| Shyne Says PM Should Have Come Back With Protocol, Not Photo Ops |
| Wed, September 18, 2024 |
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| Turning back now to politics with a shot of diplomacy - Shyne Barrow today stressed that the Briceno government needs to do more to protect the Sarstoon. This month alone there have been two reported incursions. Briceno and Fonseca have said that protest notes were sent, as is the norm. But Barrow says the previous meeting with the Guatemalan president should have yielded more results rather than just photo ops.
Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
"Being candid and taking principled positions, to me, and being consistent is what we would hope from the government. I can assure you that when the Prime Minister met with the president of Guatemala, Sarstoon was not on the agenda, the continued aggression in our waters was not on the agenda. They are more concerned with being friends and being polite and exchanging niceties. You don't have to be rude, you don't have to go to Guatemala and declare war, but you have to say, listen, this is what we need. I promised Belizeans that I would have a Sarstoon protocol, let's work this out. Let's come to a solution. I need to deliver this for my people. I need to protect my BDF, I need to protect my Coast Guard, I need to protect civilians. I want to traverse our waters. Let's figure this out. But we have not seen any deliverables. Again, Prime Minister went to Mexico begging the outgoing Mexican president and said that he agreed to give us the 25MW, that has not happened yet. So what the Prime Minister knows how to do is to try to shape narratives and deceive the people. So he will have the drums playing, the marching band, the BDF marching band, all of this pomp and circumstance. But what is the reality?"
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