In the days leading up to the March 12 general election, Channel 7 boss, Jules Vasquez made the observation that PUP leader John Briceño had said that Francis Fonseca would be Minister of Foreign Affairs in his “new” government. Hon. Fonseca, who was the minister responsible for Education in the 2020-25 administration, had added the Foreign Affairs ministry in December 2023, after Hon. Senator Eamon Courtenay, who held the post, announced that he would be returning to work at his law firm. The PUP was pretty sure it would win the general election before the main opposition (UDP) imploded, and when that happened, a PUP victory at the polls was as certain as anything is under the sun. It might have been presumptuous of John Briceño to announce Francis Fonseca as his foreign minister; it certainly was telling.
Announcing that Hon. Fonseca would continue as foreign minister was a loud statement about the course a Briceño government would be charting if/when it formed the new government. Pointedly, the pious Fonseca said he had “no plans” to meet a prominent Palestinian leader who visited Belize in January. Just prior to the general election, Briceño’s government walked back a decision to join South Africa in its case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Israel under the leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu, for Israel’s terrible destruction of Gaza. When asked about that decision by Mr. Vasquez, the PM said his government has “a responsibility to this country first and foremost”, that “our principles have not changed,” but that in this time we need to “navigate very carefully.”
Since the election, we have seen PM Briceño washing dishes, sweeping away litter in front of his gate, and heard him call for more understanding for women when they experience things that are unique to their gender.
It’s a new world we now live in since Donald Trump took over the presidency in the US. Many of us, having experienced the terrible Covid-19 pandemic and the havoc of new wars abroad added to old ones, had thought that the world was about to enter a calmer phase, not about to become a more dangerous place, which it has. The Trump government, as expected, reversed gains made by the LGBT, Black Lives Matter, and pro-abortionists; all but closed their south border to “third world” citizens and have accelerated the arrest and deportation of those who are in the US illegally; increased the pressure on our friends in Cuba; and threw even more support behind the Netanyahu government. No one expected that a US government would act threateningly toward friendly countries – Canada, Mexico, Panama, and Denmark; coddle Russia and manipulate Ukraine; and bully its allies in NATO.
It’s a harsher world that PM Briceño and his 2025-30 government have to navigate us through. It isn’t new turf for the PM to step softly with the big powers. All indications were that he was pro-ICJ, though he followed his party’s line against it. He is not alone in his decision-making. The leader of Belize is the head of Cabinet, not a president. As much as possible, Belize is not about to buck the US; that’s the word coming down from Independence Hill.
While its watered-down stance on Israel has only raised eyebrows at home, the government isn’t being let off so easily for the internationally influenced decision to box out the BSCFA, our largest cane farmers association. Briceño and his government were in the corner of the BSCFA, until they acquiesced to the demands of the giant American-owned ASR, the majority owner of the Tower Hill sugar factory, which on at least one occasion has threatened to pull out if the BSCFA gets a greater say in the running of the industry.
Almost annually there’s an impasse caused by differences between the BSCFA and ASR, and the report of a Commission of Inquiry into the workings of the industry, which the farmers fought hard to see realized, is about to be tabled. Significantly, the minister who championed the farmers’ cause no longer heads the industry. After a meeting with ASR in its home country, the PM replaced Hon. Jose Mai, who is an agriculturist by profession, in his role of oversight in the sugar industry, with Hon. Dr. Osmond Martinez, who is trained in finance. It might be that Mai is too invested personally to see the way forward clearly. Whatever the reason for the change, the farmers feel they have been betrayed, and they didn’t hold back in a scathing letter to the PM.
Briceño and his government step softly around the mighty foreign power, but they are not about being bullied at home. The PM didn’t temper his tongue when he responded to the BSCFA’s leaders who challenged him for removing “their” minister. Of course, not all things are as they meet the eye, and with the climate unstable, both physically (climate change) and politically (a volatile world), the industry is, as the PM said, in an existential crisis.
Since that confrontation, the BSCFA has issued a press release in which it expressed respect for the “immense responsibilities” of the PM, outlined the “serious concerns” of farmers, and invited the PM and both the former and present ministers responsible for the sugar industry to a meeting to discuss the pressing issues in the industry.
The farmers (BSCFA) might curse their luck. In the 1980s when they could have gained control of Tower Hill, they were broke because of pests in the fields and a low price for their cane; around 2010, when the local majority owners of Tower Hill had overextended in an investment in BELCOGEN, and had to sell shares, the farmers didn’t have a supportive government in Belmopan. Now, when they have brought the miller to the table, circumstances seem to have forced an apparently sympathetic government to flinch, to walk softly because of pressure from abroad.
2,000 abandoned lots – something has to be done
After a recent fire at an abandoned house in Belize City, the National Fire Service appealed to the Belize City Council to address the large number of derelict buildings within the city’s borders. Responding to the request, Belize City mayor, Bernard Wagner explained that the lots have owners, that it was a problem his administration had inherited, and that the BCC had already approached the Ministry of Natural Resources for assistance to remedy the situation.
Two thousand abandoned lots is a tremendous waste of resources. With the lots conservatively valued at $50,000 each, that is $100 million worth of properties just lying there. Apart from becoming eyesores at times, derelict structures on some of the lots harbor pests, create a fire hazard, and increase the danger during hurricanes. The BCC is denied tens of thousands of dollars in property taxes, and the public utilities lose tens of thousands of dollars when lots in the city are not utilized. From time to time, the BCC also has to collect garbage at these abandoned sites, a cost that city dwellers have to bear.
Why are these lots just lying there? Some lots are abandoned because the owner died without a will or left the property to “too many” family members, and the matter is tied up in the courts. Some of these properties are abandoned because they are located in neighborhoods that are heavily stressed. Some lots are abandoned because the cost of building in the city is high, especially in areas nearest to the coast.
The core problem for the Ministry of Natural Resources is that in our system, private property is fixed in stone. If there is hesitation on the part of that ministry to step in and resolve this matter, it might be a case of being twice shy, after being bitten many times after acquiring privately owned properties.
But something has to be done. The authorities need to engage these owners of abandoned lots. Those who don’t want to sell (they shouldn’t be pressured to) and can’t afford to build at this time, might be asked to lease their properties to the BCC for a minimal fee, so they can be turned into urban gardens, and playgrounds. Where abandoned lots are in strategic areas, light structures could be put up and rented to individuals interested in setting up a small business.
The story here is that something has to be done.