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Jules Vasquez reporting
This agreement was signed on 11th June 1993, mere days before the June 30th general elections this is the master agreement signed by the then PUP government. It was a 10 year agreement with Belize International Services Limited which managed IMMMARBE and the IBC Registry with an option to renew for another ten years.

When that ten years was about to expire in 2003 Government's legal counsel Gian Ghandi wrote to BISL saying that due to a fundamental change of circumstances and they could no longer exercise the option to renew for another ten years.

Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister of Belize
"That letter, I'm told by Mr. Ghandi was written after he had advised Ralph Fonseca and Said Musa of the legal position that he took. The Prime Minister turned right around and told BISL 'you can ignore Ghandi's letter and simply continue to operate the agreement and we in effect will treat your exercise of the option to renew as valid.' "

And so things continued until March of 2005

Hon. Dean Barrow
"The 24th of March, 2005, it turns out that on that day a secret agreement was signed between BISL and the then Prime Minster and the then Attorney General who is the current leader of the opposition."

That agreement retroactively formalized the 2003 extension and to extend the life of the agreement beyond the 10 year extension

Hon. Dean Barrow
"Up to the 11th of June 2020, for a consideration of $1.5 million. This Osbourne's sends a letter saying, this is what this letter means, you are to accept that it means that and give us your counter-signatures and you're good to go. Nobody was aware of the existence of that agreement 'march 24th, 2005' that Musa and Francis Fonseca signed. I have checked through directly in one case and through a third party in another with persons who are members of the cabinet on 24th March, 2005 and they are quite clear that that agreement was never brought to the Cabinet. How on earth could the then Prime Minister and the then Attorney General have proported to extend their agreement by the way of counter signing a letter without disclosing to cabinet, without getting any permission from the National Assembly - without going to the contractor general, without putting it out to tender. How on earth could that have been done and why was it kept secret? Except that the principals knew what they were doing was absolutely wrong."

And because it was a secret document the Barrow administration ignored it and wrote to BISL, and saying TIMES UP.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"We - this current administration wrote on the 6th of May of this year to BISL saying that since on the face of the agreement that they had there period of control of the registry, expires on the tenth of June, 2013. BISL then produced this secret agreement of 24th March, 2005. Well you can imagine how shocked we were. We checked to see whether there was any copy of that agreement anywhere in any file in Belmopan and came up with a big fat zero."

BISL furnished government with a copy but GOB was not impressed

Hon. Dean Barrow
"In so far to that secret agreement proported to extend the duration of the original 93 agreement, beyond 2013 it was wholly invalid as it was patently contrary to several to the applicable laws, including but not limited to the Finance and Audit Act, the Financial orders, the stores orders and the control of expenditure handbook. As a result of that advise - we wrote to BISL in a letter dated June 4th, 2013 rejecting this secret document of 24th March, 2005 and reitorated our position that the agreement exprired on the 10th June, 2013."

And while that is the technical explanation, Government says that the takeover of IMMARBE is a practical necessity:

Hon. Dean Barrow
"Where IMMARBE is concerned - this problem with the EU has become accute and we're at a point where we are in danger of having our exports to the European stopped. When that EU decision came out a number especially of the principles, the actors, the aqua culture industry made representation to government and asked us what we intended to do because their shrimp exports in particular were in jeopardy in being banned by the EU. We will put in place measures to regulate and control the activities of the IMMARBE fishing fleet. We are perfeclty conscious of the fact that if those measures don't work - we may as a last resort have to de-register the fishing fleet, we're not going to run any joke - we're not playing games. The fact of our exports to the EU having to be protected at all costs means that if we have to deregister the fishing fleet or particularly those fishing in the EU zone then we will do so only as a last resort, but people need to know about our seriousness."

So serious, that in terms of compensation to BISL which is claiming 60 million US dollars…

Hon. Dean Barrow
"We intend to reimburse BISL the $1.5 Million that they say they paid in consideration to the secret agreement,"

But that's after the pay their taxes

Hon. Dean Barrow
"The Musa administration puported to relieve, to exempt BISL from the payment of all taxes. It's been said over and over again by the courts that the executive has no authority to relieve anybody from income taxes or from business tax. The commisioner of Income Tax as we understand it has recently issued tax assessment of BISL amounting to $30million dollars for the period which they were operating and during which they paid no taxes."

And government is not afraid of a law suit:

Hon. Dean Barrow
"And I am even more confident that in any case there claim will be dismissed because it is so very patent that the so called extension was done in violation to Belize's law. Any cost benefit analysis done on the basis of a national interest calculus will tell you that you cannot continue to run the risk that the European Union after they have given you a decision in writing will in fact move to the next level and impose a band on your exports- I'm prepared to defend to the death, forgive my hyperbole. Our actions which are the only actions any right minded government that it's true to it's compact to serve the national interest of the country, the only actions that any such government can take."

And today the chest-beating could hardly be opposed, after all, while there may be legal battles ahead, government could be getting as much as 10 million US dollars in additional revenue annually that accrues also to the benefit of teachers and public officers:

Jules Vasquez
"The government would then expect such revenue to accrue into the consolidated fund."

Hon. Dean Barrow
"50% of which is already promised to the teachers and the public officers by way of a salary increase for next year."

But though he was on a roll, the PM stopped short at the suggestion of legal action being taken against the government signatories of the agreement, then PM Musa and AG Fonseca.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"It turns out that the illegal nature in our view of the action done by Musa and Fonseca - I suppose we could go the route of the suit for misfeasance of the public office but when we tried that before we didn't get very far and the damage has been averted because we have rejected what they have done and we are treating the agreement as having come to an end. So I don't see that any legal action against those two would flow from the Government of Belize."

First, Leader of the Opposition Francis Fonseca says the extension agreement was discussed in Cabinet and vetted by both the AG's off and the Ministry of Finance Officials. He said there should be Cabinet papers to confirm that but suggested that those may have been disappeared by the Barrow Administration.

Second, the timing of the March 24, 2005 signing is telling. It is the day after then Prime Minister Said Musa made an address to the nation announcing that Government had signed an agreement with an Ashcroft company, E-Com to buy back share sin BTL, and that Government had also signed a settlement agreement with Ashcroft's Carlisle Group to write off business tax owed. Moreover, it is the very same day that the Senate passed the Finance and Audit Act – which was designed to limit government's power to conduct such business without taking it to the National Assembly.

And a few more notes on the registries. Under interim registrar and Deputy financial secretary The Prime Minister announced that all Belizean staff will be retained at those offices – which are in the Marina Towers Building in Belize City. Under the previous arrangement, BISL got 64 cents of every dollar of revenue while government got 46 cents; government will now get the whole dollar – of an average annual revenue of 12 million US dollars. 129 of the 875 registered vessels with IMMARBE are fishing vessels. And one final note, the 1993 master agreement stipulates that all arbitration is to be settled in Belize.