As we reported at the top of the newscast, thousands of Belizeans demonstrated in the streets today in a protest march organized by the NTUCB. Alfonso Noble was in the demonstration and our team coverage continues now with Keith Swift who was on the sidelines with onlookers. And he found out that even though it was channeled away from the downtown area, it still affected 'the Alberts.'
Keith Swift Reporting,
It is a crowd of at least 2,000 and while police have forced the demonstrators to stay off the main streets, they've drawn quite a number of spectators on the back streets.
The crowd would swell to 3,000 by the time we caught up to it on Dolphin Street where a good crowd of onlookers gathered not just to see but also to lend support.
Spectator #1: I want a change because this price is killing us right now. I di buy Milport for $3 and now I am paying $4.50, this is out of the way, ridiculous. So something has to be done to Musa.
KS: You will just watch the parade, you won't join in?
Spectator #1: Well if I have to join in I'll join in too.
Spectator #2: I am trying to see the strength of the unions and the people of Belize to see how supportive they are of their union.
KS: What kind of crowd you expecting?
Spectator #2: I am expecting a huge crowd.
KS: Why are you standing up watching? Why not join the parade?
Spectator #2: Of course I have a toddler with me so I have to look out for my son as well, he is also out of school.
Spectator #3: I am waiting to see the demonstration because this is not fair, the government supposed to make good for the country, don't mess up the people like that.
One notable observer who watched from his usual weekend hangout spot was Michael Finnegan. He was part of an unpopular administration that retrenched 860 government workers in 1995, and from his Central American Boulevard vantage point, this situation is worse.
Michael Finnegan,
"We would not find ourselves in this kind of clumsy situation in the first place. We are in the situation we are right now because of total mismanagement, because of nepotism, because of cronyism, and because of corruption so we not find ourselves at all in this given situation. When a government in any part of the world is faced with a situation like this, that the country is completely closed down, the government cannot govern properly, the way the country should be governed, the government has an obligation in the interest of the nation to the do one thing that which is honorable: to go to the National Assembly, dissolve the House of Representatives and call new elections."
And while Finnegan would wish that the government resign, that likely won't happen. So what will? We asked these protestors, mostly working people and taxpayers, what they would want to tell the Prime Minister.
Protestor #1: We want the taxes go further back so I can make a good future for him (my child).
KS: What can the Prime Minister do to make you happy?
Protestor #1: Sit down and talk with the people them and let them know what he will do.
Protestor #2: Mr. Musa to make me happy as an individual you should not even put in the taxes. We don't want any taxes and find more jobs for our primary and high school students coming out of school. More education is what we want.
Protestor #3: He could bring back some of the money they have taken out of the country, that is what he can do for us and make all of us happy.
Protestor #4: The Prime Minister can just put through the reforms and I'll be happy.
Protestor #5: Change his ways or resign.
By early afternoon, that message of militance would resound throughout Albert Street. Even as police mandated that protestors stay out of downtown and the main commercial areas of Belize City, and they were forced to take the less prominent streets, their presence still caused a shudder in the downtown area - and shudder caused shutters on Albert Street to come down.
At noon a few businesses were shut but by 2 pm there was a virtual shutdown of banks and most businesses on Albert Street. These businesses closed either in support or afraid to appear not to support the sentiments of the large crowd.
And before we close, we offer a recap of the general situation. The National Trade Union Congress has rejected government's proposals for the purpose of re-drafting them. But at newstime, things were at a deadlock, as that re-draft has not been sent to the government. With that the TUC national shutdown continues, and that will result this weekend in continued water outages.
7NEWS produced for broadcast by News Director Jules Vasquez
Edited for the internet by Keith Swift
