Malawi to Kick Out 'Tobacco Barons'

Source from:  Morning Star 09/15/2009

Malawi has threatened to boot out Western "tobacco colonialists" who exploit small farmers by failing to buy the crop at the government's new minimum price. On Tuesday, President Bingu wa Mutharika's administration expelled tobacco merchants Kelvin Stainton, Bertie van der Merwe, Collins Armstrong and Alex Mackay for committing "economic sabotage." All four men work for US and Brazilian firms that purchase the leaf for some of the world's biggest cigarette manufacturers. In a special address to the nation, Mr Mutharika branded the men "tobacco colonialists" who "connived to deliberately frustrate the policy of this government to improve the welfare of our people through better prices of tobacco." "They have been sabotaging the Malawi economy and have been harming the very people who grow tobacco for them to buy," he stormed. The 30,000 smallholder farmers who produce Malawi's tobacco spend at least 70p to produce one kilogram, but buyers were offering less than 60p per kilo. Since winning May elections, Mr Mutharika has decreed that the minimum price for burley tobacco should be £1.28 per kilogram. However, some buyers have ignored the decree, paying between 42p and £1.14, according to the government. Mr Mutharika said that poor small-holder farmers in Malawi "have remained poor because they are cheated by an international cartel that connives to buy our tobacco at exploitative prices and yet they sell the same tobacco at huge profits in their countries." Over 80 per cent of Malawians are directly or indirectly employed by the tobacco industry, which contributes up to 30 per cent of the country's GDP and at least 23 per cent of all tax collections. The Malawian premier warned "all tobacco buyers that any company that deliberately seeks to cheat the people of Malawi and ignore the agreed prices of tobacco and any similar commodity will be dealt with accordingly." He declared that "anyone sabotaging our economy is an enemy of the people of Malawi and does not deserve to be in this country." Last year, Malawi sold 194 million kilograms of leaf, earning £283 million. Enditem