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Referendum Act Going Through Changes, Is It To Appease The Guats?
Thu, January 12, 2017
Tomorrow, the House of Representatives will be meeting to debate and vote on a change to the Referendum Act. The change would reduce the percentage of voters needed to validate a referendum from 60% to 50%. This change means that national issues that go to referendum, such as taking the Belize and Guatemala border dispute to the CCJ, would require a lower threshold of voter participation to pass.

The government has been criticized for the change, with some saying that it is a move to appease Guatemala, which has the same threshold. We spoke to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Wilfred Elrington, who told us the government's reason for the change...

Alex Courtenay, 7News
"Minister, tomorrow the house will be meeting to pass the new referendum act that will reduce the threshold needed for a referendum to be able to be passed. Is that something that has come as maybe as a show of faith or good faith towards the Guatemalans that we are lowering our threshold to almost match theirs and other international standards?"

Hon. Wilfred Elrington, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"No, actually the decision to go referendum was made from the time we were under the colonial rule. The British, the Americans, the Australians, the Canadians, all have a 50 percent plus 1 as the threshold. We have changed that when we got into power in 2008, not having the Guatemala issuing the contemplation at all. That was not the best decision that we made and we are seeking to reverse it. But every country in the world who our type of system and government have the 50 percent plus 1, Guatemalans as well so it's no different. It was not done for them, but it was done for them because we recognize that it is the international best practice and we want to comport with what is the international best practice. I heard a fellow was suggesting today on the radio that they intervene, in extent so that in fact that we have 2 thresholds; 1 for the Guatemalans this year and 1 for other issues, that is not so. When we amend it, it's going to be 1 threshold for whatever issue that is raised at the level of a referendum."

Reporter
"The Belize territorial volunteers will be staging a protest outside the house tomorrow and its first meeting for 2017. Do you believe that that process is justifiable?"

Hon. Wilfred Elrington, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"No, I wouldn't say that it is not justifiable. We have a free country, people are free to protest and greatly and truly the fact that they have an interest in the country and expressing that interest, it's healthy. So I have no difficulty with them protesting at all."

Reporter
"Giving that this referendum act, the amendment is heating up recently, has the education campaign began? If not when will it begin?"

Hon. Wilfred Elrington, Minister of Foreign Affairs
"I think when we finish our activities tomorrow will be a better position to start the deal with the education campaign in a more robust way, but we have never stop doing the education campaign in a matter of fact, last month and a month before I personally conducted at least 3 sessions within a short period of about 3 weeks. I hoped the comments in doing so almost immediately now and all over the country, while I have done so myself, the referendum unit have gone north, south, east and west but we can enhance that and we plan to do that right after the house meeting tomorrow when the amendment passes."

The legislation was introduced at the last house sitting in December and will be debated and voted on tomorrow when it goes for it's second and third readings. We'll show you how that went in tomorrow night's news.

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