Belize ruling party prepared for referendum on Wednesday

BELMOPAN, Belize (CMC) — The ruling United Democratic Party (UDP) says it is prepared for Wednesday’s referendum when Belizeans will vote on whether or not the country should take its long-running border dispute with Guatemala to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Acting Prime Minister Patrick Faber said unlike the main Opposition People’s United party (PUP), which has called on Belizeans to vote “no” in the referendum, the UDP would be all out to ensure the initiative is a success.

“It is not a red or blue issue. It is not a party politics issue as is normally the case for elections,” Faber told reporters, saying “nobody will or should be taking this thing along party lines…”

The Belize Government last month announced the new date for the referendum less than a week after the Dean Barrow Administration had piloted the Belize Territorial Dispute Referendum Bill, 2019 in Parliament and the PUP being successful in getting the High Court to grant an injunction preventing the referendum from taking place on April 10.

The Government moved to introduce the new legislation after Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin earlier this month granted an injunction to six PUP members after they had asked the High Court to determine the legality of the special agreement signed in 2008 that ended negotiations and opened the way to take the territorial dispute between Belize and Guatemala to the ICJ.