Senate to Ratify UN Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards
The Cabinet met today for well over six hours. One of the topics of discussion in the meeting was the ratification of the UN Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. It has been in our laws since 1980, but on Thursday, the Senate is expected to ratify the convention. After today’s meeting, we asked Briceño about the government decision.
Prime Minister John Briceño
“What we have done we have made our research to ensure that that does not happen and we have been assured that will not happen. That is being done simply there are some other negotiations that we are doing, coming forward we will need that so that it can happen.”
Reporter
“So can you give us examples because of course there are arbitral awards that are outstanding for payments to Ashcroft?”
John Briceño
Prime Minister John Briceño
“I will repeat again, that this convention that we want to have passed in the senate, to be ratified in the senate will have absolutely nothing to do with previous awards that have been passed against the Government of Belize. We have been very careful and we got legal advice that that cannot happen and we have been assured that that cannot happen. There is no nefarious plan here, nothing that we are trying to pass under the run to be able to pay anybody. We are doing some delicate negotiations with issues of some of the debt that we have and to able to address then we need to pass this UN convention so that we can be able to proceed. But we have been very careful and we have been assured that this cannot be then used by any other persons who have any other case against the government of Belize, of monies owed to them to be able to collect.”
Hipolito Novelo
“Sir, from the legal advice that you have received what prevents persons like Lord Ashcroft or other arbitral be paid when this is ratified?”
Prime Minister John Briceño
“What will prevent them is that is not applicable to them. Full stop. Punto Final.”
Reporter
“But that is a UN Convention will legislation be passed to say that this won’t be applicable to outstanding arbitral award to the Ashcroft group.”
Prime Minister John Briceño
“But as far as I understand it we don’t need any legislation to do that. The Convention already takes care of that. So there is no need to pass any legislation.”
Reporter
“The Ashcroft Group or Lord Michael himself has not approached the government for these monies to be paid? You are talking about negotiations happening.”
Prime Minister John Briceño
“This has nothing to do with Michael Ashcroft. Can I repeat it again? Can I repeat it again? It has nothing to do with Michael Ashcroft. Period. Okay. And he has not come to us to try to pass anything so he could collect his money, so please.”
Hipolito Novelo
“However Prime Minister do you understand the concern and the fear from the public because his name is being tied to this, maybe wrongly as you say, but do you understand the concern of the public?”
Prime Minister John Briceño
“Of course, everybody understands. We are concerned and we are not going to be able to pay anything of things that were caused by the Barrow administration. Let us start with that and secondly we have had no discussion with anybody and so we said this has nothing to do with Mister Ashcroft or any of this companies. I am not trying to play with words. That was the former Prime Minister. I speak plain English.”
The UN Convention was adopted by a United Nations diplomatic conference on June tenth, 1958, and entered into force on June seventh, 1959. The convention’s objective is to require courts of contracting states to give effect to private agreements to arbitrate and to recognize and enforce arbitration awards made in other states.
