Belizeans for Justice attend SICA meeting in San Salvador

Belizeans for Justice, the organization formed by relatives of murder victims, has been at the forefront of social causes while pointing to corruption in the police department.  The organization was invited to a Central American Integration System meeting in San Salvador earlier in the week. Founding members of the group Joan Sutherland and Yolanda Schakron attended the SICA meeting and they are having a public meeting tonight at Red House at the corner of Vernon Street to share what they learned from the delegates of other Central American countries regarding the crime situation in their respective environments.

joan sutherland

Joan Sutherland, Founding Member, Belizeans For Justice

“I went on the trip with Miss Schakron and I had a wonderful experience. I learnt so much from it. There is a lot that I can say now. I know that we are not the only one that is suffering; we’re not the only country that is going through what is happening right now. So tonight we are having a meeting at six-thirty and we are asking all mothers, fathers everybody to come out at Red House, it is going to be in the back. To come and listen and we want to tell them what we have learnt from this SICA meeting we attended.”

Yolanda Schakron, Founding Member, Belizeans for Justice

yolanda schakron

“The main issue there was about the violence affecting Central America and Belize is a part of Central America. We spoke about issues such as poverty, the drug trafficking, corruption within the police department and political leaders, the marginalization of poor people, no education provided and health benefits and just a simple way of life a good life for people who are poor. What I gained is that Belize is going through the same problems that those bigger countries have gone through; we are getting there very fast. We gathered that many people say that we as a people have to come together and make a difference because for our political leaders don’t have a will to change what is happening. And crime affects mostly the poor people and I remember one panelist saying that justice has been captured by rich and the powerful and I can relate to that in the case of my nephew and I can see that happening in Belize.”