Shoman: Still waiting on facilitators

While Belize continues to cultivate political support from Central America, the wait for the next step in the settlement of the Guatemalan claim can sometimes feel interminable. Belize’s Assad Shoman is still sticking to the operative word “soon” even though the facilitators have now asked for another independent party to conduct a census along the border.

Assad Shoman

“The facilitators have not spoken yet, so we don’t know where we are. They haven’t given a date although they have made it clear that they understand there is a need to say something soon. So I can’t venture a date, but I would say that within a few weeks we should be hearing something from the facilitators. As they work, they find things to do. I should mention here that one of the things they want to do is to get a mission from the Organization of American States to come and do a sort of walk along the border and check on the people that are living in that area and try and get better information on who these people are, their nationalities, their status, etc, etc. So that’s one of the things that they hope to be doing within a week or so. It’s not a very involved process so it shouldn’t take more than a week itself to complete its job.”

Janelle Chanona

Isn’t something like that a little late in the game?

Assad Shoman

“Well you see, we cannot define these things. We didn’t ask for it, nor did Guatemala. The facilitators themselves want it, so you know, we co-operate. Both countries are co-operating with this exercise. And likewise, they have asked the OAS to get the appropriate vehicle, which I believe will be the same one that was here before: The Pan American Institute of Geography and History. And you will recall that the last time they were here, they ventured around the Gracias a Dios monument. And the request that the facilitators have made of them is they now do from Garbutt Falls to the Mexican Frontier, so that is another thing that will take another week or so.”

The arrival date of the mission to Belize has yet to be announced.