Last week Wednesday we showed you the damage done on Sergeant's Caye allegedly by cruise ship tour operator Belize Paradise Limited. Well the reports of the Port Authority, the CZMAI and the Department of Environment have not fallen on deaf ears. In today's Cabinet brief Minister of Tourism Godfrey Smith says that the matter is being reviewed expeditiously and the offenders will be taken through the process for thorough, definitive and possibly terminal action.
Godfrey Smith, Minister of Tourism
"One of the recommendations coming from the Coastal Zone Management Authority is that the operating license of the company allegedly involved in the damage to the reef, the coral heads and the illegal mooring, that the operating license be suspended. Before that can be done, the Tour Operator Committee has to meet. That meeting is scheduled for Friday where this matter will be put before them and I believe that in that meeting, the various points will be put forward and I believe the company alleged to be involved in these activities will be given a chance to be heard, after which the committee will make his determination on what will happen with the license."
Jules Vasquez,
This company is a huge operator and is everyday responsible for ferrying out hundreds of tourists in their various boats. They are also the agent that directs traffic to other operators. So obviously it's a decision that has to be made against the continued smooth operation of the cruise tourism industry.
Godfrey Smith,
"Well I don't know that the things are tied up in the way you suggest. I don't think that no matter how big you are, or how important you are, if you are found to have breached the law then the sanctions have to apply. Cabinet's directive is that all available sanctions be applied to their fullest extent. If damage has been done to the reef, and illegalities have occurred that affect the industry then they have to be dealt with plain and simple, regardless of whose done it."
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