On Monday Valley of Peace resident Janice Bain told us she is living in a valley of terror because of racial discrimination from the village's dominant Salvadoran population. Bain moved into the village last December and since then she claims she has received death threats, she has been stoned, and her house has even been shot. Those are strong accusations and they were taken seriously by villagers. On Tuesday village Chairman Maria Consuelo Abelar led a delegation from Valley of Peace to our studios on Albert Street. With the help of a translator, Abelar, who claims to be part black, told a much different story.
Maria Consuelo Abelar,
"Recently when this problem occurred, I only learnt from another person who had heard it on the radio. I became worried because this lady, Janice Bain, is discriminating the community. The community is not harming her. It is a family problem. It is a problem between Miss Janice Bain and the people who have rented her places to live. The situation, as I understand, is that they had rented her a house and she didn't want to pay and when the owner goes to collect rent- she gets upset. We have had problems with this lady because of water meters."
Alfonso Noble,
She alleges that the young men threw firecrackers at her and she has been shot at.
Maria Consuelo Abelar,
"That is what I want to clear up. I am her neighbor. The only thing between our houses is a chain link fence. I heard the shots and I came out to see what was happening. I didn't see anyone in her yard from where I was standing or anyone running away from her yard.
I believe that this is a set-up - that she is doing to blame us because that yard is properly fenced. There is no way that anyone could have ran out without being seen. "
Delia Gonzalez and Jose Carlos Reyes also have very different stories to tell about Bain. Reyes claims that Bain moved into his house in December of 2005 but stopped paying rent and so he had to evict her. But we begin with Delia Gonzalez. She claims that Bain is currently living in her house and has refused to pay any rent and has refused to move.
Delia Gonzalez,
"I returned to Belize on the 22nd of June and then I went to my house and took my granddaughter. My granddaughter called her and when she came out she turned to look at me and asked my granddaughter who I was. My grand daughter told her that I am the owner of the house. Janice Bain said, 'oh no,' she has already made arrangements to live in this house for one year. I told her I will be returning on Sunday and that I wanted the key to another house in the yard so I can sleep there. Janice Bain says absolutely not - I am not allowed to enter the yard because it is her house."
Alfonso Noble,
Does she pay rent?
Delia Gonzalez,
"No no, not even five cents. She has not made any arrangements, no documents, nothing. Miss Janice Bain claims that my house was abandoned for five years and that is not true. She says that that is her house and does not allow me to go into my own house. I want her to vacate my house and pay for the damage she has caused. "
Jose Carlos Reyes,
"Everything that she is accusing us of is not true and what I would suggest is that if there is a law that works, for this country, to investigate the things properly and to investigate her and if she ends up that what she has been saying is not true, then she is the one that should be counseled. She was saying that we are supposed to be treated psychologically but I am think she is the one that needs that kind of treatment."
Alfonso Noble,
Have you seen this letter that she claims was given to her? What do you think of it?
Jose Carlos Reyes,
"Well I think that this doesn't exist in the village. I have been living there all my life but I haven't seen this, never. For me this is, maybe I am not sure, but maybe this is a setup. Maybe she paid somebody to write this in Spanish or something but this doesn't exist for me."
Alfonso Noble,
Is there racial discrimination in the village?
Jose Carlos Reyes,
"That's not true. Like I said, there is no discrimination against her from us. We like each other very much and if she wants to stay in the village, she can stay there but buy her own piece of land or get a piece of land and build her own house and we are okay with that."
The village chairman organized a conciliatory meeting last Sunday but Bain reportedly refused to attend. Bain has organized her own peace forum which will be held in Belmopan. In case you didn't know - Valley of Peace is located on the outskirts of Belmopan. The mostly immigrant village has about three thousand residents.
