This afternoon, Wil Maheia, the leader of the Belize Territorial Volunteers, hosted a Zoom press conference to discuss the Sunday confrontation between the BTV and the GAF.
Here's how he described the back and forth between the Belizeans who tried to reach Sarstoon Island and the soldiers who tried to stop them.
Wil Maheia - Leader, Belize Territorial Volunteers
"We had a nice crowd with us, more than 60 people and five boats. We left Punta Gorda around 9 a.m., and we sailed to the Sarstoon with the intention to go the Sarstoon Island. But, even before we reached the mouth of the Sarstoon River, we saw boats coming at us. The boats actually came into Belizean waters. When I slowed down, they asked me for papers, and I reminded them that they were inside Belize's waters and they can't ask for any papers. They asked where I was going. I told them we were going to Sarstoon Island. It's our Independence Day, and we're going to raise our flag there, as we usually do. They said, well, today, you're not allowed to go there, and you're not going there. That is Guatemalan territory, and I insisted [that] it's not Guatemalan territory. There were five boats, all of them heavily armed. They had more than 50 armed soldiers on their boats. We decided to push in, and Mr. Neville Smith, who was one of the lead captains from one of the bigger, pushed himself through. Then I went behind him, and then all the other boats went. So, it was like total confusion because the Guatemalan boats were trying to stop us one by one. They needed more than one boat to stop us. So, we proceeded, and all this time, they were trying to cut us off. We reminded them that we have young people on board, that this could be dangerous, and they can't be behaving like that. They were like, 'You're not going to that island today. That island belongs to Guatemala.' I told them, no, the borderline - I explained to them where the borderline is at. It's on the other side of the island, the south side of the island, midway on the Sarstoon River. And they were like, 'No, the entire river belongs to Guatemala. Belize's border starts on the banks of the Sarstoon.' I responded, 'No, that's not how it is.' We proceeded, and we went to Sarstoon Island after several back-and-forth pushing with the Guatemalans."
We also asked about that heated moment that was caught on camera when one of the Guatemalan officials strenuously insisted that the Sarstoon River and Sarstoon Island are Guatemalan territory. Maheia told us that he was caught off-guard by those bold assertions:
Wil Maheia - Leader, Belize Territorial Volunteers
"The Coast Guard was behind us, and I said, 'Look, the Coast Guard and the BDF, I'm going to make a formal complaint to the Coast Guard. We went to the BDF Boat that had Coast Guard personnel on it. We told the BDF that these guys took our flags, and they asked us, 'Which boat took your flag?' We pointed to the Guatemalan boat that had our flags, and the Coast Guard and the BDF proceeded to their boat. They told the Guatemalan officers that they needed to return our flag. They told the BDF and Coast Guard that they were not going to return any flag because that flag was planted in Guatemalan territory. The Coast Guard was right there to know that we did not hit the Guatemalan mainland. We only went on to the island. So, the Coast Guard insisted that they give us our flag, and they insisted that they're not gonna our flag. At this time, the sea is getting rougher. So, I said, 'You know what, in the interest of safety, we better pull out. So, we pulled out and headed back to Punta Gorda."
Daniel Ortiz
"The interaction between yourself and that GAF soldier. 'You put your flag in my country."
Wil Maheia
"Yeah, I was struck when they insisted that, look, Sarstoon Island belongs to Guatemala. That's what they were - they kept saying that. And I was saying no, the river is for both of us. And they were saying, no, the Belize Border is actually from the banks of the Sarstoon River. So, go back over there. This is in broad daylight. The video evidence is there. We made a complaint to the Belize Defense Force. The footage shows where Guatemalans came into Belize's territory and stole our flag. We hope that our government will do whatever is in its means to get back our flag. If we don't, we will look weak as a country. Today, they take Sarstoon Island. Tomorrow, they could take Barranco. The next day they could take Punta Gorda if we show such weakness."
Neville Smith - Veteran Boat Captain
"I believe that having the military, the BDF, move from the Sarstoon base over to Barranco was a slap in the eye, or a punch in the eye, based on the fact that Guatemala actually sees that as a win. I also believe that the last time we went down to the Sarstoon, and we didn't get harassed, that was based on the military that we have was actually present there. Now, we have no military there. So, we took the hit that we took this time. "
We also asked Maheia about the persistent criticism of these types of trips and the potential flare-up of tensions over the Sarstoon River. Here's what he had to say:
Daniel Ortiz
"The Former Minister of Foreign Affairs made it clear that efforts like this one that you're engaging in, you're acting like a provocateur."
Wil Maheia
"To those people who say that we're provoking, I say they need to educate themselves about what it means to own. Belize is our country. We own this country. This is our country. We cannot provoke anyone within our country. Now, if we were crossing to the Guatemalan side, then you could say that's a provocation. They provoked us. We did not provoke them."
On Monday evening, the Government of Belize sent out a press release.
That statement was from the Ministry of National Defense and Border Security, and it said, quote, "Mr. Wil Maheia, leader of the Belize Territorial Volunteers, informed the joint patrol that they had placed two Belizean National Flags on the Sarstoon Island, which members of the Guatemalan Armed Forces later removed. The Guatemalans informed the joint patrol that the entire area belongs to Guatemala; however, the joint patrol commander informed the Guatemalan Armed Forces that they were in Belizean territory and that they should leave. Shortly thereafter, the Belize Territorial Volunteers and the Guatemalan Armed Forces vessels departed. The Belize Defence Force and Belize National Coast Guard joint patrol then left the area to the Sarstoon Forward Operating Base to maintain a military presence... the joint deployment continues to conduct regular patrols from Barranco Village to Sarstoon Island and remains vigilant to ensure the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Belize." End quote.
The Government's statement did not mention any attempts to retrieve the confiscated flags, and today, the United Democratic Party sent out a press release demanding that they make an effort to do so.
Their release says, quote, "The United Democratic Party calls on the Government of Belize to demand the immediate return of our Belizean flags from members of the Guatemalan Armed Forces (GAF) who stole the Belize Territorial Volunteers' flags from our Sarstoon Island.
We remember an Eamon Courtenay, who was stern and boisterous in his condemnation of the GAF while in Opposition but is suddenly meek and mild as Foreign Minister in the face of Guatemalan aggression. We call on the Government of Belize to officially condemn the actions of the Guatemalan Armed Forces and to ensure the return of the Belizean Flags" End quote.
