September is the month of patriotism in Belize, whereas it is the month of historical nationalism in Mexico and the Central American republics which surround us. There is a difference between patriotism and nationalism, it appears to us. Although Mexico and the Central American republics share the language, religion and bloodlines of the Spanish empire which ruled them, they all fought against that said Spanish empire for their independence and nationhood. Belize, however, an anomaly on the “Spanish Main” because of being British-ruled and African in ethnic majority, existed as a settlement because of a special relationship with Great Britain, which became an outright colonial relationship in 1862. Belizeans began to agitate for independence from Britain in 1950, but in 1981 many Belizeans insisted on a defence guarantee (never granted) from Britain to protect the independence we received on September 21, 1981. The seeking of a defence guarantee was because the much larger republic of Guatemala to Belize’s west had and has made a territorial claim to Belize, and has threatened to invade us on occasion.
So then, when we enter September, we Belizeans feel a patriotic spirit, when what we really need presently is a nationalistic spirit. Our patriotism is heavily influenced by nostalgic memories of the colonial and pre-colonial past. There is not much that can be done about this situation, because Belize is, to a troubling extent, only a nation in name and aspiration.
There are areas where we can see the absolute weakness of Belize’s nationalism. Examine, we suggest, the operation of our young and lucrative oil industry. What Belize Natural Energy (BNE) is doing in Belize is exactly what the American Duhaney and the Englishman Cowdray/Weetman were doing in Mexico in the first part of the twentieth century. Near the end of the Mexican Revolution, in 1938, Lázaro Cárdenas did something about the Americans and the British. Cárdenas declared the nationhood of Mexico for all the world to see.
In an “infomercial” aired on national television, the Government of Belize has recently confirmed that there was offshore drilling for oil in the waters of British Honduras during the 1950’s. The Belize Department of Geology has categorically stated that this offshore oil exploration was done near San Pedro Ambergris Caye, in the Turneffe range, off Glovers Reef and near Dangriga and Punta Gorda Town. The “infomercial” refers to a total of 16 “dry” wells.
At the time this offshore oil exploration was being done, in the middle 1950’s, Belize was a British colony named British Honduras. We had not even become self-governing yet. (Self-government was achieved in 1964.) Oral evidence from the fishermen of Belize during the mid-1950’s strongly suggests that the offshore oil exploration featured dynamite blasting in Belize’s Barrier Reef and other coral formations and banks inside the Barrier Reef. To the best of our knowledge, the British government never, officially or unofficially, informed the people of Belize of these developments. There was really no need to: we were, after all, British subjects. That, as they say, was then: this is supposed to be now.
When Belize achieved independence, there were many PUP stalwarts who felt that their struggle had been burdened by the resistance of those Belizeans who were pro-British. There was this feeling in some PUP circles that independence was theirs, that they had achieved it, “against the grain”, and that they deserved the rewards of independence. Remember, at the time of independence the PUP was a party which had never been defeated in national elections, a winning streak which had lasted for 27 years.
It is important to note, we think, that the party vanguard of the PUP was, relatively speaking, a small group. Similarly, the vocal opponents of the PUP, some of whom were actually Anglophile, were a small group. The majority of the people of Belize, like the majority of the people of nations all over the world, have different daily priorities from those of the politicians. At election time, the majority of the people put aside their daily challenges and travails in order to make political choices. They indicate those choices by means of written ballots. This is what is called “democracy.”
We are trying to say to you that when the leaders of a nation in formation are sincere and not resentful of those who have been their opponents, then they focus on the creation of a strong, inclusive and all-embracing nationalism. The only way this can be done is by means of education. The minds of the nation’s young must be properly cultured. But the schools of Belize happen to be fundamentally controlled by the very same institutions which controlled them during colonialism. Is the nation of Belize the absolute priority in the schools of Belize, or are there other priorities, in fact, foreign ones?
Until we make the nation of Belize the absolute priority in our schools, then September in Belize will remain patriotic before it is nationalistic. This is fine for those who like “fun,” but for those of us who understand how dangerous and cruel a place is planet earth, we would like for some more gravitas to become the order of the day.
Power to the people. Power in the struggle.