B.N.T.U. Says Stand Up to Sedi If You Love Belize

Wilfred Elrington

The Belize National Teachers’ Union has added its voice to those condemning Minister of Foreign Affairs Wilfred Elrington for his repeated statements that Belize’s borders are not internationally recognized, and that for them to be, the Guatemalan claim must be settled at the International Court of Justice. In calling on Elrington to “watch his words,” B.N.T.U. president Elena Smith said no Belizean should allow Belize’s top diplomat to get away with such unpatriotic sentiments, coming on to a time of national celebration and reflection.

Elena Smith

Elena Smith, President, Belize National Teachers’ Union

“When you listen to the Foreign Minister and certain words that he uses… Come on! I don’t see where any Belizean, any person who says that I love this country, would not be offended by the way the Foreign Minister uses words, the way he describes our borders, and he pretends as if though he is the only one who knows these words and he knows what they mean and the rest of us don’t know what these words mean. We must take offense when no person other than our Foreign Minister describes our borders in such a way and says to us as a people, that internationally we are not recognized. How we can sit back and accept that, yet we say we love Belize? We are going to be celebrating in a week, two weeks from now; we are going to have an entire month of celebrations to show that we are patriots, we love our country, we are so patriotic and we love our country. Yet we have no feeling, we have no anger at what the Foreign Minister said? It can’t be.  That is not love.”