Squatter’s home demolished by land owner

Squatting in the Holy Emmanuel area, otherwise known as Gungulung, has been an issue of serious concern for the Lands Department over the past year.  In late March an entire community of trespassers was confronted by heavily armed police officers who barred them from entering unto property belonging to the Government of Belize.  On June first tempers reached a boiling point as the seemingly adamant squatters were forcefully evicted from their homes once again.  While the drama that subsequently ensued is an episode that is sure to be revisited during our year in review, tonight one Belize City resident, also of Gungulung, is without a roof over his head.  Twenty-four year old Andy Myers, a fisherman from that neighborhood, is currently in a dispute over a piece of land he claims was given to him by area representative Cordel Hyde a little over five years ago.  Despite not having any land title Myers proceeded to erect a small wooden structure on a plot of land on the far end of Mahogany Street Extension.  Several years later, he says, another individual approached him asking for the removal of the makeshift home from the property.  Since then the two have been engaged in a back and forth over land that purportedly remains untitled.  The argument took another turn on Christmas Eve when Myers returned to Belize City only to find that what was once his humble abode had been reduced to rubble.  Today the disgruntled resident spoke with News Five about his ongoing ordeal.

Andy Myers

Andy Myers, Resident of Gungulung

“I get this piece of land a couple years ago, almost six years now through Cordel Hyde and I build on the land and thing and about three years living on the land a guy came, right, and he said he owned this piece of land and he said he wanted me to move, you know.  He knocked on my door and said, “Hey hey we need to talk. you need to move off this land.  This is my land.  So I come out and said okay, show me the papers, you know.  Oh he noh wahn hear that because I noh know if ih got the papers or not right but he said “oh he noh wahn hear that, I gotta move“ And he picked up a piece of four by four and he stoned it into my wall causing a big hole in the wall.  I didn‘t report it, I didn‘t do anything because I got mad.  I actually hauled my machete, you know, but when I did that a guy with him tell me he is a police officer.  So I said well if you da wah officer and unu know unu di violate me charge the man, you know.  Call the police or something, you know.  I said as a matter of fact I’m gonna call them myself and before I can call them they took off. So I continue live and now couple days they come back and harass for the land and I told them the same thing; show me the papers, I won’t move off the land and I got this through Cordel and I di walk pan this before even street push. As street push, they come. And I deh pan this land before street push through. So now then, just in December around the eight, I went to Cayo Areas—I deh up there apparently bout two weeks now. I come home now about Christmas Eve and no house I have. My house gone. My neighbor tell me that a guy was knocking at my door. She tell me his name was Mossiah. Just broke down my house and said that oh she broke down the guy house and she owns all these lands and she have to pay him for the land that she build on because he own it and thing. So he will survey all these four lands. Well ih tell she that he can’t move she again because she down build. Well I mi done build too. So I noh know why ih broke down my land and he noh got no papers cause I went to land personally myself this morning and they tell me that for this area for these lands, government noh give weh no paper for these lands because government noh sure weh dehn wahn do wid it.”

According to Myers he has filed an official police report against Mossiah for the demolition of his property.  Mossiah, who declined an interview, says he does have papers for the property and is now seeking legal action to have Myers permanently removed from his land.