Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
On June 22nd, 2015, the Prime Minister of Belize, Dean Barrow, on national television
admonished the Maya people saying the treatment of Myles was outrageous and absolutely
intolerable while admitting he did not have all of the facts. Making reference to the 22nd April
2015 Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) Consent Order, the Prime Minister stated: "I want to
make clear to them (Maya people) again that that consent judgment merely recognizes that they
are entitled to certain rights. The Prime Minister went on to say that he would find out from the
authorities if they intended to do anything about the situation, fueling a national debate on the
issue. When asked by the media about the illegal destruction of the sacred site by Myles, he said
he did not know about it.
The Supreme Court of Belize and the Caribbean Court of Justice recognized the property rights
of the Maya people in accordance with their customary land tenure system and ordered the
Government to adopt all necessary measures to protect Maya people and lands. However, there
has been an increasing number of reported violations on Maya rights and no responsive
protection from the part of the Government. For that reason and to comply with the CCJ order,
the Toledo Alcaldes Association and the Maya Leaders Alliance have requested a meeting with
the Government and expect that the recent incidents do not configure a political maneuver to
postpone or weaken the protection of Maya peoples rights.
Men and women from Santa Cruz Villager have affirmed that they will remain united and stand
with the Santa Cruz 13. The Toledo Alcaldes Association and the Maya Leaders Alliance are
extremely concerned with this escalating situation and have reported to the United Nations and
other international human rights monitoring bodies.
Facebook/Twitter: #SantaCruz13
Figure 2- Human rights activist Cristina Coc speaks with Maya women waiting for her release
Figure 3- Villagers stood with the Santa Cruz 13 in front of Magistrate Court