Kudos to the Supreme Court of Judicature! Bravo!

Published by BBN Staff at April 4, 2019

Posted: Thursday, April 4, 2019. 3:38 pm CST.

Posted: Thursday, April 4, 2019. 3:30 p.m. CST.

The views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not necessarily those of Breaking Belize News.

By: Dr. Gerald Zuniga, Political Science Studies, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala & Universidad Mariano Galvez, Guatemala City: This is historic and the message is clear. The due process and our Constitution must be respected. That is the message that the Supreme Court is sending and will continue to send. That is the message that the Judiciary Body is sending to the Executive and Legislative Bodies and that noone is above the Constitution of the land, for too long there has been perceptions and actions in that line. The Judiciary is executing its constitutional mandate in the hands of its Chief; Chief Justice Benjamin. Hope Chief Justice Benjamin continues to free himself from internal and external political pressures and jealously protects our Constitution because the BELIZEANS BY BIRTH HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO DO SO EVENTHOUGH WE ARE MANDATED TO DO SO AND MORE SO THOSE WHO MAKE OATHS OF ALLEGIANCE. As I always say THE CONSTITUTION IS UNTIL IT IS AMMENDED. When a politician abides by the Constitution it makes politics easier because it keeps diabolic temptations at bay.

Yes, the injunction is temporary but it is a historic resolution and the legal process just began because if the parties involve do desire this case can later be forwarded to the CCJ(Caribbean Court of Justice) and a final resolution can take months or years. The Prime Minister as a lawyer knows that very well so his hepatic reaction that April 10th is close is not worthy of a lawyer. He knew that the injunction filing was accepted and they appointed their legal counsel. So he knew very well that the process is not a three weeks nor 1 month thing. It could take a while including years. Seemingly, there is a referendum ego. That is error for a ruling government to call for a yes vote. A Prime Minister represents national unity. He or she is not a prime minister of a party while in office rather of Belize, until General Elections are called for. So to hear the Prime Minister’s hepatic reaction yesterday and similar to those of the recent week is very very dangerous for our incipient democracy and our democratic tradition. Our Judiciary is the salwart of our democracy and the Executive must respect their resolutions. If not, then we are not a democracy anymore rather a despotic regime. His reaction and declarations are similar to those of Jimmy Morales, the President of Guatemala criticizing and even challenging the resolutions of their Constitutional Court.

This, I may repeat and especially to our high school and UB’students and the Belizean population on a whole.This has nothing to do with a referendum as a legitimate procedure. It has nothing to with a yes or no eventual vote to the ICJ. This specific referendum violated the due process and the Constitution of Belize in its shape, form and depth. It continued with the question asked on the ballot paper and each agreement should have a yes or no answer. So it even the ballot paper has technical irregularities since it is not congruent with the infamous Special Agreement. Also, the question asked is already answered by our Constitution and the ICJ has nothing to do with that. After that Confidence Building Measures Agreement signed on November 8th, 2000 between Assad Shoman and Guatemala’s Gabriel Orellana Rojas which began the gross violation of our Constitution making us a De facto State by creating an Adjacency Zone, thereafter came some unconstitutional agreements which includes the Special Agreement violating again our Constitution and the due process. There is a propaganda that says “Let’s go to the ICJ to solve this once and for all. THAT IS A PERFECT LIE AND INTENTIONALLY MISLEADING. Constitutional law is above all agreements and even treaties unless the agreement is in regards to Human Rights it is given preeminence. That Special Agreement was not signed on All Fools Day. How would anyone sign an agreement knowing that Art. 19 Transitory is in Guatemala’s Constitution? The only way that should have been signed and respecting our legal process and Constitution would have been if Guatemala would have revoked or removed Art.19 Transitory from their Constitution but there would have still been an UNCONSTITUTIONALITY with our Constitution because our Constitution is crystally clear with our borders from North to South and East to West and the ICJ has nothing to do with that.

What is the message that our Constitution is telling Guatemala? Look ya breds, we could negotiate and reach wa deal. I know you wa have to go back to you peeps and put dat agreement de to dem in a wa referendum. Dat no de ina me and u know dat. Dat da wat Art. 19 Transitory say ina my counterpart, u Constitution, and it se dat we cud negotiate and negotiate until you peeps accept we deal but borders or territory, breds, I SORRY, BECAUSE I HAVE DAT LOCKED OFF SINCE SEPTEMBER 21ST WEN MI ME BORN. I truly sorry breds. We cud negotiate anything but territory quiant. Dat quian de ina dat. And you know something, brethren, you peeps sleep up. U know wat I mean! Because if you peeps me really serious bout u claim den you shouldn’t a me even allow me to exist. Right now, breds I sorry but too late. And listen, hear whe gan on, breds, you Ex President Serrano Elias recognized mi country Belize and now we have embassy ina both countries. But if da ICJ da d deal because the OAS and others in da d international community want, den Belize House of Representatives and House of Senate whe have to tek out Schedule 1 (1) outa mi, whe talk about Belize borders and Guatemala Congress whe have to tek out Art. 19 Transitory outa de Constitution, too. Den we cud think about this referendum to the ICJ thing following d due process. Den we cud decide thru a referendum if the majority wa put the 1859 treaty, Exchange of Notes, and adas to dem bally da de ICJ and da d 15 a dem decide. Whateva 8 decide and de cud tek de own time. It cud be about 5 years a worries about whe de bally cud se. But since, I no get ammended neither Guatemala’s yet. All dis da mere crop and nonsense. Dem d mek we get hype up pa nada and waste we time and waste a milliones . Milliones a dollas whe Barranco road need,, whe Otoxcha road need, whe San Jose Road need, Boom Creek, and many, many abandoned villages. Even d roads fu tek out cane and vegs in the north. Whe d hospitals de need. Wa li baby just dead fa Cayo side and cud da me b saved., Whe d fire stations de need, whe da school whe d leak da Pomona need. Whe cud go into incentives or even raise a pay fu polices, teachers, nurses, doctors, public servants, etc. Whe cud create more jobs fu d brethrens dem. We need a lota jobs. So even d International community know we have a lota use fu de milliones de but dem d play d fool.

In small change that is the nitty gritty of this situation. It doesn’t need a degree to understand but those who should understand it better and more so as lawyers and those negotiators having parents that experienced territorial issues between Palestine and Israel should have done better. Instead, they donkeyfied the situation.

The Supreme Court should nullify The Confidence Building Measures Agreement of November, 2000 and recover our De jure State status. Right now, we are a De facto State and grant the injunction in definitive to do this thing right. But for now KUDOS TO THE SCJ!!!!

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