The dramatic resignation of virtually the entire leadership of the National Council of the Irish Farmers Association last night shortly after it agreed to instruct its members to remove the blockades on meat factories, may not bring an end to the blockades.
The IFA's press officer, Mr Derek Cunningham, denied that the action was a legal ploy to avoid penal fines imposed by the High Court.
However, early today pickets were still in place at a number of plants including Kildare Chilling and in Roscrea. An IFA picket at Ballaghaderreen Dawn meat plant withdrew at midnight, but local farmers returned to the factory half an hour later. More than 50 farmers were reported to be still picketing at 2 a.m.
Talks scheduled to take place early today at the Department of Agriculture and Food are not expected to resume because, according to the IFA, it would have difficulty in finding personnel to take part.
Earlier yesterday, a High Court judge had increased the penalty from £100,000 a day to an unprecedented £500,000 from today for breaching the injunction by continuing the action.
The tense meeting of the 68member national council of the IFA in the face of financial ruin and having its assets sequestered take began at around 8 p.m. last night in the Killeshin Hotel, Portlaoise.
Some 2 1/2 hours later, Mr Tom Parlon, the IFA president, emerged from meeting to tell waiting journalists that he had resigned as president of the organisation. "The National Council has decided it will comply with the court order in full and I cannot go along with that decision. I have tendered my resignation," he said.
When asked if the picketing would continue, Mr Parlon said he could no longer speak as president of the IFA and repeated that he had resigned because he disagreed with the decision.
However, as he hurried from the hotel, it emerged that all of the remaining members of the National Executive, with the exception of three key personnel, had also resigned.
A statement handed to the press said: "The National Council of the Irish Farmers' Association have decided to obey the orders made by the High Court today. After this decision, Mr Tom Parlon resigned as President of the IFA. The entire council of the IFA also resigned, except for the general secretary, national treasurer and returning officer.
"The general secretary, national treasurer and the returning officer will remain in place and carry out their duties in view of the High Court sequestration order," the statement concluded.
The media was told that counsel for the organisation would be in court later today to state its compliance with the court order that its members, officers or staff would not protest or encourage protest or a breach of the orders made by the court.
It also emerged that the organisation will tender its apologies to the court expressing regret at breaches of the orders made by Mr Justice O'Donovan.
Earlier in the High Court, Mr Justice O'Donovan ordered that the IFA pay a daily fine of £500,000 immediately, beginning today, if it continued to blockade meat plants.
He warned the IFA that he would continue to "impose fines until it hurt" if the action continued and appointed an accountant as sequestrator over the assets of the IFA and ordered it to disclose its assets within two days.
He also warned the IFA that if it continued to disobey the court, he would give liberty to counsel for the meat plants to apply to the court later in the week for a review of the fines.