…Wil Maheia Certainly Thinks So

Wil Maheia

Wil Maheia also referred to the incident in the Sarstoon this past Thursday when the Guatemalan navy attempted to expel the Belize Coastguard well within Belizean waters. Maheia, who is from the south, says that these incursions continue despite the signing of bilateral agreements.

Wil Maheia, PNP

“We have evidence, you’ve seen the pictures on my Facebook page where we’ve documented where the Guatemalans continue to invade Belize—whether it is their military or their civilians—they are in our waters and we continue to show signs of weakness. It is unfortunate that it has to get down to military action, but that’s what it is coming down to and if we continue to show weakness, they will continue to penetrate. Yesterday; that incident was way inside Belize’s territory. So I mean, come on. Belizeans we have to stand up and send a message to the government. The Guatemalans were clearly inside Belize’s territory—and that’s nothing new—and it wasn’t just civilians, it was the Guatemalan military that was inside Belize’s territory. And it has happened before. The other day when they kidnapped the forty-seven Belizeans. The Belizeans didn’t go into Guatemala when they kidnapped them; they came and took them from the Belize side and that’s clearly documented…that the Guatemalans boat came on the Belize side and towed our boat into their waters.”

Duane Moody

“So what in your opinion would see this desist?”

Wil Maheia

“Well I think that first of all, like any good neighbor, we need to delineate our border line. When the British were here, we never had that kind of incursions. Up until the late eighties, we didn’t have these kinds of incursions. It was when we began to neglect our borders; it was when we begin to bring the B.D.F. from where they supposed to be at the border line and put them on the streets of Belize City; that’s when the incursions started to take place. All this time, from 1859 until the 1990’s the borderline was well-maintained. It was after 1994, when the B.D.F. neglected our boarders and the corner markers and all those were neglected, the Guatemalans keep coming in. And they continue to do so today; as we speak they are into our territory.”