U.K. provides Ombudsman’s office with vehicle
This morning British High Commissioner Alan Jones presented a brand new Nissan Frontier pickup to Belize’s Ombudsman, Paul Rodriguez. The vehicle is valued in excess of fifty thousand dollars and will be used by the Ombudsman’s office to more effectively conduct work throughout the country. At the handing over ceremony Rodriguez also took the time to reflect back on the cases his office has investigated so far this year and what he considers to be the most disturbing file to cross his desk. That is the case of Egbert Gordon Jr., the mental patient who was shot by police and killed inside a home he had burglarised in Los Lagos. Police contend they had no choice but to shoot because Gordon was armed and pointed the gun at the officers as they entered the room in which he had barricaded himself.
Paul Rodriguez, Ombudsman of Belize
?That stands out not only because you know when you come across an incident like that, a young man in the prime of his youth whose life was just wasted mostly by himself. But we were called out to verify that the man was shot and that there was not criminal action in it. I know that a certain section of the media, a letter has been printed in which it was claimed that the man?s trigger finger was severed; I did not see that. There was a gun in his hand and his finger was not severed. He was one wound and that was in the eye, and that is where he bled from. ?
?Another thing that struck me about that case is usually when I go to a scene of a police arrest where people deemed that the police have acted outrageously, they you know are shouting at me, making remarks against the police. In that case there were lots of people on the street and not a word was said.?
?I wish you know we would try to do more to try and help people who have psychological problems like this poor fellow had, but sometimes we ignore them, we run from them, and we don?t do what we need to do to help them. Mind you he was a difficult person to handle.?
Rodriguez says law and order is a priority in his office’s efforts to bring about better governance and to promote the observance of human rights in Belize.
