More Organizations Condemn Baby Allyssa Death
The widespread condemnation and presentation of solutions in the wake of the death of Baby Allyssa is mounting. Separate press releases were issued by the Belize City Council Child Advisory Board; Maya Leaders Alliance/Toledo Alcaldes Association; National Evangelical Association of Belize and the National Trade Union Congress of Belize, offering similar words of condemnation of the alleged heinous act and calls to action. The Evangelical Association ask that the country turned back to God and questioned why the sex-related charges were not brought immediately as Everal Martinez was arrested. But each were full-throated in their call for the nation to awaken its consciousness as explained by the MLA/TAA communication director Pablo Mis.
On the Phone: Pablo Mis, MLA/TAA
“This for us requires that we, as the guardians, the parents of our children, wake out of our paralysis and take action. This is not an isolated matter. This is a matter that speaks to a society where our lack of respect for community, for dignified life, is no longer the norm. We call upon all of our families in Belize to ensure that we pay attention to the decisions, the actions we take, so that we could promote a community of respect, of dignity, where a community spirit and peace is nurtured. For us at the Maya Leaders Alliance and Alcaldes Association, the protection of the most vulnerable women and children is a priority. For this reason, over the last several months, we have been engaging in dialogue on gender-based violence, on domestic violence, on the family court, because if it is that we are going to break the cycle, we must be able to discuss these issues that are affecting our families on a day-to-day basis.”
This evening, the People’s United Party added its voice to Belizeans’ grief, anger and outrage. The party’s United Women’s Group asks anyone close to the situation to provide any useful information to police. The party, for its part, notes that with the increased violence against children and women comes increased mistrust in the authorities to investigate and bring matters to a satisfactory conclusion. The party concludes that it must be zero tolerance for misogyny, sexual harassment and abuse, and adds that a cultural shift and change in mind-set is long overdue and will take time.
