Tag: 2024-05-30

Last night, we told you about allegations that law enforcement officers at the northern border are being dissuaded by government ministers from stopping individuals crossing sugar into Mexico. The assertion is that ministers are calling the law enforcement officers telling them to allow these individuals because they have permits from BAHA. Hugo Patt, the Area Representative for Corozal North, raised these concerns on adjournment during today’s House meeting, while addressing the nation’s sugar shortage.

Hugo Patt, Area Representative, Corozal North

“Belize is a country that in the region is more than self-sufficient in sugar. As a matter of fact, combine both mills, Belize produce some one hundred and sixty to one hundred and eighty thousand tons of cane. The local consumption is thirteen thousand to seventeen thousand tons of sugar. This is about eight to twelve percent of the annual production. If you want to round it off, some eighty-five percent of what we produce is destined to the export market. While Belize has a surplus of sugar both for plantation where and brown sugar, there is a crisis out there. It cannot be that we live in a country, and I will speak for the constituent and district I come form in the north, where all around you see sugar cane, but when you want to buy sugar for the consumption of families for small business, for single mothers who produce candies, for small bakers who produce bread with and for all those small business who use sugar you cant get any. What makes matter worst, we have some very reliable reports about our law enforcement officers who are doing an excellent job at our borders that on countless occasions have encountered sugar being unofficially exported just to get a call from ministerial intervention indicating to them look you have to release this sugar because this person has a permit to export and I am not making any accusation member for Orange Walk South but they are saying they have an export permit from BAHA.”

And one of the main reasons why contrabandists are drawn to exporting sugar illegally into Mexico is because they fetch a premium price on the other side of the northern border. So, is the solution to raise the price on the local market? Prime Minister Briceño says that will not happen, because his administration has a social responsibility to Belizeans. So, a price control team is now going from store to store to find out which wholesalers are fulfilling their obligations to sell locally. The ones that are found to not be selling their sugar to the local stores may become prime suspects.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“We also have a social responsibility to the Belizean consumers. Secondly, we cannot compete with the prices across in Chetumal. The brown sugar being sold at BSI for thirty-two cents a pound is almost being sold for two dollars a pounding Chetumal. So if you want to say we have to raise the price like over there to stop the contraband, it is not going to happen. But thirdly, it is also not fair on the cane farmers who have been in effect subsidizing sugar for the rest of our consumers and so the fourth point I would like to make is that what he has said, the Minister is that we have to find  formula where we can justify, increase and assist the farmers to help try to see how best it can slow down the attempt to contraband. We also have to work on enforcement. There is a number of things. Price control have been going to these supermarkets and asking them, who do you buy your sugar from, wanting to trace from the store to the wholesaler to BSI and by doing that reverse engineering you will be able to see who of these wholesalers are not selling to the stores. And then we can go to BSI and say look these people are not selling to the local market and are allowing it to be contraband. Also, we must tighten our borders. Our borders are porous. We have a very large border and you can almost cross at any point. So there are many things we have to take into consideration and it is not just a clear cut, oh just raise the price.”

Thirty police commanders from across Belize have completed the “Trafficking in Persons: Identification and Investigation Training” at the National Police Training Academy. The session was conducted by the Human Rights Institute and covered trafficking in persons identifiers, as well as other topics. The training is part of an ongoing initiative to ensure that police officers are well-equipped to identify and investigate cases of human trafficking effectively. The participants also had hands-on approach and use of real-world scenarios on the issue. The police department says it plans to conduct training sessions on the same topic with officers of various ranks across the country as well.

The Briceño administration has finally introduced a Representation of the People Act to give effect to the redivision report of the Election and Boundaries Commission. Several elected representatives are on record voicing their concerns with the recommendations outlined in the report. The expectation is that the report will be voted down by the lower and upper houses because it is deemed unconstitutional. But this is a process that must take place according to the Consent Order signed in 2020. So, what happens after? Will the Briceno administration endeavor to redraw the constituency borders before the 2025 general elections? We asked the prime minister.

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Well the law requires us to bring it to the house, despite the fact that others have failed. I think where both political parties have expressed concerns with the report but the law requires us to bring it to the house, so what we have done, the minister decided to table the report. It will go to house committee and then after that we will decided whether we accept or not.

Paul Lopez

“Clearly this bill will be rejected. WE have representatives on record saying that it will not fly in the face of the constitution. Do you anticipate that there will be any sort of redistricting exercise on the ground before the next general election is called?”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“Well, we have to follow the process, we have to follow the law. The process is that it first has to go to the house. It goes to the house committee and then it is debated. Until that happens then we can’t move. So, we have to wait, whether we are going to have enough time, it is very tight because next year, by November of next year we have to have an election and the redistricting exercise takes some time because there is a lot of ground work that has to be done on the ground and if you are going to change your boundaries and the voters it takes time. If we were to quickly move then probably we can do it, but we will have to wait and see.”

Paul Lopez

“So what the constitutionally of another election in the manner that constituencies are set up at this time.”

Prime Minister John Briceño

“I think I want to wait until we have an answer from the National Assembly, from the House and Senate before I give my comments on that issue.”

On Tuesday, Minister of Sustainable Development Orlando Habet officially declared Belize’s membership in the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance during a side event at the fourth annual Small Island Developing States Conference in Antigua and Barbuda. The SIDS Leadership on Global Just Transition from Fossil Fuels featured discussions between nations on how to make the shift away from a reliance on fossil fuels achievable. We asked Habet what this alliance entails.

Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development

“That Alliance is an alliance that’s looking at garnering support from countries that are really looking at how we can reduce the production,  but also the consumption of fossil fuels.  They have been in conversation with the ministry of energy. We are here at this meeting, but we didn’t have a direct contact with them until we reach here. So we had a conversation with them. I think that the ministry of energy had requested to join the alliance. So we participated in the meeting. Nothing has been signed as yet. So there’s nothing official. There’s still some conversation and discussions that have to occur around. What all that alliance will entail and also based on what other commitments or agreements would be signatory to that would have either positive or negative effect on joining that alliance.”

For the past several years, the sargassum invasion has affected most if not all of the Caribbean countries, some more than others. Some have gone ahead to find creative ways to dispose of it or to turn it into something useful. And later this year, Caribbean countries will meet to discuss this one common problem. San Pedro has had its share of dealing with sargassum and Belize Rural South Area Representative Andre Perez says Belize will likely be present at that assembly in September in Grenada.

Andre Perez, Area Representative, Belize Rural South

“This sargassum is everybody’s problem, especially the Caribbean, and we are in the western part of the Caribbean and we are like the funnel to receive all that. I’m sure the sargassum task force is participating because remember there’s a sargassum task force. So I’m sure that there’s participation there.”

This Saturday, Belize Camping Experience and Western Dairies are inviting you to come out and purchase a scoop of ice cream for a worthy cause. The Scoops of Hope initiative is a one-day fundraiser to raise money for the Belize Camping Experience annual summer camps. As the camps are free of cost, the non-profit organization has partnered with Western Dairies to raise funds for this year’s events. Alexander Perez, Director of the Belize Camping Experience explained how this promotion will work.

Alexander Perez, Director, B.C.E.

“We really challenge the corporate world, how they can partner with us. And Western Dairies answered that call. And so what, after many years of working, you know, and challenging different businesses, one of it is that, what if we take a hot day in Belize, right? And you can give a percentage of the ice cream to the kids to Belize. So that we can do the summer camps. So, after long conversations and meetings, they have decided that we’re going to, we call it Scoops of Hope. That for every scoop you buy on June first, which is this Saturday, fifty cents will go towards the kids for the summer camps that are taking place. So if you buy two scoops, that’s one dollar. I would encourage everyone to buy three scoops. And in that way, you can be a part of that vision. To see Belize changing Belize. And so how is going to work is that if you come to the Western dairy branch and you say, let me get a bucket, then I know they want to, I know Belize just want to support because we need community for us to run these programs, but that’s not going to work. It has to be scoops. It has to, it doesn’t count in any other product, but if you say, I will bring my container and put me ten scoops, that is going to work. Or you can get it in a little cup. That’s going to work.”

Anya Claire Preez, B.C.E. Volunteer

 “It’s an invitation for everyone come out and come to the closest Weston Dairy’s and purchase your ice cream. And every scoop, fifty cents will be donated to Belize camping experience and all the funds will go towards, will help summer camp day camps across Belize and around the area. It’s free camps for all the children, and we do a small camp in the afternoon. And you can bring your own container and get ten scoops or even more and share it with your family.”