In late August we told you about the coca plantation in the Toledo District that was found and destroyed by BDF soldiers. Estimates say it had almost half a million plants. According to the minister, though they were successful in getting rid of it, it indicates an invasion of narcos in Belize, and specifically in areas where it's hard for soldiers to reach. And with the US delegation that recently visited, the minister said that one of the things they discussed was how to better equip the BDF to reach remote parts of the country.
Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of Defense
"It was found, it was destroyed. One of the things, I don't know if you'd have heard of this good news, but one of the things I'm told is that the soil where the coca plant was made is not the best soil for the good coca plant, so to speak."
"But it's already a sign that all these people are creeping up and crawling and bringing into the leaves. We now have to be more alert, more alert to be able to detect where these plantations may be coming up and to go straight after, and once you find them, to eradicate them."
"That is the biggest challenge that the military have, now the ability to be, to insert our troops rapidly, because usually, remember these soldiers, they're going on foot patrol, and if they encounter any incidences and they report it, it is difficult for us to be able to immediately react and insert more troops."
"So that is one of the challenges, that's one of the challenges that we are working on right now, to be able to hopefully be able to make the military more mobile."
Reporter
"These kinds of discussions brought up as the ministry and the BDF met with the folks that came in from the US recently?"
Florencio Marin Jr., Minister of Defense
"Yes, these were some of the main issues that we explained to them. They came and they wanted to know what's happening in Belize, and they showed genuine interest in our concerns. We explained that to them from my ministry's perspective."
"I explained similar what I just said about the coca plantation, our mobility, and they seem genuinely concerned about it, and we've asked them to where they can to help us, because it is an issue for us."
"If you notice a lot of the plain landings that we had, one of the reasons we're not always successful in capturing the product is because again, we can't reach the space fast enough."
