Residents Support Oil Exploration and Prepared to Negotiate Benefits

While some residents contend that they have been misrepresented in the past, they are prepared to negotiate with government, should oil be discovered, to determine benefits.

Midway Resident

“We clearly understand as a community, you know, and me, personally, that you cannot stop oil drilling, that we have nothing against the government, for one, and that if they are to drill and find oil we want negotiations on the terms.  First of all, to come through so that when it comes to benefits and the working interest that we are to get would be beneficial to as a community and our children, for our families.”

Reporter

“Do you have the confidence now to say that you will be represented in a way that all of your interests will be taken into consideration when it’s presented to the Government of Belize, in case or in terms where oil should be found?”

Midway Resident

“I believe that now that we are ahead, one step from where we were a couple weeks ago our leaders and the people who represent the councils, the village councils, DAVCO, would take our voice to the government and have the government sit with us and listen to us so that we can negotiate.  We are happy and through this consultation that we got the full information because apparently Midway, in the couple of weeks ago in the past, looked bad in the face of the government because they have always been saying that Midway has been on the N.G.O.’s side, whether it be any N.G.O. that comes through giving us one side of the story which isn’t really true, you know, and we just want to reiterate that and we will always be on the government’s side and we support oil drilling but we must have negotiation.”

U.S. Capital, at last check, has been in the process of erecting a drill rig on its site at Temash Two in Sunday Wood.  Meanwhile, the Maya Leaders Alliance and the Toledo Alcaldes Association have been working to engage U.S. Capital Energy to make certain that the company respects the law, particularly where it concerns meaningful consent from the Maya communities in a significant way that would encourage benefit sharing, environmental safeguards and employment.