Thursday, June 5, 2025
Dear Editor,
Activism is overrated. It’s only a platform utilized by those who want to grandstand and pontificate about a burning issue that they perceive is affecting a particular community or country. The road to hell is filled with good intentions. Even though these issues may gain traction, their effectiveness is limited in its scope, especially concerning the greater good.
Being able to associate and unionize has its place, and it does produce positive results. Many benefits have been achieved for their membership. In regard to Good Governance, though, the unions are overreaching.
Our desire for that greater good in government is what we all aspire to. Hence, when people go to the polls to vote, they seek to elect the candidate or party that they believe will deliver betterment for the country.
In my lifetime, I have never seen any organized protest or resistance that has benefited the entire population of this country. Whatever success these protests produce is felt within the rank and file of their union or association only.
To put things into perspective, let’s reflect on the last couple of industrial actions that we have lived through. In 2016, the union went on strike for 11 days, demanding that their 13-point resolution be adopted, which included the implementation of UNCAC. Then in 2005, the joint unions took it further to the point of burning and looting in downtown Belize City. Why are we back here demanding good governance if those two efforts were successful? The narrative that we must hold governments accountable to stamp out corruption for the well-being of all Belizeans is hogwash.
Even though we may be going down a slippery slope since independence in relation to best practices in our government system, it is also important for us to call out those who were at the helm in the recent past. Trying to separate politics from your cause for good governance is utterly ridiculous. We have all been aware that the last government was found guilty of spending hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars without the proper approval of the House of Representatives in the Supreme Court. In another instance, the Boledo contract, worth approximately 50 million dollars annually, was privatized. These two, among many other corrupt practices, were never questioned by the unions. It was just swept under the rug. Corruption is synonymous with politics, especially in these third-world countries. It is practically impossible to eliminate in this system. We live in a corrupt society. You can only find prosperity through who you know. What you know doesn’t mean squat.
This parliamentary democracy that Belize has adopted is an elite system. The oligarchy will never surrender its status quo to benefit or empower the masses of this country.
Let’s go back a little further in history to get a better understanding of advocacy in Belize. What was the objective of the Heads of Agreement in ‘81, and what have Belizeans gained from that experience? Further back, we saw where the effectiveness of the General Workers’ Union had to transform into a political party in the 1950s. This was the only way their anti-colonial agenda could have been heard, which eventually led this country to independence. How about the 1919 revolt in Belize City, which seems to be hidden inside the annals of our history? How has that resistance been inspirational to our lives today? From an international standpoint, we could also look at the efforts of activists such as Martin Luther King, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, and their intention to liberate their people from racial discrimination and injustices. Was their effort worth it? We are all aware of their demise because of activism. Then there is the slave revolution in Haiti led by Toussaint Louverture.
A revolution, from my standpoint, would be the final stage of the process of effective activism. Haiti was considered one of the most prosperous and wealthiest island nations in the Caribbean before the rebellion. Today, after approximately 200 years of staging the most successful slave revolution in the history of the Caribbean, this independent nation state has become the poorest country in the region, where corruption is the order of the day. How has that revolt been beneficial to our brothers in that country or in the Caribbean? Your guess is as good as mine.
The reality is that only the most vulnerable citizens, innocent children, those who live on the margins, the indigent, and the working class are adversely affected by the industrial action of unions. It is very easy to create fear and havoc to protest, shut down, and destroy the country; but to take up the challenge to sit around the table, negotiate using your diplomatic skills and intelligence to draft a solution to solve the nation’s problems takes true leadership. If you are driven by the collective decision of your members without providing them with a clear understanding of the issues at hand, then you are leading from behind. The vast majority of the population will gain nothing from this process. We all will be back here at this same position, clamoring for good governance within a few years.
Activists should stay in their lane and look out for their membership. Until you can eradicate poverty and rid this country of racial discrimination and offer equal rights and justice for all, your plight will always be limited. Without genuine leadership, history will continue to repeat itself.
Concerned Citizen,
J Alvarez