Crossover incursions into PAs part of Belize-Guatamala border dispute
The upcoming national elections in Guatemala, scheduled for September of this year, makes it unlikely that a simultaneous referendum will be held in Belize and Guatemala for the electorate to decide the question of whether or not to take the territorial dispute to the International Court of Justice.
The window of opportunity is rapidly closing for the gov-ernment of President Colon to schedule the referendum before this year’s elections, lead negotiator Ambassador Alfredo Martinez told the press at a briefing at the Belize Institute of Management. on Wednesday, March 10.
It is not impossible, but highly improbable because of the political situation in Guatemala.
Belize and Guatemala had signed a ‘compromis’ agreement in December 2008 agreeing to let their electorates decide whether or not to go to the ICJ, after three years of negotiations from 2005 -2008 reached an impasse where neither side could reach an agreement on certain key issues.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the press conference one day after Belize and Guatemalan officials held a high level technical meeting o Tuesday, March 9 to discuss confidence building measures in the adjacency zone The meeting was held at the Radisson Fort George hotel.
The Belizean delegation raised the questions of incursions into Belizean protected areas and national parks by indigent Guatemalan peasants living in border communities to harvest Xate, poach on protected wildlife and clear forest to plant milpa in Belizean territory.