P.U.P. charges government with overzealous registration of aliens
At almost this same stage in the 1993 election campaign the issue of aliens registering to vote became a hot one… only then it was the U.D.P. charging that the ruling P.U.P. was up to no good. Today the shoe was on the other foot as the People’s United Party called a press conference to charge that the government party was packing the rolls with immigrants.
Godfrey Smith, Secretary General, P.U.P.
“Re-registration for this general election came to an end amidst much controversy and violence surrounding the U.D.P.’s registering of immigrants.”
Secretary General Godfrey Smith and Attorney Eamon Courtenay came to the press conference this morning armed with files and letters offered as evidence to substantiate the P.U.P.’s claim that the U.D.P. government has been registering hundreds of immigrants to vote in next month’s elections.
According to Courtenay, an amendment to the immigration law on April eighteenth of this year, paved the way for children of naturalized Belizeans over the age of eighteen years to apply for and get citizenship in time for the elections.
Eamon Courtenay, Attorney At Law
“Where a minor child referred to in sub-section above has attained the age of eighteen years and cannot for that reason be included in the parent’s certificate of registration shall be entitled to apply for Belizean citizenship irrespective of the residency requirement specified in section 10 (1b) or 11 (3b) as the case may be. When you look at the figures of what was happening in the immigration and naturalization you will see, 21 in January, 54 in February, 62 in March. Now comes the amendment, April, 153, 150 in May, June 432, July 487. It is abundantly clear that the inference to be drawn is that the U.D.P. were out there saying to the government, we’re having a problem registering our people. Amend the law to facilitate it.”
Further evidence of what the P.U.P. call a special legislative machinery to facilitate the registration of immigrants, was a stack of files, allegedly sent to P.U.P. headquarters last Tuesday by an anonymous source in the Immigration Department. The forty or so files contained applications for naturalization that were not completed in time for the July fifteenth registration deadline. If any, or how many similar ones were completed, they are not sure.
Godfrey Smith
“An examination of these files show that almost all the applications are sworn before a justice of the peace by the name of E. Cano. That is Eulogio Cano, a staunch U.D.P. activist and former U.D.P. town board member. Almost all of them are dated either fifteenth or the twenty seventh January, 1998 and almost all the applications cite as the reason for applying for nationality that “I have settled and established my life here.”
The P.U.P. had previously said that as many as four thousand immigrants had obtained Belizean citizenship in recent months, but at today’s press conference, Secretary General Smith revised the figure downwards in light of a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which states that only one thousand four hundred and seven applications have been approved since January. Smith says the problem with immigrants being registered to vote is most prevalent in the Cayo North and Cayo West constituencies and called on the N.G.O. community to investigate the issue like they did prior to the 1993 elections.
Godfrey Smith
“Firstly, it must be determined whether the one thousand four hundred and seven naturalization, especially the over nine hundred approved in June and July, were properly processed. Secondly, to discover how many of the newly naturalized persons applied to be registered and what number of them was successful. Thirdly, to examine the records of the elections and boundaries commission to see how many Belizeans were denied registration and franchise on the grounds of insufficient proof of nationality.”
Two such persons were among the small audience at this morning’s press conference, Belizeans who, because their birth certificate could not be located, were unable to register to vote. Patrick Jones for News Five.
The heads of both the Immigration and Elections Departments have consistently denied that their offices have engaged in any irregular activities.
