Tonight Patrick Faber, Area Representative for the Collet Division is in a detention cell at the Belmopan Police Station after he was arrested in a dramatic showdown at the UB Central Campus in Belmopan this afternoon. The 7NEWS team was on the scene and tonight we'll present to you unedited most of the what led to the showdown. The groundwork for the scene was set from early on when striking teachers and other union members went from a morning rally in Benque Viejo to the UB Belmopan Campus to see the Prime Minister address the university students in the school auditorium. But expecting a crowd, police secured the entrance of the campus and were not allowing entry to anyone without a student identification card. Our Jules Vasquez and Alfonso Noble were at the entrance at 2:00 pm where angry teachers were emphatically making the police know that they were being kept out of what was advertised and sanctioned as a public forum. Here are some of those angry complaints.
[Audio and Video of Complaining.]
Our team left that scene at the entrance and went back to the auditorium where the Prime Minister arrived at 2:30 pm. He spoke and took questions for nearly two hours and we'll have some highlights of that later on. But our team had to break from that at about 3:15 when we were called to the front gate because there were reports that things had gotten rough between the unions and police. When we got there this is what we saw. A crowd of about 75 persons and in the front of it UDP area representative Patrick Faber being restrained by police. We'll let the images and actions speak for themselves.
After Faber walked past the riot squad on his way to see the Prime Minister at the auditorium the crowd too walked past the barriers and unto the university grounds. The crowd continued to gather and outnumber police and that's when we spoke to Faber.
Patrick Faber, Collet Area Representative
"The man ova deh so slap me, Member of the National Assembly. This is a public institution. See di flyer yah so people, public forum, inviting the people of this nation to come out to a public forum."
Jules Vasquez,
So what happened when you got here?
Patrick Faber,
"They have stopped the people of this country from coming in just to protect Prime Minister Musa and not only that Jules, Mr. Wade mi deh right yah when I come, I neva come with that crowd a people. But yet he has refused. Mr. Wade get pon ih radio and ih call some senior policeman, Orio, and they said I am not supposed to enter here. I am a member of the National Assembly and this is the country's only national university to a public forum and then the man seh he noh know 'bout this. Then dah man ova deh so, I wah yo zoom in pan he, ih literally lift up ih hand and bax me and tell me I upstart. Imagine that."
Jules Vasquez,
This is Mr. Orio.
Patrick Faber,
"Dah he dah Mr. Orio?"
Jules Vasquez,
Yes.
Patrick Faber,
"Well dah he said ah no fi go in and he dah he bax me."
Jules Vasquez,
Why are you not being permitted in?
Patrick Faber,
"I do need to ask the police officers that and noh only that, they physically restrained me from going in and this is a public forum. So ih say if this document legitimate, well it has the seal of the UB Student Government, official document advertising the public forums for yesterday and today. I don't know what they are trying to play. I am getting here one way or the other so they'll have to arrest me. They wah tell me 'bout how I di gather inna wah illegal gathering yah. It wouldn't have been an illegal gathering if they had allowed me inside. I have come to hear what the Prime Minister has to hear and so many Belizeans want to know what is the Prime Minister saying and what are his explanations for all that's happening right now. So when he do decide to give a public audience then this is the kind of thing, look how many hundreds of people are out here."
Frankie Rhys,
"Its one thing that's very clear right now, no state of emergency has been declared but for all practical purposes, we are living in a police state. We are denied access to our own elected officials."
After that interview the riot squad arrived and the officer in charge, Superintendent Russell Blackett dispatched three officers to restrain Faber who continued his discussion with Superintendent Wade. Faber kept insisting on his right to enter the university compound and things came to a dramatic head when he decided to bolt for it, past the riot squad. Our team followed and here's how that went.
[Video footage.]
As you can see, our news team was physically restrained with riot shields and one officer tried to grab away our camera all this on the compound of the autonomous national university which again is another first. After Faber was taken in the crowd of mostly teachers and some members of the Belize Water Services Workers Union and some Communcation Workers Union continued to be pushed back by the riot squad which had taken its formation. Within 15 minutes the riot squad had the situation, still tense and uneasy but under control. By 4:30 the Prime Minister's address was finished and the crowd would soon dissipate but about 50 of them went over to the police station where Patrick Faber was detained. Alfonso Noble followed them. He joins us with live with this interview with Faber's attorney Dean Barrow.
Alfonso Noble,
Mr. Barrow can you tell us what is the situation is right now inside the police station as you know the charges being laid against Mr. Faber?
Dean Barrow, Patrick Faber's Attorney
"Two counts of aggravated assault. I was told by the Commissioner of Police that he will consider granting him bail tonight."
Alfonso Noble,
Mr. Barrow considering all things is this something you would have expected to happen right in the center of power Belmopan?
Dean Barrow,
"Not at all. Patrick who I saw and spoke to at some length said that he was trying to get into what was a public forum and the police insisted that he would not be allowed into the public forum. It is a public forum, he is an area representative, a member of the House. I don't understand why the police would in those circumstances do something to inflame tensions further, why they would have denied legitimate entry into that public forum."
Alfonso Noble,
Now all things considered were Mr. Faber's actions testy, was he testing the Police Department in his resolve to get into this public forum, as you describe it?
Dean Barrow,
"I think he was and I don't think he'll make any apologies for that. He is saying look this is a public forum, I am, any citizen, an ordinary citizen is allowed to attend a public forum, I am an area representative you should not deny anyone, you should in particular not deny me; I am going to insist on vindicating my rights."
Alfonso Noble,
Now what is Mr. Faber's faith as far as you know?
Dean Barrow,
"Well I believed by the time left I got further alert that Westby had sent a message that he made up his mind and that he would be granting him bail tonight. What will then happen is that in any event he would have to return to Belmopan tomorrow morning to be arraigned in the Magistrate's Court. I will be back up here with him at that time."
