Some interesting events surrounding the Belize/Guatemala
border...
The first 3 stories from Belize's "The Reporter"
newspaper.
The final one from Channel 5 Belize Television.
***
Milestone agreement for Belize and Guatemala
The Organization
of American State Permanent Council this week approved a
resolution,
proposed by delegations from both Guatemala and Belize for
further
confidence-building measures over the ongoing territorial dispute.
Assad
Shoman, Senior Ambassador with ministerial rank represented Belize
during a
session of the OAS Permanent Council held on Wednesday, November
8, at the
OAS headquarters in Washington D.C.
Representing Guatemala was its
foreign minister Gabriel (Orellana Rojas.
Both men signed an agreement
to adopt a comprehensive set of
confidence-building measures to avoid further
incidents between the two
countries.
OAS Secretary General
Cesar Gaviria, congratulated both countries for the
milestone agreement their
delegation has reached so far in their quest for
a peaceful settlement over
the dispute.
" This is a very significant step that clears the way for
the negotiations
on the substance of the differendum to be addressed in a
climate of mutual
confidence and tranquility for both governments and for the
people living
in the area. It faithfully reflects the commitment of both
parties to the
process and their will for peace," Secretary General Gaviria
said.
Based on the proposal, the OAS went ahead and approved a resolution
that
supports the process of negotiation. It has also established a special
fund
to support the negotiation by financing the costs of the work of the
panel
of facilitators in the dialogue.
" The decision of the Permanent
Council underlines the commitment of the
OAS to continue promoting and
supporting the peaceful resolution of
disputes between member states,"
Gaviria said.
***
BDF in morale crisis
Commandant designate dismisses
internal gripes
Guatemala's continuous unfounded claim to Belizean soil
along with reports
of serious tension among its ranks, is causing great
concern for the men
and women in the Belize Defence Force.
"We are
suffering in silence. There is a serious situation that we have to
deal with
from the outside, as well as serious internal problems that
continue to go
unnoticed with-in the BDF," said one of two high ranking BDF
officers and a
private who Reporter interviewed this week.
"Our soldiers are sitting on
a time bomb. There is frustration and
disappointment on a day-to-day basis.
There will come a point when our
soldiers, out of frustration, will show
absolutely no respect to us at the
senior level, and unfortunately nothing is
being done to address these
problems," expressed a calm but serious top BDF
officer.
The tension, they said, became even more intense after the
apprehension by
Guatemalan soldiers, of three of their soldiers and a police
officer in
February of this year.
"Border patrols were suspended
after the apprehension of the four security
personnel. After these men were
freed on bail in Guatemala, they jumped
bail and returned to Belize. The
decision to have them jump bail, could
escalate into serious impact on our
soldiers who are patrolling the
Belize/Guatemalan borderline.
"Our
soldiers are patrolling in fear, as a result of this situation. They
are
greatly concerned that should they come across a platoon of
Guatemalan
soldiers, which numbers forty strong and who are well equipped
with
ammunition, it is likely that they could be easily overpowered and
taken
into Guatemala, with the high possibility of being charged and jailed,"
one
top official said.
Commandant designate of the BDF, Colonel
Cedrick Borland, refuted these
allegations and painted a rosier picture of
what he described as progress
in the BDF. He conceded that there exist
certain threats along the border
line.
Colonel Borland said that
the training which the soldiers go through
requires them to achieve a certain
level of readiness. He said that there
is a refresher's course that soldiers
participate in, and this keeps them
up with certain standard.
"Our
soldiers have been trained to deal with these situations and training
is a
continuous process to ensure that our soldiers are kept in the
highest
standard," Col. Borland said.
The soldiers meanwhile expressed
concern that they have been placed in a
hostile environment.
And with
the lack of necessary technical support, due to limited resources,
no
systematic plans are in place should they encounter a situation with
the
aggressive Guatemalan military.
"There is only one vehicle in
operation for the BDF base in Toledo. At
Treetop, there are eight of us, and
another group are out on patrol. How
are we going to be assisted should an
incident or accident occur if that
only vehicle is not available? There is
not even a backup system in place,"
one explained.
Col. Borland
refuted this claim, stating that there are two vehicles
available at
Fairweather Camp.
Another problem cited is the lack of communication in
the BDF. Soldiers
said they are rarely informed of new developments in the
BDF. "We usually
hear of these developments through the media. We were never
informed of the
appointment of a new commandant. We were never told that the
Guatemalans
were very upset over the removal of the flag from Santa Rosa,"
one of the
top official said.
As to the removal of the flag from the
school in Santa Rosa, the soldiers
said that they had to remove the flag
during nighttime, when the villagers
were already in their homes.
One
soldier says that just recently they came across an illegal
Guatemalan
settlement in an area known as Retiro, in the Cayo district. When
they
approached the settlers and informed them that they have to return
to
Guatemala, the settlers told them boldly that they were not moving,
unless
they are told by the Guatemalan military to do so. "These settlers
are
still there," he said.
The soldiers also complained of living in
deplorable conditions and of the
disrespect shown them by the Ministry of
National Security.
Col. Borland was more optimism in the BDF, and said
that there is good
communication within the BDF. He said that much
improvement has been taking
place at the Fairweather Camp and the two
observation posts in the Toledo
District.
****
A Big
Thing!
Guatemala claims Belize disrespectful of her flag
Guatemala is
making a big thing over the actions of the BDF in taking down
a
Guatemalan flag which was being flown at an illegal settlement
within
Belizean borders.
The Guatemalan squatters were
told to leave and the flag was removed. It
was later delivered over to the
Guatemalan Embassy in Belize City.
The Prensa Libre newspaper of Sunday,
November 5 reports what happened
later. President Portillo
organized a Flag Tribute ceremony with military
guard of honour and senior
members of the government, including Foreign
Minister Orellana.
The
dignitaries at the ceremony included the Presidents of the Judiciary
and the
Legislature, Hugo Maul Figueroa and Efrain Rios Montt. The flag was
turned
over to the Minister of Defence, Juan de Dios Estrada, who
subsequently
delivered it to the Minister of Education, Mario Torres.
Torres is to
attend a flag-raising ceremony at the opening of the new
school year (2001)
for students of Santa Rosa School in Peten. The ceremony
is to be accompanied
by a 21-gun salute.
Orellana said during a speech he made on this
occasion that it was sheer
insanity to pretend to stain the honour of the
Guatemalan flag.
He said that Guatemala was sending a message to Belize
and to the world
that Guatemala would defend her homeland ("su tierra y su
hogar")!
Orellana added: "The government of Belize realized the error it
had
committed, and in response to the just Guatemalan protest, had
returned
the patriotic symbol."
Ambassador Jorge Skinner Klee made a
special trip from Belize to take the
flag back to Guatemala. He handed it
over to President Alfonso Portillo.
The elaborate ceremony was held at the
Guatemalan Air Force base in the
capital.
Ambassador Skinner
Klee also took the opportunity while in Guatemala to
report that his Embassy
in Belize had received a bomb threat. He said also
that the consulate in
Belize had been the target of "criminal acts", namely
robberies involving the
property of Guatemalan diplomats.
The Prensa Libre notes that Guatemala
is claiming 12.272 square kilometers
of land from Belize.
It provided
no details as to what part of the country the Guatemalans now want.
Prensa
Libre reported also that during the last three years, incursions by
the
Belize military have intensified against settlements in the province
of
Peten.
***
From Channel 5:
Details released of Belize-Guatemala
agreement
More details have become available on the agreement signed Wednesday between
Belize and Guatemala. The twelve point document, signed at OAS headquarters in
Washington D.C., deals solely with confidence building measures that will be
undertaken by both countries along their common border.
Article one lays the groundwork by stipulating that the measures outlined in
the document are temporary for the purpose of easing tensions and do not
prejudice any claims to sovereignty by either country over any territory, now or
in the future.
Article two states that unless extended by mutual agreement, these measures
expire on August thirty-first, 2001.
Article three, while noting one and two, specifies recognition of what is
called an "adjacency line." Coincidentally, this adjacency line exactly follows
the traditional borderline from Gracias a Dios in the south to Garbutt's Falls
and Aguas Turbias in the north. Use of the line, however, does not imply that it
represents an international boundary.
Under article four, the parties agree to identify all existing markers and
survey the line. They will also identify all settlements within one kilometre on
each side.
Article five specifies that this two kilometre wide swath of land shall be
called the "adjacency zone."
Article six, the real meat of the agreement, deals with how things will be
run in the adjacency zone, namely: all settlements which existed in the zone as
of October first of this year shall remain undisturbed, save for marijuana
farms. Those settlements established after October first and lie east of the
line may be removed by the Belize Government, using a set procedure. All
settlers in the zone prior to October first will be identified and their
nationality documented. Any Guatemalans residing on the Belize side of the line
and any Belizeans on the Guatemalan side will be issued a license to stay and
are bound to respect the laws of the country on the particular side of the line
where they reside. Additionally, Guatemala will undertake a campaign to dissuade
its citizens from settling to the east of the adjacency line, and at the same
time the two countries' military forces will co-ordinate their activities in the
area.
Articles seven through eleven obligate the two countries to promote community
contacts across the line, facilitate traffic and meet regularly to avoid
conflicts. These measures will include the prevention of incidents, which could
cause tension, and the formulation of plans for a response to natural disasters.
Finally, article twelve asks the parties to monitor the confidence building
measures and work together to resolve any problems. If that proves difficult,
then any contentious issues should be referred to the two facilitators who may,
if they wish, ask the OAS to appoint a fact-finding mission.
The facilitator for Belize is Sir Shridath Ramphal, while Guatemala has
appointed Paul Reichler. The agreement was signed in Washington, D.C. by
Belizean Ambassador Assad Shoman and Guatemalan Foreign Minister Gabriel
Orellana.
Cheers!
Doug