_{Photo: Robert “Bobby” Lopez – Member, Belize Peace Movement}

BELMOPAN, Mon. June 10, 2024

The redistricting recommendations of the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), formally constituted as the Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill, 2024, went before the relevant House Committee this morning – having been tabled at the House of Representatives on Thursday, May 30. The intention of the bill is “… to give effect to the Redivision Report of the Elections and Boundaries Commission by varying boundaries and removing and creating electoral divisions in Schedule I of the Act.” As such, the Bill describes each division, and outlines their new coordinates as per the recommendations of the EBC July 2023 report.

Outside the National Assembly, a group of about 100 people who had made the trip from the south protested the proposals in support of the Belize Peace Movement (BPM). They had been organized by a UDP supporter, businessman, Aldon Tasher from Stann Creek West (which currently has the largest number of voters). Tasher said he was merely there to support the push for redistricting.

During the meeting, BPM Chairman, Robert “Bobby” Lopez presented the position of the BPM rejecting the Bill. Other presentations were also made on behalf of the Belize Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Opposition United Democratic Party (UDP).

Among 7 points Lopez outlined is that the EBC report does not comply with the requirement of the Belize Constitution that all electoral divisions have as equal a number of voters as possible.

In an interview, Lopez remarked, “For the last four general elections, Belizeans have witnessed a steady decline in the value of our vote. This passive mal-apportionment would have continued unattended and unfixed were it not for a few brave Belizean patriots, who, for the last 12 years have relentlessly persevered under very challenging circumstances to correct this injury to our constitutional right to have our vote accorded equal weight across this Jewel of ours.”

The BPM urged the Committee to recommend an urgent special sitting of the House of Representatives so that the Bill is taken through all its stages and is ultimately rejected and there can be a do-over by the Commission. Lopez is of the opinion that, given everything that has transpired regarding its July 2023 report, the Commission should already be working on a new report. The BPM has forwarded to the House Committee the 60-page report of Sean P. Trende, the court-appointed expert who provided redistricting recommendations for the BPM redistricting challenge, and has said it should not take a long time to conduct a redistricting exercise. Lopez also stated that if they want an unbiased report, they should hire someone like Trende “that isn’t looking at party colors and gerrymandering it according to one party or the other, but is simply taking the numbers and making them near as equal as possible … and in the end, everybody’s benefits, resources would be eventually shared equally, and our voice would be equally heard in the National Assembly.” The BPM is submitting that the deviation threshold among divisions be 5% though the international standard is 10% to 15% for most countries.

Lopez reminded that they are awaiting a date from High Court Justice Nadine Nabie on when she will deliver her decision on the enforcement of the Consent Order for the redistricting claim. He also declared that it would speak very poorly of Belize regionally and worldwide if, “… having gone through all that we have gone through in the last five years in court, that they still insisted on holding another election [without a redistricting].”

Lopez did say that there appears to be a gray area based on a point of clarification raised by the Chamber of whether Parliament can have a bill amended. Commenting on this, Lopez said, “In reading the Constitution, only the Elections and Boundaries Commission has that constitutional authority to fix that. So, I trust that this will be clarified because this exercise has not been done in 20 years.”

The BPM has already put on the record that were no redistricting to happen before the next general elections, they will move to seek an injunction as soon as the Prime Minister announces an election date.

Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Moses “Shyne” Barrow wrote to the Committee recording his objection to the Bill while affirming that the UDP supports seeing redistricting done before the next general elections. He wrote, “The most glaring examples of irregularities, gerrymandering, Constitutional violations are, the task force recommendation that we go 25% above or below the average size of a Constituency rather than adhere to the best practice global norm of 15%.” Barrow affirms that “politics should play no part in the long overdue redistricting exercise …” He adds, “Just as contiguous Constituencies such as Queen’s Square is proposed to be merged into Mesopotamia and Albert as well as Port Loyola merged into Albert and Collet, so should Caribbean Shores be merged into Fort George.” Barrow repeats the accusation that a merger of the latter two divisions has not been recommended, in order to preserve the “Musa Dynasty.” Barrow calls on the Briceño Administration to “act swiftly and adjust the Electoral Map to conform with the Constitution of Belize.”