Guatemala acts in BAD FAITH with Belize.

THE GUATEMALAN DISPUTE WITH BELIZE !

By Ray Auxillou, Dec. 11, 2008


Every twelve to fifteen years or so, a new generation of Guatemalan politicians raise the dispute over ownership of parts of Belize. Belize tries to be friendly and succumbs with our own new generation of politicians and tries to meet Guatemalans more than halfway. Therein follows a round of talks, negotiations and diplomatic maneuvers. Guatemala always loses.

The fact is; under the principals of the United Nations Charter, Belize did find it’s independence as a country a couple of decades ago, with the recognition of our current borders between us and Guatemala. That should have been the end of it!

Today we are faced again with our own new political party in power, answering and negotiating to go to a World Court the ICJ, to argue the old obsolete Guatemalan claim once more. This is not only nonsense, it is playing into a recurring gamble with Guatemala, in which Guatemala has NOTHING to lose on the bet, but Belize has. This is not only foolish to gamble this way, it is not necessary. We went INDEPENDENT as a country with our borders intact. Finish of our argument. We are backed by the United Nations, the English speaking Commonwealth countries and past actions of Guatemala itself.

Forty five years ago I argued this point, 32 years ago I argued this point, 19 years ago I argue this point again and today with the new set of Guatemalan claims to lands of Belize, I will argue it once more for this new generation of Belizean politicians and those of Guatemala.

All the arguments of old treaties, British made cart roads, money owed to Guatemala from Britain, ended for Belizeans when we declared Independence through the United Nations by SELF DETERMINATION and was recognized by the majority of the rest of the world.

The game that new generations of Guatemalan politicians are playing, keeps coming back to the same old argument. They have it in their CONSTITUTION that they own Belize and the Guatemalan government of the day, each one, every twelve or fifteen years, must try to get it back. They never had Belize, EVER, but their CONSTITUTION says they must fight and negotiate and argue to reclaim something they NEVER HAD.

Our current government is fighting old battles that do not exist except in the imaginations of the Guatemalans. I have said this over and over again through the many Guatemalan claims to Belize. UNTIL Guatemala REMOVES that clause from their CONSTITUTION, the arguments will NEVER stop. Amending the Guatemalan Constitution should be our pre-requisite stand, BEFORE we negotiate, or talk about anything like this AGAIN.

We are playing a Guatemalan game with a stacked marked deck by Guatemala. Belizeans keep gambling our freedom in a rigged game. Even supposing we to the ICJ court and win the decision, in twelve or fifteen years, a NEW SET of politicians in Guatemala will resurrect the claim again, just like they have for all the decades of my 71 years of life. By their CONSTITUTION they are obligated to try to recover Belize it says. Each new generation of their politicians have to do this. It is their CONSTITUTIONAL LAW.

There is NO GOOD FAITH on the part of Guatemala. There is no sense in spending millions of dollars going to the ICJ, even if we won a decision. It would mean nothing to the next generation of Guatemalan politicians in twelve or fifteen years. They in turn would be obligated by THEIR CONSTITUTION to resurrect the claim over and over and over again to Belize.

UNTIL the Guatemalans eliminate that clause in their CONSTITUTION forcing their new generations of Guatemalan politicians to claim Belize once more, all their arguments and quarrels with us in Belize are in BAD FAITH.

As a negotiating point, our politicians should insist NO ICJ, until that clause in the Guatemalan Constitution is DELETED. Otherwise we are losing our money and time. These continuous claims and arguments, one day will backfire and we will lose and go to war with Guatemala. We want to be friends and trading partners, not go to war. While that CLAUSE in the GUATEMALAN CONSTITUTION exists, there can be no agreements, or conclusion to this matter. Whenever they delete that Constitutional clause we can have some sort of agreement that will hold. Otherwise it is just all HOT AIR and BOMBAST. Until Guatemala amends their constitution, we have nothing to talk about on a Guatemalan claim. That Constitutional clause in Guatemala is a recurring Ace of Spades held up their sleeves for new generations of Guatemalans to claim Belize. All other arguments are a cyclical repeating foolish waste of time.

Let the Guatemalans show GOOD FAITH, by deleting that troublesome clause in their CONSTITUTION. Listening to our own Attorney General BLATHER on and on about legal rights and technicalities is a silly argument. There should be NO negotiations with Guatemala, until a prerequisite change of an amendment to their Constitution in Guatemala is made, deleting that recurring troublesome clause Until they do that, no matter what you do is pure waste of time and money.