belize times september 21, 2014

The Belize TimesThe Truth Shall Make You Free

Established 1957

SCAN HERE

Pg. 4

PUP serious about Change & Reform

UDP sells underwater lots

Bold Leadership!

8 SHOT, 3 DEAD IN ONE DAY

PUP Leader Hon. Francis Fonseca and Chair-man Henry C. Usher at media briefing follow-ing Wednesday’s National Executive meeting

IMF says economic future is “worse” than predicted

21 SEPTEMBER 2014 | ISSUE NO: 4913 www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00

Pg. 9

Belize City, September 17, 2014Today, Hon. Francis Fonseca demon-

strated that under his leadership it will not be business as usual for the Peo-ple’s United Party.

At a meeting held this afternoon at Independence Hall, PUP Headquarters, the National Executive supported the Party Leader’s decision to remove Ar-thur Saldivar as the Standard Bearer for Belize Rural North division.

It was a difficult but decisive and necessary move. No Party would delib-erately remove an elected candidate, but in the circumstances that Saldivar finds himself, it was prudent to act. Saldivar has come under heavy public scrutiny over multiple allegations of wrongdo-

Pg. 3

Pg. 6John Avilez Cyril Mcfoy

Pg. 10Pegs marking subdivided lots sold away by the UDP were discovered

by concern residents

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Belize City, Septem-ber 18, 2014

Violent crime erupt-ed in the poverty-filled Belize City on Wednes-day with four separate shooting incidents that resulted in eight people being injured and three killed.

It started around 2:00 in the afternoon, at the corner of Dean Street and Euphrates Avenue, next to the St. Ignatius Primary School and near the St. Igna-tius Church. A group of men were in a yard

THE BELIZE TIMES 21 SEP2014 202

Continued on page 26

The National Colonial

Museum????

Silvaana Udz supports use of Garifuna language in

public spaces

OPINIONOUT OUT

!!

Dear Belizeans,The proposed Na-

tional Colonial Mu-seum by the govern-ment is mentally sick.

It is a retrograde, racist and dis-turbing development. I urge the President of NICH, the directors of ISCR, and Archaeology to take a public stand against such a wasteful and disrespectful regal minded program.

I suggest that some of that $14 million be spent on renovat-ing the historic Liberty Hall on Barrack Road and convert it to a modern Museum of African her-itage with a component for tech-nology so that youths can engage in productive acts of creativity.

And instead of blowing away all the money in Belize City, I pro-pose that a Museum of Natural History and Botanical Garden be built in Belmopan near the Uni-versity and George Price Center so that citizens, students and tourists too can experience the scientific knowledge about this land.

Also I suggest investments be made in grassroots recording studios and have the youths in-volved in the “robust community, oral history program.”

Finally I call on the opposition to reject this project for its rank disrespect to our resistance her-itage.

Yasser Musaartist

To: EditorBelize Times News-

paper Please allow me to

publicly express sup-port to the use of Garifuna and oth-er local languages in public spaces. Above all, right now, kwik, fast and hurry—APOLOGIZE! Yes, you, First Caribbean Bank … you who have, admittedly, sponsored numbers of Kriol, Garifuna, and other local cultural functions in the 17 or so territories you operate in. But that just does not matter anymore. Why did you allow this linguistic hurri-cane to bubble and boil from what, perhaps up until your reaction you could have handled with far more sensitivity, humility, and, well, just good manners, man! You see, me, Silvaana Maree Udz (nee Woods), avid radio, newspaper, and local TV news viewer, can only critically re-spond to media reports, as I was not in Ms. Martinez’s shoes when you—First Caribbean Bank—were threading upon her dignity as a human being and when you were mashing up her right—her inalien-able, fundamental, constitutional right—to use her language in pub-lic spaces. At the very, very least, publicly apologize to Ms. Martinez, to the Garifuna community, and to ALL Belizeans. Whether or not you feel culpable, or whether or not you feel protected by your own self-acclaimed inadequately-de-fined language policy, the reality is you have, whether advertently or

serving Belize since 1957 as the longest continuous newspaper.

Founder: Rt. Hon. George Cadle Price, People’s United Party Leader Emeritus

EDITOR

Alberto Vellos

LAYOUT/GRAPHIC ARTIST

Chris Williams

OFFICE ASSISTANT

Roberto Peyrefitte

Printed and Published ByTIMES NEWSPAPER LTD.

Tel: 671-8385#3 Queen StreetP.O. BOX 506

Belize City, BelizeEmail: [email protected]

[email protected]

The Belize TimesThe Truth Shall Make You Free

Established 1957

14 APR 2013 | ISSUE NO: 4840 www.belizetimes.bz | $1.00

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6 Feb

LOCAL WEATHER26 Mar 27 Mar23 Sep 24 Sep22 Sep21 Aug20 Aug19 Aug

not, hurt us. Not just “us” as your Belizean clients, but “us” as your Caribbean folk.

In January 2011, the Charter of Caribbean Language Rights was ratified at a historic meeting in Jamaica that culminated sever-al months of pre-work by regional subcommittee members. The 2011 Charter on Caribbean Language Rights established this fundamen-tal right to use one’s local and terri-torial languages in any public space as critical to the furtherance of democratic societies. It was signed unto on January 14, 2011 by three Belizean educators: Sir Colville Young, Belize’s foremost linguist; Dr. Rosalind Bradley, the then Lit-eracy director at the Ministry of Ed-ucation’s Literacy Unit, and by Dr. Silvaana Udz of the National Kriol Council. The Charter is promoted through the International Center for Caribbean Language Rights head-quartered at UWI, MONA campus. The Charter draws on several UNE-SCO position statements in its call to have governments of the region create the enabling environment for establishing translation and oth-er such mechanisms in organiza-tions, companies, and forums that deal with health and hospitals, eco-nomic and financial transactions, political representation and discus-sion in the national assembly, and in cultural, educational, and other similar life processes. For more, go directly to:<http://sta.uwi.edu/fhe/dmll/documents/CARIBBEANLAN-GUAGECharter.pdf>

So, this is my visceral reaction to the “rokshan” First Caribbean Bank has been causing in the minds and hearts of all Belizeans. Yes, the incident that sparked the ever sim-mering bubbling and boiling kettle of language and racial discrimina-tion in Belize (“Who me? Racist? Luk ya, I have Black friends.”) Right. Like window dressing. Belize’s two traditional Black groups, Garifuna and Kriol, have been locked in an intimate dance of self discovery over the decades, and, check this: if out of the total disrespect and arrogance displayed by First Carib-bean Bank in its response to what has emerged as clear-cut language discrimination against at least one employee (ok, allow me to be judge and jury here: I trust that Sandra Miranda, Roy Cayetano, Myrtle and all mi other Garifuna brethren and sistren already don check out di hu-man rights violation information).

And di irony of it all … if I never know better, I would think that with

a name like First Caribbean, such a bank would embrace all things Ca-ribbean. But, they are based in Bar-bados ... so what else could one expect? (Ok, forgive that barb, my Bajan brethren and sistren … but , really, “dehn noh kaal unu “Little En-gland” fu notn!”

The Dickie B. TV show of Mon-day Sept. 15, 2014, amplified some of the details of the incident regard-ing language discrimination, vis-à-vis Garifuna use by an employee at a First Caribbean Bank in Belize. “Disrespect and arrogance … This is a socio-political issue” said Mr. Swaso, who is also the current may-or of Dangriga. “This is a national is-sue,” he reiterated. I certainly agree. Garifuna language da fu aal a wi; and eevn if we noh talk it, we dance to it, sing to it, love and laugh to it and sway eena St. Martin de Porres Church to the “Our Father” in Gari-funa as we hold hands with our Gar-ifuna brothers and sisters. And, on the same show, Sandra Miranda of the National Garifuna Council, spoke of the rational approach being taken to deal with this critically important issue to our national identify. Each cultural spoke makes up the Beliz-ean wheel of life. As Miranda noted, “action points are developing … no divide and conquer.” She spoke of a coalition of Belizeans (count me in!) as “we won’t win the battle indi-vidually.” And Miranda clearly is not governed only by her rational mind on this issue; she also worked with the late, great patriot, Hon. Philip Goldson, so we know her heart is engaged too.

I feel so strongly about this is-sue because it impacts ALL of us in

THE BELIZE TIMES21 SEP 2014 3 03

Francis Fonseca

TARGET: THE BAR

WOMAN HATERS

By Norris HallSeptember, 16th 2014

Belize’s Prime Minister is now poised to de-liver yet another body-blow to the ribcage of the country’s democracy .This move is yet another indication that he is chipping away at freedoms which are guaranteed by the Constitution of Be-lize.

The PM is in a hurry to take advantage of his dwindling power base in the Legislature to introduce a Bill that could dismantle one of his powerful adversaries, the Belize Bar Associa-tion-an independent group of professional Attor-neys spanning the national political spectrum. It is likely that he will be able to slide this Bill through the Legislature with his slim majority and with the full support of his voiceless min-ions who cow-tow to him in his over-sized Cabi-net. With no back-benchers, he doesn’t have to worry about anyone reining them in.

The Prime Minister has the full support of his Attorney General and Foreign Minister who carries an inexplicable heavy chip like a log on his shoulder and a serious grudge against the Bar Association for calling him out for his For-eign Affairs bloopers and for his incompetence as Attorney General.

The Bar Association has been very vocal about the PM’s subtle moves in slowly eroding the Constitution of Belize and for not adhering to the fundamental principles that have been en-shrined therein. This includes his not-so subtle moves of tampering with the Judiciary. This is no longer an independent pillar of the Belize Consti-tution. The Prime Minister continues to interfere

in every branch of the government. There is no separation of powers.

Recently the Bar Association took serious issue when the PM circum-vented the function of the Public Ser-vices Commission, a toothless body in any case, and elevated a Judge, who has shown serious shortcomings, to the Court of Appeals. This Judge, only days before, had made a ruling from the bench of the Supreme Court, in favour of the government. This same Judge has also been criticized by the Bar and the Caribbean Court of Jus-tice, for his flagrant display of incom-petence and his long delays in handing down his judgements, sometimes for years, while accused persons languish in prison. The Bar has taken-up this is-sue and other discrepancies and dis-play of incompetence by this Judge with the PM and the AG before he was elevated.

There are now two out of three Judges on the Court of Appeals, who have been handpicked by the Prime Minister. Picture a snowball in Hell. A case against the government has less of a chance.

The AG in his role as Foreign Minister also has a number of diplomatic bloopers under his belt. He has been criticized by the President of the Bar Association, a former For-eign Affairs Minister, and collectively by the Bar As-sociation, for his blunders in this arena, including the delicate issue of the bor-der problem with Guate-mala.

The government has

not yet told us that Guatemala has reneged on its commitment for a referendum by the two countries, Belize and Guatemala, on whether or not this matter should be taken to in International Court of Justice. This has prompted an Opposition repre-sentative to describe Guatemala as “a serial killer of agreements”.

Recently Belize’s Foreign Min-ister launched an undiplomatic ti-rade against the United States government accusing them, of among other things “internation-al high-handedness” in an up close and personal diatribe in defence of his youngest brother, who is a fugi-tive from justice. He is wanted in the United States to answer allegations of medical fraud for which he has not yet been charged.

In moving to dismantle the pow-erful Bar Association, the Prime Min-ister is signaling that he objects to dissenting voices from within and without his Administration. Opposi-tion political parties could be next.

Punta Gorda Town, September 17, 201429 year old Constable Marvin died in a

traffic collision between miles 3 and 4 on the Southern Highway, just outside of Forest Home Village.

Around 7:30 this morning, Sedacey was driving his brown-in-colour Ford Escort car when it slammed into a Freight truck which was incoming from the opposite direction.

Sedacey, who is a resident of Cattle Land-ing, died instantly, as the impact crushed the entire front of the vehicle.

Sedacey was the only passenger in the ve-hicle. He had reportedly left from a wake that morning before.

Police Office dies in collision

Marvin Sedacey


The People’s United Party greets all Belizeans on the 33rd Anniversary of

Belize’s Independence

Officer Down!

0404

THE ROAD TO INDEPENDENCE: HAPPY 33rd BELIZE!!

on the

By Francis W. FonsecaArtist and Historian

Yasser Musa recent-ly shared a publication entitled: “The Road to Independence” which was published at the time of Belize’s Inde-pendence in 1981.

I have read it before but reading it again was inspiring and en-lightening.

It reminds us of the courageous, bold and uncertain path Belize took to Independence

guided by our great leader and Father of the Nation George Price.

But as George Price always remind-ed us, we must never forget that it was the great People’s United Party and its mem-bers and supporters who served as the vehicle to take us on the road to Indepen-dence.

The PUP provided the support structure

for Mr. Price to carry out his life’s work.

It was the phi-losophy and core values of the PUP grounded in social justice which served as the foundation for Belize’s Indepen-dence movement.

It was the PUP’s commitment to na-tional development, unity and respect for all cultures that forged the birth of our new nation in

1981.George Price was a

humble, compassionate and thoughtful leader who was deeply committed to equity and justice for all Belizeans.

We must always be proud of our great leader and our great Party.

The PUP has a proud and glorious history and legacy of creating the na-tion-state of Belize.

The PUP is on the rise again. We will build on that proud legacy of the past and chart a new course on the road to a more pros-perous and just nation.

HAPPY INDEPEN-DENCE DAY!!

FELIZ DIA DE NUES-TRA INDEPENDENCIA A TODOS EN NUESTRO PAIZ!

THE BELIZE TIMES21 SEP 2014 5

Francis and the New Belizean Revolution!

05

EDITORIAL

The Hon. Francis Fonseca has worked close with the nation’s foremost icon, George Price, long enough for many of the great leader’s traits to have been transferred. Dedication to serve the Belizean people with humility is among them.

You will never hear him beating his chest or boasting of accomplishments. Yet he is the one that took over the leadership of the P.U.P. from those tumultuous times of infighting and undermining and led the party to an amazing come-back from 4 seats to 14 seats in an incredible display during the 2012 general elections which was a P.U.P. victory were it not for the worst kind of political treachery.

With typical low-key fanfare, he re-committed the P.U.P. to its core value of social justice at a time when poverty has reached scandalous proportions of near fifty percent and unemployment is a social and economic scourge. The U.D.P. has brought the proud people of Belize to a diet of nutritionless Ramen noodles and a life of begging, with handouts as the order of the day. The private sector is flat on its back struggling to survive and the economy is gasping for breath. A sick and aging Prime Minister has been swallowed by his own outsized ego and is embarked on sacrificing the good of the country for a third term in office. We live in the worst of times. Worse than that, there is no future in sight and there is no hope available to the nation.

Unless there is a change of Government and a new vision to take our people upward and our country forward.

It was inspiring to hear him say recently that targeted to go, come a change of Government, will be the power of Ministers. Ministerial authority will be diluted and Ministerial discretion will be severely constrained. This is practically a revolution in how Government in Belize will be administered. It will open up the clustered offices of mismanagement, Ministerial abuses and make accountability and transparency more manifest. This is a bold and far reaching insight in how to bring about meaningful change in a Government structure that has gone array.

Indeed, Hon. Francis Fonseca has let it be known that he is considering removing the sole authority of any Prime Minister to appoint the Chief Justice and Judges of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. There would be a vetting process by the Judicial Commission and a short listing with recommendations from the Advisory Council to the Leaders of both parties or the National Assembly, for approval.

Having seen the havoc and degrading of the Judiciary under the current Prime Minister, any improvements and reform to the appointment process must be welcomed. Not only must the Judiciary be independent, it must be seen by citizens to be independent.

Speaking of reform, the policy commitment of the Party Leader is for experienced Union Leaders and former C.E.O.s to steer a working Commission which will oversee a modern and progressive public service equipped for a new challenge of a new Belize.

The Social Security Board, which collects from employers and employees, will see an overall increase in all benefits to all contributors to the scheme, and a restoration of the non-con-tributory benefits to unfortunate senior citizens struggling with help from no one. Hon. Francis has also committed to expanding the National Health Insurance (NHI) to every nook and cranny of the country. This is a progressive step forward and it dove- tails with the commitment to social justice for all Belizeans.

It is important to remind a younger generation, disillusioned by six debilitating years of this current mediocre and stagnant government, whose signal achievement is self-enrichment from tax-payers money; that it was the P.U.P. that fought for indepen-dence, introduced an outstanding human rights Constitution, and protected our sovereignty and territorial integrity. The PUP had the vision to build Belmopan, introduced Social Security benefits for workers and brought about the University of Belize, among many other major achievements.

Agriculture is to take its pride of place as the foundation and backbone of the country, and the PUP Government will restore the sector by working with and directly helping and supporting the hardworking farmers who have been abused, neglected and cast aside for the rich by the UDP Government.

Francis is already on record that education at all levels will be free for our young people, as the single most important engine for the development of the country. Release the talents and capa-bilities of our young people as he puts it. He has admitted time and time again, that he is the product of education. The man holds University Degrees in Economics and in Law. His father was an outstanding educator. No one can be more committed than Francis to full- throttle education and skills training for our people. This is an absolute revolutionary undertaking and needs to be trumpeted across the length and breadth of Belize.

But here is the biggie. This young man has been thinking and talking of a new vision for our people. Having been around George Price all those years and having lived to see Mr. Price bring about political independence, Francis Fonseca is forging a vision for economic independence. Belizeans deserve a better life. Belizeans can achieve a higher living standard. Thousands of Belizeans can defeat poverty and be gainfully employed. This is what our people want. This is what our people deserve.

The very idea of charting a viable strategy to achieve econom-ic independence should be the battle cry of the People’s United Party. And who better to lead that charge and inspire our people that better will come.

As we pay tribute to the passing of our great leader George Price this Friday 19th September and celebrate his fulfilled dream of political independence on 21st September, let us re-solve in his name and with his Party that with our leader and the support of the people we now commence the journey to economic independence for all Belizeans and for our beloved Belize. Que Viva George Price! Que Viva Francis Fonseca! Que Viva Belize!


Unemployment on “upward trend”

IMF says economic future is “worse” than predicted

Belize City, September 15, 2014The International Monetary Fund has

sounded a loud alarm on Belize’s economic future.

Following the conclusion of the Article IV consultation with Belize, the IMF has said that the medium-term outlook for economic growth for Belize is “is worse than envis-aged” and that real gross domestic product (GDP) growth would be weaker than antici-pated in the near term.

The IMF’s warning comes just weeks after Prime Minister Dean Barrow was beat-ing his chest, proclaiming that his Govern-ment is steering the country out of rough waters. The first financial quarter of the year (January to March) had seen the economy shrivel, with Gross Domestic Product at 0.4%. The second quarter (April to June) saw improved conditions, according to the Government, as GDP was reportedly 8.7%. But economic analysts have questioned the veracity of purported economic growth, in-dicating that it might reflect Government’s infusion of funds into one small sector of the economy.

The latter argument supports IMF’s most recent analysis of Belize’s economy. It noted that the main sectors of the econo-my: oil production, sugarcane and citrus are

weaker. The IMF pointed out that the unem-ployment rate, now at 14.2 is on an upward trend.

The IMF continued to express con-cerns over the banking system, noting that while the banks continue with millions in capital funds and declining non-performing loans (NPLs), the risk exposure to the NPL remained high at 16.7% of total loans at end of March 2014.

The IMF also warned that low primary surpluses together with the assumed rec-ognition of debt related to nationalizations (over $600m owed for the Belize Telemedia and Belize Electricity Limited takeovers) will increase the public debt-to-GDP ratio. This fact is ignored by the Prime Minister.

It said also that expansionary fiscal poli-cies, including large wage increases, would fuel higher domestic consumption and up-ward pressures on the external current ac-count deficit. International reserves could decline substantially over the medium term, especially if compensation for the national-ized companies adds to external outflows.

The IMF said that the economy will re-main in rough waters.

“Real GDP growth would be weaker than expected in the near term but hover around 2.5 per cent over the medium term”.

Press Office Vehicle Crashed

Belize City, September 10, 2014

The UDP have tried their best to hide an incident in which a Government Press Office vehicle ended up be-ing crashed into a lamppost at the entrance of the George Price highway. UDP cronies have been abusing resourc-es, with no intervention from their Government superiors and little exposure from the so called “independent” me-dia houses.

Alcohol and careless driv-ing seems to have been the reasons why this latest inci-dent occurred. Information to the BELIZE TIMES is that UDP crony, Fortunato Noble, was

behind the wheels. Noble used the vehicle as if it were his personal ride.

According to reports, Noble had been out late that night and when entering the city he veered into the lamp-post.

In quick fashion other UDP cronies arrived to clean up the mess before the Police showed up. We are told they quickly removed the license plate from the vehicle and got Noble away from the scene.

The vehicle accident was also not reported by the Po-lice. Luckily at the scene were Belizeans who are tired of the UDP’s abuses and they snapped photos of the crash.

Fortunato Noble


Youth Revolution RallyPUP CAYO WEST

Hundreds of young people turned out to support Cayo West youth rally, in support of Dr. Lesbia Guerra Cocom

Said underscores the need for better education

Members of the PUP town council slate and Dra. Lesbia Guerra-Cocom

Deputy Leader Hon. Julius Espat speaks about Change & Reform in the PUP

Belize Youth Movement leaders & Cayo West youth leaders commit to making young people a priority for the PUP

PUP Deputy Leader Cayo South Area Rep. Hon. Julius Espat, Collet Standard Bearer-designate Micah Goodin, Cayo North East Standard

Bearer Orlando Habet, Western Caucus Campaign Manager Victor Espat, Cayo West Standard Bearer Dr. Lesbia Guerra Cocom, Western

Caucus Chairman Rafael Guerra Jr. & Western Caucus Communications Director Vaughan Gill


– Freetown’s Mr. Quitar?

WOMAN IN THE HOUSE

GENDER VIOLENCE AND IMPUNITY

By Dolores Balderamos Garcia

Everybody and their brother knows by now that Education Minister and Member for Collet

Hon. Patrick Faber has been involved in another incident of violence towards women. It was a pretty shocking report that began to surface last week-end. I learned about it after church, since word had begun to make the rounds of what had allegedly occurred at the Lord’s Bank home of Faber at a birth-day party for a girlfriend of his who works in the Ministry of Education.

I call the incident one of gender or gender-based vio-lence. I believe that the term domestic violence sometimes does not capture the true na-ture of this pernicious and con-

tinuing problem in all societies. Nowadays we are hearing of the most horrendous incidents of vio-lence against women in countries like Afganistan and Syria. Even the emerging Islamic State ter-rorists are said to kidnap and rape women and girls and use them as objects to be traded. Boko Haram rebels in Nigeria have kidnapped hundreds of girl children, with late and little response from national authorities and the international community.

Anita Zetina explained gen-der violence very incisively years ago. She said that the man who has been out late and drinking does not beat up the person on street on his way home to take out his possible frustrations, but he may not hesitate to take out

the same frustrations on his wife or woman once he is behind the closed doors of his house, because the demonstration and execution of his violence is gender based. It is against his intimate and many times weaker partner that the hand or fist starts to fly. Gender violence is a crime and is NOT a private matter.

When you put this together with the impunity that the Barrow gov-ernment Ministers seemingly enjoy because their boss will not disci-pline them and Police are afraid, it has in Faber’s case become a dead-ly mixture. In earlier Woman in the House pieces I have written about the conduct of persons in high of-fice, and I have lamented the fact that the Prime Minister has refused to act to signal unequivocally that bad behavior will not be tolerated. Instead he has cosseted and shield-ed his ill behaved Cabinet members in the hope that people’s memories will be short.

Police Press officer Martinez has made a fool of himself in say-ing that the report by Ms. Polanco does not exist because it was with-drawn. To address this briefly, a per-son makes a REPORT to the Police AND lodges a COMPLAINT saying that he or she would like Police and court action. If the complaint is lat-er withdrawn that does NOT mean that the report was withdrawn and thus does not exist. It is still there, and the Police are mandated to in-

vestigate and charge. It is too obvious in Faber’s

case that the Police are not act-ing because it is a Minister who is involved. And what would we expect Ms. Polanco to do, thinking as she must have that she wanted a job to return to on Monday morning, since she works in Faber’s Ministry. I re-peat – this is pernicious to the highest degree, and we must condemn it in the strongest terms.

The Special Envoy for Wom-en put out a release that said all the right things related to gender violence, but that is not enough. Her husband, the Prime Minister, must act to dis-cipline Faber and to show that this wicked misbehavior will not be condoned. The Police too must do their jobs without fear or favor. Most of all, Faber must butt out of influencing the Police not to investigate. In his press interview he tried, as we would say, “to bad it out,” but we as Belizeans have to stand togeth-er in making it plain that gender based violence and misconduct are completely unacceptable. Faber should resign and also seek professional intervention if he cannot control himself in terms of alcohol consumption and violent conduct towards women.


Continued from page 7

PUP serious about Change & Reform

Bold Leadership!ing. These allegations involve Saldivar and clients he has rep-resented or persons involved in legal matters with him. The public, tired of the blatant and multiple acts of cover up of cor-rupt act after corrupt act under the current UDP Government, is holding the Opposition PUP to higher standards.

The PUP Leader heard the concerns of people and on Au-gust 27th, with the support of the National Executive, he com-missioned a team led by Party Chairman, Henry C. Usher, to investigate the allegations and present their findings at a meet-ing on September 17th.

The investigation committee travelled and met with various parties, including Saldivar and the PUP Belize Rural North Ex-

Continued from page 1 ecutive Committee and compiled its report. Today, following a dis-cussion of the report’s findings and the circumstances surround-ing the allegations against Saldivar and the far-reaching implications on the Party’s real commitment to change and reform, the National Executive concluded that the re-moval is the best decision.

The PUP will now revisit the process of identifying a suitable standard bearer for Belize Rural North. Chairman Henry Usher has been tasked with the respon-sibility of getting the PUP mov-ing forward in the division which is considered by many a PUP stronghold.

While the PUP has made bold moves to demonstrate that it is se-rious about changing the paradigm of politics as we know it today, the UDP is hell bent on shoving a

pitiful, embattled, scandal-ridden and hustling politician, Edmond Castro, on the good people of Belize Rural North.

Since 2010, Castro has been embroiled in major scandals. He was kicked out of Cabinet that year after an American woman showed Prime Minister Dean Barrow that she had paid tens of thousands of dollars to Castro for lands he never provided. Castro sneaked his way back into poli-tics and became the UDP’s stan-dard bearer despite the scandal. He won the 2012 elections and was appointed a Minister of State, but continued to fall into disgrace. Last year, upon an of-ficial visit to Taiwan, Castro was accused of sexual assault by his official Taiwanese chaperone. Tai-wan officials launched an official complaint to Belize’s Ministry of

Foreign Affairs, but the incident was played down to save Cas-tro’s skin. But Castro cannot stay out of hot water, and this year the BELIZE TIMES broke the case of Castro’s barefaced hus-tling of Government monies at the Belize Airport Authority. The BELIZE TIMES published copies of cheques that showed that Castro had been collecting mon-ies for his personal and political business.

Castro, in a shameless at-tempt to defend himself, claimed that he was a “poor man” who turned to public’s finances for help.

While Prime Minister Barrow removed the portfolio of the Air-port Authority, Castro continues as a Minister of State and is still involved in Government busi-ness.

There is a real difference be-tween the PUP under Hon. Fran-cis Fonseca and the UDP under Dean Barrow. Belizeans will be the ones to judge which one just talks the talk and which one has proven to walk the walk. Francis has shown bold leadership for Belize.


VEGAS COME UP AGAIN!

Espats will join UDP ranksIMAGINE THE DESPERATION

Lee Mark Chang

Pic.

cou

rtesy

San

Ped

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un

UDP sells underwater lotsSan Pedro, Ambergris Caye, Sep-tember 15, 2014

San Pedro residents are dis-gusted at the UDP Administration’s latest desperate political gimmick of selling out land submerged un-der sea water for votes.

The BELIZE TIMES has con-firmed that through the office of the Area Representative the UDP Gov-ernment has been collecting $500 for each parcel of land which has been sold to prospective landown-ers. The major problem is that unbe-known to the buyers, the lands are below sea water, in an area known as “Los Bajos” located four miles north of the island.

This latest scandal was exposed this week by concerned residents who spotted subdivision pegs and called out the media’s attention. Now that is has been exposed, the scandal threatens to sink the UDP’s plans.

40 acres have been proposed for this strange underwater subdi-vision. Pegs can be found along the mangrove area, marking where the plots of land have been carved out. One plot was even seen already fenced.

Environmentalists up in armsT0he Government has now

come under heavy fire from ma-rine conservationists who have re-vealed that the area being used for the subdivision was designated as a protected area.

This designation has been sit-ting before Prime Minister Dean Barrow and his Cabinet Ministers for the past three years. Now we can understand why there has been a delay, or perhaps intentional blocking.

Elito Arceo, the former Presi-dent of the ACCSP, explained that the protected area would fall un-der the Hol Chan Marine Reserve. Arceo’s organisation had also ap-plied for “PACT grants” to assist in co-managing the area, but the appli-cation was denied. Of course, these grants would have come through the Ministry of Environment, which has shown signs of strong environ-mental insensitivity.

More oppositionLocal fisherfolk were shocked

at the revelation of the UDP Gov-ernment’s land sale. The fisherfolk favor the area for sports fishing. Fisherman, Omar Arceo, said the Government plans would kill the natural habitat. He explained that the area is a hatchery for all types of fish.

Whose grand idea?Following the spark of outrage

that followed the media coverage of the underwater lots, no one has owned up this imprudent plan. San Pedro Mayor Daniel Guerrero dis-tanced himself, although he hardly knows what’s happening on the is-land anyway.

The fact that the lands have been subdivided points that the Ministry of Natural Resources is involved. The substanti-ated reports that mon-ies have been paid to the Area Representative’s of-fice indicates that Manuel Herredia is fully aware of what’s taking place. That the environmental group’s attempts to protect the area from this same type of reckless development have been ignored is also proof that the Ministry of Environment has some-thing to do with it.


VACANCYFOR

LEGAL SECRETARY/PARALEGAL

Qualifications and Experience:

• Secretarial experience with Paralegal Certificate• Applicants with over five years relevant experience will also be con-

sidered• Computer literate

Salary: Negotiable and dependent on experience and qualifications

Interested candidates must be a highly motivated team player with initiative, flexibility and excellent communication skills. Must have the ability to organize their workload with particular attention to detail. Should be able to operate in a busy environment and meet deadlines.

Closing Date: September 30, 2014

Please send your resume and the names of at least two (2) sources of reference to the below:

ManagerP. O. Box 1074,

Belize City, BELIZEor

[email protected]

For SaleBy Order of the

Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Companies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its regis-tered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Deed of Assignment of Mortgage made the 29th day of November, 2004, registered in Deeds Book Vol. 37 of 2004 at Folios 95 – 112, between Belize Mortgage Company 2002-1(the Assignor), Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., and Rodolfo Man-uel Gutierres and under a Deed of Assignment of Mortgage made the 16th day of April, 2002, recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 14 of 2002 at Folios 819 – 916 , between The Development Finance Corporation (the Assignor) and Belize Mortgage Company 2002-1, which said property was mortgaged by the said Rodolfo Manuel Gutierres to the said Development Finance Corporation on the 2nd day of April, 2001, recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 14 of 2001 at Folios 203 – 246, will at the expiration of two months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the schedule hereto.

All offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing and full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained from the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

SCHEDULE

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 259 situate in the Sandhill Village Extension, Belize District and bounded as follows:- On the North for 27.428 Metres by a Street; On the South for 30.476 Metres by Lot No. 292; On the East for 31.393 Metres by Lot No. 260; On the West for 28.345 Metres by A Street, On the Northwest for 4.311 Metres by a Daylight Cut containing 952.087 Square Metres as shown on Entry 4844, Reg. 21 at the Office of the Commissioner of Lands and Surveys TOGETHER with all buildings, erections and developments standing and being thereon.

DATED this 16th day of September, 2014.

MUSA & BALDERAMOS LLP91 North Front Street

Belize CityAttorneys-at-Law for

Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.


by: Don Sandoval (Rockwire Visuals)

Belize City 2014

2014


HOLLYWOOD STAR IN BELIZE

0913TOPMODELTHE BELIZE TIMES21 SEP 2014

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Belize CityOlivia

It is a common cry during our most nationalistic month: why do we import foreign artists and support events featuring foreign artists over local artists? The organisers of the annual Sound Fest have moved past the normal whining and have been doing something about it, every year.

The Association for Belizean Artists First led by Tony Wright is presenting their 13th version of the Belize Sound Fest. The Fest is the premiere show that consistently and proudly celebrates Belize and Beliz-ean artists. There is a reason this is so. Wright explained that the month of Independence celebration should be about Belize and nothing else. In 2002, in response to a challenge that he organises an event for Belizean artists, he got the first Sound Fest off the ground. It has now become a part of the September celebrations recipe, along with Belizean-style Car-nival.

This year’s music fest will feature some common names: T.R. Shine and Ernestine Carballo; some epic names such as the Might Youth Con-nection Band and Super Furia; and some majestic ones such as the Gar-ifuna Collective and Michael Wagner.

The Association will also award artists of the year: reggae/rnb song-stress Denise Castillo, Kenny Glad-den and Francisco Alcoser of Super Furia.

The event will be held at the Rog-er’s Stadium starting at 9:00PM on Friday, September 19th, 2014. The Association will be raffling a brand new bicycle.

While the Sound Fest organisers have been able to attract support for the event annually, it pales in compar-ison to the support and endorsement which other events featuring foreign artists have received. This year even the Belize Tourist Board has signed on to a concert featuring a soca artist from Trinidad as the main attraction, while they have shunned the Sound Fest.

NEWSENTERTAINMENT

Belizean beauty

Denise Castillo


Lennox Castillo defends against Matthew Leal

Robert Mariano wins Weekend Warriors’ A Cotton Tree race

14 SPORTS THE BELIZE TIMES 21 SEP2014

BDF wins Interoffice volleyball champs

Belize City, September 12, 2014The Belize Defense Force

won the 2014 Belize District Vol-leyball Association’s interoffice championship with back to back wins against Digicel 4G in the finals at the Belize Elementary School auditorium over the week-end.

In Game 1 Thursday night, Victor Hernandez, Juan Marin and Rasheed Pollard led the Digi-cel offensive, scoring points at the net on plays set by Emily Turner and Shanti Roches; while Amir Ar-nold and libero Eli Obando dug up saves and helped on receptions to win the 1st set 25-22.

Otis Clother and Jael Clother

came off the bench for the 2nd set, but the BDF’s Ernest Broaster, Francis Usher, Oliver Longsworth and Pierce Coleman led a counterattack on plays set by Bobby Dee Usher to win the next 2 sets: 25-16 and 15-10.

In Game 2 on Friday night, the BDF won the 1st set of the second final: 25-20 on Friday night. Marin, Pollard and Hernandez rallied a Digi-cel comeback to win the 2nd set: 25-21, as they tried to take the series to a Game 3. It was not to be; the BDF took the 3rd set: 15-11 for the cham-pionship.

BVA President Allan Sharp pre-sented the champions and sub-cham-pions with team trophies and individu-al trophies.

BDF team

Belize City, September 14, 2014Digicel 4G’s Robert Mariano won the A divi-

sion, Ernest Olivera won the B division and Sta-tionery House’s Ingmar Perera won the C division when Weekend Warriors’ cycling club held the last in the second series of flats races for 2014, from Cotton Tree to Leslie’s Imports in Belize City on Sunday.

Here are other results:A Division1st Robert Mariano – Digicel 4G - 2:00:002nd Mark Gentle – BCB/F.T. Williams team3rd Kent “Bob” Gabourel – Benny’s Megabytes4th James Frampton – Team Santino’s5th Shelton Graham – Santino’s6th Vallan Symns – Benny’s Megabytes7th Jack Sutherland – Digicel 4G8th Warren Coye – Taem Santino’s9th Eric Burns – Scotiabank10th Stephen Bissett – Team BNEB Division1st Ernest Olivera – B.C.B./F.T. Williams - 2:13:002nd Santino “Chief” Castillo – Team Santino’s3rd Ryan Willoughby - Stationery House/Medina’s

Jewelry4th Ray Cattouse - Stationery House/Medina’s Jew-

elry5th Matthew Hughes – Team Big Blade6th Sheldon Arnold – Team Big Blade7th Jim Scott– Team Santino’s8th Isaiah Willacey - Digicel 4G9th Clarence Tesecum - B.C.B./F.T. Williams10th Francis Cassasola –– Team Santino’s11th Salvador Alvarado – B.C.B./F.T. Williams12th Mark Lisbey – B.C.B./F.T. Williams13th Eustace Ireland – Team Santino’sC Division (30 miles from La Democracia)1st Ingmar Perera - Stationery House/Medina’s Jew-

elry - 1:42:012nd Glenn Sheppard – Team Big Blade3rd Manuel Esquiliano - Truckers Posse4th Sheffield Eck - Truckers Posse5th Wayne Arnold6th Denys Barrow –Team Lampaz - 1:42:107th Dennis Mckoy - Truckers Posse8th Curtis Bradley –9th Valentine Sosa - Truckers’ Posse

Robert Mariano

Kaya Cattouse

Oscar Quiros

Keyon Robateau Kent Gabourel

Oscar Quiros, Kaya Cattouse, Keyon Robateau & Kent Gabourel win annual

CFB criterium

Top 3 Masters


Illegal Guatemalans caught panning for gold inside the Chiquibul forest


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Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Companies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its registered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Deed of Mortgage made the 17th day of May, 2011 between Crispin Jeffries of 189 Belizean American Site, Hattieville Village, Belize District, Belize, of the one part, and Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., of the other part, and recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 912 of 2011 at Folios 1217 – 1284, the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. will at the expiration of two months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the schedule hereto.All offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing and full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained from the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd.

SCHEDULE

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 152 containing 827.78 square yards situate South of the Western Highway, near Mile 17, Hattieville Village Ex-tension, Belize District, and bounded and described as shown by Plan attached to Minister’s Fiat (Grant) No. 846 of 2005 TOGETHER with all buildings, erections and developments standing and being thereon.






Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Com-panies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its registered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Deed of Mortgage made the 16th day of February, 2005 between MARCUS NUNEZ of Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District, Belize, of the one part, and Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., of the other part, and recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 7 of 2005 at Folios 125 – 192, the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. will at the expiration of two months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the schedule hereto.


SCHEDULE

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 142A comprising 800 square yards situate in Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District and more particularly shown on a plan of survey of lots laid out in Hopkins Village, Stann Creek District by Government Sur-veyor W. P. Christie dated July 12th 1965 registered at the Lands and Survey Department, Belmopan in Tracing No. 6 of Hopkins Village TOGETHER with all buildings, and erections standing and being thereon.






Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., a company duly registered under the Com-panies Act, Chapter 250 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition, 2000, and having its registered office at Cor. Albert and Bishop Streets, Belize City, Belize, hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Mortgagee under a Deed of Mortgage made the 12th day of July, 2004 between REGINA BAIDE of Pomona Village, Stann Creek District, Belize, of the one part, and Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd., of the other part, and recorded in Deeds Book Vol. 22 of 2004 at Fo-lios 59 – 88, the said Scotiabank (Belize) Ltd. will at the expiration of two months from the date of the first publication of this notice sell the property described in the schedule hereto.


SCHEDULE

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land being Lot No. 2 and comprising 835.844 Square Metres situate in the New Pomona Village Site, near Mile 11, Stann Creek Valley Road, Stann Creek District, bounded and described as shown by Plan No. 10 of 2004 attached to Minister’s Fiat Grant No. 10 of 2004 TOGETHER with buildings and erections standing and being thereon.






Extracted from the Auditor General’s Preliminary Report dated March 19, 2014

The Citizen Kim - Elvin Penner Immigration Corruption Saga (Part II)

Subject: The Fabrication of Wonhong Kim Passport Number P0246777(Continued from Sunday, September 7, 2014 edition)We did examination of the Belize Passport Issuance System (BPIS) process-

ing of passport number P0246777 issued in the name of Won Hong Kim (Kin) and we confirmed the users and approvers of Won Hong Kim (Kin) passport number P0246777 and we also noted that two BPIS user roles were assigned to Erwin Robinson as shown in Table below

Table F

Elvin Penner

USR_FNAME USR_LNAME APP_STEP UPDATED_DT

Erwin Robinson Created 2013-09-09 10:51:40.750Erwin Robinson Data Entry Completed 2013-09-09 12:53:46.950Sharon Flowers Approval 2013-09-09 13:01:01.940Mark Tench Print 2013-09-09 13:04:44.657Mark Tench Print Confirm 2013-09-09 13:06:34.093Erwin Robinson QA Pass 2013-09-09 13:33:39.097

The BPIS history of procedures for Wonhong Kim’s Application

Since the steps to the Belize Ma-chine Readable Passport Application and Issuance System (BMRPAIS) (sec-tion I to VIII) define the various BPIS

roles as distinct and separate roles, we were unable to establish who gave access to Erwin Robinson to perform the roles of Data Entry Operator and Quality Control Operator at the same time, which is a violation of the pass-

port application and approval process.

While some roles are non-BPIS user roles, e.g. counter Clerk and Counter Supervisor. We noted Mark Tench served as Print Operator and delivery officer while Omar Phillips was the Counter clerk and Counter Supervisor.

The BPIS also showed the status of Won Hong Kim’s passport P0246777 was still at “QA passed”. This was the case for numerous passports for which applications or persons authorized had signed for on the application forms as having received the passports, yet the system still had them at QA passed or QA override.

It was noted that three offi-cers involved in the processing of this passport were suspend-ed however the print officer, Im-migration Officer, Mark Tench, who also confirmed the print-ing of the passport and whose role it also was to verify the data on the system (BMRPAIS 1-3), was not suspended. We could not ascertain why Officer Mark Tench was not suspended along with the other three offi-cers who performed procedur-als roles in the approval to is-suing stages of Wonhong Kim’s (Kin) application and passport.

Unauthorized payment by Wonhong Kim (Kin) of ex-pedited passport fees

We observed from oth-er passport applications ex-amined, that the Director of Immigration and Nationality would approve the expediting of passports on application forms with her signature, date and the words “okay to expe-dite” but in Wonhong Kim (Kin) case, there was no indication

on the application that the Director approved the expedite service. Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($250.00) was paid vide receipt 987400 dated 9th September 2013, which was for 24 hours service.

Photograph and other bio-metric irregularities for Wonhong Kim (Kin)

We examined the BPIS and it appeared that a picture of the appli-cant’s photograph was taken by the Data Capture Operator (Data Entry Operator) and not a live facial image of the applicant Wonhong Kim (Kin). The picture of the BPIS appeared to be a replica of the applicant’s pass-port picture in his Republic of Korea Passport M38368121 issued 23rd December 2008 which was attached to the photocopied application. No fingerprints were captured; the sys-tem had “unable to finger print while the signature of Wonhong Kim (Kin) in the system did not match that on his application form. It is unlikely that the applicant submitted the ap-plication form in person, based on the evidence found in the BPIS and the fact that he is incarcerated. The application appeared to have been written by the same individual who filled in the required declaration of recommender forms 3A and 3B.

Authorization letterWe found an undated autho-

rization letter attached to the ap-plication firm, allegedly signed by Wonhong Kim, which authorized Jose Cante to pick up his passport. The signature of Jose Cante ap-peared on the form as the recipient of Passport number P0246777 but no date [received] was written on the form. Attached was also a copy of Jose Alberto Cante’s passport number P0108300 issued June 15, 2009. The issue date of Won Hong Kim’s passport P0246777 recorded on the photocopied passport appli-cation form as September 9, 2013.

• Nationality Certificate 28577/13 – Wonhong Kim

A photocopy of Wonhong Kim’s (Kin) Nationality Certificate number 28577/13 dated 22nd April 2013 and signed by Minister Elvin Penner was attached to the pho-tocopied application which is re-quired for Citizens by Registration.

• Verification of nationality fee

We carried out a search of the receipts issued for the period January 2013 to September 2013 and found no trace that Wonhong Kim paid nationality fee of Belize three hundred dollars ($300.00) as required by all citizens by registra-tion.

• Verification of individual to manifest at Philip Goldson In-ternational Airport

We made a visit to Philip Gold-son Airport and scrutinized the manifest held by the Immigration and Nationality of all individuals who enter and leave the country by air and there was no record found that Wonhong Kim entered the country of Belize. This led us to believe that in addition to Minister Penner back dating Wonhong Kim’s nationality certificate, Wonhong Kim did not hold a permanent resi-dent status and was therefore not qualified for Belizean national that he was granted.

Scrutiny of the Nationality cer-tificate register revealed that the nationality certificate number as-signed to Wonhong Kim was blank in the Register. A check of the Number Book/Register showed that certificate 28577/13 was is-sued to Wonhong Kim but was dat-ed 2nd September 2013. We also noted that the series signed and issued in April 2013, begun with 28306 with the serial numbering being consecutive up to Septem-ber 2013 when it reached 28574 on 2nd September 2013 and con-tinued to 28588.3 for said date. As with the previous individuals above we attempted to get the National-ity acceptance register as well as the Permanent Residence register however, none was forthcoming as we explained above. Up to the time of writing this report we have not received said registers.

(…to be continued next week)

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Reid

By G. Michael ReidAs Belize prepares to cel-

ebrate its Independence, a lit-tle reflection and retrospection might be in order. This Sunday September 21st, we celebrate as a nation, the 33rd anniversa-ry of this momentous milestone. There were many who believed, and probably some who still do, that Belize was not ready for In-dependence in 1981. Many were the predictions and forebodings of dark days and doom as a result of the bold step into self deter-mination. The visionary states-man who we acknowledge as the Father of our Nation was not de-terred however, and 33 years later Belize is still standing. Quite a few left because they were sure that we would not make it, but Guate-mala has not invaded, the sky has not fallen and we remain free with all territories sovereign and intact.

For many of us older heads, 1981 seems but a few short years ago. For the majority of Belizeans (census figures suggest that a ma-jority of the population is under 30 years of age), Belize has always been independent. For those of us who can recall early Belize, the development and expansion has truly been amazing. The buildings have changed from wood to con-crete, technology has us connect-ed around the clock and aggres-sive tourism marketing has bared our secrets to the world. If Mother Nature still has well-kept secrets, certainly Belize would no longer be counted among them.

Since Independence Belize has changed governments six times with our two main political parties sharing terms of office. The UDP is currently midway through their fourth term, having joined the PUP in winning consequence terms of office. Despite blaming the PUP for everything that has gone wrong in Belize, the figures now show that since Independence, the UDP has

been as many years in office as the PUP. Obviously they have to share in the blame for the things that they continue to complain has not gone right for Belize.

All things being equal, we can readily look back at Belize’s prog-ress and regressions and figure out which party has been productive and which has been mainly talk. After seven years of consecutive govern-ing, many are beginning to realize that the UDP makes a much more efficient opposition than it does a government. While in Opposition, the UDP seemed able to manipu-late the media, infiltrate the Unions

and NGO’s and were quite effective at holding the PUP to task. The PUP apparently makes a less effective opposition since they have not been able to stir the people to “civil un-rest” despite unprecedented corrup-tion and the vast number of things having gone wrong. In government, the PUP seems more masterful and efficient in stimulating the econo-my, creating jobs and putting bread on people’s tables. Under the UDP, despite tremendous spending, un-employment figures are stagger-ing and the poverty rate has more

Boom Cutoff, the Hummingbird and Southern Highways, a by-pass in Orange Walk, the Belize River Val-ley Road and the Placencia Road as just some of the areas in which improvement has been marked and notably apparent. Many villages

Belize’s Independence - 33 years after

The hard cold fact is that looking back, we can see where the visionaries of the PUPs have pushed us forward progressively while the more conserva-

tive and pessimistic UDPs have retarded our growth. The PUPs have taken charge and tak-en chances, bucked the odds and withstood the criticism while the UDPs have continually looked backwards, pointed fingers and com-plained.

have received light, water and ba-sic commodities that were at one time, mainly the objects of dreams and political promises. Much of this progress occurred under the PUP and many Belizeans will readily ad-mit that they enjoy a much better quality of life under the People’s United Party. Yes, there have been challenges under both parties but somehow, the PUP’s seem more adept at jumping into the trenches and digging out of holes. The UDP is better at casting blame, creating timely distractions and making false promises. One party is of substance while the other is of pure glitter. It does not take a Rhodes Scholar to figure out which is which.

The hard cold fact is that look-ing back, we can see where the vi-sionaries of the PUPs have pushed

us forward progressively while the more conservative and pessimistic UDPs have retarded our growth. The PUPs have taken charge and taken chances, bucked the odds and withstood the criticism while the UDPs have continually looked backwards, pointed fingers and complained. We attained Indepen-dence in spite of the skepticisms of those very ones who are now busy reaping the benefits and feathering their proverbial nests.

Now, while in a secular sense, Belize has evidence to show much

progress, spiritually we are prac-tically brain-dead. Morality is out the window, adherence to rules is rare and respect for authority was left behind with colonial-ism. Our per capita murder-rate is among the highest in the world, corruption is more the rule than the exception and love of country is low and seem to last only for as long as the celebrations of Sep-tember. We are ruled by despots whose main ambition is to enrich themselves and their families while the people’s business goes untended.

This September, we have seen the usual influx of friends and family from the abroad. Of course, the number is not near-ly what it used to be, given that many are now firmly entrenched in the U.S. system and many have young children who must return to school. The topic of Diaspora is once again on the front burner and I do believe it is time for us to reach out to those who have left and time for them to think more

in terms of ways to help us. I am still strongly op-posed to any with duo-cit-izenship being allowed to run for office but there are many other ways in which those who still love Belize can help. There is more that Belize can do to en-tice those who have gone away to come back and lend their expertise and experiences. Instead of sharing out public land to only family and friends of

the party in office, our Lands De-partment could make land avail-able to those who wish to repatri-ate. We all love Belize and we are duty-bound to help her grow.

Yes Belize, we are indepen-dent and we have come a long way, physically. We all have phones but we do very little com-municating. We have better roads but we all seem headed to no-where and getting there pretty fast. You might say that we are headed to hell in a wheel-Barrow! Happy Independence Belize!

than doubled. There are those of course, who enjoy lavish lifestyles but most are close to or re-lated to government officials. Something is just not right.

For those Beliz-eans who remember pre-Independence Belize, the transfor-mation from colony to nationhood has involved much more than just a change in name and flag col-or. We have come from one lane dirt roads to an intricate system of decent roadways criss-crossing our nation. We can point to the


Public Transportation for a More Competitive Economy

Home Economics

By Richard HarrisonThere is a small city in the

USA named Portage, Michi-gan….at the entrance is a big sign that boasts “Portage….City of Economic Excellence”.

This is a high-ambition decla-ration by the leaders of that city.

One of the beliefs held by the leaders is that the citizens should be able to move with ease and comfort, at the least possible cost. Movement, after all, is one of the basic character-istics/need of living creatures. Their public transportation sys-tem is very efficient and reliable, and includes modern air-condi-tioned buses that charge the citi-zens US$0.10 to go anywhere in the city. The pump price of fuel is around US$3.40 per gallon.

In Belize, the pump price of fuel is around US$6.00 per gal-lon for premium fuel…..with around 45% of this cost going to government in the form of taxes. Without these taxes, the price of premium fuel would be around US$3.75 per gallon and diesel around US$3.60.

Belize bus transport cost is US$0.05 per mile on aver-age, serviced mostly by obso-lete Blue Bird used and rebuilt school buses imported from US scrap yards….and which are very inconsistent, dilapidated and routinely break down on the highways, leaving passen-gers stranded. This is about the same price per mile charged in Mexico for the A-class service on very reliable and modern Pull-man buses with air-conditioning, toilets, tv and terminal services. Thus Belizeans are paying the same price, for less than half the service.

In a small town in Belize with taxi service of radius of 2 miles, the fare is US$2.50….the same as a taxi service in Mexico with a radius of 4 miles.

Water-taxi service for one hour in Belize costs US$15.00….while in Mexico, the cost is about half that amount. Domestic air travel to the more popular des-tinations is minimum US$45.00 for 20 minutes flight, again more than double the price in Mexico.

The relatively high cost of public transportation in Belize has several causes:

1. The high pump price of

Richard Harrison is a local businessman and investor in the manufacturing and ser-vice industries. Mr. Harrison holds a Masters in Business Administration degree from Lancaster University, United Kingdom. Send comments to [email protected]

fuel, due in large part to high tax-ation on imported fuel

2. Inefficient, aged equip-ment that consume more fuel, oil and maintenance of wear and tear

3. Poor infrastructure, such as bad roads and air-strips that take a higher toll on the equip-ment

4. Higher cost of acquiring tires, spare parts and mainte-nance and repair services

5. Higher cost of financing and insurance

6. Higher cost-of-doing-busi-ness, including high Business Tax, license fees, terminal fees, landing and parking-station fees, among others.

A dilapidated bus in Belize gets on average 13 miles per gallon of diesel, at the current average cost of US$5.30 per gallon…..thus it costs them US$0.41 in fuel per mile. In Mex-ico, the Pullman buses get av-erage of 18 miles per gallon of diesel, at current average cost of US$3.40 per gallon….thus it costs them US$0.19 in fuel per mile. Thus the fuel cost of public transportation in Belize is double what it is in Mexico.

This is the same scenario for cost of transportation of goods in Belize….which is one of the principal causes of inefficiency in the general economy….render-ing it uncompetitive.

RECOMMENDATIONS1. Belize public policy mak-

ers need to view public trans-portation as an integral part of its development agenda…which allows its citizens to move in search of their necessities at least cost, greatest comfort, least time and most reliable.

2. Remove all taxes, except a 10% General Sales Tax, on fuel….so that the price of fuel is lowered to around US$3.50 per gallon. This would cut the cost of fuel per mile by around US$0.20, which could be used in part to privately finance more modern equipment and terminal services, and in part to lower fares, so that increasing num-bers of people moving each day increases throughput, adding to efficiency.

3. Implement a 10% GST charge on all public transporta-tion receipts….in line with shift-

ing from taxing on inputs, to taxing on outputs.

4. Reduce the Business Tax from 1.75% on turnover over BZ$75,000, to 1% on turnover over BZ$100,000….in line with shifting away from income tax-es and towards consumption taxes.

5. Provide development financing for the acquisition of more modern public trans-portation equipment, at a rate of 7-9% per annum over 10 years…..and over 30 years for investments in terminal ser-vices infrastructure. This will also reduce cost of oils, main-tenance and repairs and down-time costs….while increasing comfort and reliability.

6. Provide for different grades of A, B and C class public transport options, with varying fares for each type of service, all with minimum stan-dards of safety and environ-mental impact

7. Provide for improved man-agement of the public transpor-tation system using Operations Research methods to segment and schedule routes and units, which has the potential to sig-nificantly reduce the carrying costs with less units, without reducing capacity and capabili-

ty of the system….reducing the overall cost of operating the sys-tem, which should translate into tangible benefits for the public.

8. Provide for more consol-idation of taxi services, with higher standards of equipment, conductor screening and super-vised operations….and more efficient options, such as Bajaj motorcycle and golf-cart taxis….an avenue for more self-employ-ment for women and youth.

9. Reduce landing and park-ing-station fees for bus termi-nals, airports and seaports, with a view to attracting international carriers (especially air and cruise) to use Belize for overnight stops and refueling station...which could significantly reduce the cost of traveling to Belize during off-peak hours, making the cost of Belize vacations much more competitive.


BY ORDER OF CHARGEENOTICE OF INTENTION TO SELL

HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED a statutory body formed and registered under the Credit Union Act, Chapter 314 of the Laws of Belize, Revised Edition 2000, and whose registered office is situated at No. 1 Hyde’s Lane, Belize City, Belize District hereby gives notice of its intention to exercise its power of sale as Chargee under and by virtue of a Charge registered at the Land Registry between Kenrick Jones (Deceased) Surety for Nessie Jones and the said Holy Redeemer Credit Union Limited.

HRCU will at the expiration of three months from the date of the first publi-cation of this notice sell the property described in the Schedule below.

ALL offers to purchase the said property must be made in writing to HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED from whom full particulars and conditions of sale may be obtained.

SCHEDULE

ALL THAT piece or parcel of land comprising 508.9 square yards being Parcel 63, Block 16 in the Caribbean Shores/Belize Registration Section situate at No. 5865 Corner Seashore Drive and Broaster Avenue, Belize City, Belize District, TOGETHER with all buildings and erections standing and being thereon, the freehold property of KENRICK JONES (Deceased) Surety for NESSIE JONES

DATED the 11th day of September 2014

HOLY REDEEMER CREDIT UNION LIMITED1 HYDE’S LANE, BELIZE CITY, BELIZE

Phone: (501) 224-5644Fax: (501) 223-0738

VACANCYNOW HIRING!!

20 WAITRESSES NEEDED!!

For more information call between 10:00am and 12:00 (Noon)

Call 601-9625

SISPRO LIMITEDA Vacancy exists for the post of INFORMATICS MANAGER

Applicants must possess administration, configuration and installation of ImageStream Routers, ImageStream Access Points, Mesh networks with the ImageStream platform, Firewall SAM-110, SAM-210-510, and Telecontroller Model T-200 and T-400 ImageStream.

Knowledge of routing protocols OSPF, RIP and BPG, and Layer 2 technolo-gies, such as ARP, VLANS, Routing, MAC Address, and Global Control Panel analysis tool.

All applicants should send resume, 2 letters of recommendation and police record to:

Director of Sispro LimitedP.O. Box 2030, Belize City


Event: Independence celebration monthDate: September 2014

[BEGIN] The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development Road Safety Project encourages everyone in Belize to let us form a Belizean team to ease the pain of travelling in the month of September this year by getting to your destination safe and sound - meaning, no cuts, no bruises, no crashes or collisions and no hassles of any sort. Note that September 2012 they were 7 deaths on our road, in September 2013 only 3 and September 2014 has just begun and we need to aim for zero (0). Can we make it? We sure can and it is all our responsibility to try our best to work together. When one make a mistake, let us help them to get back on track.

Here are just some of the many tips that you can keep in mind when you travel this September whether you decide to take the road, the bicycle path, the footpath.1. Before you go on any trip, safety begins at home, right before you leave. Get plenty of rest as this will definitely affect your entire travel. The lack of rest is almost certain to make any traveler sleepy and irritable, which may cause a lot of trouble especially when you’re the designated driver.2. Let someone know of your complete travel plans in case of emergency or delays. Awareness of weather and road conditions prior to traveling can also save you a great deal of time and energy.3. Inspect or have a professional inspect your means of transportation before your scheduled travel

a.) Inspect or have a professional mechanic inspect your car at least two days before your scheduled travel. It is very important to check the brakes, tires, seat-belts, wiper fluid, gasoline, lights, battery and wipers. You need to give enough time for the car’s check-up so that if something needs to be repaired you still have enough time to get it done. If there’s something wrong with the car and you rush fixing it, you may end up with car trouble on the road after all. b.) Inspect or have a professional person inspect your motorcycle at least one day before your scheduled travel. It is very important to check the brakes, tires, spokes, gasoline, lights, battery and ensure your helmets are DOT approved. You need to give enough time for the motorcycle’s check-up so that if something needs to be repaired you still have enough time to get it done. If there’s something wrong with the motorcycle and you rush fixing it, you may end up with motorcycle trouble on the road after all.c.) Inspect or have a professional person inspect your bicycle at least one day before your scheduled travel. It is very important to check the brakes, tires, spokes, reflectors, lights and tire pump. You need to give enough time for the bicycles’ check-up so that if something needs to be repaired you still have enough time to get it done. If there’s something wrong with the bicycle and you rush fixing it, you may end up with bicycle trouble on the road after all.

4. Pack ahead of time and not the night before. Make a list of the things you need to bring and be sure to include a safety kit for ‘just-in-case’ situations. Pack warm blan-kets, ample drinking water, flares, flashlights (with fresh batteries) and first-aid medicines (especially when you’re traveling with your children). These items may not sound necessary upfront but you never know - it is always better to play it on the safe side in case the need arises.5. If you’re traveling with your children, be sure to use a restraint system that is appropriate for your child’s height and weight. Make it a point to read the manufacturer’s usage guidelines to ensure that you’re doing it right. Also, it would be wise to keep your kids in the back seat of your vehicle buckled up properly (no matter how short your trip may be). If you are in an opened back pickup or a truck, try your best not to put children in the pan of the moving vehicle.6. Take time to clear all mud/brambles from the hood, roof, windows and lights of your vehicle and bring with you a good supply of windshield washer fluid. Also, ensure that your tires are properly inflated. An extra tire and a complete set of car tools in the trunk can go a long way in case of flat tires.7. Do not drink and drive. Over the years, road traffic crashes and collisions related incidents during the holidays keep rising. It is as simple as this: Safety is in your hands! Wouldn’t you want to arrive alive amigo/amiga? If you want to drink, designate a driver who is sober.8. If you are following behind trucks, do not drive in their blind spot, do not tailgate and only pass on the left. No matter how slow the vehicle is in front of you, be patient, check the clock, it will only take you seconds and the most would probably be three minutes. Ensure that it is clear to pass before you do so. No use in rushing if you only end up in an accident. Be courteous when driving. Being a considerate driver means realizing we all share the roads. Allow others to merge lanes or pull out of a car park.9. If you are signaled to stop by any vehicle (except if it is a CLEARLY marked government vehicle), acknowledge the signal and signal to the driver to follow you to a safe location (crowded or well-lighted). Follow speed limit and don’t get out of your vehicle unless you have arrived in a place you feel is safe. At any rate, if you still feel unsure and you have your cell phone, call 911.10. Travel, as much as possible, during the day. If you have access to a cellular phone, take it with you. Keep emergency and travel-related numbers handy for easy access in case of need but pull off the road if you need to make a call.11. Take breaks every 2-3 hours (or less). If you’re traveling alone or with family, make sure you make periodic stops along the way to stay alert and stretch. September is Belize independence celebration and it means busy roads and distractions. Taking a break from driving every so often will help you manage your stress and that of your passengers.12. Give way to ambulances, fire engines, police vehicles and highway patrol vehicles. If you’re traveling and see ambulances, fire engines, police vehicles and highway patrol vehicles, make sure you give them the right away and a free way by signaling with your indicator to alert other drivers behind you and pulling off the road.

Patience, Patience, Patience. Traveling during the month of September can be challenging but if you learn to keep your cool, you will get to your destination with a smile. A thirty minutes delay can be avoided, if your departure is an early one.



OUT

terms of our local language use. Yes, we need global languages like English and Spanish, but there is no need to stamp out our lovely, functional, beautifully expressive local languag-es in so doing. Of particular note: the Garifuna language is one of the criti-cally important pieces of the Belizean multilingual fabric that defines us as a nation and is also an acclaimed part of UNESCO World Heritage designa-tions. It is with pleasure that, on be-half of the language arm of the Na-tional Kriol Council, the Belize Kriol Project, I also take this opportunity to again publicly thank and acknowledge the National Garifuna Council and the late Mr. Augustine Flores for the very valuable advice and support the Gar-ifuna Council gave to the start up of the National Kriol Council in the early 1990s. Moreover, Belizean icon the late Andy Palacio and so many other Garifuna musicians, teachers, artists, clergy and others, through their con-tinuous promotion of Garifuna culture and valiant efforts to preserve, use, and teach the Garifuna language, pro-vided the National Kriol Council and its early stalwarts like Leela Vernon, Bro. David, the late Dr. Ruby Marith (Perriot), and the late Philip Goldson, with solid guidance on positive, ef-fective ways to encourage all Be-lizeans to love their home languag-es even as they equally engage in learning the much-needed global languages today of English and Spanish. Additionally, the sharing of expertise and Kriol literacy materials with the Kriol–speaking communi-ties along Nicaragua’s Atlantic Coast was as a direct result of the contact established between Andy Palacio and Roy Cayetano of the Garifuna Council and local Kriol Council mem-bers, a regional relationship that has strengthened the continued devel-opment with the Kriol dictionary and other publications. Language is an integral part of a culture and when the language ceases to be or its use is threatened, the existence of the culture is in jeopardy.

I close by quoting from the press release sent out by the National Kri-ol Council last week: “The National Kriol Council of Belize … extends sol-idarity to its Garifuna brothers and sisters to endure the process of tak-ing any means necessary to ensure the Garifuna language or any other language in Belize is never restricted from use. The use of one’s first lan-guage—the language of one’s home and community—is a language right, as indelible a right as the right to life, education, freedom of speech, reli-gion, and all the other fundamental rights embraced in our Constitution.”

Sincerely,Silvaana UdzLover of Local [email protected]

BABY SITTER NEEDED

VACANCY:

VACANCY:

Vacancies exist for Cashiers at Atlanta Tours & Deli located inside the Brown Sugar Market. Interested persons should call 653-2172 or 203-1015.

Need one (1) Grocery Shop vendor, who speaks Spanish. Apply in person at Pound Yard market Booth 14.

A babysitter is needed. Must be honest and responsible, and have the ability to speak Spanish. Call Keila Sawers at 636-6406.

THE BELIZE TIMES21 SEP 2014 27Residential lots for political

gain the Belmopan case

Barrow’s GSU vs. Barrow-Sponsored GSG


LIQUOR LICENSE NOTICES

Notice is hereby given that HAI SHENG YE is applying for a Con-venience Store Liquor License to be operated at “Campus Shop”, situate at 67Cemetery Lane, Belize City, Belize District under the Intox-icating Liquor Licensing Ordinance Revised Edition 1980.

Notice is hereby given that YOU QIU CHEN is applying for a Pub-lican Special Liquor License to be operated at “Wong Gok Restau-rant”, situate at 11 6th Street, King’s park Area, Belize City, Belize Dis-trict under the Intoxicating Liquor Li-censing Ordinance Revised Edition 1980.

Notice is hereby given that HUA YUAN ZHOU & JIAN HONG BU is applying for a Restaurant Liquor License to be operated at “K&K Fast Food & Restaurant” located 124 New Road, Belize City, Belize District under the Intoxicating Li-quor Licensing Ordinance Revised Edition 1980.

Notice is hereby given that Zenghui Yan is applying for a Malt & Cider Liquor License to be operated at “CY Shop”, situate at 3rd Street, King’s Park Area, Belize City, Belize District under the Intoxicating Liquor Licensing Ordinance Revised Edi-tion 1980.

By Senator Patrick Jason AndrewsThe City of Belmopan was designed

at inception to benefit from a Master Plan. Prior to the year 2000, this respon-sibility of stewardship and planning was resident in the Reconstruction and De-velopment Corporation or RECONDEV and thereafter since 2000, to both RE-CONDEV and the Belmopan City Coun-cil. The RECONDEV ACT, Chapter 193, Revised Edition 2000 is designed to oversee the legal operational affairs of RECONDEV as the custodian of all the land in Belmopan.

Consequential to the 2012 gen-eral elections campaign, RECONDEV allocated five hundred acres of land as residential lots in East Belmopan, near Maya Mopan, and required the select-ed lessees to deposit $1,200 per lot for Administration Fees. These lots were allocated without an official Lease doc-ument, pending due processing by the Ministry of Natural Resources. Amaz-ingly there was no infrastructure put in place, meaning no streets, no drains, no water, and no electricity. The $1,200 paid by the lessees was supposed to be for this same needed infrastructure ac-cording to the RECONDEV and the Area Representative. Today, 2.5 years later, there is still no infrastructure, frustrating and unduly denying the hopes of the lessees to build their homes, most of them poor, hardworking and struggling Belizeans. The lessees were assured that the necessary infrastructure works would be carried out by the Belmopan City Council utilizing the deposits made by them. Nothing of the sort has hap-pened to date.

It is obvious that this project was designed by the Area Representative to curry political favour with the Belmo-pan electorate leading up to the munic-ipal elections in 2012. He, by the way, was and is not empowered in any form or fashion to act on matters relating to RECONDEV. Chapter 193 of the Laws of Belize is specific and deliberate in its discharge that such responsibility is as-signed to the Minister of Finance. Not the Area Representative.

As the 2015 Municipal elections ap-proach, RECONDEV has now identified an additional 1,500 lots in East Belmo-pan for distribution. Again, RECONDEV is requiring lessees to deposit the sum of $1,200 per lot. This being the case, should not the Belmopan City Council have the necessary resources, or part thereof to provide the infrastructure re-quired for residents to have access to

build and to occupy their homes? These lawmakers become lawbreakers and pun-ish poor people with unrealistic charges, exploiting their dire need for residential land for political gain. Where is the social justice of fair land distribution??

When His Lordship the Mayor of Bel-mopan was approached on this matter, he claimed that he was not aware of such an arrangement, that he was not consulted on the role of the Belmopan City Council, and that the Council did not collect nor have funds to provide infrastructure or to maintain these newly established resi-dential areas.

This is rather unfortunate and difficult to accept. First, the Mayor of Belmopan sits on the RECONDEV Board of Direc-tors, and one would expect that he would be knowledgeable and in agreement with any decision taken, especially of this na-ture and magnitude. That he is not knowl-edgeable, or professes not to be, speaks volumes of the problem of non coopera-tion between the political factions of the UDP Mayor and the UDP Area Represen-tative that has been a plague to the suf-fering residents of Belmopan ever since they came into office.

Section 13, subsections 1-3 of the RECONDEV Act requires the Minister of Finance to consult with the Local Au-thority, in this instance the Belmopan City Council in decisions relating to the allocation of municipal spaces. The law states in crystal clear language that the Min-ister of Finance, under said Section 13 of the Act must first authorize the RECONDEV, by an Order to proceed with an expansion project; second, that the RECON-DEV submit such expan-sion plans to the Central Building Authority or the Land Utilization Author-ity (LUA) for approval to proceed. The LUA subdi-vision guidelines specif-ically require that before a subdivision can be ap-proved the developer (in this case RECONDEV) must do a topographical survey for drainage and street design purposes.

The current massive expansion of Belmopan by the Area representa-tive to now include an ad-ditional 1,500 new house lots has not followed any of these procedures as prescribed by the ACT and is thus an illegal subdivision. To add insult to injury, the proposed sub-division area lies squarely in the Belmopan flood plain where resi-dents are now affected whenever heavy rainfall occurs.

How then can the RECONDEV act with

such impunity? Clearly they are danc-ing to the tune of a higher master whose apparent power ambitions and mania for control makes him totally in-sensitive to the many inconveniences and tribulations the poor residents of Belmopan have had to endure.

This greed for power and result-ing conflicts has clearly been coun-terproductive for the people of Bel-mopan, and for the development of our national capital. It creates false expectations for the people that soon they will have a piece of land where to construct their homes. It potentially places on future Councils the burden to provide and meet the people’s ex-pectations in terms of infrastructure development. It is a fact that the Bel-mopan City Council, in spite of an estimated $5 million in annual reve-nue, is finding it difficult to meet its financial obligations. It is also a known fact that the Area Representative for Belmopan wields great influence over the RECONDEV Board on these is-sues. Is it a coincidence therefore that these lots are being provided, like the previous distribution, just before the Municipal Elections? It is not difficult therefore to conclude that RECON-


THERE WAS NO BATTLEThere was no battle of St. George’s Caye

in September, 1798. Neither was there a bat-tle at St. George’s Caye.

It is stupid, in 2014, for the school chil-dren and the country to be told there was a battle and that the Baymen fought and won a major battle.

It is equally stupid to be saying that if it were not for the victory at St. George’s Caye, Belize would not exist.

It is a fact that 32 Spanish ships carrying sailors and over 2,500 soldiers came to Belize in the area of St. George’s Caye. It is a fact the Governor of Jamaica sent a small ship, the Marlin and about 200 soldiers from the West India Regent. It is a fact that a number of the Baymen used their small boats to go out to “defend” St. George’s Caye.

It is a fact that black persons were in the boats of the Baymen. It is not a fact that slaves fought, neither is it true they fought with puck-u-nuh boy sticks. Please remember that there was slavery in Belize up to 1834. In 1798, there were some free black people and there were some free coloured people. The Baymen used these to row the boats.

The Archives of Belize has the written re-ports of Captain Moss who headed the boats that went out to St. George’s Caye. There is also the written report of Superintendent Thomas Barrow. Anyone who reads these reports can figure out what happened. There was no battle.

From these reports we learn many inter-esting things. Always bear in mind that histo-ry is the version of events by those who have a particular bias. The history we are using is his-story, i.e. the history of our slave masters and the British. It is a different type of histo-ry from that of historians who subsequently research a matter using various reliable sourc-es. For example we are told by historians that in 1783 there was the Treaty of Versailles. It ended war between the British and Spain. It gave the British right to cut logwood between the Hondo River and the Belize River. In the convention of London1786, Spain gave writ-ten permission for logwood to be cut as far as Sibun River. These permissions were always that the cutting of logwood recognized that the area belonged to Spain AND there were to be no permanent fortifictries. Spanish Commissioners regularly and officially visited Belize to show compliance.

These documents are in Spain and in Britain and historians verify them.

The matter of no permanent fortifictries is important. It is the reason Spain, through its officials in Mexico kept visiting Belize and specifically St. George’s Caye, because the Baymen were building permanent fortific-tries, that is why the Spaniards came and de-stroyed it every time. That is a historical fact.

The Archives Department in Belmopan has the long list of documents and corre-spondence and reports of the arrival of Span-iards from Mexico who burned and destroyed buildings on St. George’s Caye. Please re-member St. Geroge’s Caye was like the cap-ital at the time.

There is a map with markings of St. George’s Caye dated 1764. It is shows all the buildings and structures on the Caye. It shows the markings of residences and gives the names of the owners. It shows the fa-mous turtle corrals and it shows the quarters for the slaves who served the Baymen on the Caye.

It is a historic fact that the Spaniards always chased the Baymen off St. George’s Caye. On some occasions the whole settle-ment, including Baymen and slaves would hide up the river or go to the Mosquito Shores.

The records show that the Spaniards chased off the Baymen in 1724, 1733, 1744, 1751 and 1779.

One particularly rough experience was 15th September, 1779. Nineteen Spanish ships appeared in front of St. George’s Caye.

They captured 141 white people and 250 slaves and took them to Bacalar. The pop-ulation of the settlement in 1779 was 500 whites and 3,000 slaves.

On 9th August, 1798 orders were car-ried out and the houses and structures on St. George’s Caye were burned, water vats and barrels that could be emptied and moved were brought back to the mainland. This was done so the Spaniards would not try to re-main on the Caye, which at the time was like the capital of the settlement.

On 10th September, the record written by Captain Moss and Superintendent Barrow was that smaller boats left the Spanish ships and rowed to St. George’s Caye. Presumably they checked and found no one there and the place abandoned and destroyed so they rowed back to the ships and the ships started sailing away.

It is a fact that Superintendent Barrow and hundreds of soldiers stayed by Haulover Creek.They were sent for by Captain Moss in the afternoon. By the time they reached the Caye area the Spanish ships had already sailed away to join their main fleet in the area of Long Caye and Caye Chapel.

The so-called battle was from around 1:00 p.m. or 1:30 p.m. in the afternoon and within two hours the few Spanish ships were leaving the area. No doubt the Baymen fired canons but Captain Moss himself reported that NO ONE WAS KILLED. Neither was any boat or ship sunk.

A report of what transpired on the 10th September was sent by Superintendent Bar-row to his boss, the Governor of Jamaica. Remember that Barrow was never sent out at the Caye during the so-called battle. He and Captain Moss were “bigging” up them-selves, claiming to have conducted a major victory against Spain. In modern language this is what is called bull-----.

Another bull----- was that slaves fought against the Spanish battleships with puck-u-no boy sticks. There is nothing anywhere in the records of this. And certainly the slave masters, i.e. the Baymen, were not so stupid

as to give guns to the slaves and put them on boats so they could sail away to freedom or join the Spaniards.

The record shows that on 29th Janu-ary, 1798, the Governor of Jamaica informed Superintendent Barrow that he was sending officers of the 6th West Indian (black) Reg-iment to Belize. The Governor wrote that he expects the settlement to provide 171 privates from the well behaved slaves who will be paid similar to the British soldiers and be liberated when peace was achieved with Spain. There is no record any such thing ac-tually happened. In fact after 10th Septem-ber slavery continued in Belize.

The Governor went on to suggest that if that was not achievable then Belize was to pay 15 pounds 15 shillings to all free men of colour and free negroes who enlist. If the settlement still failed to get sufficient free men, then the Governor suggested money may be paid to slave owners for each slave used.

On 23rd February, 1798, it was report-ed that the Settlement was going to use 171 negroes but the Baymen were saying they agree to sell their slaves to the Government if they get acceptable terms. Put another way, faced with war the Baymen were look-ing to hustle. All this while the Baymen still have their slaves in the jungle cutting ma-hogany logs.

One hundred years of this bogus bat-tle, a most interesting thing happened. An editorial appeared in the Colonial Guardian newspaper (note there is a neo-colonial newspaper presently in Belize named the Guardian). This editorial said the battle of St. George’s Caye should be celebrated by the inhabitants of British Honduras with pomp and circumstances as the greatest and most glorious event which secured for the Bay-men and their decendants civil and religious liberty and good government.

On 6th April, 1898, a public meeting was held at a building called Riverside Hall to consider the centenary of the battle. The meeting was addressed by Henry Charles

Usher J.P., Dr. Charles R. Eyles, R.H. Logan, Sydney Woods and Carl Metzgen. The meet-ing passed resolutions that the 10th Septem-ber be a public holiday; the battle be celebrated each year and a committee of 40 be formed to promote the celebration of the battle.

Another important matter worth consid-ering is the statements that the Baymen de-feated the Spaniards on 10th September, 1798 because the Spaniards never again tried to dis-lodge them after that date. The reason for this is that in that the British and Spain were at war. The war ended and a peace treaty was signed and called the Treaty of Amians 1802.

The British conducted a census in Octo-ber, 1790 which shows an interesting popu-lation. There were 261 white persons in the Settlement. There were 371 “free people of colour”. There were 2,024 slaves.

Of the 261 whites, 41 were children, 40 were women and 174 were men. Of the co-loured people who were not slaves, 120 were men, 132 were women and 119 were children. Of the 2,024 slaves, 1,091 were men, 515 were women and 418 were children.

Creoles in Belize came from white men having children with black women. Black men could not have sex with the few white women in the Settlement. And this would not remain not up to slavery being ended in 1838, but well beyond that.

The record kept by the British and copies are in the Archives Department in Belmopan show rebellions in the Settlement in 1765, 1768, 1773 and 1820. Please note that the 1820 rebellion was 22 years after the so-called battle of St. George’s Caye. This rebellion start-ed from 24th April to 22 May. A reward was offered for the capture of “the Captain and Leaders of these rebels”. Their names: WILL and SHARPER. Not a statue or building is named after these two heroes who fought for freedom.

In 1862 the Settlement was officially made a Colony of the British. In 1871 we were made a Crown Colony with a Legislature As-sembly and a Lieutenant Governor.

It was not until 1950 that Belizeans got tired of British controlling their lives and a po-litical party with George Price, Phillip Goldson, Leigh Richardson, John Smith and others was



Continued from page 28formed to fight freedom.

Belize gained Self-Government in 1964 and because of the Guatemalan threat to in-vade and forcibly “recover their land” indepen-dence was not achieved until 21st September, 1981.

The records show that the United Demo-cratic Party refused to take part in the discus-sions on drafting an Independence Constitution for Belize. They also asked the British Govern-ment to delay Independence for at least ten years.

The record also shows that in 2012 the U.D.P. Government without notifying Belizeans or getting approval signed an Agreement with Guatemala called a Compromi. This document binds our country to holding a referendum on whether or not the people wish to take the legal claim of Guatemala to the International Court of Justice. Prime Minister Barrow personally told Belizeans that his Government would not push for a yes or no position. Months thereafter he was doing the exact opposite. Including getting his U.D.P. party to agree to vote yes in the ref-erendum.

In the next few months the British Govern-ment and Guatemala will be coming back with another attempt to get us to hold a referendum.

There is one other important matter that is on the records. It is a quotation from the U.K. newspaper of 26th January, 1978:

“The Premier of Belize, said in London last night that at one point in the secret negotiations with Guatemala, the Americans, apparently with British support, were seriously preparing a protection plan for the Colony which would cede nearly one quarter of it to the military dic-tatorship of President Laugerud. It would have exceeded 2,000 square miles.

“The thinking in Whitehall (British) and Washington is that there will be no solution which does not involve Belize ceding some token amount of land” - Financial Times 26th January 1978.

This is what George Price and the people of Belize were fighting against in the real battle for an independent Belize.

Guatemala is convinced that Prime Minis-ter Barrow is going along with the plan in the Compromi. They are right.

May god bless Belize and guide her peo-ple to change the U.D.P. Government before we lose part of the Toledo District.

A happy and safe Independence to all!

THERE WAS NO BATTLE

DEV and its land allocation authority are being used for political purposes. Such should never be the case. The people of Belmopan should not be deceived. They should not be led to believe that the Area Representative is genuinely concerned by providing residential lots, when in re-ality no one knows the right location of these lots, in an area where there are no amenities, which will take years to re-ceive proper infrastructure before home construction and occupation can occur.

Another area of concern is the arbi-trary distribution/sale of “buffer/reserve” lands in Belmopan to selected support-ers of the ruling UDP Party, namely the land reserved for the hospital extension, close to the US Embassy, the land at the junction of Forest Drive and Constitution Drive, and so on, and as our market ven-dors have exposed, the flagrant and un-

Residential lots for political gain the Belmopan case

Continued from page 27caring decision to sell the site originally selected to accommodate a proper rural vendors market. These are violations that may very well require legal action in our courts to put a stop to this madness. The Board of Directors of RECONDEV is the custodian of all land in Belmopan. They need to be reminded that they must con-sult with the local authority. They cannot simply acquiesce to the political manip-ulations of the Area Representative. The RECONDEV Board needs to understand the gravity of this lack of planning for Bel-mopan’s expansion which should not be over ridden by short term political expe-diency.

This UDP Government boasts that they were elected on a platform of trans-parency and accountability. Section 19, subsection 2 of the Act determines that the accounts of the RECONDEV shall

be audited by the Auditor General at the end of each financial year, and that such reports shall be laid by the Minister of Finance before the House of Represen-tatives. For the sake of good record keep-ing, can the Minister of Finance please formally ascertain when was the last time such a report was submitted?

While I have explained at length the Belmopan situation, I consider it abso-lutely necessary at this point to draw the people’s attention to the incessant, inap-propriate acts of land acquisition, irregular revocation of leases, and political distribu-tion of lands in a situation where recom-mendations for a coherent national land policy have been deliberately ignored.

I urge this UDP Administration to put a stop to these practices of poor land management, which are occurring all over our country. Now in the public do-main are situations such as Cotton Tree Village where the role of the Village Coun-cil in allocating village lands has been de-liberately ignored, as well as in Silk Grass, San Marcos, Xaibe, and Ranchito, where legal leases are being ignored and re-

voked. People are really suffering and are becoming more and more frustrated by the tremendous failure of the Lands Min-istry to be efficient and fair in discharging its responsibilities. Please be genuinely considerate of our peoples’ needs with the sense of responsibility that is the true measure of representation, not to deceive, and certainly not to exploit our people’s needs for political gain.

The future of our beloved Belize is best preserved in the pursuit of the rule of law. Short term political expediency has no place in the task of nation build-ing. As we celebrate our 33 years of In-dependence, we must be reminded that this ‘haven of democracy’ is best pre-served when we uphold the rule of law; not through the recitation of catchy but empty themes.

Long live a Belize where industrious hands and intelligent minds work togeth-er to uphold the constitution and the laws of our beloved country...we must do what is right for our country and not what is expedient for a political party.

Happy Independence Day Belize!!!


THIS MAY SPOIL YOUR WEEKENDFABER HOSPITALISED!

Hon. Jose Mai carries out major public works in OW South

CARTOON

8 SHOT, 3 DEAD IN ONE DAY

socialising and playing dominoes when an unknown individual approached them and began firing shots. The men scram-bled and tried to escape the deadly as-sault, but 56 year old Cyril McFoy Robin-son was not able to. He sustained a shot to the head. 45 year old Sean Cherrington was also shot on his leg.

Witnesses say the gunman targeted McFoy. He was the only one sitting down and the gunman pointed the gun to his head before firing a shot. But other re-ports indicate that McFoy may not have been the intended target. He is father to Brandon Tillett, a known associate of George Street gang, who was among the men but managed to escape the attack.

There was peace in the city following that shooting but only for a few hours.

About 7:20pm, shots rang out on Caesar Ridge Road. 25 year old Clifford Simeon Flores was shot on his abdomen and lower back. He was rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital, but died while undergoing treatment.

At the scene, Police found five 9mm shells. Witnesses say Flores was stand-ing on the street side when an SUV ap-proached and a male person exited, firing shots at him.

Authorities were busy searching for Flores’ attackers when, less than an hour later, another shooting occurred. This time, 26 year old Joseph Roland was standing on Central American Boulevard and Antelope Street Extension purchasing food at a popular fast-food stand when a lone man walked up and fired a shot at him.

Roland was shot to his head, but sur-vived. He is in a critical condition.

Less than an hour after, there was an-other shooting. This one occurred in the north side of Belize City, on Angel Lane. Four men, 28 year old Nigel Ferguson, 30 year old Mark Alamilla, 28 year old William Savery and 26 year old John Avilez were socialising under a vegetable shed next to Avilez’s home when a vehicle drove from the direction of North Front Street and stopped. A male individual stepped out and began shooting at them.

The gunman chased behind Avilez and continued shooting at him. Avilez was shot twice to his chest and one time on his right arm. Ferguson was shot on his face, while Alamilla was shot on his left leg and Savery was shot on his buttocks. All men were rushed to the KHMH but Avilez died while undergoing emergency treatment. Savery is in a critical condition.

Police have found nine 9mm shells in the area.

Police have not detained any suspects for these shootings. They also have not in-dicated if the shootings are connected.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow held a press conference today in a poor attempt to bring calm in a city that is clearly under siege from criminal elements. The Prime Minister said everything he has said be-fore. No new measures will be coming from his administration.


Orange Walk District, September 15, 2014

Even in Opposition the People’s United Party is showing that it can get serious work done. Hon. Jose Abelardo Mai is a good example of this as he has been carrying out ma-jor public works in various communities in his Orang Walk South constituency.

With the help of con-cerned residents, Hon Mai was able to open about 500 feet of drains in San Lazaro Village. This is to al-leviate flooding that affects the homes of several resi-dents. Hon. Jose Mai con-tracted the services of Car-los Padilla to excavate new and clear existed canals to reduce the effects of heavy flooding.

Also in San Lazaro, a 3-mile road was opened and shaped using a bulldoz-er. This road leads to farm lands in the south eastern part of the village directly east towards the Rio Hon-do. Some 50 persons doing mixed farming will benefit from the new road. About 3,000 tons of sugar cane that will be ready for har-vesting will now have eas-ier access out of the area for transport to the mill. A grader was used to level the road and leave ready to fill with white marl.

On behalf of the farm-

ers from the area, Hon. Mai has writ-ten to the Minister of Works, Rene Montero, request-ing assistance from the Ministry to complete the works on the new road, but they are awaiting a re-sponse.

The works has now moved to Guinea Grass, which has an in-dependent village council. The res-idents’ choice to reject Dean Bar-row and the UDP has been costly, as the UDP is now punishing them by ignoring the deteri-orating conditions of the village streets. But working together, Hon. Mai and the Village Coun-cil have found a way to overcome those challeng-es. The Council procured from ASR/ BSI some amounts of white marl and a grader to carry out upgrading on some of the streets in Guinea Grass. More than 30 loads were dumped on streets in the village. Mayor Kevin Ber-nard and the Orange Walk Town Council also assist-ed with some of its ma-chinery.

Bulldozer opens 3 mile road that will allow access to farm land in San Lazaro Village

Hon. Mai assisted to open new drains that will alleviate flooding in San Lazaro

belize times september 21, 2014

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