The Presidents of Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador joined Belize's Prime Minister in the island town of San Pedro today. They are here for two meetings: the 30th SICA summit and the Tuxtla Mechanism. And while every president has a story, an entourage, and a suitcase full of linen guayaberas, no leader compared to Mexican President Felipe Calderon. His country is a legitimate world power and he arrived on San Pedro in a manner befitting that at noon today. 7NEWS was there.
Jules Vasquez Reporting,
The San Pedro airstrip was under heavy security close to noon as a cluster of diplomats security and military awaited the arrival and made ready for Mexico's President Felipe Calderon. The commotion even drew the attention of a gaggle of onlookers. And what an arrival it was: four helicopters in formation. Calderon was greeted by the Mayor, the Area Representative, and the Mexican Ambassador to Belize and shuttled to the Victoria House Hotel where SICA and Tuxtla meetings were convened.
It's in that hotel's dining room that Mexican, Central American and to a far lesser extent Belizean media gathered for a press conference to mark the closing of the 30th SICA summit as the outgoing President of SICA Prime Minister Musa sat beside his successor, Guatemalan President Oscar Berger who will take over for the next six months. The symbolism of the seating arrangement was not lost on the PM.
Rt. Hon. Said Musa, Prime Minister of Belize
"Well looking at it strictly politically, if I may for a moment, I would say a major achievement is the fact that I am sitting next to the President of Guatemala and the fact that we are able to do this in a spirit of mutual respect. And in other words we are putting aside differences that may still exist between us in order to forge development for our respective peoples in Belize and Guatemala. I believe Belize benefited in the sense that the entire region of Central America has a much clearer understanding of the aspirations, the sovereign rights of Belize, and the respect that has been shown to us, I think has enhanced us in terms of our development as a young emerging nation."
But Belize did also get work done, according to Foreign Minister Lisa Shoman there were signal accomplishments for Belize during its six month presidency of SICA.
Lisa Shoman, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"We've managed to have the second encounter between CARICOM heads of government and Presidents of the Central American Integration System right here in Belize. So we very much feel that we've been able to accomplish quite a bit by bringing the two regions together. We feel that we've added value to both processes, CARICOM and to SICA."
And at this meeting - much was also accomplished.
Lisa Shoman,
"One of the things that we've just finished discussing and which I think will pay off big in the lives of people is a Central American system to coordinate security issues, particularly in intelligence sharing. As you know, we are right in the path of some very difficult situations having to do with transnational organized crime, having to do with arms smuggling, drug trafficking, the trafficking of persons. Central America does not get to opt out of difficulties and the way that we confront them best, obviously is by working together and the only way to do that is for us to sit down and agree on mechanisms to carry this forward.
We've also had an imitative today on climate change which is very interesting and important because as you know Belize holds the portfolio for climate change in the Caribbean and climate change isn't one of these esoteric things Jules. A couple feet in the rise of the sea level as you know will inundate us, we will be drowned and therefore these issues are of bread and butter importance to people. When there is no barrier reef or it is bleached, tourists will not come in the numbers that they do and our people will have much less employment. These are the reasons why it is critical to meet on these issues and to agree that alone none of us has the resources or the manpower to be able to address them. But together, we can fight them."
And the SICA leaders also expressed disappointment about the immigration reform bill which died yesterday in the U.S. Senate.
Lisa Shoman,
"We are making a call on this issue to ensure that the signal is given very clearly that we are concerned about the this very critical issue that is a critical issue that affects the lives of our citizens. There are many Belizeans as you know living under the shadow of the law, as it were, in the United States."
And with key resolutions made, after a photo opportunity, the heads of government sat down for lunch with the Belizean Prime Minister flanked by Mexican President Felipe Calderon.
After lunch the Mexican President joined Central American leaders in a meeting of the Tuxtla Plan Puebla Mechanism. The Central American Presidents in attendance were Antonio Saca of El Salvador, Manuel Zelaya of Honduras, Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, Martin Torrijos of Panama, and Oscar Berger of Guatemala. The Tuxtla meeting finished at 5:00 pm. Many of the leaders will remain at Victoria House overnight and leave tomorrow.
