The allegations in last Wednesday’s Prensa Libre that soldiers of the Belize Defence Force (BDF) have been harassing and threatening villagers in the Livingston area of Guatemala have been roundly denounced by the army, but nonetheless remain cause for concern among Belizeans.
Today, Prime Minister Hon. Dean Barrow cautioned that as we continue on the long road to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague, Netherlands, Belize must not allow such reports to cause worry among our populace, arguing that what is manifesting itself is a lack of unity in Guatemala with regard to the position on Belize.
“Undoubtedly, there is a great deal of skittishness in Guatemala’s foreign policy establishment as this whole question of going to the ICJ gets closer. They are not acting in a unified manner… we have noted an unfortunate willingness on the part of some people (in Guatemala) to do or say things that threaten the delicate balance of our relationship with them and the on-the-ground situation along the borders.”
The Prime Minister added that Belize had to be “very careful not to succumb to what may appear to be provocation, even as we insist on vindicating, maintaining and defending our rights.” He said that he felt that the BDF would not jeopardize our position by engaging in such activities.
On the matter of the public education campaign on the ICJ and the Special Agreement signed in December 2008, the Prime Minister endorsed the feeling of PUP representative on the national negotiating team, Senator Eamon Courtenay, that a simultaneous required national referendum on sending the dispute to The Hague would not likely take place until 2017, but insisted that that was Guatemala’s fault, not ours.
Because of certain “internal pressures” being felt by current Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom, the P.M. explained, it was not a certainty that even the Agreement would be expected to pass through the Guatemalan Congress before presidential elections there in 2012. He added that the longer Guatemala takes, the more Belize can hold on to its moral high ground, but warned of the possibility of an attempt to cause an international incident that would shift that ground to Guatemala. Belize, he said, is ready to hold a referendum whenever Guatemala indicates that it is ready, though he, Barrow, gave no guarantee that Belizeans would vote in favor of agreeing to have the ICJ mediate the dispute.