in to solve the conflict as soon as possible. "Today we are asking the Government to pay the historical debt owed to workers in the customs service because a modern country requires modern customs".
Finally, the President of the CNTC, Sergio Perez, stated there were truck drivers that had been detained since the conflict began, and were unable to meet commitments. Meanwhile, Jose Egidio, a representative of the same entity, empathized with the human factor of the conflict, noting that the drivers trapped in the borders by the strike had no access to basic services or adequate food.