With the exhilarating news that 8 families from Santa Rosa would be leaving Belizean land on the southern border (in a nature reserve) that they had occupied for thirteen years, Belizean political leader Wil Maheia, his friend, Blues McKenzie, and two other friends set out to the illegal village on Friday, January 4, to record the historic moment for the nation. True, hopes that all families at Santa Rosa would have packed their bundles and headed for home by January 1, 2008, had been dashed – Government of Belize officials claimed bad weather had slowed the construction of their new homes – but Belizeans all across the length and breadth of The Jewel were still expectant, waiting to share in the partial but historic evacuation.
To date, Belizeans are still waiting for visual documentation of the move. And independent confirmation that 8 families have indeed gone back to Guatemala has not materialized. PNP leader, and sometimes KREM Radio journalist, Wil Maheia, and his party, who had taken the valiant and arduous initiative to ride horses all the way to Santa Rosa on the southern border, were intercepted outside of the village of San Vicente in the Toledo District by Belize Defence Force personnel, and ordered to turn back – leave the area.
Understandably, Wil Maheia and his entourage were very disappointed by the decision of the BDF, and he said so in a letter to Amandala dated today, Monday, January 7, 2008. However, he expressed pride in the behavior of the Belizean military, under the leadership of Sergeant Cardinez, saying that they were “very professional and civil in their communication.”
Brigadier General Lloyd Gillett of the Belize Defence Force said his men out in Toledo were only trying to protect Mr. Maheia and his group. He said the BDF didn’t know what to expect while they were removing the squatters. If the climate had “deteriorated,” things could have gotten dangerous, he told us. That is why Mr. Maheia and his party were advised to wait until this part of the evacuation had been concluded.
We asked Brigadier Gillette how many people remained at Santa Rosa? He was cautious to speak to that, he said, because he did not have his notes at the ready, but he believes there are 10 families left at Santa Rosa, and they are expected to move soon.
How soon is soon, we asked him? Brigadier Gillett wouldn’t go out on that limb. Is it safe for Mr. Maheia and his party to go to Santa Rosa now, we asked? Yes, he said.
Brother Wil Maheia wasn’t too pleased when we conveyed Brigadier General Gillett’s reason why he and his party were stopped from going to Santa Rosa on Friday.
They must “have had something to hide,” he told Amandala. “If the people at Santa Rosa were armed, they shouldn’t have been,” he pointed out.
Brother Wil Maheia, leader of the PNP and the NBA, is not about going back to Santa Rosa within the next month. This morning Prime Minister Said Musa advised the Governor General to set the date of general elections for February 7th, and Maheia and his party are now putting in final preparations for the big day.
Speaking on his campaign in Toledo East, Mr. Maheia said he is “motivated…upbeat…confident.” He cited a small fisherman who gave him $2 toward his campaign this morning, saying that kind of support excited him especially. Brother Wil said he is confident that Toledo East is going to send him and his party to Belmopan in February.