The House of Representatives and the Senate have already passed the cruise ship port development project bill which gives the legislatures blessing and god-speed to the Carnival Cruise Terminal project, but that isn't stropping BTIA from using the courts to try and block the project. The BTIA has argued that the project agreement defies the constitution and breaks the law. Today, after three successive adjournments, the BTIA today finally had its before Justice Sam Awich who gave them leave for judicial review, which means that the case is arguable. BTIA President Lucy Fleming told us that its is their first victory.
Lucy Fleming, BTIA President
"Well I think it's a win certainly for the BTIA and you know as I've said many times in the past we are not against cruise tourism. We are for cruise tourism and we are for sustainable tourism. What we are against, and what we have always been against is the contract, secret contract; the way it basically was hidden from us, it had to be leaked to us. When we learnt of it we immediately had it reviewed and it was decided by the attorneys who reviewed it that basically it was unconstitutional, or they felt, and unlawful and that's why it was decided that we would take it for a judicial review."
Jules Vasquez,
Is it that the BTIA will not satisfied until the contract is ruled unconstitutional and ruled void? Is that what you all are heading towards? Is that the redress that you all are seeking?
Luck Fleming,
"Well certainly we feel that the contract is really full of holes and we feel that even with the clarification agreement that was made on that contract, that didn't really address the initial problems that we have with the contract. So we would like to see it crushed and we would like to see a new contract which is really written on behalf of the Belizean people by a Belizean attorney. Because let's face it, the Carnival contract was obviously not written by a Belizean attorney. It was obviously written by a Carnival or BCTL attorney and we don't feel that we've ever really had the opportunity to be represented by one of our attorneys so henceforth we've taken this to the step that we've taken it now for judicial review. If we could come back to the table with Carnival and BCTL, we would certainly be prepared to do that as opposed to going all the way through to judicial review."
The BTIA was also seeking an injunction blocking the bill, but that has yet to be argued.