Office of the Prime Minister
URGENT TO ALL EDITORS
Belmopan - 25 February, 2000.
The Government of Belize has protested the illegal incursion of a Guatemalan patrol into Belizean territory which occurred on Thursday, February 24th 2000 near the Treetops Border Post south southwest of Jalacte Village in the Toledo District, and has called for the immediate release of three Belize Defence Force soldiers and one Police Officer illegally held by the Guatemalan authorities.
A joint Belize Defence Force/Police border team consisting of Second Lieutenant Romaldo Herrera, Lance Corporal Lucio Arana, Private Luciano Tzub and Police Constable Macedonio Sanchez reported that about 10:00 a.m. Thursday morning, February 24th, they were being escorted by about twenty-five (25) Guatemalan army personnel across the border into Santa Cruz Village, Guatemala, ostensibly to verify the location where the encounter took place.
Reports now are that they have been transferred to San Luis, Peten, and that the Guatemalan Government has indicated an intention to have them charged with illegal entry and possession of prohibited firearms.
The Commandant, Belize Defence Force, has been in communication with the Chief of Staff of the Guatemalan army pointing out that the Belizean officers were clearly within Belizean territory, according to the GPS grid position when the encounter took place.
This morning Prime Minister Said Musa called the office of the President of Guatemala requesting the immediate release of the Belizean officers and protesting the incursion of the Guatemalan patrol into Belizean territory.
This latest incident comes on the eve of a technical meeting between Belize and Guatemala which was to take place today in Miami. The timing cannot be a matter of coincidence. It has resulted, unfortunately, with the Belize government left with no alternative but to suspend the talks pending the release of our officers.
Belize�s Head of Delegation at the Miami meeting, David Gibson, Permanent Secretary Foreign Affairs, met today with the head of the Guatemalan delegation, Vice Minister Antonio Castellanos, and informed him of the Belize government�s decision to suspend the talks because of the grave act committed by the Guatemalan armed forces.
The Vice-Minister was handed a location map by P.S. Gibson showing grid coordinates clearly establishing that the action of the Guatemalan armed forces had occurred in Belize on a route regularly patrolled by the B.D.F.
It was agreed that communications be maintained in order to expedite the release of the detainees. It was also agreed that urgent measures should be taken to defuse tensions in the border area where the incident occurred.
Prime Minister Musa and National Security Minister Jorge Espat today briefed the British High Commissioner and other senior military officers of the United Kingdom government. Representatives of the Mexican and United States Governments have also been briefed on the situation.
Belize�s Foreign Ministry continue diplomatic efforts to secure the release of our security personnel as soon as possible, and have demanded assurances for the safety and welfare of the officers. The families of the officers have been informed of the situation by their respective headquarters and will be kept fully informed of developments.
The Prime Minister has called a Press Conference for 11:00 a.m. tomorrow, Saturday, February 26th 2000, at the Radisson Fort George Hotel to discuss issues related to this latest development.
For further information contact:
Robert Leslie
Cabinet Secretary
Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
*************************************************************************************** Additional Report by: Channel5BelizeNews.com
At news time tonight, three members of the Belize Defense Force and a Belizean Police Officer are still being held by Guatemalan authorities. Technical talks in Miami between the two countries have been suspended until their release. Sources inside the BDF tell News Five that around 10:00 yesterday morning, a Belizean border patrol, consisting of Second Lieutenant Romaldo Herrera, Lance Corporal Lucio Arana, Private Luciano Tzub and Police Constable Macedonio Sanchez, were in an area somewhere between the Treetops Observations Post, south of Jalacte Village, and San Vincente Village in the Toledo District. According to our source, the patrol was about a quarter mile inside the Belizean border when they were surrounded and held at gunpoint by an estimated twenty-five officers of the Guatemalan Army. The soldiers claimed that were in Guatemalan territory. It is assumed that the Belizean patrol was disarmed at that point. Our source says the BDF patrol marked the spot where the incident occurred using the Global Positioning System (GPS) and was then escorted to a base in Military Zone 23 in Guatemala. The patrol was able to use their communication device to call Treetops to inform them of what was happening. A press release, issued around 8:30 last night from the BDF, says the BDF/Police patrol agreed to go with the Guatemalan army to quote "prevent an incident that could have led to the loss of life." Talks between Belizean and Guatemalan military officials began immediately. The Belizeans spent the night in a Guatemalan Detention Center and according to our source, they have indicated they are being treated humanely. Senior military commanders and survey technicians from both Belize and Guatemala have met at the border in Santa Cruz, Guatemala, to verify exactly where the incident took place. The team's findings have not yet been released to the press. However, the Guatemalan version of what happened is quite different. Prensa Libre is reporting that at a press conference held last night in Guatemala City, the Guatemalan Police Public Relations Officer, Gerson Lopez, said the Belizeans were captured about two and a half miles inside Guatemalan territory near the village of San Francisco, Peten. Reports are it is Guatemala's intention to charge the Belizean soldiers with illegal entry and possession of prohibited firearms. Today a press release from The Office of the Prime Minister Said Musa says he has requested that the Guatemalan President, Alfonso Portillo, release the Belizean officers immediately. He has also filed a formal protest about the Guatemalan soldiers crossing into Belizean territory. Belizean and Guatemalan diplomats were supposed to meet today in Miami for "technical meetings," which were a prelude to higher level, head of government, meetings on the dispute later, but Belize has suspended the talks until the soldiers are released. The opposition, the United Democratic Party has issued a statement expressing solidarity with the BDF and the Police Department as well as the families of the captured men. The UDP says they are ready to lobby for international support to get the men home. The Prime Minister is holding a press conference tomorrow, Saturday, at 11:00am at the Radisson Fort George to discuss this incident. At this time it is uncertain when the detained Belizean officers will be returning home.