And, for many, a Belizean birthright is more essential than any passport - and, to some, that means the right to own a piece of land. It's a troublesome proposition since there is simply not enough available land in these 8,867 square miles for everyone to own a piece of the jewel.
And that's why, as we showed you yesterday, some bold PUP supporters from Toledo East are clearing out crown lands without getting prior approval from the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Reports suggest that land may even fall within the Deep River reserve - which is a whole other level of trouble. But, undaunted, the cleared the land yesterday in Toledo - and we look again at the overall message - which sends many serious signals from a divided south:
"Actually I gone da lands last three weeks, they told me to locate because I want a lee farm land because so much thing is there to do, agriculture is the way. So, I gone da lands, apply for a farm land and hear what they tell me right, locate piece, so we locate piece. So we're here working the government can't say no land no deh, so this is the farm that we just gone apply for."
Nigel Petillo - Land Activist
"And soh while the minister came to this community and mention to them, alright make we find the land, if its reserve, de-reserve it for them and on the next side of the highway, we understand this is reserved land right, so the idea here now is to ask the government to de-reserve this if that is the case, so we come find land."
But, have they found it inside a reserve? Petillo alluded to one - but PUP political operator Enfield Moreira says it's about reserving something for his people in an increasingly divided Toledo District:
Enfield Moreira - PUP Toledo East
"And I realize most of our young black brothers in Punta Gorda Town and surrounding areas, no have no where to go, when you do go to the lands office, they push around, no more land. The Hon. Cordel Hyde mentioned to us, he will find land, but when? He always the say it, I support Cordel and I still support my party however my people come first at the end of the day. We noh di bawl fi communal land like my Mayan people. Soh we decide we gwen do something, we find out they have a lot of land around weh di idle. The white man come in this country and you know a lot of then will, come in this country without a dollar and come say we have money and they hurry give them a thousand acres, they turn around and sell it and go out of this country, so what is hard for them to give one of these young people here 5 and 10 acres? We could turn this into a coconut farm and produce coconut, the mill is not far from here. Soh we need fi start to get serious and if I have to die for something, I will die for what I'm doing."
