Wil Maheia and his Belize Territorial Volunteers are going to clear the border on Saturday - and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made it clear, they're on their own.
That's because Belize's Foreign Minister has said they are threading on dangerous ground and face the possibility of getting arrested. Additionally, the Guatemalans have sent a diplomatic note to Belize's Ministry of Foreign Affairs warning that such an initiative will only exacerbate border tensions.
Foreign Affairs Minister Wilfred Elrington has already publicly warned against the initiative due to its risk of causing a border incident, but as we showed you, Maheia is unfazed and leaning on what he calls overwhelming support from the Belizean public.
Today, Elrington was at another function, and 7News got a chance to ask him in person if his Ministry will accept Maheia's public invitation to accompany them to see first-hand that they don't intend to cause friction with Guatemala.
Here's how he responded:
Hon. Wilfred "Sedi" Elrington - Minister of Foreign Affairs
"The Government will not accompany him. The Government is advising that it's a dangerous initiative, and certainly, the Government is not going to do anything that could jeopardize the lives of its citzens, whether they are officials or other citizens."
Daniel Ortiz
"But, isn't this a confidence building exercise for the Belizean people exercising their nationalism?"
Hon. Wilfred Elrington
"I do not know how you could regard it as a confidence building measure. As I say to people, the British were here from 1948, when they brought their troops because of the potential danger they saw coming to Belize from Guatemala. So, they stationed troops here from 1948 until 1991, and they were here during all that time. They never once attempted anything like what is being attempted by Mr. Maheia. Bear in mind, that up until 1981, the country belong to the British; it was theirs, and the border situation existed just as it exists today. They did not think it prudent to take such a step. We tend to subcribe to the view of the British that it is not prudent to do that. I don't think that there is any reasonable-thinking Belizean who would not want to have such a demarkation. Everybody would want to have it because it would make life so much easier. The problem is that you have contiguous countries, you can't make a demarkation without the concurrence of the other side, and the Guatemalan's have been resisting doing that. And that's the only reason why it has not been done."
Reporter
"Can you tell us that if these - because it surely seems that Wil Maheia will continue to go ahead with the border clearing, if they are arrested by Guatemalans, is it the opinion of the Ministry that they're washing their hands, that nothing will be done or couldn't be done to get them out?"
Hon, Wilfred Elrington
"No, certainly not, as a matter of fact, it is because of this issue, that we are so concerned. When Belizeans go across the border, whether it is Mexico, or Guatemala, and get into trouble, the most we can do is give them assistance through our embassies, help them to find a lawyer, help to educate them as to the legal process over that side. That is as much as we can do. We can't do anything else to get them out. If we tell you, and you still want to go and do it, that's your business, but it is not reasonable for you to decide that you are still going to go, and ask our poor soldiers now to go and risk their lives to get you out of a problem which you invited and brought upon yourself. It's not reasonable."
The initiative starts on Saturday morning at Jalacte, and 7news will be there.
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