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Last night, we told you about the Supreme Court application from Michael Ashcroft to join in the redistricting lawsuit that the Belize Peace Movement brought against the Government of Belize.

The Peace Movement is seeking to trigger a redistricting exercise because Belize's 31 electoral constituencies are not proportional - some are way too big, other way too small.  The effect of this is that a vote in the Fort George division in Belize City, for example, carries more weight than a vote in Belmopan or Stann Creek West.  That's not what the constitution dictates and the Peace Movement says that it undermines the spirit of true democracy and equal representation. 

According to Ashcroft's attorney, he has come to the same conclusion as the claimants, and so, he applied the Supreme Court several weeks ago to join. The Chief Justice heard Ashcroft's application yesterday, and he invited the attorneys to make submissions on why he should grant or dismiss it. After consideration, the Chief Justice returned this afternoon to announce that he will allow Ashcroft to join.

Outside of court, we got a chance to speak to the attorneys about this outcome, and what it means for the case:

Andrew Marshalleck, SC - Attorney for Lord Ashcroft
"As you heard just now, the judge has ruled in our favour. He’s given leave for Lord Ashcroft to join in the proceedings. He will be allowed to make submissions in support of the claim, and also provide evidence in support of the claim. But, more importantly, we’ve been given permission to apply for leave to produce expert evidence in support of the, which is what I think is important."

Reporter
"Tell us about these experts, and what sort of wisdom they would bring to the court to assist in dealing with this redistricting issue."

Andrew Marshalleck, SC
"Well, where we are with that is that this type of claim is not new or unique to Belize. It’s happening elsewhere. In fact, it’s ongoing in other parts of the world, and there has been a particular way of dealing with it. One, the expert studies the distribution as the Elections and Boundaries Commission should, and determine whether or not the districts, as drawn, meet the constitutional requirements. Once that analysis is done, then the next step is what needs to be done in order to bring it into compliance. And normally, there’s a range of possibilities. So, it’s about presenting all of that so that everybody appreciates just how malapportioned the divisions are, and just what steps can be taken to correct it."

Arthur Saldivar - Attorney for Claimant
"Again, I don’t know what Lord Ashcroft will bring or not bring. The affidavit that he has put forward intimates certain things that I believe inures to the benefit of the case. And should we have those experts come in, I think it’s always good to have knowledgeable people on the issue, giving the benefit of their expertise to the court."

So, now that this issue has been resolved, the lawsuit moves on with case management. The next conference is scheduled for March 6th.  Notably, the claimants are also seeking an injunction on the general elections - presumably because, if the divisions are to be re-districted it would take more than a few months.