BELIZE CITY, Sun. Feb. 20, 2022– A generous donation of 120 acres of near virgin land in the Belize River Valley has been given to the Leadership Intervention Unit (LIU) in an effort to provide a space for at-risk youths with an interest in farming – instead of the gun. The tract of land was donated by Dr. Ariel Rosado, founder of the Ariel Rosado Foundation and Scholarship Fund and father of famed cyclist, the late Ariel Rosado, Jr. Rosado shared in an interview that the land has been owned by the family since the 1950’s when his father bought the first couple acres of land and created a homestead in the area of Grace Bank, and he said that he and his deceased son worked on the farm and fell in love with the riverside property, but this land would soon be reclaimed by the jungle, following the passing of the young Rosado.
Dr. Rosado said that at his age it is now difficult to carry out the necessary upkeep of the property on his own, and as a result he was inspired to donate it to the LIU, after he became aware of the worthwhile purpose of the project. The coordinators of the LIU welcomed Mr. Rosado’s offer to donate the land, and met with the philanthropist and government officials last Thursday to visit the property. Hon. Kareem Musa, Minister of Home Affairs and New Growth Industries, accompanied them on the trip, and he commented on the nature of this new venture, ultimately geared toward curbing the scourge of crime and violence in Belize.
“We are working the details of this MOU, but basically it is farmland that we are looking at. We obviously will need a lot of support from other members of the private sector as well as government in terms of the technical support for agriculture, setting up greenhouses, clearing the property, so Ministry of Infrastructure has also communicated their support for this initiative, and it’s just, like I said, all in line with a very wholistic approach, a comprehensive approach that the LIU is implementing, because a lot of our at-risk youth want opportunities to engage in farming, not all of them of course, but some of them do want that opportunity, and we have to ensure that we create those opportunities and find them,” Minister Musa said.
At this point, approximately 10 acres of the land is somewhat cleared, according to reports, but the remaining 110 acres of virgin land will have to be cleared, and prepared for cultivation by the youths under the leadership of the LIU. As mentioned, the idea is to create a farmstead where local crops are cultivated and livestock is reared by youths who would otherwise be exposed to illegal enterprises and a life of crime and violence in their communities. While the project is open to whichever at-risk youth is interesting in learning and changing, Minister Musa noted that this approach to addressing the issue of crime and violence in the community is multifaceted, and that it is being deployed in conjunction with a firm, penal approach that will be aimed at those who refuse to change.
“There has to be two approaches we take. It cannot be that we are creating this positive, uplifting approach, offering these opportunities of education and employment, and farming and agriculture. There has to be a penal side to all of this, and so we are separating those that are just hellbent on wreaking havoc as terrorists on our society, we will go after them hard; there is legislation in place, and we’re looking at further legislation when it comes to the illegal guns that are on the streets of Belize City, and so yes, I understand what you’re saying that we are just creating these opportunities, but these young men might not want it. I can tell you that a majority of the young men are appreciative of this program, but for the others who do not want to change, we will ensure that they are dealt with by the law,” Musa said.
Of recent we have also seen this second approach being put into motion, with 6 young men from the Antelope Street Extension area being arrested and pleading guilty to the crime of gang affiliation, for which they were handed a custodial sentence of 6 months in prison. Musa said that typically a fine is the normal sentence for those who plead guilty for that offence, but the infraction does carry a maximum sentence of 10 years for members of a gang and up to 20 years for gang leaders. He thus said he doubts that persons arrested and charged for gang affiliation offences will be pleading guilty in the future.
In regard to the crime and violence plaguing the society, Minister Musa remarked that crime is unpredictable like the weather, and he said flareups will occur despite the preventative efforts of the police. He went on to say that finding those persons responsible for those crimes through proper investigations in order to hold them responsible is a key objective of the ministry. This means increasing the protection of eyewitnesses in order to bolster evidence as well as applying laws that are already in place.
As far as the law enforcement on the ground, he said that at least 100 persons have been dismissed from the Police Department, just as was reported last week by Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams, but he noted that, contrary to what was stated in some news reports, not all those persons were from the new intake squad of 225 new officers.