Dear Mr.,

Perhaps you have never had to face a situation similar to the current one in your long political career., in which you are forced to respond to the society that targets you, as responsible for seven women risking their health, with the consequences that this entails, declaring a hunger strike for aid that has not been collected and the department that you direct, owes them.

First of all, Let me clarify some questions for you., In light of the statements made, the wise advisors who are around him and who prepare his defense arguments, you have not taken into account.

The seven magnificent women who have declared a hunger strike, certainly of different ages and situations, they have some things in common. When they were born and grew up, they learned to crawl not at home, not even in kindergarten, but in a box in the middle of the tomato furrows, developing like this, because there was no other – rain or shine- a close relationship with his parents, imbuing themselves with the values ​​they had: the word is one and an agreement is closed with a handshake, etc.

Probably, they still didn't know how to read. But they had already internalized the culture of effort, They already knew how to milk a goat or go get milk from the stable so they could have breakfast.. At that time there were no supermarkets and most of what you ate had to be grown at home., They respected older people and when they met someone, They asked for his blessing.

They learned the value of land and water as an element of production, and that cost some minister a lot of trouble even in Franco's time; That's part of your DNA..

At the time they were told that to have a future, as a feasibility plan, They had to modernize their farms from producing 10 to 20 kilograms per square meter. And they did, spending €200,000/ha, money that they previously put in (mortgaging everything there was and to have), and his department paid part of the investment made with European funds. Payment that I remind you, to date it has not been carried out, due to more than deficient management of the paying agency.

They also told them that, as a consequence of making those investments, they were going to be paid puna aid per hectare, which ranged from €20,000 the first year, up to €7,000 in the last year, 2014. The first year the government complied with difficulty and with delays. Thereafter, the following has never met the agreed amount. These women believed the government.

The last friday, when you meet with them and tell them that “technically the government doesn't owe you anything and that, at most, What the government has is a moral debt.”, What it has achieved is to inflame spirits more. Then they ask you, who is a man who comes from banking, What type of interest does moral debt have??. Moral and political, ¡uf!. They are two distant concepts. As a general rule, morale is a rather downward value in these times.

They tell us in a low voice that perhaps tomatoes are not a competitive crop and that, In addition, You have only been in this department for a year. 2011, question that is true. But it is also true that you defend and accept at face value what the author of said Plan defends..

If he made a mistake sending people to the abyss of ruin, Why don't you hold the aforementioned accountable??. You, by acting this way, has as much responsibility as him.

You should suggest to the thoughtful advisors who prepare the argument, Let them tread the ground a little more so that they realize what really exists.. Instead of seeing enemies everywhere, what it is about is that you assume what you owe, Say how and when you are going to pay and if next year you will be in the same situation. It's that simple.

Finally, I have to admit that in this conflict, you are at a clear disadvantage, because every day that passes attracts more rejection.

While, These seven brave men have collected in two days, spontaneously, more than 1.500 support signatures; while his government television ignored the news, social networks were burning; while his government denied him the use of public toilets, The residents of the area offered them the bathrooms in their homes; while the 112 I had trouble going, a volunteer doctor and nurse intervened.

Think, Mr. Counselor, that when one of them had to be evacuated to the point of hypoglycemic coma, stiffening of the fingers and stinging all over the body, He only thought about returning to his companions. That fortitude, that moral force, that conviction, that courage, That spirit of sacrifice draws the admiration of society because it is not seen every day.. And attracts affection and solidarity, not only of all the farmers but of all the Canary Islands.

It is my wish that you do not look for ghosts where there are none., but react. Let him go up a step on his scale of values ​​and put himself at the level of these brave women and resolve the situation..

Yours sincerely, Rafael Hernández,

President of COAG Canarias.