COOPERS PEN, Trelawny — Nearly 100 vendors of the Bamboo Village Craft market here, are planning to appeal a Supreme Court order to vacate the property at the request of the Kingston-based Jamaica Redevelopment Foundation.

To make their point, the displaced vendors who trade their craft items on the premises adjoining the Breezes Trelawny, formerly the Starfish Resort, yesterday morning staged a peaceful demonstration on the premises on turning up to find the gates padlocked.

Melody Haughton, president of the National Craft Vendors and Producers Association said the 82 craft vendors, some of whom have occupied the property since 1974, have been unfairly treated as they have been locked in a legal battle for possession of the land for the past two years.

According to Haughton, the vendors were awarded possession of the land, twice.

However on March 2 the Supreme Court handed down judgment in favour of the JRF.

The order stayed for 42 days.

” We have been given notice to come off the land but went to court on three occasions and won twice on the third time there was a judgment against us but we have appealed this decision,” Haughton told the Observer West.

Yesterday, a JRF representative displayed documentation illustrating that the court had ruled in its favour.

The Observer West was told that two years ago, the JRF acquired the parcel of land from FINSAC, the Financial Adjustment Company.

A strong contingent of police, headed by Deputy Superintendent Alanzo Meadley maintained calm among the vendors.

Meanwhile, Garth Wilkinson, the Peoples National Party (PNP) Councillor for the Falmouth division explained that so far North Trelawny MP Dr Patrick Harris has been unsuccessful in his bid to secure a suitable relocation site for the vendors, pending their appeal.