It's a newspaper that sports more pseudonyms than Penthouse Forum, and that's why it caught our eye today when on page three of The Belize Times, Tourism Minister Godfrey Smith debuted and signed his name to what we gather is a new weekly column called flashpoint. And for openers, he's not being shy. Dubbed "The Wall", the article deals with the most controversial subject in the tourism sector: that fence, or as he calls it, "the wall" at the Fort Street Tourism Village.
Smith says, "I would have to come down squarely in favour of maintaining the wall." That's a bold statement, especially in view of the fact that it appears to be the government's position that the fence must come down. We say "government's position" because first, John Briceno's Natural Resources Ministry is aggressively leading the charge to bring it down, and second, because the Opposition Leader has gone on record to say that government would, in the interest of the Prime Minister's brother, like to see the other wall, the one with the Brown Sugar Marketplace, also come down.
But Smith makes it clear that his position is based squarely on the fact that the Tourism Village is recognized as an international port by the U.S. Coast Guard, which it must be to operate as a cruise ship port. He also stresses that there are warranties his own government made to Royal Caribbean Cruise Line when it bought the village from Mike Feinstein. Those warranties extended to the dock and the fence. He also warns that if the wall is brought down, it could force a Royal Caribbean pullout from Belize.
And while that opinion may not be government's position, it's the only Cabinet level declaration on the dispute thus far, so the Tourism Minister's opinion, bears some authority. And while it may cause some Cabinet queasiness, it won't factor in the courts, where an initial hearing before Justice Awich will commence next week Wednesday.
