Alleged Gang Member Speaks Out After SOE Court Victory

An alleged gang affiliate from Belize City’s southside is speaking out following a landmark High Court ruling that declared the detention of sixteen men under the 2020 State of Emergency (SOE) unconstitutional. The man, Hubert Baptist, spoke candidly to News Five about his experience and the broader impact of the ruling, which he believes is a wake-up call for authorities and the public alike.

The High Court, presided over by Justice Nadine Nabie, found that the claimants, many of whom were labeled as gang members, were detained without adequate legal grounds, in violation of their constitutional rights. The judge ruled that the men were denied their right to judicial review and due process, awarding each claimant compensation ranging from $12,000 to $25,000, plus an additional $7,000 in vindicatory damages.

Baptist, whose nephew Earl Baptist is among the claimants and was awarded $15,000, said that the police crackdown during the SOE unfairly targeted innocent residents. “Basically your door get broke down for nothing, your whole neighborhood get sabotaged for nothing,” he told News Five. “They put everybody in one bunch when certain people the do certain things.”

He described the fear and helplessness that comes when an SOE is declared. “Bway, I gwen dah jail, nothing else,” he said. “Nuh care if you get a lawyer—three, four lawyers—they sing to you that your rights get taken away… That is violation. They take away your liberty.”

“You just get grab… Before in 2020 you just go to piss house, they bring a paper to you, they say you are going up under state. They never had no interviews,” he recounted. “That is not right.”

According to Belize’s Constitution, anyone detained under a state of emergency is entitled to have their case reviewed by an independent tribunal, a safeguard that Justice Nabie said was entirely absent in this case.

Defense attorney Richard “Dickie” Bradley, who represented the claimants, reiterated that constitutional rights apply to everyone, regardless of criminal suspicion. “Even though in some quarters a few of you have conducted yourself badly, you still have rights,” he said. “What is unlawful is unlawful.”

For Baptist, the court ruling is not just about financial compensation—it’s a call for justice and accountability. “That dah nuh wah victory for we, it is a victory for everybody,” he said. “The system have to do their job the right way. You can’t just grab deh bally and send them up. You have to put them before a tribunal.”