New initiatives will reform police and BDF
He is not the Espat brother most often seen on television. That’s Mark, the Minister of Tourism, who has been basking in the glory of record visitor arrivals, great publicity and boundless investor optimism. The Espat in the spotlight today is Jorge, the minister with the toughest portfolio in Cabinet, home to a sometimes corrupt and brutal police force and an army that’s outnumbered and outgunned along a border that seems to grow more dangerous each day. While he doesn’t go public very often, when he does it’s usually because he has something to say. And today was no exception, as the Minister of National Security reported to the nation on a major new policy initiative.
Stewart Krohn, Reporting
The National Security Review was initiated over two years ago in November of 1998 and approved by Cabinet just before the end of last year. The result is nothing less than a set of sweeping reforms in both the Police Department and Belize Defence Force, as well as the way in which the ministry goes about it business.
For the Police Department, the report, read by Minister of National Security Jorge Espat, was merciless.
Jorge Espat, Minister of National Security
“The worst neglect was found in every aspect of the Belize Police Department: insufficient manpower to poor training to poor maintenance; obsolete weapons and non-existence of basic police equipment; deplorable infrastructure; lack of short, medium and long term planning; inadequate investigation and prosecution; an inherent culture of mismanagement, indifference and incompetence; and a frustrated junior rank. The Review described police service to the community as appalling.”
To reverse the situation Espat announced a list of actions that included higher pay for police: five percent for senior officers and eight percent for ranks of constable to sergeant. The size of the force will also increase by one hundred and sixty to just under a thousand… at a cost of one point five million dollars. Another three-quarters of a million will be spent on transferring fifty-five civilian public officers to the department, thus freeing more cops to work on the street.
Espat also made it clear that a bigger and better Police Department will mean that the BDF can look after our sovereignty, not our petty crime.
Jorge Espat
“The recommendation of the Strategic Security Review is that the primary role of the Belize Defence Force is to defend the territorial integrity of Belize and to support civil authorities to maintain order. The BDF is not a law enforcement agency.”
And according to Espat, the BDF he inherited was not all that it could be.
Jorge Espat
“The old BDF structure featured: (a) a top heavy headquarters; (b) an operational capability that was compromised by emphasis on oversized command structures; (c) soldiers who were engaged in non-military duties; (d) soldiers performing police duties; (e) a volunteer element that was dormant, and (f) a reserve element that was ignored.”
“The new BDF structure now features: (a) a scaled down headquarters/administration from thirty-seven percent to ten percent of army; (b) the replacement of soldiers by civilians to do non-military duties which represents a two hundred percent increase; (c) the re-deployment of soldiers to frontline duties, which represents an increase from thirty-eight percent to seventy-seven percent of the army; (d) a gradual discontinuation of soldiers doing policing, which tied up more than thirteen percent of the army during certain times; (e) a rejuvenated and expanded volunteer element, and (f) a revived reserved element.”
“Soldiers who were trained to protect Belize were too often involved with non-military duties, such as cooking, driving, answering telephones, collecting garbage, keeping stores, maintaining grounds and a host of other non-military work..”
“Let me make this point. The exercise to re-structure the Belize Defence Force has resulted in a far more competent, confident, potent and effective army.”
In conclusion Espat told the audience that national security is not a political issue and the recommendations approved by Cabinet were not made by politicians.
Jorge Espat
“The defence and security of Belize is ultimately the responsibility of every citizen. It is time that we put aside the partisan cynicism and divisions, and bring to bear our national efforts for a safer and freer Belize. Risks in the border areas are unlikely to disappear soon. Crime and Guatemala have been used as a way to divide Belize. It is time we use crime and Guatemala to unite Belizeans.”
While the minister’s presentation went off without a hitch–even the weather and the band cooperated–there were still a few unanswered questions, such as…
Stewart Krohn
“Where is this money gonna come from?”
Jorge Espat
“Well we are currently negotiating for a two million U.S. dollars loan that will be used primarily… or I should say about fifty-five percent of it will be going to the BDF. In this year’s budget, we will see a significant increase in the allocation to the Ministry of National Security in all its departments. Primarily, the Belizean people are going to be paying for our security. It is time that we bear the cost of securing our country.”
Stewart Krohn for News 5.
