7 News Belize

Shared Culpability For Brutality?
posted (June 19, 2020)
And, finally, we had a tough question for the Chargé. Yesterday he spoke about how the Black Lives Matter matter movement has informed his policy direction at the US Embassy in Belize. He also said he wants to have a talk with Belizean interests who have input on this polarising issue.

But, what about the role the US has played in enabling the Belize Police Department - which faces many allegation of brutality?

We asked him about that:

Jules Vasquez- Reporter
"Do you think the United States, through the CARSI initiative bears any culpability in this, in so far as your government often arms and equips the security forces of Belize in the security initiative, but at the same time, perhaps, empowering the types of practices and activities that are really at the center of this discussion about police abuses of citizens."

H. E. Keith R. Gilges- Charge D'affaires
"I don't know, I would have to double check with my folks, [to see] if we arm any of the security forces. Certainly we have provided boats to the Coast Guard and we have provided vehicles to the police. But our days of buying cars, early when the CARSI initiative was brand new, when the Central American Regional Security Initiative was brand new and congress suddenly threw a whole tonne of money at all the embassies, they had to start spending money as quickly as possible and it takes a little while to get programmatic things in place. So, yes, we bought a bunch of cars a little while back. But since then, the entire focus has not been about equipment, it has been about training."

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