Two cruise ships docked off the coast of Belize City this morning and they were greeted by a sight that will no doubt be the talk of their trip. As the tourists were arriving, armed police officers were roughly rounding up about a dozen hair braiders, all women, from outside the tourism village. The braiders were questioned and then released from the Queen Street Station in the early part of the afternoon. And what's the crime committed by these working mothers? Well they didn't pay $25, their monthly license fee to the City Council.
These days, it seems that owing government 25 dollars is enough to get you thrown into the pisshouse, while $25 million...well that's a Senate inquiry. Joan Sankey was one of the braiders who were detained. Joan managed to get out and her first stop was our studios where she vented her frustration with getting arrested for $25.
Joan Sankey, Hair Braider
"Two lady police officers came out and about three male officers and they said for all the hair braiders to get up and go into the vehicle. By this time a police officer, Mr. John, who had the list of all our names said they were going to arrest all the hair braiders. Some of the girls retaliated and didn't want to go into the vehicle but I just went into the vehicle and sat down while the rest were out there talking because they said this wasn't fair and this isn't right because we are all Belizeans and everybody was saying to call Channel 7 and this and that.
When we reached at the station we all came out and went inside and they asked who had their $25 to pay right now will be able to leave but who don't have their $25 will be detained until this evening. My daughter and the others are still there but I got out because I told them I don't have the $25 right now but I could go and get it so Mr. John let me free. So I decide that I will come here at Channel 7 and tell them what is happening because this is not fair. We are all mothers out there and we have kids to feed. Some days we are out there and we don't make one dollar and still we are to pay $25.
It was so embarrassing because then all the tourists were out there and this gave us a bad reputation. They say tourism is for Belizeans but I don't see how. It is not for Belizeans at all, at all."
The twist on the story is that tonight no one is taking responsibility for detaining the women. Police say they were asked to round up the women by the City Council but the City Council's Revenue Manager Marva Gardiner told us she knew nothing about the round-up and denied that CITCO was involved.
In July, the hair braiders agreed to pay $25 a month to work on Fort Street. Sankey told us that because this is the slow season, most of them haven't paid their fees for August and September, which amounts to $50. Hair braiders get an average of US$20 per head
