To say that ICTSI doesn’t respect workers and their unions is a massive understatement. Honduran dockworkers have suffered major job losses, violence, and militarization of their cargo terminal since ICTSI took over operations at Puerto Cortes in 2013. In March, several Honduran dockworkers traveled to Portland, Oregon, to protest ICTSI’s locking out of union workers after privatizing their home port.
Excerpts from the Philippine Daily Inquirer:
International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), a global ports operator led by billionaire Enrique Razon Jr., is eyeing port deals in North Africa as it continues to bet on fast-growing emerging markets in the continent, a company official said last week.
Fernando Gaspar, ICTSI senior vice president and chief administration officer, said that the group was focused on opportunities in Africa, even as it prequalified for port deals in Greece and Israel.
“Africa is coming up right now. We want to do in Africa over the next few years what we have done in Latin America over the last seven years,” Gaspar said on the sidelines of the Asean Business Awards.