A large tract of land belonging to a Taiwanese man thought to be dead has become the subject of controversy among immigrant squatters, Belizean “land-grabbers,” and area representative for Cayo South, Hon. John Saldivar.
The land, between 2000-5000 acres at Mile 41 on the Western Highway, reportedly has been abandoned for 20 years.
Unconfirmed reports are that the land has been sitting idle with no further development aside from what was initially done, and the land tax has reached millions. A group of about 1,000 Belizean citizens have organized themselves and are making a move to obtain a piece of the land lawfully, but they are fighting against another group of Belizeans who have rushed on the land and claimed it for themselves, using the name of the Hon. John Saldivar, and in the process chasing off another group of mostly immigrant squatters.
On KREM Radio’s “WUB Morning Vibes,” several callers commented that at 10 a.m. yesterday, they met, in an organized fashion, to come up with a plan to present to the relevant ministers of the respective constituencies directly affected by the Taiwanese’s land.
At the end of the show, Minister John Saldivar called in and commented about the controversy.
Saldivar: “The problem is that this land is a privately owned land. News is that the owner is either dead or in jail in Taiwan or somewhere. I am going to approach the Minister of Lands because I would like to see some of our regular people from Belmopan, some of our roots people [benefit].
“I told Mr. Petillo that I have some bona fide farmers who are squatting on land around Belmopan that I would like to relocate, because these lands around Belmopan are to be reserved for residential. So I told him yes indeed, get a list of about 20 or so of your guys from the hood and bring their names to me and I will take it up to the Minister of Lands to see if we can do something about this land.
“I understand people’s frustration with how things work at the Lands Department. I understand that and I am not trying to deny that things work very slow in the bureaucracy, but that to my mind is no reason for citizens to take the law into their own hands, especially as it comes to distribution of land. This land is not even in the Belmopan constituency. I have only entered into this picture now, because I would like to see that private land acquired by the Government for distribution to our people.”
Saldivar has confirmed that the “lawless” people are not only stepping in to divide up the land among themselves and squatting, but are also, according to police reports, chasing immigrants away that have been squatting on the land before, and that they do so in his (Saldivar’s) name.
In reference to these people who have purportedly taken an active step to enter the land and share it among themselves, Saldivar had this to say:
“I am trying to protect our Belizean people rather than have them squat on private land from which they could eventually be evicted.”
It was at this point that Evan “Mose” Hyde, the program’s host, stepped in and commented on behalf of the people taking action.
Mose: “I have been in talk show for 10 years, and I have heard the Belizeans say, ‘How come everybody else could come to the country and squat.’ The problem has been around for much longer.
“People have come here; they have squatted. We [Belizeans] are trying to obey the rules, and by obeying the rules, we lose out.
“Because then, these people come, and as a matter of political convenience when election is upon us, they then cut a deal, and they say, ‘Alright, we are going to hand out these papers,’ and then citizenship papers are given out. And when Belizeans do it, we are told about being ‘lawless.’”
Amandala spoke to the Hon. Gaspar Vega, the Minister responsible for lands, about the situation. Vega confirmed that the land was indeed owned privately, by an owner representing a Taiwanese company, and it is believed that this person has died.
He also said that the land needs to be acquired by Cabinet through the proper procedures, and until this body does that, the Lands Department and his hands are tied.
He also said that they are in the process of drafting up papers for plans to turn the land into a community of a few hundred house lots. It is part of his plan that the Government pay for the building of schools, churches, and public parks. He also said that there are plans to turn a section of this land, if it is acquired by Cabinet, into land for small farming.
He said that ultimately the decision over this land is in the hands of the Cabinet, and that these are just suggestions.
He also confirmed that there were 50 immigrant families squatting on the land, and that this is a part of the problem for Belizean citizens who feel that they should get a portion of this land too. He concluded by saying that only Cabinet can remove these immigrant families.
There are unconfirmed reports, according to a call made offline to the WUB, that the Taiwanese have heard about the fuss over the land, and they are coming to Belize to claim it.