Government of Belize to Lodge Another Protest Note to Guatemalan Officials

Wilfred Elrington

A recently published article in Prensa Libre of a written account provided by the Guatemalan foreign ministry says that the Belizean delegation was fended off peacefully.  According to a translation of that article, Guatemala remains firm that the territorial dispute will be settled at the I.C.J.

Wilfred Elrington, Minister of Foreign Affairs

“The English translation: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports on Sarstoon River incident.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs the general public that this Saturday morning, twenty-seventh of February, a group of Belizean civilians in two vessels attempted to reach the Sarstoon Island, located at the mouth of the Sarstoon River.  In this respect, Guatemalan civil and military authorities by pacific means prevented such group to complete its objective.  The Government of Guatemala is committed to submit to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice the territorial, insular and maritime dispute that exists with Belize. We respond, we are going to, as I said, we are going to send them a diplomatic note protesting certainly the entry into our waters of their riverine boat.  But their position is consistent, they claim the area and therefore they think they are protecting their territory.  We claim part of the area and we want to go there.”