COLA, Evangelicals Back to Belmopan on Friday

Geovanni Brackett

Another round of protest has been scheduled for Friday in Belmopan where COLA and the Evangelical churches are set to demonstrate in front of the Assembly Building.  Organizers have secured a permit to allow for a peaceful gathering of worshipers at Independence Plaza to voice their discontent with government’s position not to appeal the Section Fifty-three ruling.  The first mass demonstration was held on Tuesday, albeit to a vacant seat of power.  Friday’s protest, says COLA President Geovanni Brackett, promises to be a greater show of support from the religious community.

Geovanni Brackett, President, COLA

“When we had the “I Want My Country Back March,” we said from that onset that COLA will be at the next House meeting, which is this Friday. It was postponed due to Hurricane Earl. Our colleague and partner, Patrick Menzies of Belize Can and a group of ministers and pastors from the Hispanic Evangelical circle have along with us gotten out a permit to stand on several issues and one of them being the anti-gay movement, so to speak. So COLA along with the hashtag I want my country back, which is headed by Louis Wade, Patrick Menzies and myself, have gotten out a permit for this Friday for a protest and demonstration at the foothills. We believe that what we did Tuesday was an excellent start, but now we want to get the attention of parliamentarians and hence the reason why we will be out there. We believe that there are a myriad of issues that every single Belizean should be out there. We believe that the Chamber of Commerce should give a day-off to promote having their people out there and standing up against injustice. The Pastor Lue murder is still unsolved, we haven’t gotten an international independent investigation, which is being called for by the N.T.U.C.B., COLA, the churches….people all over this country want to see an independent investigation. We don’t buy what the prime minister is telling us. We want this case to either be appealed or by any means possible, we want it to be overturned. Let me just read out here the points that we are standing on the grounds on. We are here to safeguard all those aforementioned principles and the constitution of Belize. Constitutionalize sex as meaning male and female only as established psychologically and physically. Overturn the CJ’s ruling on section 53. Constitutionalize marriage between one man and one woman only. To protect our children families and private and public institutions from the LGBT agenda. Rescind the Gender Policy 2013; withdraw the HFLE manual from schools and remove all references to the gender agenda and LGBT. Launch an independent international investigation into the Mason case; sign the anticorruption convention now and activate the integrity commission now.”