Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian arrived in Belize today from Panama. Since relations were established between the two countries in 1989, we have seen the visits of Foreign Ministers, a Premier and a Vice-President, but this is the first time a President has visited.
Shui-bian is coming from Panama where he attended the inauguration of the Panamanian President Martin Torrijos. Hitching a ride back to Belize with him was Prime Minister Said Musa who also attended the inauguration. Both men arrived today and 7NEWS was there for the scene at the airport.
Keith Swift Reporting,
The Taiwanese President’s historic state visit to Belize began at 10:55 this morning when he landed at the Phillip Goldson International Airport on this chartered China Airline, the largest commercial private plane ever to taxi on the PGIA runway.
In anticipation of the landing there was the red carpet waiting to be rolled out, about 20 police officers were posted on the tarmac and dozens more BDF soldiers were bearing arms. On hand for the arrival were five Cabinet members led by Deputy Prime Minister John Briceno and including Foreign Affairs Minister Godfrey Smith in addition to Belize City Mayor David Fonseca. But the real welcoming party was the 200 eager Chinese-Belizeans who stood behind a barricade as they awaited the arrival of their President. Some were proudly waving and others just held both their Taiwan and Belizean national flags creating a dizzying cascade of red. For many, today was an event to be proud of because for them this isn’t just the visit of the Taiwan president, it is the visit of their president.
Fred Shyu, Taiwanese Businessman
“We feel very happy today because our President is coming to Belize for the first time so we are very happy.”
Keith Swift,
There seems to be a lot of excitement among the Taiwanese Community. What does this visit mean to you guys?
Fred Shyu,
“I think it’s a milestone that the President comes to this country. So it brings a lot of emotions because we feel happy. I hope he doesn’t only help the government but hopefully he will also be able to help the business community and put more investment in Belize as well.”
Lee Mak, President Belize Chinese-Association
“We are very excited as a association and we brought a welcoming committee over to welcome him to Belize.”
Keith Swift,
What does the visit mean to the community?
Lee Mak,
“I think it’s a historic moment because this is the first time the president is visiting Belize from Taiwan so we are all excited. His coming to Belize will definitely have a significant impact on the Taiwanese community in Belize so the crowd speaks for itself.”
And that crowd which was inside the departure terminal swarmed outside as the jumbo jet came to a halt and the door opened. First off the plane was a slew of Taiwanese journalists with their cameras and other equipment. Once the journalists were set up, all their cameras and all eyes were on the door as Belize’s Prime Minister Said Musa made his way down the steps of the plane along with the man who calls him best friend, His Excellency Chen Shui-bian. After greeting officials, the two leaders stood side by side for a quaint moment, under billowing Belize and Taiwan flags.
A 21 canon salute from a BDF quarter guard followed. And after the Belize national anthem courtesy George Price, the two leaders inspected a guard of honor mounted by the BDF. For the Taiwan media that meant chaos or maybe a circus as they scrambled to get the perfect shot. Still the president’s official welcome didn’t come until after when a dragon dance in his honor was performed by members of the Taiwanese community. And being officially welcomed, the president greeted local Taiwanese from behind their barricade, with some jumping at the opportunity to touch their president’s hands. The two heads of state then jumped into a Lincoln town car which led an official motorcade to Belize City.
The official highlight of President Chen's trip will be the groundbreaking for a new indoor sports center at the Marion Jones Stadium tomorrow morning. The personal highlight came this afternoon when he was conferred with the Order of Belize, and conferred an equivalent honor from his country on Prime Minister
Musa.
And while all this official hobnobbing does have its charm, the $100 million question is: will the Taiwanese bail out a financially floundering government? It might but we'll let you be the judge when we ask President Chen that question later on in this newscast.