Dear Editor,

Several years ago the government and authorities responsible for the licensing of motor vehicles implemented a standard for the tinting of motor vehicles, regulating the degree of tint for private and government vehicles. Only Ministerial and special government-owned vehicles were supposed to be heavily tinted.

As is the usual case with many other regulations in the Belizean society, this regulation is not being enforced.

Since Belize achieved independence, crime has spiralled in the Jewel, moving us from being a “tranquil haven of democracy” to a country with one of the highest murder rates in the world.

Has this become an acceptable norm in Belize? Many crimes, including the almost daily occurrence of shootings, are often done with the use of heavily tinted vehicles. This is also the case for many traffic mishaps, including fatalities. It is widely known that heavily tinted vehicles impede vision, especially when both the windshield and rear windows are of this type.

It is unbelievable that the authorities are not aware that many heavily tinted vehicles are being driven by underage or unlicensed drivers and those with the intention to commit crimes. The Ministry and authorities with the responsibility for licensing and traffic should take note once again, and make a commitment to enforce the existing regulations when vehicles are being licensed, and even through an everyday enforcement scheme.

This will undoubtedly contribute to reducing crime and traffic mishaps, even if by a miniscule scale.

Signed,
Ewart Robateau